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Purposeful Encounter Series: Rise From the Ash
“Brand New Donkey”
#TurksandCaicos, April 3, 2023 – Living on Grand Turk, you learn to have a love-hate relationship with donkeys. These quiet but stubborn animals often become a nuisance when they get into your property, or prance and chase each other across a busy street. But normally, donkeys are docile wandering fixtures on the landscape of
Being the main mode of transportation in Biblical times, the donkey works as a symbol of service, suffering, peace and humility. They are also associated with the theme of wisdom in the Old Testament story of the prophet Balaam’s donkey, but at no time was a donkey more divinely positioned than Jesus riding into Jerusalem.
Here we are again, another Palm Sunday. Our churches are decorated with fresh well-trimmed palm branches, splendid exhortations, glorious hymns and anthems, exuberant praise songs, and the retelling of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on the back of a brand-new donkey. But what does this event truly mean?
This occasion was the last mile of Jesus’ earthly journey. Jesus was going to Jerusalem for one singular purpose, and it was to be crucified. And despite the response His entrance would receive from the Pharisees who were plotting to kill Him, Jesus made sure His entrance was loud and visible (Luke 19:28-31).
Luke 19:37-38 reads, Then, as He was now drawing near the descent of the Mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works they had seen, saying: “‘Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord!’ Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”
Luke 19:39-40 reads, And some of the Pharisees called to Him from the crowd, “Teacher, rebuke Your disciples.” But He answered and said to them, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.”
The crowd praising Jesus made the religious leaders uneasy; it made them oppose the praise being offered. It made them know they were being defeated (John 12:19). Nothing tells Satan and his followers that they are defeated like the praises of God sounding in their ears. Satan loses when the people of God’s hearts and minds are loving Him.
When we come with the spirit to give true worship and praise to Jesus, He will not allow anyone to stop us. On this day, Jesus was going to be praised. For most of His ministry, Jesus did everything He could to dampen people from publicly celebrating Him as Messiah. Here Jesus invited public praise and adoration as Messiah.
The Bible speaks about it in a few places – trees, hills, oceans, rivers, mountains, valleys, cattle and creeping things, birds, fields and all of creation itself give praise to God (Psalm 19, 96:11-12 and 148:7-13). Yet the stones stayed silent on that day because all the people praised Jesus: the whole multitude of the disciples began to rejoice.
If we are merely seeking to use our church services today to reenact the this event, then we are not truly worshipping Jesus as our Messiah. We must be genuine and purposeful in our praise. As we reflect, we must put ourselves in the crowd on that day, look into His wonderful face and sing, Hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord! Amen!
By Chad Archbold