Zechariah 9:9
Royalty travels in luxury. That’s just the way it works. Presidents and rulers have drivers, they fly on private planes, and they are escorted from one place to another in style. That’s the way it is – and that’s the way it has been. So, when Jesus called for a donkey as his vehicle for entering Jerusalem, the crowd must have been a bit taken aback. Sure, donkeys had been used by kings previously, but only when they wanted to make a very specific point.
The prophet Zechariah helps us understand the point Jesus is declaring as he’s carried in Jerusalem on the back of a colt. He wrote,
“Behold, your king is coming to you;
righteous and having salvation is he,
humble and mounted on a donkey,
on a coly, the foal of a donkey.” (Zechariah 9:9)
HUMBLE. That’s the point. He comes in peace and for peace. A king on a donkey was akin to waving a white flag. He’s not going to pick up the sword and slay the Romans and he’s not going to overthrow Pilate. He’s going after bigger enemies – and he’s fighting the battle on an entirely different playing field; but in so doing, he’s not going to be the king the people are clamoring for.
Jesus is the Donkey King in a world built on horses, bloodshed, and dominance. He came into a warzone and instead of carrying a sword, he picked up a cross. Most of us who follow Jesus can look back on the Triumphal Entry and appreciate what Jesus did. We know the end of the story and that Jesus enters in peace to die for the sins of humanity.
However, what if he enters your life in the same way? I don’t know about you, but I want a God who’s going to come and defeat all my enemies for me. I want to paint the proverbial John 3:16 eye-black under my eyes knowing that God helps ME WIN. I want a God who convinces my wife that I’m right, my co-workers that my ideas are best, who makes my investments flourish, and who makes my endeavors prosper. What if he doesn’t come to help you “win” in the way you want him to? What if he still comes to defeat your bigger enemies?
Jesus is still the “Donkey King” and that means he still comes humbly – in peace and for peace. That’s the way he entered Jerusalem, and that’s the way he enters our lives as well. Can you receive this unexpected King? Take a moment and ask Jesus to open your eyes to the ways he is coming to you today.
Pastor Ryan Paulson