If Jesus appeared on a donkey today, what would you want him to do?
By Daelee Tracy*
My husband and I used to live near a donkey that grazed on acres of grass across from the entrance of our neighborhood. He was a bit homely by himself. He didn’t look like a magnificent horse at my parent’s farm whose mane, tail, and coat had been groomed. Instead, his fur often looked bare in some places with a knotted mane and tail. This donkey frequently reminded me of Jesus riding a wild donkey into the city of Jerusalem (John 12:12-16).
Why a donkey?
What is so triumphal about Jesus entering Jerusalem on a donkey that no one had ever ridden? Wouldn’t riding on a beautiful, black stallion have made more of a statement than riding in on a dull donkey?
Photo by ts-sergey at Unsplash
In today’s society, it isn’t difficult to see that horses are more favored than donkeys. Those who don’t have the opportunity to hop on a horse’s back every day like I do are sure to post social media pictures of themselves if they get the opportunity to ride one. However, you don’t see many people posting photos of themselves upon a donkey. Being on a donkey’s back doesn’t display the same status or style as being on a horse’s back.
It was the same in Jesus’ day. Horses exhibit power, strength, stamina, and freedom. Horses were animals of war. When a king entered a city on a horse, his entrance symbolized that the king was going to conquer the nation.
On the contrary, donkeys were humble animals symbolizing peace. No one thought of using donkeys against a foe in battles. If you’ve watched Shrek, you might picture donkeys as lonely, annoying, and a little cowardly. When a king entered a town on a donkey, it portrayed the arrival of peace.
Greeting a king
The crowd welcomed Jesus by spreading their cloaks and waving palm tree branches, which was the way a king was greeted in those days. It would be like rolling out the red carpet for a celebrity to walk down during the Oscars or the flower girl sprinkling petals down the aisle just ahead of the bride’s entrance.
The people also cried out “Hosanna,” which means “Save now.” They wanted a king that would lead their military to take on the Roman occupiers so the Jews could rule their own land. In other words, “Save us by establishing a military kingdom to drive out the Romans for our freedom.”
However, Jesus showed up on a donkey. This wasn’t what everyone was expecting, even though it had been prophesied in Zechariah (John 12:15; Zechariah 9:9). They were expecting the king to show up on a warhorse. Yet, Jesus didn’t bring the bravest and strongest military apparatus. Rather, he brought the strongest message that could pierce the hearts of the people. He built a kingdom that would last for eternity, not a temporary, worldly empire that could be defeated.
This is the first time Jesus presented himself as King. He came as the Prince of Peace. If you take a look at Jesus’ life before this, you can take note that he would command those he healed not to tell anyone of the miracle (for example, Mark 1:43-44). He didn’t want the publicity to distract the people from his purpose. Whenever word got out that he performed a miracle, he moved locations (Mark 1:45). He wanted people to value the message he was proclaiming more than the miracle he was performing.
What do we want?
Today, we can be like the large crowd that greeted Jesus. We welcome Jesus, waving our hands in worship to the God who saves, but we do not expect the Prince of Peace in our lives. We cry out “Hosanna” to deliver us from the evil around us, but we don’t expect the Prince of Peace to be in our midst and work through us to bring the good gospel to the hurting world. We desire God to restore our marriage, but we don’t expect the Refiner in our marriage. We pray for healing from cancer, depression, epilepsy, and other illnesses, but we don’t pray for the eyes of our hearts to be enlightened during adversity. We want the life-saving miracle more than the soul-saving message.
As we enter Passion week, who would you expect if you saw Jesus riding in on a donkey? Would you be waving palm tree branches to a King who was going to bring justice on earth or the Almighty King who would bring eternal justice? Would you expect him to be a King who saves us from our enemies or the Prince of Peace who prays for our enemies?
How can you prepare now on earth to see Jesus coming back?
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*Today’s guest columnist is Daelee Tracy, a Point University graduate with a dual major in Biblical studies and preaching ministry, serving currently as a real estate agent based in Peachtree City, Georgia. She enjoys horseback riding, woodworking, writing, and spending quality time with her husband.