Inside the Donkey is a Mighty Stallion

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Some people might call that last week before His death, the beginning of the end for Jesus. In fact, it was more like the beginning of the beginning. Beyond the cross lay a whole new life, exemplified by the Lord Himself when He came back from among the dead.

Here, in Matthew 21, we have described for us the Lord's entrance into the City of Jerusalem at the beginning of that last week. Traditionally, we call it the "triumphal entry" though riding in on a donkey and having the path strewn with tree branches and cloaks somehow doesn't quite compare to say, Queen Elizabeth riding in state in her golden carriage on the way back from her coronation. And the Lord's fans turned out to be a whole lot more fickle than the Queen's have been.

But if I'd been that donkey... If I'd been able; dull, stubborn creature than I am as that donkey, to articulate what I knew, how I felt, even the Queen's majestic procession would have paled in comparison. The rough cloaks turn to silken banners, the tree branches to fans of rare bird feathers encrusted with jewels. The shouts of the crowd, "Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!" (Matthew 21:9) turn into: "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty, who was, and is, and is to come...Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain, to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and praise!" (Revelation 4:8; 5:12).

I'm just a donkey, but I feel like the noblest steed in the world because of the One who I am privileged to carry on this journey.

Isn't that a good attitude for all of us who believe in Jesus, who carry Him in our hearts, who allow Him to transform us day by day as we walk with Him? We are just simple, dull, stubborn donkeys, but His presence and His power make us grand, and change our perspective on our circumstances and how we think about ourselves.

And to add to the wonder of it all, Matthew tells us that the Lord not only chose a donkey, but "...a colt, the foal of a donkey" (21:5), reminding us of the truth of Paul's words in 1 Corinthians 1: "God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. God chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and the things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him. It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption. Therefore, as it is written: 'Let the one who boasts boast in the Lord.'" (27-31).

The mighty, majesty steed rides within the soul of a lowly donkey, all because of the One who is carried in that simple donkey's heart.