Zechariah 9:9 – “Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.“

A verse from the Bible that is very important to every believer. A picture of the royal messianic hope that will come, and of the glorious entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem on the Sunday before He is crucified, as seen and foretold by the prophets of the Old Testament. Jews and Christians may have different ideas about what today means to them, but they both want The One, the Messiah, the King of Kings, who will bring true peace!

But picture this: John 12 … Jesus keeps going toward Jerusalem and tells his followers to get the donkey that He will ride into the city. This was a pure-bred donkey (born to a female donkey and not a mule) that had never been ridden, according to Jesus’ instructions.

Why did he ride this? To show how humble He really is and to show He was not coming to fight, but to make peace. As He drew closer, all of Jesus’ disciples began praising God loudly and with joy. They were happy because they had seen so many signs and wonders from His hands. The signs and wonders He did helped them believe that He really was the Lord, and the donkey made them think of the peace He was bringing to everyone. It broke Jesus’ heart to know that the people of Jerusalem did not know that their Messiah was with them, so He cried. His image was hidden from their eyes and hearts, so He knew that their enemies would terrorize them for years to come. They did not “recognize the time of God’s coming to” them.

Jesus wept because the people missed the moment.

So … what about us? Do we truly know that our Messiah has already come?

It seems that we have in our hearts a desire to stay at war with anyone that does not speak, think or act like us. It seems that we have in our hearts a desire to reject, judge and renounce those who openly live in ways we don’t think is best. It seems that our greatest desire is to know we’re right! All of this is so very far from where our hearts and minds truly should be.

Knowing that our Messiah has come should bring our hearts to a place of humility as we remind ourselves of that donkey – as he humbled Himself as a servant of all, so should we. Our gratitude for salvation and His true love should drive our thoughts and actions each and every day. Our devotion to Him should be so real that we are actively living in and through Him each and every day.

In your relationships (or on social media), are you riding a horse of war and judgement, or the “donkey” of peace?

Knowing that our Messiah has come should bring our hearts to a place of reflection as we see Jesus’ passion. We should know what being a leader that brings Him glory looks like – not a person of worldly status but a person that leads in peace and as a servant leader. Our hearts should be so assured that we are eternally victorious that even times of devastation and destruction to not bring us to sadness. We should so desire to be faithful to Him that nothing moves us away!

Take a moment of silence: Where is God moving in your life right now that you have been too busy or too angry to notice?

Palm Sunday – I do pray that today, each of us will have in our minds the beauty and depth of life in and through our Savior, Jesus Christ. I’m asking Him to help each one of us delight ourselves in Him and let Him put into our hearts the desires that should be there – desires that are in line with His purpose for our lives. Praying that He will help us to be people of peace and humility, and not people desiring power and prestige. I’m asking Him to remind us to embrace those who don’t know Him in ways that help them desire His truth. May our “Hosannas” be more than just words – but total surrender to His peace. Amen.

John 12: 13 “Hosanna! ” “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!”