Red Letter Bible Study--Matthew 21:1-11 (Jesus rides into Jerusalem on a donkey)

 Matthew 21:1-11; Mark 11:1-11; Luke 19:28-44; John 12:12-19

There is a crowd following Jesus, like always. John 12:12-19 doesn't actually contain any Red Letters, but it fills out the story by telling us the main reason this crowd is following Jesus is because they heard that Jesus had raised Lazarus from the dead.  There was also a large crowd coming into Jerusalem for the Passover.  This triumphal entry happens about 5 days before Passover (John 12:1 says "6 days before Passover", then verse 12 says "the next day").  Zechariah is the prophet quoted.  (Zechariah 9:9) 

Jesus is deliberately fulfilling the prophecy spoken by Zechariah.  He gives the disciples detailed instructions, which they follow without knowing exactly why.  Jesus rides on the donkey, which had never been ridden before (which probably explains why there were two donkeys in the Matthew account.  If the foal was young enough to have never been ridden, it follows that it would have been with its mother).  The crowd following before Him and behind Him are lining the streets with their coats and branches from trees.  They were praising God and shouting "Hosanna" which is a shout of happiness that means Save us Please!  They were welcoming Jesus as a Hero, and so He was and so He is.  

This scene is easy to visualize, thanks to everything from flannelgraph scenes in Sunday School to modern day epic movies on the life of Christ.  Palm branches and Hosanna are the essence of Palm Sunday.  Jesus riding on this baby donkey is way less than we think Jesus deserves, but it's exactly how He planned for it to happen from the beginning of time. The nameless owners of the donkey challenge me.  Strangers come up and start untying the colt, their property.  When the disciples are confronted, they don't try to explain everything (they couldn't because they didn't even know why they were doing it!) but they just said what Jesus told them to say.  And just like that, they let them take it!  The text doesn't lead us to think there was any argument or altercation, just permission. This donkey, generously given, carried Jesus through the crowd.  I am sad to announce I am not so blindly generous with what is "mine".   If someone walked up to me and said "The Lord has need of this", I would more likely require a whole list of proof.  But what if I held my possessions so loosely that everything was ready and waiting should the Lord require it? What if my only goal was to see Jesus lifted up?  When Jesus was told to quiet the crowd, He replied, "I tell you, if these were silent, the very stones would cry out."  My goal is to give generously of my possessions and my praise, so the rocks won't be required.  💗