Donkeys are notoriously stubborn! Or, as one donkey psychologist suggested, a donkey’s natural reaction is to freeze when they sense danger, and then wait to assess the situation! So, they’re not really stubborn, just careful!
On Palm Sunday two thousand years or so ago, it was time for Jesus to enter Jerusalem as King. So, he arranged for a donkey to fulfil the ancient prophecy of Zechariah:
“See, your king comes to you, righteous and having salvation,
gentle and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.”1
The Lord Needs It!
“Go to the village ahead of you, and as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ tell him, ‘The Lord needs it.'”
And someone does challenge the disciples as they are getting the donkey.
“What are you doing, untying that donkey? He isn’t yours!”
“The Lord needs him,” they say, and then, unhindered, they untie the colt and bring it to Jesus, who mounts the young, previously unridden colt (rather him than me) and rides him into Jerusalem.
In doing so, Jesus fulfils prophecy, and sets off a sequence of events that end, not in a gruesome crucifixion on Friday, but, as the story unfolds, in a glorious resurrection early the following Sunday morning.
The words the disciples are given to say should their assignment be questioned: “The Lord needs it.”
First, the disciples need to calm the owners, then the young donkey itself. “The Lord needs it.” Those words are enough.
Does the Lord Really Need Me?
Sometimes I’ve wondered if the Lord really needs me. What difference do I make to the Lord, among all the billions of people on the earth? And the philosopher in me wonders how a truly omnipotent God could ever need anything or anybody?
Jesus needed a particular donkey that day, one that was unridden, unbroken. God’s purposes forever set apart this particular donkey as the one the Lord uses. Maybe, later, the owners put up a sign on their fence:
“Jesus of Nazareth rode on this very donkey!”
Why this particular donkey? Why on this particular day? We don’t know.
The question for us is not so much, do I believe? But, will I give myself to God unreservedly, however God needs to use me? However untried I am? It’s easy to resist like a young, fearful, stubborn donkey. I refused at several fences!
And yet… the Lord does need me. That sounds boastful! But it’s true. Jesus called for me to be available whenever and wherever he wants to use me.
Once I was a bit like a donkey, unbroken, skittish and stubborn! But as I became comfortable and confident in the abilities of my ‘Master’, I began to enjoy our rides, our adventures out. I even looked forward to them. To be needed, even (sometimes especially) out of my comfort zone, and used by my Master is an amazing privilege!
The Lord Needs You!
And Jesus needs you. He’s calling you for his purposes. Are you willing? Are the words, “The Lord needs it,” enough for you? Or will you be so fearful that you freeze and refuse to move.
Relax, Jesus knows how to calm you, how to use you in ways that will forever mark your life with glory. Relax, let Jesus take the rope, without drama. It’ll be okay!
The story of Easter begins with a wonderful ‘word’: “The Lord needs it.”
Dear friends, the Lord needs you! Say, “Yes.”
Rev Janine