Untie Your Donkey

Jesus was about to make his triumphant entry into Jerusalem. He and the 12 disciples were were at Bethphage on the Mount of Olives. Jesus sent two disciples with these instructions, Go over to the village across from you. You’ll find a donkey tethered there, her colt with her. Untie her and bring them to me. If anyone asks what you’re doing, say, The Master needs them! He will send them with you. The disciples went and did exactly what Jesus told them to do. They led the donkey and colt out, laid some of their clothes on the donkey, and Jesus rode the donkey. Nearly all the people in the crowd threw their garments down on the road, giving him a royal welcome.

 Matthew 21: 1-3 CSB When they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage at the Mount of Olives, Jesus then sent two disciples, telling them, Go into the village ahead of you. At once you will find a donkey tied there with her colt. Untie them and bring them to me.

The bible is filled with stories of people that gave up their worldly possessions in order to glorify Jesus. Mary took a pound of costly, pure nard perfume, anointed Jesus' feet, and wiped them with her hair. The perfume was worth over 300 denarii, representing a typical laborer's wages for an entire year. John chapter 6 verses 1 thru 15, tells of a young boy who offered his small meal of five barley loaves and two fish to Jesus. Jesus multiplied this meager offering to feed over 5,000 hungry people, leaving twelve baskets of leftovers. Jesus observed a poor widow putting two small copper coins, worth only a few cents, into the temple treasury, noting she gave more than the wealthy because she gave all she had, while they gave from their surplus.

Luke 21: 1-4 CSB He looked up and saw the rich dropping their offerings into the temple treasury. He also saw a poor widow dropping in two tiny coins. Truly I tell you, he said, this poor widow has put in more than all of them. For all these people have put in gifts out of their surplus, but she out of her poverty has put in all she had to live on.

There are several things that the story of the widow’s mite teaches us. First, God sees what man overlooks. The big gifts in the temple were noticed by everyone; that’s probably what the disciples were watching. But Jesus saw what no one else did, He saw the humble gift of a poor widow. This was the gift that Jesus thought worthy of comment, this was the gift that the disciples needed to be aware of. The other gifts in the treasury that day made a lot of noise as they jingled into the receptacles, but the widow’s mites were heard in heaven. Giving in faith is an act of trust, that God is our ultimate provider, not our bank account. It is easy to trust God when the bank account is full. But what happens when resources are tight? Giving in faith isn't about giving from abundance; it is about giving out of trust, when things look scarce. It is a declaration that our security comes from God, not from money. We don’t know the details of this particular widow’s future, but we can be certain that she was provided for. In the story of Jesus’ triumphal entry into Jerusalem, we see how God uses the simple, the humble, and the available to accomplish something divine. At first glance, it’s just transportation, Jesus needs a ride. But this donkey is loaded with meaning. In that culture, a donkey symbolized humility and peace, not power. It wasn’t majestic, like a warhorse. It was common, overlooked and lowly. Yet it’s exactly what Jesus chose. So what is the donkey in your life that God has asked you to untie, to let go of? Your career, your dreams, your past, surely it is not your bank account? When we surrender everything, God does the miraculous. One man’s yes, made his