July 16, 2026 · Mark Bishop
The Donkey’s Message
“And when he had said these things, he went on ahead, going up to Jerusalem. When he drew near to Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, he sent two of the disciples, saying, “Go into the village in front of you, where on entering you will find a colt tied, on which no one has ever yet sat. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, ‘Why are you untying it?’ you shall say this: ‘The Lord has need of it.’” So those who were sent went away and found it just as he had told them. And as they were untying the colt, its owners said to them, “Why are you untying the colt?” And they said, “The Lord has need of it.” And they brought it to Jesus, and throwing their cloaks on the colt, they set Jesus on it. And as he rode along, they spread their cloaks on the road. As he was drawing near— already on the way down the Mount of Olives—the whole multitude of his disciples began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for all the mighty works that they had seen, saying, “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!””
Luke 19:28-38 →
## The Donkey
Take a minute and do a search on facts about donkeys. It may not have been a search you thought about doing recently, but you may learn something. One fact you will probably end up reading is when training one, they need to trust you. According to Habitat For Horses website 1, "Donkeys are more independent in their thinking than horses and will reason, then make decisions based on their safety. Training a donkey relies upon showing him or her, by words and action, that they can trust you to protect them from harm. They learn what it is we want them to do if we take time to show them." Jesus tells the disciples to go to a specific place and they will find a specific donkey that will take Him into Jerusalem. If anyone asks, then they were to tell them it is the Lord who needs it. The
https://www.habitatforhorses.org/interesting-donkey-facts/
interesting thing to note here is the owners know about Jesus or are actual believers in Him being the Messiah. The donkey hasn't been ridden on, which is also interesting. The donkey wasn't spoiled by previous use or ridden for an unworthy cause but appears to have been set apart for a King's entrance. If you go back to Numbers 22, there is a familiar story between Balaam and his donkey. Balaam was a pagan prophet that was greedy and dabbled in dark magic. King Balak of Moab was fearful of the Israelites, so he enlisted Balaam to curse Israel. Knowing the prophet's intentions, God stopped Balam by allowing his donkey to see an angel. Through a series of events God allowed him to go to Balak, but warned him to only do and say what He told him to. Balam, a “prophet”, was riding a donkey to curse Israel. Now we fast forward to this moment, and Jesus, “more than a prophet”, rides a donkey to be the Blessed One Israel has been waiting for.
## Self-Check
God used a donkey to carry out His message, or messenger. It wasn't expected. He often uses things in our lives to carry out what He wants to say. C.S. Lewis wrote in The Problem of Pain, "Pain insists upon being attended to. God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our consciences, but shouts in our pains. It is his megaphone to rouse a deaf world.” God wants to speak to us, but we just have to have our eyes and ears open.
## If They Could Talk