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Kristen Terrette
Published in Daybreak Devotions and Nighttime Prayers
avatarKristen Terrette3 min read  

Our Humble Jesus on Palm Sunday


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“The next day the large crowd that had come to the feast heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem. So they took branches of palm trees and went out to meet him, crying out, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!’ And Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written,

‘Fear not, daughter of Zion;
behold, your king is coming,
    sitting on a donkey's colt!’”

-- John 12:12-15 (ESV)

 I live on 40 acres in rural Georgia. Every day, I get to enjoy wildlife and livestock—cows, chickens, horses, and… donkeys.

 A family of donkeys, actually.

They live on the property beside ours, and having never been around donkeys before, I was struck by how small they are. I’ve mistaken them for deer many times. Next to horses, these donkeys would look like their foals or colts.

And this reminds me of the first Palm Sunday leading up to the first Easter. The Bible tells us that in preparation of Passover and mere days before Jesus’ crucifixion, our Messiah rode into Jerusalem on the colt of a donkey, fulfilling the prophecy in Zechariah 9:9 (ESV) saying, “'Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion! Shout aloud, O daughter of Jerusalem! Behold, your king is coming to you; righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.'"

A donkey’s colt! So, the young offspring of a donkey!

I can imagine Jesus easily swinging His leg over to ride this donkey colt into town. No helpful hoist was needed there. Picture it, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Messiah, entering the city not atop a regal horse which would have been reserved for a king, but humbly riding on a small animal. I, personally, think He did this to be closer to His people (us!), to be on their eye level while He passed them by as they honored Him, throwing palm branches on the road for the donkey to tread over. Jesus wanted to be near those (us!) whom He loved so much that He would give His life a few days later. All so they (we!) could spend eternity with Him.  

This year, as we arrive at Palm Sunday and look to the joy of Easter's Resurrection, think about the donkey colt our Savior sat atop to fulfill a prophecy, to be eye-level with us, and to enter into a city He knew would crucify Him by the end of the week. All so He could save us.

That is our Jesus. Our Hosanna!

And like those people 2,000 years ago who crowded the streets to meet Him, let’s shout today, “Hosanna! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!” (Zechariah 9:9, ESV)

He deserves it. He deserves it all. Thank you, Jesus, for your humility and great love for us.


Question for Reflection:

1. What is your favorite memory of Palm Sunday as a child?

2. Why is it significant that Jesus chose to ride into Jerusalem on a donkey's colt rather than a regal horse?

3. Take time today to thank Jesus for His humility and great love for us.

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    Kristen Terrette

    With a background in early childhood education and a Master’s in Theology, Kristen served as a children’s ministry director and women’s leader for many years before returning to her first love—writing the stories playing out in her head. She dove into the publishing world eleven years ago writing numerous articles and devotionals for ministries like Crosswalk, iBelieve, and Wholly Loved, as well as having five novels traditionally published in the Romance and Young Adult genres. After managing an international ministry’s blog and a Christian publishing house’s social media, she found herself as an intern at the esteemed literary agency, Writers House, in the summer of 2022. This landed her a job with Martin Literary Management where she now takes on author clients of her own. Stories are her thing and authors are her people. When not on her computer writing, editing, emailing, or with her nose in a book, you can find her getting a little too loud from the sidelines of a kids’ basketball game. She’s also a recent transplant to rural Georgia where she thrives on jogging her forty acres terribly, drinking coffee while birdwatching, and daydreaming of new book characters, plotlines, and making her client’s dreams come true (which are her dreams as well). You can check her out at: www.kristenterrette.com

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