The Donkey Stole My Joy !

The donkey stole my joy!

“But He answered and said to them, “I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out.” Luke 19:40

How can stones cry out? They have no life. So how can Jesus think that if the crowd is silent that the stones will cry out?

Jesus enters the city and the crowds are crying out their praises to Him. The Pharisees tell him to make the people stop blessing him as a king. He answers with the above statement. On Palm Sunday as Christ rode in on a young donkey, the people, at that moment, recognized His sovereignty and shouted Hosanna! Hosanna!

Now imagine if you will, that Christ and His disciples come into the city, and the crowds are gathered, but they are silent for the Pharisees have done their own crowd control, knowing what a spectacle this man that called himself Jesus would cause. The twelve disciples are stealing glances about the crowd and at one another, looking to see what Jesus will do. There is a feeling of discord in the crowd. They begin to grow restless as the donkey slowly makes his way into the city. You can hear the occasional clipping of the hoofs and see the puffs of dust as his hoofs strike the ground.

The donkey begins to move a little faster, and the clipping becomes louder. He strikes his hoof on a stone, and the sound rings into the silence. The donkey's lumbering pace is quickly turning into a trot. Moreover, he seems to be intent on striking every stone as he moves through the silent crowd. Before long, the donkey is prancing among the stones. The sound from the stones is musical. In the silence, they seem to be shouting out. This little donkey, a beast of burden, is prancing and full of joy. He is making the very stones shout out praises to Jesus. The crowd stirs, yet they remain silent for fear of the Pharisees. Behold a little donkey came prancing along the city street and stole the joy of praising and shouting Hosanna! Hosanna!

Do not let the donkey steal your joy. Do not let the stones shout out your praises. Raise your voice. Lift your hands, and shout unto the Lord. Praise Him. Feel the joy that is in the Lord. Be like the crowd on Palm Sunday. Sing Hosannas to the Lord, for He is sovereign.