Daily Devotions
Matthew 21:1-11 – Now when they drew near to Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, to the Mount of Olives, then Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, “Go into the village in front of you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to Me. If anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ and he will send them at once.” This took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet, saying, “Say to the daughter of Zion, ‘Behold, your King is coming to you, humble, and mounted on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.'” The disciples went and did as Jesus had directed them. They brought the donkey and the colt and put on them their cloaks, and He sat on them. Most of the crowd spread their cloaks on the road, and others cut branches from the trees and spread them on the road. And the crowds that went before Him and that followed Him were shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!” And when He entered Jerusalem, the whole city was stirred up, saying, “Who is this?” And the crowds said, “This is the prophet Jesus, from Nazareth of Galilee.”
It’s really endearing of Jesus that He chose to borrow all His glory for this occasion. He needs something to ride into Jerusalem? There’s a young donkey that will do; ask the owner if I can borrow it. No saddle? Okay, may I borrow your cloaks to sit on? No red carpet—that’s okay, the crowd is laying their cloaks in the road. No trumpets, confetti, or flags to wave? Palm branches will do.
This cannot have been what Jesus was used to in heaven. But when He became a Man, He borrowed everything—His birthplace, the manger, the very tomb in which they laid Him when He died. He was dependent on the women who financed His ministry and on generous people who opened their homes to Him to eat and sleep there. All borrowed.
And He borrowed one more thing from us, and a good thing He did—He borrowed our sin. All our guilt and shame and evil, every bad thing we’ve ever done or thought or planned to do—He took all of that away from us, the real owners. And then He took it all to the cross and nailed it there. But this time it’s not like the donkey—the Lord isn’t going to return this loan to us. It’s gone for good.
This is Jesus’ glory—that in this one case only, He borrows and does not pay back. We will never see those sins again. They are “lost” for good. And what do we have in exchange, then? Jesus gives us forgiveness, love, healing, joy, and peace. And He tops it off with the gift of everlasting life—as God’s much-loved people in His kingdom.
WE PRAY: Lord, thank You for borrowing and not paying back! And thank You for Your wonderful gifts to me. Amen.
This Daily Devotion was written by Dr. Kari Vo.
Reflection Questions:
1. When have you had to borrow something from someone? Did you repay it?
2. Why do you think God arranged matters this way, to make Jesus so dependent on other people throughout His life?
3. Jesus continues to borrow from you—your hands, your work, your words about Him to others. Are you glad of that?