Tricked

In the story, the disciples had just brought the donkey to Jesus and put some blankets over its back before Jesus got on to ride it into Jerusalem. I asked the middle school group, "Why do you think the disciples put blankets on the back of the donkey?"

"Ooooo!" one girl called out. "They tricked it out so that donkey be lookin' FINE! Jesus would really WANT to ride that now!"

Her words took my thoughts to the quite, stain-glassed chapel at my seminary. With its liturgical colors changing with the season, it statues, holy water, pipe organ, and ornate trim it certainly is more tricked out than the efficient multi-purpose cinder block room that is my spiritual home. It's a special place where He always seems to want to be.

In the hecticness that is today's world, creating a special space for Jesus is important part of keeping our relationship alive. Be it the chapel, lighting a candle at home during my prayer time, or the bouquet of flowers my wife cuts fresh from our back yard's rose bush to place in Sunday morning's worship center, having something to help signify the sanctity of the moment reminds me of each moment's importance.

And this ride through life, like His to Jerusalem and Gethsemane, will lead through places I don't really want to go. I'm glad we're riding together.

Lord, thank you for being true to your word.

Donkeys

We were reading the story of Palm Sunday together with some teenage boys. The kids had just read how Jesus had sent some disciples into the village to get a donkey for him to ride. When we read that they had put some clothes on the back of the donkey before Jesus got on, the group leader asked, "Why do you think they did that?"

Without hesitation and in all seriousness, one of the boys honestly answered, "So no one would know that it was the one they had just stolen." The others all agreed.

That was NOT the answer I was expecting.

I would have probably answered that the disciples put some of their clothes on the donkey to make something like a saddle for Jesus or to somehow honor Him. The thought of the disciples trying to disguise that donkey had never crossed my mind.

But the disguise made sense in the context of the kids' world and my ideas made sense in the context of my world. The fact of the matter is, though, that we were both probably wrong.

I will never fully understand the context of the stories of ancient Palestine. I can read about it. I can study it. I can travel to modern Israel (hopefully someday!). I can try really really really hard and I can get better at interpreting scripture because of my efforts. I can become quite knowledgeable of the context and through that I can gain deeper insights into the text.

Still, I will never fully experience (much less understand) the context of the stories of Jesus because I'm a relatively affluent white man in the USA 2000 years after all these events took place. I would guess that my understandings would sound even more off base to the original hearers than the kids' idea of eluding authorities by disguising a donkey sounded to me.

Yet, somewhere in the midst of my lack there is Truth. Truth seeks to reveal Himself through the text. And as His people gather around the text for serious study, when they bring with them enough humility to know that they will never really understand even a syllable without the Spirit's help, Truth is revealed despite our context. It comes humbly as it rides in on a donkey. (Matthew 21:5b)

And I'm not so sure why that donkey has some clothes laid on its back.

Lord, humble me with your Word. Help me welcome the Truth from it that You give into my life.