Palm Sunday - Jesus the King

Goes along with Adult Devotion of the same title.

Jesus rode on a donkey’s back, but he carried a burden on his back, too: us.

Read John 12:12-19.

Bible Focus: “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 12:14-15

What do you picture when you think of a king? A golden crown, maybe? A stone castle, or a white horse? The Israelite kings didn’t ride horses. Instead, they rode mules or donkeys. When Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, he rode a donkey, too. He showed that he was the King of Kings!

Donkeys are called “beasts of burden.” They are typically used to carry heavy loads. On Palm Sunday, Jesus was kind of like a donkey. He was carrying something very heavy with him. He was carrying all of our sins. They were not easy to carry, and Jesus knew that he couldn’t put them down. We were counting on him to carry our sins all the way to the cross.

Jesus was a strange king on Palm Sunday. Instead of showing his power and might, he was already planning to let himself be killed. But Palm Sunday is also called the Triumphal Entry, and for good reason - Jesus knew that his death would not be the end, and he would rise again, victorious, with the heavy burden of our sins wiped out.

Your challenge this week:

Draw, color, or print out a picture of a donkey. Keep it somewhere you’ll see it this Holy Week.

Please pray:

Dear Jesus, you are the powerful, mighty King of Kings! I confess that sometimes, I would rather be the king or queen myself. I thank you for carrying the burden of my sins. Please help me to follow you, King Jesus. In your name I pray, Amen.