Zechariah 9:9-10 / Romans 8:9, 11-13 / Matthew 11:25-30
The donkey may be quite a famous animal but it may not be that glamorous.
Certainly, the donkey is not as glamorous as compared to a horse.
It doesn’t have that good looks either. Its head is not proportionate to its body, it’s ears stick up awkwardly, it can’t run that fast, and it makes an annoying “hee-haw” sound.
And to add to that, it is also called by a derogatory name, “beast of burden”. So it seems like it is even less than an animal, it is a beast!
But all that aside, its strong point is that it can carry heavy burdens, almost three times its weight.
As a beast of burden, the donkey is used in many countries to carry heavy loads, especially in places where motorized vehicles cannot access.
The 1st reading begins with a build-up to what was expected to be a glorious mighty figure: “The Lord says this: Rejoice heart and soul, daughter of Zion!
Shout with gladness, daughter of Jerusalem!
See now, your king comes to you;
he is victorious, he is triumphant,
humble and riding on a donkey,
on a colt, the foal of a donkey.
Somehow, it seems like an anti-climax when the king comes victorious, triumphant, humble and riding on a donkey!
We would expect the king to ride on a glorious and glamorous horse but not on a lowly donkey aka beast of burden.
But the word that should prepare us for what is to come is that word “humble”; yes, victorious, triumphant, humble and riding on a donkey.
And Jesus tells us in the gospel: Come to me all you who labour and are overburdened and I will give you rest.
This is the only instance in the gospels that Jesus talked about His heart – it is a gentle and humble heart.
A gentle and humble heart possesses great strength and that is why Jesus tells us to come to Him when we are tired out by our labours and are overburdened.
We may feel like we are a beast of burden, carrying other people’s loads and doing their work and they get the credit.
We may feel that others have the easier and glorious tasks while we get the low-end laborious dirty jobs.
But let us learn from Jesus to be gentle and humble of heart.
With a gentle and humble heart, Jesus will give us strength to bear the heavy burdens of life.