Not My Donkey You Don't!

****This message was inspired by the following contributors to SermonCentral.com---Kieth Linkous, Thomas Monroe, and Guy Caley, Thanks to you and the Holy Spirit, I too was able to write a ?Donkey Sermon!?****

NOT MY DONKEY YOU DON?T!!!--- Luke 19:29-35

JOKE--- Fred and his brother walk into a diner and Fred grabs the waitress and says, "I’ll have a cup of coffee for me and a cup for Donkey here too."

The two guys drink their coffee and the waitress comes back to take their order. Fred says, "Right donkey what do you want to eat; I’ll have a cheese burger and fries."

Donkey looks at the waitress and says, "Ch, ch, ch ch ch ch eeez B, b, b ur, burger and f, f, f, fries please."

While donkey is ordering, Fred goes to wash his hands in the bathroom and the waitress says, "Say, you shouldn’t let him call you that stupid nickname."

Donkey replies, "I know. He aw.. he aww... he awwwwww, he always calls me ’Donkey.’"

INTRO--- When you think of all the things that you would be willing to give to Christ what items are not on your list? This morning we are going to talk about the Triumphal Entry of Jesus Christ into Jerusalem and His personal sacrifice for our gain.

PRAYER

TRANS--- Our Scripture today tells us about the events that lead up to Jesus? triumphant entrance into Jerusalem. So it begins with Jesus telling his disciples to go and steal a donkey!!! Wha, whup whup!!! Hold on there preacher! Jesus did not steal that donkey! Ok, so you are one of those who believe that Jesus had made pre-arrangements with the owner for when he came to town. Well that is fair enough. However, the language of the Scripture does not indicate this at all.

You see when Jesus says, ?If anyone asks you, ?Why are you untying it? You shall say, ?The Lord has need of it??? Jesus was not indicating any person in particular. For instance, if I were to tell Bro. Scott Peterson and Bro. William McDaniel to go borrow a ladder from a friend of mine in Campbellsville, I would at least tell them the guys name so that when they went they wouldn?t get shot.

There you go again Bro. Ed callin Jesus a thief. No no no no no. Listen Jesus did not steal this donkey. ?Now wait a minute Brother Ed, if Jesus did not pre-arrange to use the donkey then he must have stolen it right?? No. I want you to look very carefully at the language here. You see, Jesus used the word Lord here very deliberately??You shall say, the Lord has need of it? My friends the way Jesus uses this word Lord suggests a dual meaning. The way Jesus used this word; the disciples not only recognized Jesus as Master over them but also Master over the donkey.

So today, I want you to forget about Palm Sunday for just a minute and I want you to put yourself in the place of that donkey?s owner.

Now tell the truth, in today?s society, we would rather the disciples took the beat up nag out back in the barn before they got our best work donkey out front near the plow, wouldn?t we? Or maybe someone else has a spare donkey that they can use. Why does it have to be MY donkey? And why do they need a brand new one? There are 4 questions we need to ask ourselves this Palm Sunday before we will ever be ready for Easter to arrive:

I. THE FIRST QUESTION: WHY DID JESUS? DISCIPLES JUST TAKE A DONKEY WITHOUT ASKING?

A. Psalms 24:1 The earth is the LORD?S, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it.

1. ewwww That kind of cuts right to the quick of the matter doesn?t it?

a. The earth and everything in it belongs to God.

1) He is the Creator and Sustainer.

2) We are only stewards of His creation.

2. Genesis 1:26--- says that God gave dominion over all the earth.

a. We are rulers and caretakers, but not owners.

3. Luke 16:12--- And if you have not been trustworthy with someone else?s property, who will give you property of your own.

a. Your treasure is in Heaven.

b. But to receive that treasure, you must prove yourself to be a faithful steward on earth.

I. THE FIRST QUESTION: WHY DID JESUS? DISCIPLES JUST TAKE THE DONKEY WITHOUT ASKING?

II. THE SECOND QUESTION: WHY DID THE OWNER JUST LET THE DISCIPLES TAKE THEIR BEST DONKEY?

A. II Corinthians 9:7 Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

1. Listen carefully to me, God does not need what you have!