What is the Difference between a Mule and a Donkey?
Matthew 21:1-11
March 16, 2008
A couple of weeks ago, I was watching a news story on television. They interviewed Charles Barkley. Now he is a great basketball player, but for the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why they wanted to know what he thought about the Presidential election. I remember several years ago when he told the press that he had no intention of being a role model for anything. I now I hear that he is thinking about running for Governor of Alabama. That will be an interesting campaign – in my opinion.
We have spent the last few weeks talking about the Bad Boys of the Bible. I ended that message series last week because I didn’t think that it really fit for Palm Sunday. This is the day when we remember the triumphant ride of Jesus down the Mount of Olives, across the Kidron Valley, and up into the city of Jerusalem. All along the way, the crowds shouted their “Hosannas,” waved their palm fronds, and gave their undivided attention to Jesus.
But then I got to thinking about the Disciples who walked with Jesus down that trail. As I think about it, they were not particularly good role models either. I think we live in a time when we need good role models. I think we need honestly good sports heroes. I think we need honestly good politicians. I think that pastors and teachers and coaches and scout leaders and business executives need to be good role models. I think that we need to be able to respect our neighbors who go out of their way to be good neighbors. I think we need grocery store clerks who are polite despite the long hours on their feet. I think we need people who toil in factories and in the service industries to be people to whom we can look for integrity, honesty, and faithfulness. I think we need to be able to look at ordinary, everyday people and want to be like them.
You would think that the Disciples would be those sorts of people. But remember what is going to happen this coming week. Remember what these Disciples will be up to in the next few days.
One of them would deny Jesus. One of them would betray him. None of them, really, would understand the true significance of that last dinner that they would share with him. Only later would they remember some of the things that he had said. Only later would it begin to make sense to them.
Over the course of his ministry, they had done a lot and seen a lot. But often, it just didn’t sink in. Remember, if you will, just a few more of their less-than-stellar moments.
One of the problems with us good folk who populate (or half-populate) the pews on any given Sunday morning, is that we’ve jumped ship when the going has gotten a little tough.
I count myself among these folks because I have trouble sometimes with follow through. Now, I have been a follower of Jesus since I can remember. I spent the Sunday mornings of my childhood in Sunday School. I spent the Sunday evenings of my youth in Youth Fellowship. I spent a week every summer at summer camp, for over twenty years in a row as both a camper and adult counselor. I taught Sunday School when I was in college. I went to seminary, for goodness sakes. Do you know how my friends made fun of me? I have been convinced for as long as I can remember that Jesus is the tonic for the sickness that plagues the world. I have wanted everyone to know Jesus like I know Jesus.
But then tough times come. The storms approach. The winds blow and the waves threaten. I get tempted to look for the easy way out. There are times when I go to extreme lengths to avoid hardship and danger. There are times when I’m almost willing to throw other people overboard if it means that I can remain safe.
When I desperately need to pray, I find other things to do. When I find myself in a situation that demands an intentional Christian witness, I hesitate. When my sins call for confession, I find it too easy to make excuses and self-justifications. When self-discipline is called for, I get lazy.
I have a feeling that I am not alone in that. Far too many of us fail to carry out Sunday commitments over into our Monday through Saturday reality. I know that there are some of us who have made it to the cross. I have known them in every church I have ever served. I have known people (and so have you) who are saints in the truest sense of the word. I know some who have been faced with the test and have passed with flying colors. I just worry sometimes, that I am not among their number. I worry sometimes that there are not enough of those saints in our churches. There are too many of us who forget the promises we made at our baptism.
So when I’m looking for role models, the disciples don’t always make the cut. Sometimes they give me the excuse I’m looking for to wimp out when the going gets tough.
Maybe I can look for role models among the crowds that lined the road that day as Jesus made his ride down into Jerusalem. But upon closer examination, I find that they are worse than the disciples. As they watch Jesus ride by, I get the sense that they are more curious than they are committed. They may be shouting their “Hosannas” today, but in just a few days from now they will be calling for his crucifixion.
They are a lot like me when I was in college. In the early seventies, sensitive training was the rage on college campuses, especially for humanities majors. I took such a class for four semesters. The professor let us grade ourselves. Needless to say, those were the only “A’s” I got in my four year academic career. I may have gotten the “A” but I didn’t learn anything. I got a good grade in the class, but flunked the part about it changing my life for the better.
So if we can’t look to the Disciples or to the crowds for role models, perhaps we can look to the religious leaders. Then again… These are the ones who offered bribes. These are the ones who solicited false testimony against Jesus. These are the ones who convened a bogus trial in a kangaroo court. These are the ones who sent an innocent man to his death on a cross.
Being a pastor in today’s cultural context is an incredibly difficult job. The vast majority of pastors, priests, and rabbis work hard and give their entire lives to their calling. Unfortunately, there are the very few who abuse children, who take money from senior citizens on fixed incomes, and who use their television donations to fund exotic lifestyles. These all, regrettably, are false shepherds who give the rest of us a bad name. It is hard to look to the leaders for role models.
And so we are left with a conundrum. Who is left? Who is left standing that is worthy of holding up as a role model? There is one unsung hero left. I believe that there is one unheralded guide. He is the donkey.
A few years ago, we had a Palm Sunday parade through the streets of Shipshewana. I have a picture of us in my office. We had disciples in costumes leading a donkey around town on that morning as a witness that this was a special day. After making the circle, we stopped in the city park for some singing and prayers. It was a great day.
I remember making arrangements for that donkey. We had a fellow in the church named Lamar who was a real horse guy. So he was the one I naturally asked to find us a donkey. He said that he thought he could do that because there were a number of Amish families who had them.
After the parade, I walked with Lamar out to his horse trailer as he loaded up the donkey to take back to its owners. He asked me if I noticed anything different about this donkey. I said, “Like what? I see long ears, four legs, and a tail. What am I missing?” Then he told me that this wasn’t a donkey. It was a mule.
Biologically, there is a difference, but you couldn’t prove it by me. My guess is that there were four people who knew this was a mule: its owner, Lamar, the large animal veterinarian who was a member of the church and one of the costumed disciples that morning…and now me.
Back in the 1950’s, Hollywood had its first PATSY awards. PATSY stands for “Performing Animal Top Star of the Year.” Many of us here today are old enough to remember the first winner. In 1951, the PATSY went to Francis the Mule.
If those awards had been around in the days of Jesus, I would hope that his donkey would be the one to receive it. I realize that we usually search for role models among the human species, but we could do worse than having this lowly donkey as our role model. Think about it for a minute. This donkey was a bearer of Christ. It was on this donkey that Jesus sat as he made his way down into Jerusalem on that first Palm Sunday.
We named our second son Christopher, which means “Christ-bearer.” There is a lot we can learn from this donkey who was the first Christ-bearer. To be a Christ-bearer means that we come to the realization that serving Christ can indeed be a burden sometimes. Yet, the Christ-bearer is one who accepts the burden to serve humbly and not care about receiving the glory.
To be a Christ-bearer means to be willing to go where and when he wants you to go, rather than where you would rather go. Being a Christ-bearer requires the ability to work and not get distracted by the crowds, the noise, and the general confusion ‘round about. Being a Christ-bearer means to have the willingness to take Christ into enemy territory is required. Being a Christ-bearer means to be obedient to the call of Christ who holds the reigns, at all times and in all places.
In the final analysis, it doesn’t matter whether you are a mule or a donkey. What matters is your willingness to be a Christ-bearer to the world. Romans 12:9-14 says this.
Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good; love one another with mutual affection; outdo one another in showing honor. Do not lag in zeal, be ardent in spirit, and serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in suffering, persevere in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers.
There is true joy on Palm Sunday. It comes from the lowly donkey on which Jesus rode. Mule or donkey; I’m not sure it makes a difference as long as we are willing to bear Christ to the world.