The Humble King — Mark 11:1–11

🕊 The Humble King

Mark 11:1–11

“Look, your King is coming to you; he is righteous and victorious, humble and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.” — Zechariah 9:9 (CSB)

When Jesus entered Jerusalem at the beginning of Passion Week, He didn’t ride in on a warhorse, chariot, or anything impressive by earthly standards. Instead, He rode a young donkey—a borrowed one. Crowds shouted “Hosanna!” and spread cloaks and branches on the road before Him, expecting a conquering king who would overthrow Rome. But Jesus came not to take a throne—but to take up a cross.

1. Jesus Was in Complete Control

Every detail of that day was planned. He told the disciples exactly where to find the donkey and what to say to its owner. This wasn’t improvisation—it was divine choreography. Jesus fulfilled prophecy to the letter (Zechariah 9:9; Malachi 3:1), showing that He was not a victim of events but their sovereign director. If He can plan His entry into Jerusalem with such precision, we can trust Him to guide the details of our lives as well.

2. Jesus Redefines Kingship Through Humility

Riding a donkey was more than symbolic—it was a declaration. In the ancient world, kings rode horses in war and donkeys in peace. Jesus was announcing Himself as the true King, but a King unlike any other.

“Though He was in the form of God, He did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. Instead, He emptied Himself… and became obedient to the point of death—even to death on a cross.” — Philippians 2:6–8 (CSB)

His coronation wasn’t in a palace but on a path that led to Golgotha. His kingship is marked by humility, not domination.

3. The Crowd’s Joy Was Real—But Shallow

The people praised Jesus enthusiastically, but their expectations were misplaced. Many hoped for immediate political liberation. When Jesus didn’t meet their expectations, their cheers turned to silence—or even hostility.

“He was despised and rejected by men… we esteemed Him not.” — Isaiah 53:3 (CSB)

It’s easy to praise Jesus when He answers our prayers, but what about when His plan is different from ours? Will we still follow the King when His throne looks like a cross?

✨ Closing Thought

Jesus came not to conquer earthly powers but to conquer sin and death. One day He will return as the conquering King, but first He came as the suffering Servant. Today, He still invites us to follow Him—not just in moments of praise, but in daily surrender.

🙏 Prayer

Lord Jesus, You are the humble King. Thank You for entering Jerusalem not to seize power, but to lay down Your life for me. Teach me to trust Your plan, to follow Your example of humility, and to praise You not just when You meet my expectations, but when You call me to surrender them. Help me follow You faithfully—even when the road leads to a cross. Amen.

Vessels of Mercy: Responding to the Potter’s Hand

I’ll never forget something my family and I heard Elder DJ Ward say in a video of one of his sermons. He said, “If God had not chosen some, Heaven would have none.” Did you hear what he said? “If God had not chosen some, Heaven would have none.”

Now, let’s be honest—does that make God sound arbitrary? Does it deny our freedom to choose to follow Him? Those are fair questions. And that statement hit us. It was one of those moments that made me stop and think deeply.

Because—is it true that if God hadn’t moved first, if He hadn’t initiated the work in our hearts, none of us would ever be willing to turn to Him? That’s a sobering thought if it’s true. But is it?

Let’s look at what Scripture says. Romans 3:10-11 reads, “None is righteous, no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks for God.” That’s not a guess—that’s a clear declaration. So this seems to say that no one seeks God. And Scripture seems to say it’s not just that we don’t come to Him—we can’t, unless He draws us (John 6:44). 1 Corinthians 2:14 tells us the natural person “does not accept the things of the Spirit of God… and he is not able to understand them.” Romans 8:7-8 adds that “those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”

So yes, the Bible affirms that apart from God’s gracious initiative, we are spiritually unable to come. But the beauty of the gospel is this: God does not leave us to ourselves. He moves first. He draws. He opens eyes and softens hearts.

And here’s the tension we must hold: just because salvation begins with God doesn’t mean we have no role in responding. In fact, it’s because He moves first that we can respond at all. And we must. That doesn’t erase our responsibility—it establishes it.

God calls us to turn to Him (Isaiah 45:22), to repent (Acts 17:30), to believe (John 6:29), and to surrender (James 4:7–8). And we must. We are fully responsible to respond to His grace, to yield to His call, to stop resisting His call to repentance and faith in Him. His initiative doesn’t cancel our responsibility—it makes it possible (Philippians 2:12–13; John 6:44).

That truth ties directly into one of the most powerful images in Scripture: the potter and the clay. We see it in Isaiah, Jeremiah, and again in Romans 9. Over and over, God reminds us: He is the potter, and we are the clay. He forms, He shapes, and yes, He even reshapes—according to His will and for His purposes.

In Isaiah 29 and 45, God uses this image to rebuke those who question His wisdom. He says, “Shall the potter be regarded as the clay?” (Isaiah 29:16). In other words, who are we to question God? Then in Jeremiah 18, we see the potter reworking marred clay into something new. That’s not just a picture of judgment—it’s a picture of grace. It’s God showing us that even when we’ve failed, even when we’ve resisted Him, He’s willing to reshape us—if we turn to Him.

Then we get to Romans 9, and Paul takes this image even deeper. He says God has the right to make out of the same lump of clay vessels for honor and vessels for dishonor—because He’s not just the Potter, He’s the sovereign God of all creation. And yet, Paul also says God does this to make known the riches of His glory—to display His mercy. It’s not cold sovereignty. It’s purposeful. It’s glorious. It’s full of mercy.

Now listen—this might surprise some of us, but Scripture shows us that even our repentance doesn’t start with us. It’s not something we just muster up on our own. The Bible says in 2 Timothy 2:25 that God is the one who grants repentance. Ezekiel 36:26 says He gives us a new heart. Philippians 2:13 tells us that God works in us to will and to act according to His good pleasure. And John 6:44 reminds us that no one can come unless the Father draws them. Even our faith—Ephesians 2:8 says—is a gift.

So what do we do with this? We humble ourselves. We stop resisting. We thank God for His mercy, and we ask Him to keep molding us because the Potter isn’t done yet. So what do we do? We turn away from our sin and turn toward God, believing in His Son, Jesus, confessing with our mouth and believing in our heart that He is Lord. And when you do that, you’re not saving yourself—you’re responding to what God is already doing in you. You’re proving that He’s drawing you to Himself.

So, whether or not you fully agree with what Elder DJ Ward said—“If God had not chosen some, Heaven would have none”—God is still working. If you believe in Him, you belong to Him—and He is shaping you, patiently and purposefully, into a vessel of mercy, fit for His glory. But if you haven’t yet repented and placed your faith in Jesus for salvation, He offers you that grace today. You, too, can be clay in the Potter’s hands—reshaped, renewed, and made new in Christ.