Passion began at Bethany, from the village of Martha and Mary. This is where He
set out with the little donkey and His disciples in order to make His entrance into
Jerusalem. We witness Him Who sits upon a throne of glory simultaneously
sitting upon a throne of humility. This is what our Lord wanted to teach us by
mounting this humble animal: humility.
With His humility our Christ prompted everyone down here on the earth—
even the small children—to sing praises: “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed
is He who comes in the name of the Lord!” (Mt. 21:9). With His humble entrance
before the multitudes of people, He moved and shook up all of Jerusalem. “Who
is this person?” exclaimed everyone who was unaware [of what was taking
place]. All the people raced to cut branches from palm and bay trees in order to
lay them down before His path.
Yet, take a look at how the things of this world change so quickly. On
Sunday the crowds were crying out, “Hosanna to the son of David! Blessed is He
who comes,” as well as many other things; four-five days later, however, they
shouted, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!” (Jn. 19:15). This is how
things are on the earth. Nothing is stable. One moment the world exalts a person
and the next moment it degrades him. Man is unstable; his works are unstable;
his thoughts are unstable; everything in his life is unstable.
The humility of our Christ is truly remarkable! It is awesome! We witness
the God-man humbly and unpretentiously seated upon a young donkey. His holy
example is such a beautiful lesson for us. As we proceed through the mostsacred week of His Passion, His supreme humility becomes even more
pronounced. We see Him enduring tortures, ridicule, and slaps. We watch Him
suffering the hardship of imprisonment, lifting the Cross, and eventually falling to
His knees from the weight of the Cross. Who can fathom that God on earth was
slapped by a human hand made of clay, by the hand of the creature whom He
fashioned with such beauty, perfection, and wisdom! This person whom He
[initially] created as “a god by grace” upon the earth afterward raised his hand
and hit God! If our child were to hit us, we would rise up and protest, “How you
dare hit me? Your mother, your father…?” But what is a mother or a father when
compared to God on the earth? They are just fellow human beings made of clay.
This is where the beauty of Christ lies: His humility! If He were not humble,
He would not be God. He is not a dictator; He is not a ruler; He is not haughty.
His glory is His humility.
—by Elder Ephraim of Arizona—
