| “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!” |
| —Luke 20:34 |
Have you ever visited a farm? On the farm that you visited did they have chickens? Chickens lead fascinating lives. At some farms, the chickens spend all day in the barnyard walking back and forth, pecking at the ground to pick up kernels of feed. At other farms, the chickens live in wire cages, where the farmer brings their food and water to them.
Mother chickens especially lead very fascinating lives. If a mother hen has young chicks, it seems as if she spends most of her time walking around in a circle trying to keep her chicks nearby. She wants to make certain those chicks stay close so she can protect them against any harm that might come to them.
Once in a while, there will be one or two chicks that just seem to delight in keeping away from their mother hen. Try as she might to gather them to herself, those chicks keep running in the opposite direction.
The Scripture passage recorded in Luke 20:31-35 offers these words:
31 At that time some Pharisees came to Jesus and said to him, “Leave this place and go somewhere else. Herod wants to kill you.”
32 He replied, “Go tell that fox, ‘I will drive out demons and heal people today and tomorrow, and on the third day I will reach my goal. 33 In any case, I must keep going today and tomorrow and the next day—for surely no prophet can die outside Jerusalem!
34 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing! 35 Look, your house is left to you desolate. I tell you, you will not see me again until you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.’”
In this passage of Scripture, Jesus talks about hens gathering their chickens. He says that He has longed to gather those He loves together like a hen gathers her chicks. But, he says, those He loves were not willing to be gathered under the protection of His loving arms.
Sometimes people today are like those chicks that keep running away. Jesus desires to draw all men and women and boys and girls to Himself. But sometimes, people just seem to keep running away from the protection Jesus wants to provide against all of the bad things in the world by forgiving their sins and granting them eternal life.
The lesson for us is that we can consciously and purposefully surrender our lives to Jesus. When we do that, He has promised to always be with us. He will keep us safe in the hollow of His Mighty Hand. It’s the wisest decision we can make.
