Luke 13:31-35

³¹ At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to Jesus, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” ³² He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me,^[c] ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work. ³³ Yet today, tomorrow, and the next day I must be on my way, because it is impossible for a prophet to be killed outside of Jerusalem.’ ³⁴ Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it! How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing! ³⁵ See, your house is left to you.^[d] And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when^[e] you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’ ”

Prayer

God of our ancestors, it is hard for me to imagine our “stained glass Lord” Jesus grumbling, but He did. As He thought about the hard-hearted behavior of the religious leaders in the holy city of Jerusalem, He grumbled. Help me to see through my often over-critical and harsh approach to faith, and to envision Christ himself gathering me and others as Your own children, called and cared for chicks in the brood. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.

~ Steve Negley