Advent Lutheran Church

"Let Jesus into Our Lives a Little More"

At that very hour some Pharisees came and said to him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.”  He said to them, “Go and tell that fox for me, ‘Listen, I am casting out demons and performing cures today and tomorrow, and on the third day I finish my work.  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.  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!  See, your house is left to you.  And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.’”

Let Jesus into Our Lives a Little More

When I went to go look for the passage in my bible the title that came up was “The Lament over Jerusalem”. Obviously the word “lament” caught my attention, and I went to look it up. The definition is “to feel or express sorrow or regret for” (dictionary.com).  When you read the passage you hear Jesus say, “How often have I desired to gather your children together as a hen gathers her brood under her wings, and you were not willing” (Luke 13: 34). You also hear him say. “And I tell you, you will not see me until the time comes when you say, ‘Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord’” (Luke 13: 36). When I read this I could practically imagine the pain when he says, “And you were not willing” all Jesus wants to do is help people. He demonstrates this when he helps the lepers, blind man, cast demons out, and all other stuff. He loves us as a people even when we don’t want him there. Jesus is an ever present figure in our lives, and Lent is a great season to thank him even more than we normally do for dying for our sins. We should all be willing to have him “gather” our children, because Jesus is an important aspect in their lives.  I know I want to be under his wing, because Jesus is ever present in my life. We should also be able to at all times say, “Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.” We all are willing to let Jesus into our lives a little more, because we all love him. This is why I love Lent because I see and hear the works of Jesus more than ever in this season. I hope we can all let Jesus into our lives just a little bit more today and every day. Amen.