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Oct 27, 2023 18:30pm

Run to Him

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My nephew Christopher was little, around 3-4 years old. He would stay with me quite a bit and we would have the best times! But, there were times when he would act out and disobey. Of course that meant discipline as I tried to teach him right from wrong and authority. We would talk through it, me explaining what happened, him telling his side, an apology would come and we’d hug and play. But there were times when he was stubborn, refusing to mind, and pushed or acted out angrily to get his way.

The punishment came. He had to stand in the corner until he was ready to apologize.

So we waited.

And we waited.

He cried. Lashing out with angry, frustrated words.

And we waited longer.

He then threw himself to the floor, wailing and thrashing, throwing a tantrum.

And still, we waited.

After what seemed like hours, his little red face, streaked with tears, finally turned and said, “Cookie? I’m sorry.”

And there I was, with my arms wide open, ready to welcome him, enveloping him with a big hug.

Luke 13:31-35

“The same day there came certain of the Pharisees, saying unto him, Get thee out, and depart hence: for Herod will kill thee. And he said unto them, Go ye, and tell that fox, Behold, I cast out devils, and I do cures to day and to morrow, and the third day I shall be perfected. Nevertheless I must walk to day, and to morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem. O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, which killest the prophets, and stonest them that are sent unto thee; how often would I have gathered thy children together, as a hen doth gather her brood under her wings, and ye would not! Behold, your house is left unto you desolate: and verily I say unto you, Ye shall not see me, until the time come when ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.”

The Pharisee’s intentions were not to save Jesus or prevent His death. They simply didn’t want Him to go to Jerusalem. Why not?

Jerusalem was known as the “city of God”. It represented the nation of Israel as a whole. It was the epicenter of the Jewish people. It’s where the temple was and people would travel from all over to worship in Jerusalem. It was also well known that Jerusalem had rejected many of the prophets that came in the name of the Lord. This is why Jesus lamented over Jerusalem. Not the city itself, but the people.

Here was the nation of Israel, God’s children. They had turned from God and decided they would do it their own way. They had added to the law of Moses and exaggerated their stature and authority.

They had disobeyed God.

And as any parent would do, punishment came. Time and time again, God allowed the nation of Israel to go through troubled times, being overtaken by other nations, captured and in bondage, all created by their own sin.

At this point, they were in bondage to the Romans. The Roman government was the authority over their land and people.

But God, rich in His mercy, sent Jesus. An offer of love, peace and promise.

But they rejected Him. They continued in their sin and refused to hear the Lord.

All they had to do was repent. Just turn and apologize to the Lord. And as Jesus told them, there He would have been, gathering them into His arms, as a mother hen welcoming her chicks under her wings.

“And ye would not.”

Is that what will be said of us? He’s given us opportunity time and time again, patiently waiting for us to recognize His authority, see our sin for what it truly is, and turn to Him with an apology on our lips.

He stands with arms wide open, waiting. Will you run to Him today?

Confess. Repent. Be restored. The arms of the Lord are waiting.