Luke 13:31-35 A hen gathering her brood

Strange song to sing in the middle of a service right? Gather us in? Haven’t we already gathered? Maybe. We might physically be here in this building but have our hearts and minds fully sought the safety and shelter of Jesus’ wings?

Herod is the fox. Jesus is the hen.

Niccolò Machiavelli was a 13^th century Italian Renaissance diplomat, author and philosopher. His most famous work was entitled The Prince which focused on how rulers can maintain authority and effectively govern the people. The reason this book is so famous is due to its primary philosophy: Immoral acts are justifiable if they achieve political glory. A political philosophy that regrettably remains largely in effect still to this day. Essentially, the end justifies the means.

In his book, Machiavelli stresses that a prince must learn to imitate both the fox and lion to be truly effective. A fox can detect and defend itself against snares while a lion can terrify even the wolves. Herod is a fox. The fox is not merely clever, it is capable of recognizing traps and can see through the deceptions of others. The fox symbolizes one who is cunning, intelligent, shrewd, and has the ability to navigate complex political landscapes. Brute force and ignorance, while effective in some situations, are not the best strategies in the long run.

The Prince was written as an instruction manual for any young prince or ruler to learn from and practice. One could argue it was written as satire but that doesn’t change the truthfulness of the work. Machiavelli used many biblical examples to reinforce his arguments, which does not bode well for us. Abraham lied because he thought it would protect Sarah from Pharaoh. David lied to protect himself for committing adultery. Peter denied knowing who Jesus was in order to avoid persecution. There is a whole lot of lying going on in leadership in the Bible and it isn’t just who we want to believe are the “bad guys.”

We often think of oppression in terms of the lion where a ruler uses power and might to strike fear into their enemies. But cunning and guile and just as if not more terrifying. You might never see them coming.

Thankfully, we have Jesus, the… mother hen… let us all find comfort in being the bottom of the food chain right?

Expecting the chicken to defend its chicks against a fox? Welcome to Christianity where reality is not what we think it is supposed to be.

If Herod was the lion, Jesus would be the lamb but since Herod is the fox, Jesus is the hen. Not the rooster. The hen.

My neighbor raises chickens and despite how horrible it is when a predator gets into the chicken coop, we laugh at the same thing that happens every time. The annoying rooster who regularly makes a huge show of his existence, quietly vanishes into the night when real danger makes itself known.

Anyone ever experienced a rooster? They’re known for being ridiculous and mean. They crow practically non-stop all day. Don’t let the old adage fool you that a rooster only crows at dawn. They start crowing at dawn and then don’t stop until the world is fully awake and aware of their presence.

If a human draws near, the rooster will charge you and attack with the spurs on its back legs. It thinks it can take you and more often than not, it scares people away so perhaps it isn’t wrong. The rooster you see is mostly for show. He’s generally the prettiest of the birds with bright colors and longer feathers than his hens. He makes a lot of noise but in my experience, it’s usually all show. If he’s outmatched, he runs away.

Now… a hen with chicks, that’s a whole ‘nother ball game. She won’t charge you. She won’t attack you. She won’t even let you know she’s there if she can. When danger is near, she quickly uses her wings to scoop up all her little ones, pulls them tight under her body, and locks them in with her wings. She will protect those little chickees with her last breath.

Jesus is a hen with wings made of the armor of God. He isn’t your normal hen but the point is quite clear. We are to be mostly passive protectors, not obnoxious roosters flaunting our holiness and screaming at sinners. We are to be here as a den of safety, not an armory.

This raises the question then, why would Jerusalem not seek the shelter of Jesus’ wings?

Ever watch a mother hen collect her chicks? It’s adorable. Part of what makes it so cute is there is always this one chick that refuses to be wrangled. Momma hen rounds up the little ones, and then out between her feathers pops this little fluff ball that runs around her like it is a game. The hen pecks at it, chirps at it, wrestles it back in and then out it pops on the other side. That little chick, that’s Jerusalem. That’s us. The unwilling.

The safety and shelter of Jesus Christ is being offered. The peace that surpasses all understanding stands before us and so many choose to be like that little chick and resist safety believing they can face it on their own viewing the safety and shelter of the wings of God as a prison.

Did you know that Paul viewed the Laws of Moses as a prison? Fences you see work not just to keep something contained but they also keep things out. Prison walls serve not just to protect the outside world from what’s inside but also to protect what’s inside from what’s outside.

Prison walls create their own little microcosm of society with its own rules, its own regulations and its own communities. The Laws of Moses, while they may seem confining to us, locked the traditions of the Hebrew people away from society for their own safety.

Prison was not intended as punishment but as rehabilitation. Just another way we as a society have failed. Prisons were meant to help people learn to be better citizens and fit into society when they were discharged. Dungeons or an oubliette are for locking people away and forgetting about them, not prisons.

The Laws of Moses were meant to help the Hebrew people learn to be better children of God and then as Paul viewed it, to be released into the world only needing the shelter of God’s wings from time to time to protect their way of life. Doesn’t do you much good to have a bomb shelter though if you’re not willing to go in it does it?

The problem of God’s people has always been the same. It’s us and our desire to be in control. We want to protect ourselves! We are not willing to rely on anyone not even our own God to protect us no matter how much evidence we have that God will do so. We constantly try to take things into our own hands.

Abraham wasn’t willing to wait for that promised child. David wasn’t willing to be happy with the obscene amount of wealth and privilege God had already given him. Peter well… fell in the water and tried to chop off a guard’s ear. We want to carry swords not rely on the armor, or feathers of God. We’re too stuck on that cute fluffy hen image and can’t fathom how it could possibly protect us.

Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it!

We see the fox but seek to strike instead of running under the wings of our protector. We are not willing to trust the way we say we trust our God. Jesus took down the world not with a sword but with the Word of God. Not be being angry. Not by resisting but by trusting.

We need not look far to see the fox and lion ruling in this world. Niccolò Machiavelli’s Prince is alive and well today because we keep seeking lions and foxes to lead us instead of trusting a chicken. We would rather believe lies and brute force than trust in safety and shelter from the storm. It goes against our instincts to believe that a hen’s feathers can protect us from the outside world of predators.

Herod is the fox. Jesus is the hen. Which one do you think will protect you?

Church isn’t just about showing up on Sunday, entering a building and calling it good. Our job is to take the safety and shelter of this building, Jesus Christ, out into the world with us, and then come back every Sunday for reinforcement.

The church is a hospital for those who are sick and weary. The church is a prison. A place to lock ourselves away when we need rehabilitation from the outside world. The church is a fortress protecting the foundation of our faith to preserve it generation after generation. The church is the place where the mother hen gathers her brood under her wings but all too often, they are not willing.

We are the chicks. We are Jerusalem. We are not the prince nor should we allow one to lead us. We must learn from the errors of our ancestors not repeat them. When our ancestors faith was strong, when their trust in God was solid, their communities, their tribes, and their nations were also solid. When they gathered together in their faith and stood strong in using God as their sure defense they were strong and well defended.

Let us gather in under the safety of our God’s wings.