Consequences: Rejecting the Gospel

Today we will be looking at Luke 10:12-16.  Here Jesus points out the consequences of rejecting the Gospel.  In some ways we are a generation in rebellion against this principle of cause and effect.  We like it when it allows us to create new technology.  But we do not like it when it gets in the way of our sin.  Sin always has destructive consequences in your life, of which the ultimate one is eternal judgment.

Jesus had just finished telling his disciples how to deal with rejection.  They were to shake the dust off of their feet as evidence against that city and those people.  They had heard the gospel.  Now Jesus turns to speak to those cities regarding the consequences.  Do you recognize that our decisions and choices in life have many consequences, and that some of those may be eternal?  Yes, some choices are about small matters and have minimal consequences.  But, rejecting the gospel of Jesus has eternal consequences.  Thus Jesus warns them of the coming Day of Judgment.  Jesus uses a term translated as “woe.”  It is more a cry than it is a word.  It is used to simulate the cry that comes from a person who is receiving punishment or judgment.  Woe is coming upon this world, and woe to those who refuse to hear the truth.

The Greater Witness

Jesus points out that some people have receive a greater witness of the Truth of God than others.  Greater here can mean in content.  Some had received a testimony of the law and yet others had received the greater testimony of the Gospel.  Although the Gospel is in the Law it is there in seed form.  In the gospel we see those seeds as full grown and flourishing plants.  However, some have received greater witness in the sense of the person and power displayed.  Sodom did have a witness of righteousness in the person of Lot.  However, Lot did not do any miracles that we know of.  Yet, the people of Capernaum had Jesus and his disciples who came healing all who came to them and casting out any demons.  Thus Jesus says in verse 15 that Capernaum was “exalted to the heavens.”  Of all Israel this city had received the greatest portion of Christ’s ministry, not because they deserved it more, but because that is just how things happened.  Jesus stayed in the north because it was not his time yet and Jerusalem was too hostile towards him.  His own town did not really want him around either.  Thus the cities of the Sea of Galilee received a greater portion of God’s grace to that age.

Yet, all peoples will be held accountable for that witness that they did receive.  These cities are being used to represent those who lived within them.  Jesus is not just warning cities, but in actuality, those individuals who lived within them.  Though some have received more witness and some less, all had received enough to believe.  In the Gospel of John Jesus had said, “My sheep hear my voice.”  Those who are hungry for truth will drink of it when it is given, regardless of the amount.  This Day of Accountability comes in two ways.  Sodom had received a judgment from God in which the whole city was destroyed and disappeared from the face of the earth.  This represents an extreme judgment while one is alive upon the earth.  They are not always this extreme.  But, we often experience God’s judgment against sin throughout our lives in various ways.  Yet, Jesus speaks of a judgment upon Sodom that is future.  Here he refers to The Final Judgment that takes place at the end of this age.  It is a judgment that is after our death and has eternal consequences.  Jesus says that it will be more tolerable for Sodom at the Final Judgment than it will be for Capernaum.  How could this be?  It will be this way because Capernaum had received far more than Sodom and yet would still ultimately reject Christ.

Think of each of these ancient cities.  Sodom, Tyre and Sidon were all Gentile cities that had received clear and overwhelming judgments from God.  Each of them had received some witness of the truth, whether through the lives of the righteous, or warnings from prophets.  It was easy for Israel to look down upon these cities as wicked and doomed by God’s judgment.  But they couldn’t see the same problem within themselves.  Just like Sodom, Capernaum would be brought down to hades, or the grave.  Not only will the inhabitants die, but the city will be completely destroyed too. 

So what is a “more tolerable” judgment?  Jesus is not saying that they will get off without judgment.  The inhabitants of both Sodom and Capernaum will suffer judgment.  But those who had the greater witness will receive a greater judgment.  There are several verses within the New Testament that mention different degrees of punishment in hell.  We are given no details which has lead to the imagination of men to write books like Dante’s “Inferno.”  But, recognize that lesser punishment is no great hope.  It is the greater punishment that is meant to be a warning to Capernaum, Chorazin, and Bethsaida.  Though the degrees of punishment are not detailed they are presented as a matter of fact.  Here is one of them.  Luke 12:47-48.

“And that servant who knew his master’s will, and did not prepare himself or do according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes.  But he who did not know, yet committed things deserving of stripes, shall be beaten with few.  For everyone to whom much is given, from him much will be required; and to whom much has been committed, of him they will ask the more.”

Thus, the key is to take full advantage of the truth and witness that God gives you.  No one will be held accountable for what they didn’t receive.  Sometimes we have the tendency to expect God to “prove” himself to us.  I will not believe unless God does such and such exactly to my specifications.  Be careful of such an attitude.  God has revealed himself to you in a way for which you will be accountable.  You can miss the blessing of that witness because it is not “great” enough.

Rejecting His Disciples Is Rejecting Jesus

Jesus ends this with the statement that his disciples represent him.  He has appointed and sent them.  Down through the ages this teaching has been passed down.  To reject these teachers was to reject Christ himself.  Now it is clear that not all who claim to represent Christ actually do.  They represent their own selfish motivations.  Yet, this is not an excuse to reject those who really do represent Christ.  We are fooling ourselves if we say that no one represents Jesus.  This is a warning to both Churches and to those who judge them.  It is a warning to both Christians and those who despise them.  We will be held accountable for what God has given us.  Lastly, Jesus is equated with the Father.  To reject Jesus is to reject God the Father.  Many say they serve God, but refuse to accept Jesus.  This is tragic because the Father sent Jesus.  Jesus is his plan.  He wants you to know that and is working to reveal that truth to you.  There is no other way.  Don’t use your devotion to God as a means of cloaking your rejection of Jesus because to reject Jesus is actually rejecting the Father himself.

Final Thoughts

America has received a great quantity and quality of God’s witness compared to many other places.  Will we not go through difficult things in this life and in the Final Judgment because of this?  Don’t harden your heart because you don’t think it is great enough.  In fact, many from places that have received far less witness are pressing into the Kingdom of God ahead of Americans.  We most certainly have judgments coming within this life at every level: individual, city, state, and the nation as a whole.  Unless we repent and turn in faith to Jesus it is unavoidable.  The warning signs are all around us and in fact we are already knee deep in it.  Yet, even now, if we will turn from our wicked ways and turn towards Jesus we can be saved.

God loves us and will be faithful to give us enough in order to believe.  Great miracles are no guarantee of faith.  Many have perished and gone on to judgment in spite of amazing miraculous things.  Look at the grace and truth He is pouring out to you even now and believe.

Consequences audio

The Lord Needs Workers

Today we are going to look at Luke 10:1-11.  Here we have Jesus sending out some of his disciples to minister throughout Israel, just as he did at the beginning of chapter 9.  However, now he appoints a group beyond “The Twelve,” referred to as the Seventy.

Here we see that the need is greater than the 12 can do alone.  In fact it was and is greater than what these 70 can do.  However, we are shown the heart of God to reach the lost and his need of believers who will partner with Him to do that.

The Sending of the 70 Disciples

Now we notice that these 70 are being sent out in the same way that the 12 had been sent out earlier.  They are going in pairs and they are going to the cities of Israel.  Now, 70 is an important number.  Just as the 12 disciples correspond with the 12 tribes of Israel, so the 70 correspond with the 70 elders of Israel.  They become representative in the Kingdom of God of what the others were in the beginning of the Kingdom of Israel.  In Exodus 24 we are introduced to the 70 elders as they go with Moses and Aaron on the mountain and eat a meal before a heavenly vision of the throne of God.  We also see them again in Numbers 11 where God places a portion of the Holy Spirit upon them to help Moses in leading Israel.  Thus it is clear that Christ is using the numbers on purpose to point to the new work that God was doing through the godly remnant of Israel.

We are also told that these 70 disciples were appointed and sent by Jesus.  The word “appoint” here literally means to raise someone up to a position.  There was a large pool of believers that followed Jesus and yet he raised 70 up out of this larger group for a specific task.  They become second tier apostles or “sent ones” to minister for the Lord.

Their task focuses on preparing the way for Jesus.  Jesus would be coming to those cities and villages at some point.  The work of the 70 would wet the spiritual thirst of people for when that would happen.  Not all are called to be evangelists and pastors.  However, our interactions with others can prepare them for a visitation of the Spirit of the Lord.  Jesus no longer walks on this earth physically.  But His Spirit is moving throughout the earth in order to draw people to Jesus.  These visitations of the Spirit of God come and go.  We can cooperate with the Spirit to prepare people and to save them.  Paul refers to this as planting, watering, and harvesting.  All of these spiritual works are done by believers in Christ in cooperation with the Holy Spirit.

Jesus then points out the great need of workers in God’s Kingdom.  There are a large number of people to reach.  That doesn’t necessarily mean the majority.  Scripture is clear that the majority of the world will follow the wicked path to destruction.  But the narrow path that leads to life will be found by the minority.  Yet, this is not a set percentage.  In some places more or less will come to Christ.  We have testimonies of whole villages coming to believe in Christ and others where He is rejected.  Yet, the harvest is still large and will take a lot of workers; workers who are willing to sweat in order to bring it in.  Do we sometimes err in expecting people to harvest themselves?  It is our duty to go out and help people to come into the kingdom of God.  This is not a one moment thing.  It involves all the work that leads up to the day of harvest.  If our life is focused primarily on what we want in life, we will only give a half-hearted attempt at reaching the lost if any.  Thus Jesus points out the need for prayer.

Prayer is the place where God touches our heart.  We can’t pray for the harvest without being concerned for it.  The more we pray, the more the Lord will touch our heart.  Yes, prayer can be used to unload burdens.  But it can also be a place to pick up the burden that God has for those who are lost; the urgency to work hard to bring them in.

Instructions For Going

In verses 3 and 4, Jesus gives them instructions regarding their going.  They are to go as “lambs among wolves.”  This metaphor represents our spirit or demeanor among the lost.  We are going out into a den of wolves looking for lost sheep, and our tendency is to become like the wolves out of self-preservation.  Wolves are bloody, cruel, aggressive, and to be feared.  They will eat you up if you give them the chance.  However, lambs are peaceful, not aggressive, and definitely not feared.  They are the vulnerable ones.  What manner of spirit are we?

Jesus also sends these 70 without material provisions.  They are not to concern themselves with their material needs.  Rather, they are to depend upon God to provide.  Notice that it is clear that Jesus intends for their material needs to be met by those who receive the gospel from them.  We will talk more about being content with what is provided in the next point.  But, here the emphasis is upon trusting God.  This is not an endeavor that we can accomplish in our flesh.  We need the Lord to supply both our material needs and spiritual accomplishment.

He also tells them to “Greet no one.”  The concern here is to be one who is focused upon a specific task.  They are official representatives of the Kingdom of God.  The temptation to get distracted when responding to the task given is still with us today.  Many people who have started to go for the Lord have gotten distracted from the main purpose of reaching the lost.  In fact, some have gone so far as to be entangled in the cares of this world to the point of ship wrecking their faith.  We must keep a single eye upon this work.

Instructions For Ministering

Verses 5-11 detail the instructions for what to do when they reach the cities.  They are to approach the people of these cities as a giver of peace.  In the Sermon on the Mount Jesus had said, “Blessed are the peacemakers for they shall be called the Sons of God.”  Peace is a hallmark of God.  Where God’s Spirit is there will be peace.  Thus the ambassadors of Jesus are to be peaceful within their selves and to be givers of peace.  Yet, not all desire peace. There are wolves they will meet.  We must not have a fake peace that is quickly thrown aside when others reject us.  The peace of Christ went all the way to the cross.  Is your “peace” a mile wide and an inch thick?  Is it easily pierced and dissipated as the morning fog?  Jesus says that if your peace is rejected it will return to you.  By the act of rejection your peace is “thrown back in your face.”  They reject both words and actions.  Yet, it is our duty to “take our peace back” and move on in peace.

Jesus also points out their attitude towards what would be provided by those who received them.  They would be uniquely susceptible to certain temptations because they were taking no provisions with them.  Jesus tells them to receive whatever they are given.  In other words, don’t be picky.  Our concern must never be how great the provision is, whether in quantity or quality.  Our concern must only be upon the work of the Lord.  In truth, such provisions are given to God anyways.  The people who would bless them are doing so out of thankfulness for the work that God is doing through these “sent ones.”

Jesus also warns against moving from house to house.  This was a method of getting everyone’s best.  You stay at a house until they are no longer treating you royally and then you move to another home.  This is a fleshly motivation that is not to be followed.

Yet, the laborer is worthy of his hire.  When we labor to bring spiritual blessings to people it is only natural that they minister to our material needs.  I don’t need an expensive car and a multi-million dollar home.  But I do have need of shelter, clothing and food.  To have your eyes opened to the truth of your lost condition and yet the grace that God has for you is an amazing thing.  You are receiving the eternal effect of salvation.  Consider that in contrast to the temporary effect of a morsel of food.  Is this fraught with temptations and pitfalls?  You better believe it.  There are pitfalls for both the minister and the one being ministered to.  So Jesus warns them and us.

Ultimately they were to minister to those who received them, wherever that was at.  They were to heal the sick and to cast out demons.  They were to proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom of God.  It has come near to you.  Enter in by faith in Jesus Christ.

Even though some places would reject them, they were to focus on leaving behind a good witness.  The symbolic act of shaking the dust off of their feet was a way of saying, “I did my job and I leave this dirt as evidence that I was here.”  It is also a way of saying, “I will not let your rejection of Christ and scoffing of his ways cling to me.”  This symbolic act is a witness against them if they go into eternity without repenting.  Leaving is inevitable.  But what we do will either help them to salvation or condemn them.  They will be without excuse.

Let me close by encouraging us to respond to this mission that Christ shows us.  This mission to reach those who are lost with the Gospel has many temptations.  But if we listen to Christ we can do a job that he will rejoice in.  So that we may hear one day, “Well done, good and faithful servant.”

Lord Needs Workers audio

The Cost of Following Jesus

Today we will finish Luke chapter 9 (vs. 57-62).  Jesus has been teaching his disciples what it means to be great in God’s eyes, in contrast to what they believed.  The capabilities of Christ seem wasted in merely dying on a cross.  This last section looks at three different men who are going to follow Jesus, but something gets in the way, whether they know it or not.  Jesus as a teacher points these barriers out to them, but also wants his disciples and us today to recognize the cost required in order to follow him.

Regardless of the Provisions

The first guy is found in verses 57-58.  He makes a bold statement of following Jesus “wherever you go.”  Jesus responds by reminding the man that he doesn’t even have a place to lay his head.  Now Jesus doesn’t mean that literally.  He is saying he doesn’t have a place of his own.  He is at the mercy of what God provides.  This issue of provision can become a stumbling block to many.  Christ makes no promise of earthly comforts to his disciples.  “Come follow me,” but I don’t know where I am going to sleep tonight.  The person who wants to follow Jesus is going to have to deal with the worry that rises in the heart of a person regarding provisions. 

This man desires to follow Jesus; however, Christ sees something in his heart.  He is a man who is us attached to certain provisions in his life.  It will be difficult for him to follow Jesus long if he doesn’t face the reality up front.  His good desire to follow Jesus is mixed in with many other desires.  The desire for comfort and certain provisions will eventually be challenged when following Jesus.  “Pick up your cross and follow me,” is no promise of great provisions.  It is a promise that he knows where he is headed and if we follow him God will take care of us.  God always provides, just not what we always desire.

Look at the life of Jesus.  He had meager origins and he lived by meager means.  Those who followed him in those days shared in that.  Even though he had donors who gave gifts to help him out, this is still a worrisome proposition for our flesh.  Thus if we are going to follow Christ then we need to sit down and count the cost.  This man only saw what he would gain in following Jesus.  But, Jesus wants him also to think about what he will lose, or at least might lose.  Jesus promises that if we lose anything in this world for his sake, God will make it up to us with so much more of something better.  Whether in this life or the life to come is not our concern.  God is more concerned with our spiritual growth than he is with our material prosperity.  Though it may serve His needs from time to time to bless a person with material prosperity, it is a test of faith as much as the times of little.  If my heart is overly attached to the material things of this world I will have trouble following Christ in difficult times.  The person who has little is tested in learning to trust the goodness of God.  The person who has much is tested in learning to give God the credit for the goodness and to use it for His glory.  Where your heart is there your treasure will lie.

Regardless of Timing

The second guy is found in verses 59-60.  We see some of the same issues in the next two guys.  So I will focus on the timing issue in this situation.  Here it is Jesus asking the guy to follow him.  Yet, the guy asks for more time in order to deal with his aging father.  Apparently he wants to follow Jesus, but the timing isn’t good for him.  Though the text says he needs to bury his father, it is highly unlikely that he means his dad is already dead.  People were buried very quickly after death.  Most likely his father is old and failing in health and he wants to go back home and wait until this situation has ended.  Of course then the estate will be divided and since he is following a man who can’t promise any provisions…  Well, you get the picture.

God often calls us to do things that are not good timing from our perspective.  “Go talk to your neighbor about their soul.”  Answer: But Lord, I’m not ready yet.  “Follow me.”  Answer: But Lord I have too many things I want to accomplish first.  When I’m retired I will really get down to business in serving you.  It is this “lack of timing” that causes to surface precisely what we need to deal with.  God’s timing is not bad.

We also see that here that good things can get in the way of God’s things.  There is nothing wrong with caring for family, burying those who die, and inheriting an estate.  However, such things can also divert us from doing what God is calling us to do.  In some cases, like missionaries, we have to say goodbye to many good things and simply trust the Lord.  In other cases, we must learn to do those things AND serve the Lord; at the same time.  We must be careful of thinking, “I will do this first and then serve God.”  If God is calling you today, then you either don’t need that which you will have to leave behind.  Besides, maybe he is calling someone else in the family to step in and care for dad.

The response that Jesus gives sounds strange.  “Let the dead bury the dead, but you follow me.”  Jesus is speaking spiritually here.  If the spirit of God is speaking and you are spiritually alive then you need to obey and follow God.  But if you are dead to the Spirit of God then by all means stay and do what you want.  There are many spiritually dead people in this world pursuing the joys and pleasure of this life without a thought for what God wants them to do.  But if you are alive then you can’t live like that.  What are God’s purposes in this world?  And, how do I fit in with those purposes?  These are the questions we need to answer and then act upon.

Regardless of What We Leave Behind

The third man is in verses 61-62.  This man also wants to deal with his affairs and say goodbye to his family.  His seems to be less of a wait and yet a wait nonetheless.  Let’s focus on the things we have to leave behind.  Sometimes family ties can hold us back from God’s call.  Even the mother and brothers of Jesus tried to restrain him from doing what He knew God was calling him to do.  So Jesus understood this problem well.  Dad and mom may not always understand what God is calling you to do.  If you let your good attachments to them get in the way, you may never follow Jesus for yourself.  It is not wrong to love family.  But our love for family should not be greater than our love for our Lord.  We use the phrase, “inordinate love.”  It is a love that is not given the correct order in relation to God.

Jesus also uses an image from farm life: plowing a field.  This metaphor demonstrates the importance of not looking back.  We must keep our focus on the task before us in order to do it well.  Distracted work is not done well.  Jesus does not want us to be distracted workers.  God is worthy of our undivided attention in the task that He gives us.  Thus learning to serve God with a whole heart is primary.  When the Lord calls us to salvation we can be tempted to look back to the pleasures of this world.  Those friends of the world will not be our friends any more unless they follow Jesus too.  It can be difficult to accept such things.  Even in service to the Lord we can be looking back to easier days and “better” things.  We can pause or even stop in our following of Jesus.

In each of these cases, Jesus is not trying to dissuade these men in following him.  But, precisely because he knows the path ahead is difficult, he requires us to count the cost in advance.  We do a disservice to people when we try to remove all the barriers to getting saved and following Jesus.  This is not real life.  Later, when you are not there to remove those barriers for them, they will falter.  God gives us truth so that we can make a decision that is based upon reality rather than fantasy.  May God help us to follow him regardless of these things to which we too easily become inseparably attached.

Cost of Following Jesus audio

Misunderstanding Greatness

Luke 9 is filled with situations that deal with the issue of greatness: the greatness of Jesus, the greatness of his disciples, and the world’s idea of what greatness means.  Today’s passage is Luke 9:51-56 and focuses on Jesus being rejected by a Samaritan village.  When Jesus is rejected several of the disciples want to destroy the village.  This story forces us to ask the question, “How should a great person react to rejection?”  Isn’t greatness defined by how many people receive you?  In truth, Jesus was great.  The crowds initially flocked to him for self-interest.  But, the closer he came to the cross the fewer people there were around him.  So let’s look at this passage.

The Resolution of Jesus

It says in verse 51 that when Jesus knew it was time to be received up, he steadfastly set his face to go to Jerusalem.  This Hebrew idiom of setting ones face towards something is a picture of resolve.  If you want to go somewhere you first turn yourself in that direction.  Christ intentionally headed towards Jerusalem and his crucifixion.  It was the next major stop along his destination of sitting at the right hand of the Father.  However, this Samaritan village was along the way.

Now let me just point out that when it says Jesus was to be received up (also to be taken up) it is pointing to the ascension into heaven.  This same word is used in 1 Timothy 3:16, “He was…taken up into glory.”  It is easy sometimes to know the wonderful things ahead of ourselves and not pay attention to the difficult things that lie in the path to it.  Jesus is headed towards ascension, but rejection and crucifixion lie on the path to it.  It takes firm resolve and a steadfast spirit to stay on such a path.  In order to be glorified our Lord must first be killed.  He bravely marches towards his death because he knows it is a necessary step towards the heavenly work he is doing now.  If he is not crucified and resurrected, then he will not be able to be that high priest who intercedes for us before the Father.  Thus, it is important for us, as believers in Jesus, to understand the purpose of God in this day and age.  We have a glorious future ahead of us that God has promised.  And yet, there are many difficult things that we will encounter throughout our life on our way to that glory.  We may not understand all that they are as Christ did.  However, we must prepare ourselves to be resolute and steadfast.  I have to learn to firmly march towards things that I do not want to deal with in order to reach the good things that God has for me on the other side.

A Samaritan Village Rejects Jesus

Though John 4 records the Samaritan village of Sychar receiving Jesus, here we have the opposite.  As Jesus is headed towards Jerusalem, certain ones are sent ahead to prepare a place to stop, rest, eat, and most likely minister as well.  This would prevent a situation where they all arrive weary and hungry while someone looks for a place to stay.  Plus, it would enable the word to get out to the surrounding area that Jesus would be there.  He could minister to far more that way.  Yet, at some point, the destination of Jesus comes up and the villagers are not happy.  Jesus is headed to Jerusalem.

The racial and religious difference between the Samaritans and the Jews comes to a head here.  The wall of hostility between the two was because of the attitudes of both sides.  They were willing to embrace Messiah if he promoted their side of the religious argument.  Of course Jesus was not a partisan in this debate.  He pointed out the errors of the Samaritans and the Jews.  In fact, the religious Jews were rejecting Jesus for many of the same reasons.  He wasn’t supporting their view.

Now it is most likely that it was the elders of the village who were standing in the way of Jesus staying there.  Either way, the effect of that decision is that they will miss out on a blessing.  The blessing of healings, being set free from sin, and salvation, could have come to this village.  Pride and stubbornness often cause us to miss out on blessings that God has for us.  He is not going to force them upon us.  Yet, we push them away because of things we are not willing to experience.  Are you so tied up in the interpretations and traditions of your ancestors that you are missing what God is trying to do today?  Even the secular world has its own traditions and views of life.  Yet, whether for religious or non-religious reasons, our pride and stubbornness can wall us off from God’s blessing.

James And John Rebuked

James and John’s violent reaction to the offense of rejection is rebuked by Jesus.  But let’s look a little deeper here.  Why would James and John be so offended that they want to destroy the village?  We are given no description of what is going on inside of James and John.  However in Mark 3:17 we are told that Jesus had nicknamed these two, “Sons of Thunder.”  They both seem to have had stormy, quick tempered personalities.  We definitely see such here.  There is probably some bigotry going on here as well.  Jesus had been rejected in other places too.  But this Samaritan village receives their greater wrath.

Either way, James and John ask Jesus if they can call down fire from heaven and destroy the village.  Yes, they were probably offended on behalf of Jesus.  But they were men just like you and I.  They were offended on their own behalf too.  They don’t want to scare the villagers, or give them a sign to impress them.  Rather, they want to destroy them.  They ask Jesus because he is the master and because it is in keeping with what happened earlier in Luke 9.  Jesus had given his disciples authority to heal, cast out demons, and proclaim the arrival of the Kingdom of God.  He hadn’t given them authority to do this.  Thus they are more than asking permission.  They don’t have the ability to bring fire from heaven.  They are asking for God to back up their pronouncement.  Have you ever prayed such a prayer?  “Lord, give me the power and strength to crush and destroy those who stand against me!”  We need only look at how our Lord responded to those who stood against him to know his response to us.

Now the newer translations only say that Jesus rebuked them and they left.  This has to do with the fact that when the older translations were done we didn’t have all the manuscripts we do today.  It seems that early on some notes were added (whether by Luke or others we do not know) to explain further. 

So, the words “like Elijah” appear to have been inserted.  This explains the reason the disciples would have thought of such a drastic action.  They are clearly thinking back to the story of the prophet Elijah in 2 Kings 1.  After Ahab’s death, Ahaziah ruled.  One day he falls and is injured.  So he sends messengers to the false god Baal-Zebub in the Philistine city of Ekron for a prophetic word concerning whether he would recover or not.  Elijah intercepts the messengers and tells them to tell Ahaziah that he is going to die.  When Ahaziah hears the news he is angry and sends 50 troops out to capture Elijah.  The captain of the troops refers to Elijah as “man of God.”  To which Elijah responds, “If I am a man of God then may fire come down from heaven and consume you and your fifty men.”  Fire does come down from heaven.  Ahaziah sends out another 50 men with the same results again: fire comes down and consumes them all.  When Ahaziah sends out a third group of fifty soldiers, the captain is a humble man.  He tells Elijah why he has been sent but also begs for his life and the life of his men.  Elijah then relents and goes with him.  In this story Elijah represents God’s Law and is not going to be killed by Israel’s king.  When we approach God in arrogance and the might of men we can only expect to be judged by His law. But when the man approached in humility and begged for grace, he was received.

Now that situation is very different from the Samaritan village.  We can be too quick to use examples of godly men for our own justification.  Christ had been rejected before and no such thing was ever encouraged.  He had told them when he sent them out that if they are rejected they are to shake the dust off of their feet and move on.  In the case of Elijah they sought to apprehend the man of God outside of God’s will.  But, here they do not want to apprehend Jesus.  They are simply saying, “Go somewhere else.”

Jesus rebukes this attitude.  Whether these words were added or not, anyone who has studied the teachings of Jesus knows that this is exactly the reason he would rebuke them.  The spirit of Christ was not motivating them to destroy the villagers, but rather it was the spirit of Satan.  What manner of spirit am I?  That is a powerful question.  The Bible says in Proverbs 3:11-12, “My son, do not despise the chastening of the LORD, nor detest His correction; for whom the LORD loves He corrects, just as a father the son in whom he delights.”  They wanted to judge quickly out of hurt pride and revenge.  This is not how God judges mankind.  When God’s judgment comes it will not come out of pride and hurt.  It will come from a pure holy understanding that nothing more can be done to reason with those who have chosen rebellion.

Even the teachings of Christ stand in opposition to this vengeful request.  Love your enemies.  Do good to those who do you wrong.  Bless them that curse you.  Jesus commands this, not because it is okay.  But, he commands it precisely because the long suffering judgment of God has been appointed for a specific day and it will come upon them.  This is the day of God’s grace.  This is the day where God wrestles with man and cries out, “Why will you die?  Come let us reason!”  The spirit of this world is quick to judge and quick to destroy.  But, the Spirit of God is slow to judge in order to leave room for repentance.

Thus Jesus rebukes his disciples because he is here to save people not destroy.  It is impossible for fallen men to perfectly perform the judgment of God.  Only Jesus can do that.  He is the one whom God will send to judge the world and many will be destroyed in that judgment.  Judgment is final and we are too quick to pronounce eternal judgments.  There is no overturning it and no coming back from it.  Thus God is slow to judge.  Don’t let your emotions misrepresent God.  We too often get God’s greatness mixed up with our own.  Jesus says to us, “Pick up your cross and follow me.”  This will take a steadfast resolve and a humble understanding of what a great person does when they are rejected. 

Misunderstanding Greatness Audio