John the Beloved
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withheld the courtesies which they would have given to a common
wayfarer. Jesus never urges His presence upon any, and the Samari-
tans lost the blessing which would have been granted them had they
solicited Him to be their guest.
The disciples knew that it was the purpose of Christ to bless the
Samaritans by His presence; and the coldness, jealousy, and disrespect
shown to their Master filled them with surprise and indignation. James
and John especially were aroused. That He whom they so highly
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reverenced should be thus treated, seemed to them a wrong too great to
be passed over without immediate punishment. In their zeal they said,
“Lord, wilt Thou that we command fire to come down from heaven,
and consume them, even as Elias did?” referring to the destruction
of the Samaritan captains and their companies sent out to take the
prophet Elijah. They were surprised to see that Jesus was pained by
their words, and still more surprised as His rebuke fell upon their ears:
“Ye know not what manner of spirit ye are of. For the Son of man is
not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.”
Luke 9:54-56
.
It is no part of Christ’s mission to compel men to receive Him.
It is Satan, and men actuated by his spirit, who seek to compel the
conscience. Under a pretense of zeal for righteousness, men who are
confederated with evil angels sometimes bring suffering upon their
fellow men in order to convert them to their ideas of religion; but
Christ is ever showing mercy, ever seeking to win by the revealing
of His love. He can admit no rival in the soul, nor accept of partial
service; but He desires only voluntary service, the willing surrender of
the heart under the constraint of love.
On another occasion James and John presented through their
mother a petition requesting that they might be permitted to occupy
the highest positions of honor in Christ’s kingdom. Notwithstanding
Christ’s repeated instruction concerning the nature of His kingdom,
these young disciples still cherished the hope for a Messiah who would
take His throne and kingly power in accordance with the desires of
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men. The mother, coveting with them the place of honor in this king-
dom for her sons, asked, “Grant that these my two sons may sit, the
one on Thy right hand, and the other on the left, in Thy kingdom.”
But the Saviour answered, “Ye know not what ye ask. Are ye able
to drink of the cup that I shall drink of, and to be baptized with the
baptism that I am baptized with?” They recalled His mysterious words