Saturday 15 September 2012

Luke 9:51-56



"But he turned, and rebuked them, and said, 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. And they went to another village."
{Luke 9:55,56} (KJV
Please note I used the KJV instead of the NIV. The NASB and NKJV agree with the KJV, the ESV and NIV add the detail of the rebuke as a text note. This discrepancy is caused by the translators’ use of different ancient manuscripts.

Our Lord’s earthly ministry is over and He turns His face towards the cross. His three years of pouring into His disciples is coming to an end. The two disciples that Jesus aptly nicknamed the sons of thunder (Mk 3:17), ask if they should use their faith to call destruction from heaven down upon these people who refuse to help them. He rebukes them! 

The mistake that the disciples made, is repeated over and over again by disciples of Christ throughout all the generations of Christians, including ours. We forget that Jesus came to save. We forget His purpose is to save. We forget that this is the Day of Salvation. John reminds us in John 3:17, “For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.” But we still forget.

Friend, may we accept the rebuke of our Lord this day. If we have a condemning attitude towards people, if we think in our hearts that the world would be a better place if some people were wiped off the earth, then, friend, we have a different spirit controlling us  then the spirit of Christ. May God forgive us, and change our hearts and eyes, so that we see people as our Lord sees people! People whom our Lord loves - people who need salvation!

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