Luke 9:54
And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did? And when his disciples James and John saw this, they said, Lord, wilt thou that we command fire to come down from heaven, and consume them, even as Elias did?
On His final open journey toward Jerusalem to give His life to save the lost, Jesus sent messengers to ask refreshment in a Samaritan village, but because He seemed bound for Jerusalem they refused Him even a wayfarer's welcome and lost the blessing of His presence. Seeing the slight to One they reverenced, James and John were filled with indignant surprise and asked leave to command fire from heaven to consume the offenders, as Elijah did to the captains and their companies sent to seize him. Jesus looked on them with pity and pain and rebuked them that they did not know what manner of spirit they were of, for the Son of man came not to destroy men's lives or to bring judgment but to save them and to show mercy. His work is never to force entrance, compel conscience, resent disrespect, or condemn and destroy those who withhold homage, but to advance His kingdom by love, mercy, peace and persuasion unto willing, voluntary service. A revengeful, compelling and persecuting spirit that would punish rejecters under zeal for righteousness is opposite to Christ and comes from Satan, exposing any claim to act as His vicar while practicing it. So His servants must never answer contempt, neglect or insult with resentment, retaliation or desire for divine punishment, but must learn from Him meekness, forbearance and tender love, as John himself did when he repented of his violent temper and was transformed by daily closeness to Christ.
Setting and Request
The verse belongs to Jesus' final public journey toward Jerusalem, made openly so that attention would be fixed on His coming sacrifice where He would give His life to bring salvation to the lost world. It records James and John asking whether they should call down fire from heaven to destroy a Samaritan village, following the example of Elijah, as they traveled toward Jerusalem.
On that journey He sent messengers ahead into a Samaritan village to request refreshments for Him. Because He appeared desirous of passing on toward Jerusalem the Samaritans envied Him and refused Him hospitality and welcome, withholding even the courtesies due a common wayfarer. By that refusal they lost the blessing His presence would have brought, for He never urges His presence on any. The disciples knew His purpose was to bless the Samaritans, so their coldness, jealousy and disrespect stood out all the more sharply against His intent to do them good.
Seeing this slight and disrespect to One they so highly reverenced, James and John were filled with surprise, indignation and wounded feeling at the contempt shown to their Lord. In that zeal they felt the insult was too great to pass over without immediate punishment, and angered by the rejection they asked whether they should command fire to come down from heaven to consume them, even as Elias did. Their call for fire referred to Elijah's destruction of the captains and their companies sent to take him. Those who hold it describe them as the Syrian captains.
Christ's Rebuke and Mission
Jesus was pained by the words of James and John when, indignant at the disrespect shown to their Lord by the Samaritans who rejected Him, they proposed to call down fire from heaven to destroy them after the example of Elijah. He looked with pity upon His disciples and rebuked their harsh spirit, telling them that they did not know what manner of spirit they were of. He declared that the Son of man came not to destroy men's lives but to save them. His mission was to show mercy, not to bring judgment.
The request proves that His work is not to compel men to receive Him nor to judge men for belief. He never uses force against those who reject Him, never forces His way in where He is unwelcome, and never resents disrespect. He never consigns men to prison or the rack for refusing Him homage as King of Heaven, and never condemns to death those who do not accept Him. His kingdom advances through mercy, love and peace, ever seeking to win by revealing His love and by persuasion. He desires only voluntary service and the willing surrender of the heart under the constraint of love.
A revengeful and compelling spirit that would answer rejection with destruction is contrary to Christ. A cruel and persecuting spirit is opposite to Him, and comes from Satan and from men actuated by his spirit, who compel conscience and bring suffering under pretense of zeal for righteousness. To practice such cruelty while claiming to be His vicar proves the claim false.
His heart overflows with love, showing that love and sympathy must not be repressed. The nearer man comes to moral perfection, the keener are his sensibilities, the more acute his perception of sin, and the deeper his sympathy for the afflicted.
Warning to Followers
The request to call down fire came from a harsh, indignant, vengeful, impulsive and destructive spirit, stirred by surprise and wounded feeling at the slight and disrespect shown to One the disciples highly reverenced. In their zeal to defend the honor of their insulted Teacher they sought immediate punishment rather than reflecting His purpose to save, and thereby showed they did not know what manner of spirit they were of. What they needed to learn from Christ was meekness, humility, love, tenderness, forbearance and patience.
That zealous but misguided wish to consume those who slighted and scorned their Master was of the same intensity and character as Saul's persecuting zeal, though directed differently and aimed in a different direction. As James and John would have destroyed rejecters with fire from heaven, so Saul in his voluntary zeal dragged holy men before councils and had them imprisoned or condemned to death for faith in Jesus alone.
John did not naturally possess a gentle character, but a combative, violent and resentful temper that would answer injury and rejection with destruction. When reproved for wrongly wanting fire to destroy the Samaritans who refused to receive Christ, he accepted the correction and repented of his wrong spirit and conduct. Through daily closeness to Christ he came to see his own faults, yielded his temper to Christ, and learned tenderness, forbearance, humility and patience, until he was transformed by the Holy Spirit and Christ's love.
The rebuke forbids Christ's servants to answer contempt, neglect or insult with resentment, retaliation, revenge, oppression, judgmental exclusion, or desire for divine punishment upon those who dishonor the truth. Zeal for God and for His honor must be tempered, lest by using religion to punish or destroy it misrepresent Christ's character, whose mission was to show mercy and save lives, not to bring judgment. This correction is needed within His church, where love rather than oppression must be cultivated.
The same warning applies against attacking or undermining others by words, actions or conduct. Everyone who believes in Christ is precious to Him, and He treats harm done to people as harm done to Himself.