The Problem with Holy Crusades

But they did not receive Him, because He was traveling toward Jerusalem. When His disciples James and John saw this, they said, "Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?" But He turned and rebuked them, and said, "You do not know what kind of spirit you are of; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives, but to save them." And they went on to another village.

Luke 9:53-56

The problem with a holy crusade is not it's justification but our internal motivation for carrying it out.  The people of Samaria had given Jesus a major insult in not receiving him in their region because He was going to Jerusalem.  In our modern setting it would be similar to you not being able to get a hotel room a Palestinian area because you recognized Israel's right to exist as a nation.   

When you think about the fact that Jesus was going to Jerusalem to be offered as the redemptive sacrifice for all men, the Samaritans pettiness seems even larger.  But the Jews and Samaritans had had great resentments towards each other for multiple generations.  The Samaritans claimed they were the true religion of Abraham and had remained in the land of Israel during the Babylonian Captivity.  The Jews considered them corrupt and idolaters.  In this instance the Samaritans were opposing Jesus and James and John were right in thinking of the days of Elijah the prophet when he called fire down to destroy the false religionists who were opposing God.   

I have often wondered why God doesn't kill more of His enemies.  It would certainly get them out of the way and perhaps cause others to fear standing against the cause of Christ.  When Pat Robertson sent out a prayer letter to his ministry supporters telling them to pray for a well-placed heart attack or debilitating stroke among the pro-abortion members of the Supreme Court, I wasn't particularly offended by the sentiment, just the stupidity of putting something like that in writing for the news media to get a hold of.  But that's the problem isn't it?  We have a tendency to bring our anger, our frustration and our indignation at the situation in a way the Lord simply does not.  He knows that in the future there will be a judgment that will redeem all the injustices committed in this world.  He also knows that men are stubborn and rebellious but some eventually do repent and find eternal life.   

As Christians we have the God-given option to treat our enemies as He does; with love and much patience.  In this age, we need less of the spirit of Elijah and more of the spirit of Christ.

May God's compassion be in your heart today! 

Pastor Chris