Luke 9 Jesus and His disciples started traveling toward Jerusalem. The disciples went ahead of Jesus to notify a Samaritan village that Jesus was on His way. The Samaritans, however, would not allow Jesus to come into their village because He was on His way to Jerusalem. There had been a great division between the Jewish and Samaritan nations centered on religion, and these Samaritans were bitter that Jesus focused His attention on the Jews. The apostles James and John turned to Jesus in indignation when they heard that He was not accepted into the village. “Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven and destroy this village as Elijah did?” they cried out. Jesus turned to the apostles and said sharply, “You do not know what kind of power you possess. Your power is not to lash out in anger, but to heal in love and kindness. The Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them.” Chastened, the group humbly followed Jesus as He turned to another village.
