Apostles, Pt. 11: "Making a Molehill out of a Mountain"

MAKING A MOLEHILL OUT OF A MOUNTAIN (LUKE 9:51-56)
The widely respected Indianapolis Colts coach and Superbowl winner Tony Dungy is the epitome of cool, calm and composure. Peyton Manning credited Dungy's calm demeanor as critical to the team’s rally from an 18-point deficit against the New England Patriots to win the AFC Championship Game. Unknown to most people, the coach was once a hothead out of control. He was even ejected for fighting in a basketball game in the ninth grade. Dungy was incensed that he was hacked repeatedly, but no fouls were called. His best friend recalled: “Tony kept telling the referee, 'Look, you need to call something here.’ So the next timeout, we were in the huddle and the coach wasn't there and Tony said, 'If he hits me again, I'm going to knock him to half-court. (After another non-call,) Tony laid one on him. It looked like a cartoon. The kid hit the floor and started sliding back. It was one of those youthful things. That was the one and only time. Tony was normally the person we looked up to.”

Dungy confessed, “I was the technical foul champion…arguing with officials … I was also a quarterback who yelled at my teammates a lot.” Dungy was an all-state quarterback who also starred in basketball, baseball and track before enrolling at the University of Minnesota in 1973 on a football scholarship and his intensity was evident in sports.

Dungy recalled and responded, “I appreciate that people think of me that way, but I know it's been a long process, a learned process. And it's not natural. I thank God for it.” He remembers the teaching moment from his father after that “fight” in ninth-grade basketball that transformed him: “What did you accomplish? Do you think you helped your team in the locker room?' (“Dungy's upbringing was super solid,” USA TODAY 1/30/07)

The apostle John is an enigmatic character in the New Testament. He is one of the most loving, if not the most loving, apostle in the Bible, and one of Jesus’ three most trusted disciples. The most affectionate of the bunch and the most articulate apostle on love, he is often referred to as “the disciple whom Jesus loved” (John 13:23, 20:2), who is not timid or shy to recline next to Jesus or show affection for Him (John 13:23). However, John had a temperamental, impulsive and volatile side that was his Achilles heel. His love was evident to be very conditional and he had to learn love the hard way. He had to show love and compassion on those not worth loving or caring before Jesus could effectively use him.

How should a believer respond to hardened unbelievers? Why is anger a hindrance to God’s work? Does a believer’s testimony matter to his witness the gospel?

Anger Unleashed is a Situation Worsened
51 As the time approached for him to be taken up to heaven, Jesus resolutely set out for Jerusalem. 52 And he sent messengers on ahead, who went into a Samaritan village to get things ready for him; 53 but the people there did not welcome him, because he was heading for Jerusalem. (Luke 9:51-53)

A most interesting article in USA Today says that older adults with explosive tempers are more likely than mellow people the same age to have calcium deposits in their coronary arteries, a key sign of high risk for heart attack.

Researchers from Washington State University asked 185 participants to fill out questionnaires on how they dealt with anger. Researchers used electron beam computerized tomography (EBCT) to measure the calcium deposits in arteries. Nine years later, their arteries were scanned again. They reported their findings at the American Psychosomatic Society and said the more likely someone over 50 expresses anger by lashing out, the more calcification shows up in his coronary arteries.

In the 40 adults who were 50 or older at the start, people with short fuses had higher calcium levels when the study began and nine years later, says psychiatrist Bruce Wright, an author of the study. The temper-calcium link held up even after accounting for risk factors in heart disease, such as blood pressure and cholesterol. Such calcium scans accurately indicate blocked arteries and heart disease, he adds. Wright claims that erupting in fury can trigger surges in stress hormones and injure blood vessel linings, but repressing anger also raises blood pressure and heart rate when people are under stress, he adds.

The most heart-friendly way to handle anger is to stay calm, put matters in perspective and solve infuriating problems, says Duke University physician Redford Williams, an expert in anger control. A study on a “coping skills training” program that teaches healthy ways of dealing with anger, published in The American Heart Journal in 2005, showed that learning these methods reduced the anger levels and blood pressure of patients after heart bypass surgery, he says. (“Stay calm, or you may calcify your arteries,” USA TODAY 3/8/07)

Jesus used a tactful and strategic way to preach to the despised Samaritans. Previously, he had sent the disciples out to preach the kingdom of God from village to village (Mark 3:14, 6:6-7, Luke 9:2), but this was the first time he announced His coming before visiting and He invited the Samaritans to prepare for Him. It was a wise way to gauge their response, prevent further animosity and spend his time.

The word “resolutely” (v 51) occurs for the first time in gospels and it appears only in Luke. Samaritan was the hardest village to crack for the gospel, but Jesus’ days were numbered and his crucifixion was imminent. The last mention of Jerusalem (vv 31, 46) ended up with the disciples arguing about who was the greatest. This time Jesus’ determination to head to Jerusalem was obstructed by the equally determined Samaritans, who wanted nothing to do with him and the apostles if they were heading to Jerusalem. The Samaritans welcomed Jesus and company to stay, minister and evangelize just as long as they give their word that they would not go to Jerusalem, their hated rival city. Their hostility to Jerusalem, not to Jesus, was understandable. Jesus did not want to make matters worse, to negotiate a compromise or to punish the Samaritans more than they were punishing themselves.

The Samaritans were roundly despised by the Jews because they were children of mixed marriages, Jewish women and men from Assyria and other nationalities. The Assyrians had conquered the northern kingdom of Israel and took the best soldiers and scholars with them. After the conquest, the king of Assyria brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Avva, Hamath and Sepharvaim and settled them in the towns of Samaria to replace the Israelites. They took over Samaria and lived in its towns. (2 Kings 17:24) The Bible records that they worshiped the LORD, but appointed all sorts of people as priests in the shrines at the high places. They worshiped the LORD, but they also served their own gods in accordance with the customs of the nations from which they had been brought. (2 Kings 17:32-33) The colonials that remained behind married the locals and gave birth to the Samaritans. They were hated because they represented the colonials, the idolaters, the heretics and the losers - idolaters because the Samaritans accepted only the Torah, the first five books of Moses, and losers because the brightest and the best were exiled.

Anger Unleashed is a Testimony Weakened
54 When the disciples James and John saw this, they asked, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy them?” (Luke 9:54)

Here are some favorite quotes on anger:
“Anger is never without reason, but seldom with a good one.” (Benjamin Franklin)
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“He who angers you conquers you.” Elizabeth Kenny
“For every minute you are angry, you lose sixty seconds of happiness.”
“Anger is one letter short of danger.”
“No man can think clearly when his fists are clenched.”
“Always write angry letters to your enemies. Never mail them.” (James Fallows)
“Speak when you are angry and you will make the best speech you will ever regret.” (Ambrose Bierce)
“The best remedy for a short temper is a long walk.” (Jacqueline Schiff)
“Be not angry that you cannot make others as you wish them to be, since you cannot make yourself as you wish to be.” (Thomas a Kempis)
“When angry, count ten before you speak; if very angry, count a hundred.” (Thomas Jefferson)
“Temperamental is 95% temper and 5% mental.”

The Chinese considers an angry person full of “fire” or “heat.” They have sayings to describe angry people as “having big fire energy,” “fire energy very intense,” “unleashing fire,” “colliding fire,” “eating fire gunpowder” and “fire blinding their eyes.”

Jesus did not react to and deal with the Samaritans’ rejection because he had more to tackle within the apostolic band. His mixed emotions with the Samaritans were compounded by the fiery Zebedee brothers, who were determined to punish the Samaritans for their arrogance, insult and rudeness. James and John were known for their temper. When Jesus first appointed them as apostles, he gave them a nickname: Boanerges, which means Sons of Thunder (Mark 3:14-17). Boanerges is Aramaic for sons of “rage,” the word appearing only once in the Old Testament for Nebuchadnezzar’s rage (Dan 3:13) when he heard that the Jews did not obey his edict, therefore ordering Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego to be thrown immediately into a blazing furnace (Dan 3:12-15).

True to name and form, the hotheaded brothers asked Jesus for permission to call fire down from heaven to destroy the stubborn Samaritans. The Greek for “destroy” is “ana-lisko,” to use up, emphasis on the word “ana” or “up.” KJV, NASB and RSV translate this word as “consume.” It occurs only one-time in the gospels and twice in Paul’s letters. Paul used this word “consume” twice, once for the outcome of members biting and devouring each other (Gal 5:15), and the other for the Lord’s overthrow of the lawless one with the breath of his mouth (2 Thess 2:8). The brothers with ill intentions were threatening to blow up the town, wipe out the residents and teach them a lesson. Of course, replacing insults with fire and brimstone was not the answer or an option. G. Campbell Morgan has this to say about this account: “It is possible to be zealous for the honor of God in a spirit which puts us out of fellowship with God.” (G. Campbell Morgan, The Gospel According to Luke, 132, Fleming H. Revell Company, Old Tappan, New Jersey)

James and John’s feelings and reaction were understandable but unnecessary. Shortly before this, in the same chapter, Jesus said, “If people do not welcome you, shake the dust off your feet when you leave their town, as a testimony against them.” (Luke 9:5) James and John were upset and offended at the Samaritan’s ostentatious and outright rejection of Jesus before the villagers could hear Him out. At the back of their mind, the brothers considered the Samaritans fortunate to be given preferential treatment and prior announcement – how dare they! The funny thing was that Jesus was not offended, upset or mad.

Anger Unleashed is an Opportunity Wasted
55 But Jesus turned and rebuked them, 56 and they went to another village. (Luke 9:55-56)

Belden Lane tells a wonderful story: A young brother once came to Abba Macarius, one of the great desert fathers, asking how he could become a holy man. The old monk told him to go to the cemetery nearby and spend the day abusing the dead; yelling at them for all he was worth, even throwing stones. The young man thought this strange, but he did as he was told and then returned to the teacher.

“What did they say to you?” Macarius asked. “Well, uh, nothing,” the brother replied. “Then go back again tomorrow and praise them,” answered the old man, “call them apostles, saints, righteous men and women. Think of every compliment you can.”

Next day the young brother again did as he was told, and returned to the monastery, where Macarius asked him, “What did they say this time?” “They still didn't answer a word,” replied the brother. “Ah, they must, indeed, be holy people,” said Abba Macarius. “You insulted them and they did not reply. You praised them and they did not speak. Go and do likewise, my friend, taking no account of either the scorn of men and women, or their praises and you will be a holy man.” http://www.30goodminutes.org/csec/sermon/lane_3928.htm

When Jesus turned around to rebuke the two, it was the strangest turnaround and biggest shock to the disciples. The other two closest disciples of Jesus, James and John, joined Peter (Mark 8:33), their inner group buddy, as the only disciples rebuked by Jesus. The rebuke did not fall on the villagers of Samaria, but the sons of Zebedee. Instead of being commended and defended, they were sharply rebuked. Instead of saying, “Thanks,” Jesus said, “No thanks,” and gave the two brothers a slap on the wrist, a knock on their head and a rap in the public.

After that, they went to “another village” (v 56), which tells us that there was always another alternative, other villages to visit, another course to take, other people to save, another time to revisit. The story of John and the Samaritans did not end there. The book of Acts continues the story of the Samaritans. Before Jesus ascended into heaven, he commissioned the disciples to be His witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (Acts 1:8) He reminded them not to neglect, despise or resent Samaria.

In Acts chapter 8, a great persecution scattered the church throughout Judea and Samaria, (Acts 8:1), resulting in the deacon Philip going to Samaria and successfully proclaiming Christ there (Acts 8:5-8). The apostles in Jerusalem sent Peter and the same John to pray for them to receive the Spirit (Acts 8:14-17). The changed and transformed Peter and John returned to Jerusalem and preached the gospel in many Samaritan villages (Acts 8:25). What the apostles could not accomplish the first time by flesh and blood they did after the Spirit’s outpouring.

Conclusion: Finally, anger can be positive, not always negative. There is a place for righteous anger, anger that is constructive, moral, and redemptive. Aristotle says, “Anybody can become angry, that is easy; but to be angry with the right person, and to the right degree, and at the right time, and for the right purpose, and in the right way, that is not within everybody's power, that is not easy.”
The Bible tells us, “The LORD is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and rich in love,” (Ps 145:8) “His anger lasts only a moment, but his favor lasts a lifetime” (Ps 30:5) and “In your anger do not sin: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, and do not give the devil a foothold.” (Eph 4:26-28)

Do the words out of your mouth bless or curse? Do they heal or hurt? Are you a witness or wrecker? Are you a builder or demolisher? Do you win people over or worsen the situation, waste the opportunity and weaken the gospel?