On the Same Team: Luke 9:51-56

As we are approaching the half way part of the year, and our half way milestone in the gospels, one might think that we would be about half way through Jesus’ ministry. However, this thought is not correct, because as we approach the middle of each gospel, we learn that most of the gospels dedicate a significant percentage of their space focusing on Jesus’ final week leading up to the cross.

However, in our walk through the gospels for this year, we haven’t arrived at this point just yet. Instead, we come to a passage that may have happened several weeks leading up to Jesus’ final week, as He begins to make His way towards Jerusalem and towards the cross.

In this passage, we can get a picture of God’s character, and this picture challenges each of us regarding how we choose to react when faced with other people who are mean to us. Also found in our passage is a great example of a subtle issue that gets various groups of Christian’s pointing their fingers at each other rather than realize that we are all on the same team – especially regarding the issue found in this passage.

Our passage is found in the gospel of Luke, chapter 9, and we will be reading from the New Century Version. Starting in verse 51, we read that:

⁵¹ When the time was coming near for Jesus to depart, he was determined to go to Jerusalem. ⁵² He sent some messengers ahead of him, who went into a town in Samaria to make everything ready for him. ⁵³ But the people there would not welcome him, because he was set on going to Jerusalem. ⁵⁴ When James and John, followers of Jesus, saw this, they said, “Lord, do you want us to call fire down from heaven and destroy those people?”

⁵⁵ But Jesus turned and scolded them.

At this point in our passage, most Bible translations either exclude a statement, or they include it with a note. The statement in question is this:

 [And Jesus said, “You don’t know what kind of spirit you belong to. ⁵⁶ The Son of Man did not come to destroy the souls of people but to save them.”]

Then all translations finish this passage by saying: “Then they went to another town.”

The reason I draw emphasis on this distinction between how certain translations vary in their recording of this event is because how people treat this discrepancy is very similar to one big theme found in the passage itself.

In this passage, we find Jesus traveling to Jerusalem, and instead of going the long way around to avoid passing through Samaria, He decides to travel through it. Samaritans and Jews had a very hostile history and they were among the most prejudiced people towards each other that we can find in history.

By this point in Jesus’ ministry, the disciples have already traveled through Samaria a number of times, so it doesn’t surprise them that they decide to go through this region again — however, this might be the first time that a Samaritan town has refused their presence.

The reason: Because Jesus was a Jew traveling to Jerusalem for a festival. Whether this town knew who Jesus was or not, they let their prejudice of Jesus’ ancestry get in the way of them experiencing what Jesus could do for them.

In response, because the town rejected them, two of Jesus’ closest disciples make the suggestion about calling fire from heaven to destroy “those people”.

This passage clearly shows prejudice of both sides, and each side believes they are justified in their actions or suggestions. Both the disciples and the Samaritans fall into an “us vs. them” trap – and if we are not careful, we too can fall into this same trap.

One way this trap has captured the spotlight recently is certain groups of people taking offence at modern translations for “removing” certain key verses or passages. This passage is one great example. The questionable phrase fits completely, and it even helps the dialog of the event. The statements in question give us a frame of reference for how Jesus scolded the disciples for their statement.

The trap for us today is falling into an “us vs. them” mentality because if we see modern translators removing text from the Bible, we might begin distrusting all modern translations because they have been “tampered” with. I recently read an article that focused on this issue.

While I cannot speak for all translations present in the world today, I will say that the majority of the translations that are well-known, modern translations have teams of people much smarter than I who are heartfelt Christian men and women. These people would be appalled at the idea that they are tampering with the text.

Instead, what we are discovering, is that as ancient manuscripts are being discovered and dated, we are learning that the early copies of the writings, including our passage for this episode, actually do not include any details about how Jesus scolded the disciples. Jesus very well could have said the statement in question, but when Luke wrote His gospel, he didn’t include it.

What happened at some point in the manuscript copying process is that a scribe, wanting to help make the idea clearer for those reading, pulled a similar teaching from John’s gospel, and he included it in our passage to help us see God’s character better. It is probable that the scribe looked at John, chapter 3, verse 17, which says “God did not send his Son into the world to judge the world guilty, but to save the world through him.” (John 3:17)

No one on either side of the debate doubts the statements which were added on whether they align with God’s character. In this regard, we are all on the same team. Also, both sides of the debate want the most accurate translations of the Bible available and shared with others. This also makes us all on the same team.

Where we are left to debate is whether we should include the additional insights and cross-references that some well-meaning scribes included as they were copying the Bible. Most passages in question are included in other portions of the Bible. An example of this would be if Matthew included a detail that Luke didn’t. A scribe copying Luke’s gospel who also knows the event from Matthew’s gospel may have included Matthew’s detail in Luke’s version to help Luke’s version be better. In the early years of manuscripts, it was not as easy to compare between translations or gospels as it is today, so we can and should thank these early scribes for their work keeping the scriptures alive throughout the early parts of Christian history. This makes these early scribes part of our same team.

Prejudice doesn’t help anyone. The Samaritans miss out on Jesus because of their prejudice, and the disciples are scolded because they were prejudiced as well. Jesus modeled the right response at the close of this event. Everyone agrees that after scolding the disciples, Jesus and His followers “went to another town.”

Not all towns in Samaria were prejudiced against Jesus, and Jesus uses this opportunity to teach His followers to not be prejudiced towards others even if they reject us. Instead, we should simply move on.

As we come to the end of another podcast episode, here are the challenges I will leave you with:

Be sure to model Jesus’ attitude in this passage. If other people hurt our feelings or reject us, we shouldn’t get mad or revengeful. Instead, we should simply move on. Know that we are all on the same team – especially those of us who have placed Jesus first in our lives.

Also, be sure to pray and study the Bible for yourself and trust that God has kept His message safe for the thousands of years of history we have been keeping track. If you are doubtful about a translation, the best place to go is to the original manuscripts in the original language they were written in. However, if you don’t know the original languages like I don’t know them, then the next best place we can go is to other translations. When we have lots of translations available in our own language, we are able to see a bigger and clearer picture of what the original said when we don’t know the original language of the text. By using lots of translations, God is able to keep His message alive and relevant for us living over 2,000 years later.

And as I end every set of challenges by saying in one way or another, never stop short of, back away from, chicken out of, or doubt yourself into leaving where God wants to lead you to in your life with Him!