In Luke 9, Jesus and His disciples were heading for a Samaritan village, but the people refused to receive Him. James and John were furious and asked Jesus if they should “command fire to come down from heaven and consume” the village. They became very harsh. James and John were two of the three in Jesus inner circle. They were two brothers who were known to have a quick temper, and were even called sons of thunder. They were loyal true blue disciples. Seeing their master rejected caused their anger to swelled up, and they were filled with indignation. This was the Messiah. How dare these villagers turn Him away? Let’s destroy these unbelieving Samaritans by fire. Jesus had offered the Samaritans His tender, loving, compassionate ministry, but in return, they rejected Him.

Even though they were loyal and passionate about their Master, James & John were out of step with His spirit. We can be zealous for a number of things including the honor of God, but we must not respond in a way that will compromise God will. Moses is a good example. In fact, this very problem kept him out of the Promised Land. He was loyal to God, but in one incident, he had a wrong spirit. Israel was clamoring for water and grumbling against God. Moses was instructed by God only to speak to the rock, and water would come. But when he responded, he said, “’Hear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of the rock?’ Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod.” God wanted a gentle approach - strength under control. He wanted a soft answer to a rough question. But Moses lashed out in harshness and as a consequence never interred the land of promise.

Jesus says, “I am gentle and lowly in heart.” Gentleness does not have to be in the big things. In fact it is good to think of gentleness in the little things. John Wesley was the best-known preacher of his day. He was invited to lunch with a gentleman after the service. His daughter was remarkable for her beauty. She was profoundly impressed by Mr. Wesley’s preaching. Her father happened to notice that she was wearing a number of rings considered a sign of worldliness in those days. So he took hold of his daughter’s hand and raising it, called Wesley’s attention to the sparkling gems. “What do you think of this sir, for a Methodist’s hand?” She turned crimson with embarrassment. It was a harsh thing for a father to do to his daughter. But Wesley, this most powerful of preachers, knew the importance of gentleness - power under control. With a benevolent smile, he said, “The hand is a beautiful hand.” She was deeply touched by his soft answer to a rough question.