#3 (The 12 Disciples
Series)
"JAMES
-- THE LIGHTNING BOLT!"
TEXTS: Mark
3:17; 10:35-45; Luke
9:51-56
INTRO: If there is
one thing that can keep a Christian from being a productive saint it is the
beast we call a "TEMPER." A quick
temper has ruined more saints than many other sins, hence the many warnings in
the Bible about the wrong use of “anger” such as “fighting” or "murmuring
against one another" – or "disputing." Anger that expresses itself
in ungodly ways only creates more pain for those who unleash it as well as for
those who are its object!
ILLUS: A MAN BY
THE NAME OF RALPH MILTON HAD A TEMPER PROBLEM. ONE MORNING RALPH WAS AWAKENED AROUND 5
A.M. TO A CONSTANT SOUND LIKE A MACHINE GUN ON HIS ROOF. IT WAS SO LOUD THAT HE COULDN'T FALL
BACK ASLEEP. THE LONGER HE LAID
THERE THE ANGRIER HE GOT, FINALLY HE GOT UP AND WALKED OUTSIDE TO SEE WHAT WAS
MAKING THIS CRAZY RACKET ON THE ROOF OF HIS HOUSE. HE DISCOVERED A WOODPECKER ON HIS T.V.
ANTENNA POUNDING ITS LITTLE BRAIN OUT TRYING TO POKE A HOLE IN THE METAL
ANTENNA. HE WAS SO MAD AT THE
STUPID BIRD THAT HE PICKED UP A ROCK AND THREW IT AT THE BIRD, IT SAILED HIGH,
BUT MISSED THE BIRD. TRAVELING OVER
HIS HOUSE THE STONE CAME DOWN ON THE OTHER SIDE WITH A CRASHING SOUND OF GLASS
SHATTERING! HE HAD HIT HIS CAR’S
WINDSHIELD AND BROKE IT! NOW ANGRY
AT THE BIRD WHO CONTINUED TO PECK AWAY ON THE ATTENNA, AND NOW WITH A BROKEN
WINDSHIELD, HE TOOK AND KICKED IN ANGER A NEARBY CLOD OF DIRT – ONLY TO REMEMBER
TOO LATE THAT HE DIDN'T HAVE ANY SHOES OR SOCKS ON! THE PAIN SIGNALS RUNNING UP FROM HIS
INJURED FOOT REMINDED HIM OF THE HIGH RPICE OF A QUICK TEMPER, AS DID THE
PRICETAG ON THE NEW WINDSIIIELD! – SOURCE UNKNOWN
James was the "lightning bolt" of the group! However, his quick temper and sense of
superiority was tamed by God's Spirit, and the James who learned to be
controlled by the Spirit of God instead of his own quick temper became one of
the great leaders in the early Church!
PROP.
SENT: The Bible
teaches us that God desires to tame our quick tempered spirit if we have a
tendency toward one. The fire of
the "lightning bolt spirit" once
channeled can be quite powerful, but if it strikes anywhere at a moment’s notice
it leaves great scars and damage!
I. FIERY DISPOSITION! Mark
3:17
A. Background (selected passages by each
sub-point)
1. We can deduce some interesting
things about “James the lightning bolt”
– there is enough information to get a likely picture of his home life and
upbringing:
a. Father's name was Zebedee; his
mother's name was Salome. Tradition
says his mother Salome was the sister of the Virgin Mary, thus making Jesus and
James cousins. (cf. Matt.
27:56 & Jn.
b. His family must have been rich or
well off since it is mentioned that his dad had a boat with servants on it,
perhaps he even had several boats. Only the wealthier businessmen could
afford servants on their boats – so we know he came from a family of
wealth.
c. It is also quite possible that
Zebedee had a house in Jerusalem since John
18:15 clearly indicates that John was known by the high priest Caiaphas
in more than just a casual way, his father's wealth may have meant a high social
standing in this area and thus a friendship with Caiaphas. His brother John was able to go right in
with Jesus to Caiaphas – no other disciple did
this.
2. So, James probably came from a
wealthy influential family that was well connected to the religious
authorities.
a. With his father having servants he
was likely use to the good life also, being waited on and getting his way
frequently.
b. With his family being friends with
the High Priest he was accustomed to having special privileges. Perhaps this helps explain later the
incident of Jesus being asked to give him and his brother John the privilege of
being seated on Jesus’ right and left side when the kingdom was well
established; after all, they were used to being next to the High Priest
already!
c. James and his brother John may have
thus been accustomed to getting what they wanted, maybe even somewhat
spoiled!
3. This might help explain the "fiery" nature they often expressed,
they were familiar in getting their own way, and if they didn't perhaps they
threw a fit!
4. They may came from a family that
could throw their weight around in high circles, thus they were use to telling
others what to do, they were probably in charge of the servants that worked for
their father so they knew how to give orders.
5. The successful business environment
and prosperity they had grown up with and that they had experienced had also
bred in them a hardworking ethic.
They were hard driving, hard working
men.
B. Bellicose
Mark
3:17
1. We are introduced to them as
disciples called by Jesus, and interestingly enough it is JESUS who gives them
the name: "BOANERGES" which
translated means: "Sons of
Thunder!"
a. Since Jesus is the one that gives
them this name it is a sure bet that their personality trait in this area was
the strongest when they first joined the
disciples!
b. Their reputation for having a quick
temper was obvious to everyone, and so Jesus gives them their
nickname!
2. You can only guess how the family
took these two boys dropping out of dad's business to follow Jesus, perhaps it
resulted in some "fiery" exchanges between the parents and
boys!
3. How well do you think a couple of
well connected rich kids did having them join a poor itinerant preacher that
constantly demanded from them UNSELFISHNESS and
SERVANTHOOD!?
a. They must have had plenty of
arguments with Pastor Jesus about how He did things and their boys’ position in
the group! (Matthew’s account tells us that their mom
Salome puts them up to asking Jesus for the prominent positions of left and
right chairs later!)
b. They must have had their feathers
ruffled many times in the beginning when Jesus expected them to serve others
rather than have servants take care of them!
c. When asked to do menial tasks they
must have griped around some and threw some temper tantrums, especially if Jesus
didn't do it their way!
4. Jesus would not have given them a
name that didn't apply!
5. Guys like this often miss the
bigger picture and so get mad at the wrong thing, they are so focused on
seeing things only from their own context that they can’t see anything
else.
ILLUS: LIKE A
WOMAN YEARS AGO IN
a. It must
have been hard for these guys to be a part of an organization that rarely if
ever had money or savings, always just barely paying the bills with nothing or
little left over!
b. It must have been hard for them to
see Jesus make commitments to do things that would cost more than they had on
hand!
c. How many times they must have
questioned Jesus' leadership skills and choices to minister to people who were
considered the "scum" of society, they must have thought Jesus would do better
to court the high society folks, the ones who have power and
influence!
d. They must have questioned the game
plan of Jesus, if they even thought he had one! They might have thought, "Why are we just wandering around preaching
parables, what's the goal here, where are we going, where should we be
going?" etc.
II. FRUSTRATED DISCIPLE Mark 10:35-45; Luke 9:51-56
A. Behavior
Mark
10:35-45
1. Here we may have a classic example
demonstrating James and his brother's disposition and spoiled background, they
are asking Jesus for the seats of honor and prestige – the right and left seats
when Jesus begins His rule!
a. Matthew's account of this story
tells us that their mother Salome put them up to this request, this may tell us
where they got their lightning bolt personality
from!
b. Notice their request, "Teacher, we want
you to do for us whatever we ask." (Does this sound like a couple of spoiled
rich kids who are use to getting their own way and being waited
on?)
c. This statement alone speaks volumes
about their personality!
d. These were guys use to getting what
they wanted, and if they didn't you can easily guess how they might have
reacted, angrily!
2. Not only were they demanding, a
trait of hot headed personalities, but they were also
arrogant!
a. Notice that when Jesus explained to
them the sacrifice and pain that will come to those who get such a privilege
they responded to Jesus' question of "do you guys
think you can drink from this cup?" their quick response: "WE
CAN."
b. They weren't really thinking about
what "CUP" Jesus meant; the only thing going through
their mind was “privilege” and “power” – not
“persecution!”
3. As expected, their arrogance
ruffled the feathers of the other 10 disciples, read 10:4 – thus a real fight broke out between James and
John and the other 10 guys!
a. This is the other side of a quick
temper; it alienates other people by appearing to be superior to
others.
b. "Sons of
thunder" often have low tolerance for those they perceive to not be
as aggressive as them! Thus they
are pushy and arrogant, which only drives others even further
away!
4. It is noteworthy that Jesus quickly
takes charge of the group to heal the rift that was quickly developing; you can
almost hear the guys fighting:
a. "Look you guys; it is me (James) and my
brother John who are in the inner circle of Jesus'
confidants!"
b. "If you guys think you should have those
seats then how come we do all work around
here?"
c. "WE know how to run a business better than
you guys."
5. Jesus' response to the twelve at
this point was to explain to them real power in the kingdom – SERVANTHOOD!
a. Jesus' appeal was based on His own
example, even He came to serve and not to be served! Thus He addresses James’ and John's
arrogance and superiority, and also teaches them all how position and power is
achieved in HIS kingdom!
b. The real place of honor awaits
those who set themselves aside and seek to help others
first!
c. This had to be humbling to James
and John! You can imagine that they
might have been highly critical of the other guys at times, certainly another
symptom of a "son of thunder"
personality!
6. It
is not critics however that will build the kingdom of God, it will be
construction workers!
ILLUS: A YOUNG
MUSICIAN HAD GIVEN ONE OF HIS FIRST CONCERTS AND IT WAS POORLY RECIEVED AND
HIGHLY CRITICIZED. THE CRITICS HAD
TORN APART HIS PERFORMANCE.
HOWEVER, THE FAMOUS FINNISH COMPOSER, JEAN SIBELIUS CONSOLED THE YOUNG
MAN BY TELLING HIM THAT WE WOULD ALL DO WELL TO REMEMBER, HE SAID TO THIS YOUNG
MAN, "REMEMBER SON THERE IS NO CITY IN THE WORLD WHERE THEY HAVE ERECTED A
STATUE TO A CRITIC!" – SOURCE
UNKNOWN
B. "Brimstone"
Luke
9:51-56
1. Even as we near the end of Jesus’
earthly ministry, after years of being with Jesus, James and his brother John
can still show that their "sons of
thunder" personality can still rule!
a. Jesus was in a hurry to get back to
Jerusalem in time for the feast of Tabernacles, so they were going to pass
through
b. The Samaritans took great pleasure
in denying food and housing to Jews that were traveling to
c. Remember the argument of the
Samaritan woman with Jesus in John
4?
d. The hostility was fueled by each
side racially hating the other!
2. Jesus sent the "boys" into the
Samaritan village to make preparations, and of course they were badly treated
and rejected, something that "hot heads" don't take
well!
a. Their reaction is typical of a "son of thunder"
personality!
b. "Lord, do you
want us to call fire down from heaven to destroy
them?"
c. They weren't going to put up with
people who treated them like this!
d. They wrongly assumed that this
would make Jesus just as mad as it made them, they may have thought, "Jesus won't put up with this
either!"
3. Jesus' response to them is quite
different from what they thought it would be; Jesus rebukes them instead of the
enemy!
a. And then Jesus instructs them to
take another way home rather than stand and
fight!
b. They might have thought this was
the wimpy way out, how could Jesus do
this?
c. Jesus could see past immediate
anger however, He knew there were much bigger issues to fight than just this
local situation!
d. James and John wanted to wipe them
off the face of the earth! They
couldn't see past their immediate feelings, they had no control over their
expressions of anger!
4. It is amazing what people will
fight over and how we can fail to see the bigger picture in times of anger – "sons of thunder" get lost sometimes in
their immediate feelings and just react without thinking of consequences or the
bigger picture!
ILLUS: A YOUNG BOY
ONCE ASKED HIS FATHER THIS QUESTION, "DAD, HOW DO WARS BEGIN?" HIS FATHER RESPONDED, “WELL SON, TAKE
THE SECOND WORLD WAR; THAT GOT STARTED WHEN GERMANY INVADED BELGIUM.” IMMEDIATELY THE MOTHER JUMPED IN THE
CONVERSATION AND SAID, "TELL THE BOY THE TRUTH, IT BEGAN BECAUSE SOMEONE WAS
MURDERED: NOT FROM GERMANY'S INVASION OF POLAND FIRST!" THE HUSBAND DREW HIMSELF UP IN HIS CHAIR
AND SNAPPED BACK AT HIS WIFE, "ARE YOU ANSWERING THE QUESTION OR AM I, HE ASKED
ME, NOT YOU!" HIS WIFE THEN TURNED
AROUND IN A HUFF AND WALKED OUT OF THE ROOM AND SLAMMED THE DOOR SHUT AS HARD AS
SHE COULD! ONCE THE DISHES STOPPED
RATTLING IN THE CUPBOARD FROM THE SLAMMED DOOR AN UNEASY SILENCE FOLLOWED,
BROKEN AT LAST BY THE YOUNG BOY WHO SAID TO HIS FATHER, "DAD, YOU DON'T HAVE TO
TELL ME ANY MORE HOW WARS GET STARTED, I NOW KNOW!" – SOURCE
UNKNOWN
5. It is noteworthy that in the
passage just before this one John (and
perhaps James too) had attempted to stop a man from driving demons out of
others in Jesus' name simply because the man didn't belong to the elite group of
disciples, Jesus corrects John for his arrogant
attitude!
6. They were still learning to channel
their fire correctly, yet we must also note that "sons of thunder" are not discarded by
the Lord, quite to the contrary, Jesus had in His inner circle of three
disciples two sons of thunder!
a. Obviously there is something about
this kind of person Christ sees with great
potential!
b. Fire can be tremendously
destructive or tremendously constructive, the secret is
control!
C. Beneficial
1. Once brought under the control of
the Spirit after Pentecost James and John emerge as great leaders of the
Church.
2. Once their "thunder" was guided it gave power to
the work of God, Jesus saw this and knew that once this energy was properly
brought under control they would be powerhouses for
Christ!
a. Fortunately Jesus sees beyond just
what we are right now, and sees what we can be in
Him!
b. Some of the great powerhouses for
God have been men with "sons of
thunder" personality, although usually their ministry didn't work well until
it came under the control of the Spirit of God!
3. What a "son of thunder" needs to do is to take
notice of where he is heading without that control and make a quick change in
the right direction:
ILLUS: LIKE THE
MAN WHO WAS ALWAYS BROADCAST ON THE BEGINNING OF ABC'S WIDE WORLD OF
SPORTS. REMEMBER THE GUY WHO THEY
SHOWED GOING ALL OVER THE PLACE ON SKIS, CRASHING OFF THE JUMP AND THROUGH THE
CROWD AND FENCE! THIS WAS FOLLOWED
BY THE WORDS, "THE THRILL OF VICTORY AND THE AGONY OF DEFEAT." THE SKIER LOOKED IN GOOD FORM COMING
DOWN THE CHUTE, AND THEN SUDDENLY OFF HE GOES TWISTING AND TURNING THROUGH THE
AIR WITH A GREAT CRASH AND TUMBLE.
WHAT VIEWERS DIDN'T KNOW ABOUT THAT FALL IS THAT IT WAS NOT
ACCIDENTAL! THE MAN WAS NOT
SERIOUSLY HURT, (THAT'S WHY THEY SHOWED IT) THE WORSE HE GOT FOR THE EXPERIENCE
WAS A BAD HEADACHE AND A FEW BRUISES.
HE EXPLAINED THAT AS HE WAS COMING DOWN THE CHUTE HE REALIZED THE SURFACE
WAS TOO FAST AND THAT IF HE HAD CONTINUED ON TRACK THAT HE WOULD HAVE TRAVELED
TOO FAR PAST THE POINT OF SAFE LANDING AND WOULD HAVE LIKELY DIED. HE WAS OUT OF CONTROL, INSTEAD HE CHOSE
TO FALL IN ORDER TO SAVE HIMSELF DOWN THE CHUTE FURTHER WHERE HE WOULD CERTAINLY
HAVE RECIEVED SEVERE INJURIES OR DEATH!
HE REALIZED THAT A CHANGE OF COURSE NOW MIGHT SAVE HIS LIFE FROM BEING
OUT OF CONTROL AND CONTINUING THE SAME PATH TOWARD DEATH! THIS IS WHAT A "SON OF THUNDER" MUST DO
IN ORDER TO "SKI ANOTHER DAY" – CHANGE COURSES! – SOURCE
UNKNOWN
4. History records the successful
transformation of these two "sons of thunder." These are the kind of
saints that once they are brought under the control of the Spirit become some of
the most dedicated Christians whose commitment and perseverance is envied by
others!
5. Indeed, when Herod Agrippa in Acts 12:1-2 wanted to scare the Church into breaking
up he took James and put him to the sword in hopes that James’ death might
frighten the other less committed disciples – this happened in A.D. 44 (we know that Agrippa died shortly
thereafter so it had to be before this
date)
a. James thus served God about 17
years.
b. He was the second recorded martyr,
coming after Stephen’s death, but he was the first Apostle murdered for his
faith!
c. This probably proved his leadership
in the early Church, the very reason Agrippa picked him out to kill first; kill
the leader and you scatter the flock. In Acts
12 the second man seized by Agrippa was Peter, but God delivered Peter
from his attempted execution!
d. James died as an example of
leadership, control, strength; an example of one of God's finest
saints!
6. Being a "son of thunder" doesn't mean the end of
all things; it just means you need control. God needs you "sons of thunder" and so does the
Church! It is best however when
your thunder is under His control!
CONCLUSION: James the "lightning bolt" was the typical "good news-bad news" person. He was great in drive; a fire drove him to deep commitment and action. The bad news was the quick trigger he showed for anger, which damaged relationships at times. Once God's Spirit channeled this "fire" James became one of the great leaders of the early Church. He died by the sword in AD 44, the second martyr of faith! Acts 12:1-2. If you are a "son of thunder" is your anger under the control of God’s Spirit?