Luke 9:56. Jesus rebuked His disciples when they wanted to call fire down on a Samaritan village:

“For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them.” — Luke 9:56, NASB

The parallel theme is beautifully stated in John 3:17:

“For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” — John 3:17, NASB

And Luke 19:10 gives His mission plainly:

“For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.” — Luke 19:10, NASB

The powerful contrast

The devil comes to destroy; Jesus comes to save.

• John 10:10 — “The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.”
• Luke 9:56 — Jesus came not to destroy lives, but to save them.
• John 3:16 — God’s purpose is that people should not perish but have eternal life.
• 1 Timothy 1:15 — “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.”

So when Jesus’ disciples wanted judgment, Jesus revealed something about His heart and His mission: His first coming was not to destroy men, but to rescue them.

This would make a powerful sermon theme: “He Came to Save Men’s Lives.”