“Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, ‘If anyone involves me and doesn’t hate his own father and mother and wife and kids and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he can’t be my disciple. Whoever doesn’t bear his own cross and are available after me can’t be my disciple.” – Luke 14:25-27
During the course of His earthly ministry, Jesus said many interesting things that might at times puzzle His initial audience. Many of those statements still puzzle people today, and the words Jesus spoke on this passage definitely fall into that category.
At this point in His ministry, Jesus had revealed His divine nature. He taught about everlasting things with authority. He healed people of diseases. He raised the dead to life, and he irritated religious leaders who were jealous of the eye He was getting. In fact, Jesus was becoming so well-known that great crowds of individuals began following Him wherever He went and assembled to listen to Him within the towns He visited.
It’s ironic, but people still do the identical things to Jesus today that they did back then. Some people in that crowd had devoted their entire lives to following Him, while others were just there to watch out of curiosity’s sake. So to distinguish between them, Jesus made a definitive statement. He said that an individual’s love for Him have to be so great that their love for his or her closest family would seem like hate as compared. He said we have to be willing to discover with Him in every way, even by receiving the reproaches of this world, if we might really call ourselves His disciples. What do you think that? Could that be said of you?
Several years ago, I received a word of criticism from someone that I feel was intended to discourage me. It actually had the other effect. I used to be criticized for caring more about my family than I cared about our church. That was definitely an interesting thing to listen to because I do know in my heart that I really like my family and I really like our church, but here’s the thing… I do care about my family greater than I care about anyone or anything on this earth. I care more about my family than our church, my friends, and even myself. So I’m OK with that criticism.Â
But in line with Jesus, my love for my family, although it’s my best earthly love, must pale as compared to my love and devotion for Him if I’m really going to be His disciple. The great news about that, nonetheless, is that when I really understand what it means to walk within the love of Christ, that is once I learn what it really looks prefer to love my family. And through my relationship with Christ, I’m granted His power and wisdom to like and lead my family the appropriate way.
So, once I have a look at Christ’s comments about loving Him above everyone else, I realize that statement will only offend me if it must. It will only offend me if my heart is within the incorrect place.
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