Jesus is addressing large crowds who have been following him around when he says something that confuses me. I either skip over it fast or struggle deeply with it.
“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters – yes, even his own life – he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:26-27 At first read, it seems inconsistent with the character and teachings of Christ. An explanation would be nice here.
The explanation that follows is about counting the cost. We don’t build anything without first planning – designing, material availability and cost, cost of labor, permits, etc. And kings don’t go to war without counting their resources – number of trained soldiers, weapons – and being confident they can win the battle. They may choose to negotiate peace if they don’t think they can win a war. “In the same way, any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:33
I’m wondering… When I use the word hate, it is usually not directed at people but at behaviors or incidents like, “I hate it when the basement floods and I have to clean everything up and dry it out.” And Jesus definitely teaches us to love even our enemies when it comes to people. So I’m thinking that we have another interpretation issue here. What does Jesus mean by the word ‘hate’? How can it be consistent with his other teachings?
Most often, he uses the word hate when he is saying that others will hate us if we are his followers. In this case, he is telling us to hate specifically those who are closest to us, those who nurture and encourage us in life and even our own lives. I’m pretty sure that he doesn’t mean for us to walk around shoving our own and family member’s heads into walls or throwing them down and stomping on them.
As I ponder this, I believe Jesus means more of a letting go of those he tells us to hate. In our natural state, we tend to put those we love first in our priorities of life. We protect ourselves above all. When we make decisions, we hear their voices in the back of our minds (sometimes in the front) and we regard our perceived needs and the needs of those we love as primary. I think Jesus is saying that we need to make him our focal point if we are going to be his disciples. If he calls us to go into foreign missions or move across the country, our decision cannot be based on not wanting to be far from family or not wanting to move the children into a different school system. Surely we care about those things, but if we trust God completely we will trust him to work things out and follow him.
While we love our families dearly, we cannot exclude others Jesus brings to us to be nurtured in their faith. We may be called to open our homes to homeless, to foster children, to struggling teenagers, or despondent neighbors. Will we fear for our children and refuse to do what God is calling us to do?
The bottom line is trust. Do we trust God enough to lay our lives and the lives of those we love on the line?
Jesus ends this discourse with, “Salt is good, but if it loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is neither fit for the soil or for the manure pile; it is thrown out. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” Luke 14:34-35 At first glance, this seems like it is totally unrelated to the previous thoughts. But then, as I wonder about it, it seems that he might be referring to those who start out thinking they will be disciples and then decide it’s too hard and turn away. It follows his thoughts on counting the cost of being a disciple. Someone who starts out and then quits loses their effectiveness.
Most of us want so much to walk in the middle. We adore Christ and encourage and even financially support those who go into missions, but we like staying comfortable – taking care of our families and building a good retirement account so we can relax and vacation the last 20-30 years of our lives. I wonder if Christ is calling us to a deeper trust and a deeper commitment to following him.
Lord, open my ears to hear your voice and give me the courage to follow you – wherever you lead me.
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