(Luke 14:26-27) If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple. {27} And whosoever doth not bear his cross, and come after me, cannot be my disciple.
Families are important which all Christian acknowledge as well as right-minded and thinking sinners. The family is the basic of human institutions being the first one established by God when He created Adam and formed Eve from his rib, then commanded them to be fruitful and multiply. From the family developed schools, hospitals, government and other basic institutions. The family was the first school and hospital and the order in the family was the first governmental system. There is an old saying that goes like this: “As goes the family, so goes society. How true this is and we see the decline in society traceable back to the decline in the home.
Jesus’ call to discipleship is difficult to reconcile with God’s love for and creation of the family. It goes against the intent of God as well as natural feelings and the law of love. Many have questioned this calling from Jesus as simply an exaggeration of speech, but when we compare other Scriptures we have to say that it is not. In Luke 14:25-33, Jesus said three times that we cannot be His disciple (be saved) unless we hate family and self, take up our cross and forsake all. There is no doubt Jesus was not using exaggeration. Jesus was showing the seriousness of following Him as He spoke of our families being potential enemies to our following Him – “Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. {33} But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven. {34} Think not that I am come to send peace on earth: I came not to send peace, but a sword. {35} For I am come to set a man at variance against his father, and the daughter against her mother, and the daughter in law against her mother in law. {36} And a man's foes shall be they of his own household.”
There are four great truths we can gather from the Luke 14:26-27 text:
- The radical demands of Christ’s kingdom. Being a disciple (being a Christian) is not a part-time endeavor. There are those who seek salvation but then they end up becoming “Sunday-go-to-meeting Christians. They live for God on Sunday but like the devil through the week. They are one way around their family and friends but another at church. Jesus is saying you cannot do this and be His disciple; you cannot be Christian and live that way.
- The unique authority of Christ is shown in this passage. Only God could make such demand upon other people. This was what the people said about Jesus while He walked on this earth in human form and taught the people. They said, He teaches as one with authority.” Of course He did – He is God. He showed His authority while on earth by calming the storm and forgiving sins. This was blaspheming to the Pharisees when Jesus said to the man, “Thy sins be forgiven thee” because only God can forgive sins. If He is God then these demands are not extreme or unfair.
- The priorities of true discipleship are made known in this passage and similar ones. We may never be asked to break relationships with our family or give up all, but our attitude must be one of willingness to do so.
- The dangers of this world toward Christ and His followers are shown in these verses. There are allurements in the world that draw me away from Christ and if these are to guarded against, then the natural relations of family are even more potentially dangerous. The world is sophisticated, persistent and insidious in its temptations and those of family can be even greater. We need to be bold in confessing Christ before all.
We need to take courage in this call to follow Christ, and be faithful. Often times our faith will bring family members to Christ. Also, when we enter the family of God we now have a new family – a spiritual one that is encouraging to us.