I NEVER UNDERSTOOD why Jesus said if anyone comes to him and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters and even his own life, he couldn’t be his disciple.
Hate is a strong word and so out of character for the one who said the key to life was found in loving God and loving others.
When I met Jesus, I gave this little thought because truthfully, I wasn’t too crazy about my family anyway and oftentimes wanted to kill…strike that…disown one or the other.
I can’t say I hated my parents or my siblings, but by the time I was about thirty years old, I had become indifferent to them, which is actually worse than hating them, for at this place I no longer really cared about their lives enough to muster any feelings about them. Any feelings I did have were mostly on the negative spectrum of emotions.
Indifference is that place where forgiveness escaped me and I thought and acted as if they meant little to me.
If taken out of context, Jesus does not sound like a compassionate person, but more like an egomaniac, lunatic, or idiot.
Of course, anyone following Jesus can trust he knows what he’s talking about, even as he brings healing to important relationships with otherwise impossible people.
And healing is where indifference melts away.
But, for people like me, who follow Jesus and don’t trust everything he says, we get our very own lesson.
Some people already know they are not devoted to God, but as a church lady and serving the Lord for almost twenty years when I learned this lesson, I believed that my devotion to my family and friends, and certainly my work, in no way exceeded the devotion I have to the Lord.
I was much like the confident Peter before the cock crowed twice, and I thought I had my priorities in order, but when Jesus didn’t seem to be paying attention to my circumstances, I cratered just like Peter several times before I learned the meaning of devotion.
God knows me better than I know myself.
This is why I believe he let the pendulum linger in the wrong direction until my sense of purpose and meaning for my life, as I had known it, was utterly destroyed.
This, in turn, caused my family and friends–whom I now loved dearly–to jump in with their advice on how I could be saved. The heat was on and I had a choice to make. Look good (competent) or continue to follow the Lord.
As soon as I chose to stay the course, the Lord then offered my old life back to me in the form of a dream job. You may not understand if you haven’t been here before, but as the former client spoke, I knew that to accept his invitation would be choosing against the Lord.
With one decision I could quit this journey with God and get my life back to “normal” and stop the criticism from many friends, family, and even my own adult children who only “wanted the best for me”.
This was the day I understood what Jesus taught in his lengthy Sermon on the Mount.
When it no longer matters what common sense tells you to do, and you are as vulnerable as the lilies of the field;
when it no longer matters what people think about you;
when you have forsaken the esteem and the desire for feelings of love, respect, significance, and security from all others;
when you stand alone, putting your belief, trust and hope solely in God and not his creation;
it is at this place that you know you are a disciple of Christ.
And after you weep bitterly, as Peter did when his true heart was exposed, God will give you the supernatural power to love others even as they condemn you.
In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 1 Peter 1:6-9 (ESV)
Lamentations 3:25, Matthew 16:24, Proverb 25:16, Hebrews 11:24-27, Acts 21:13, Isaiah 40:31
As always, it is my intent and hope that my words may encourage you wherever you are in your journey.
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If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.–Jesus(Mark 4:23)
