As disciples we should be sold-out to God. We should be completely and sincerely devoted to Him. We should be determined and enthusiastic about following Him. It calls for a complete earnest commitment. We should not have reservations or hesitations.

Luke 14:26 ‘ 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.’

This is a challenging scripture. What is Jesus saying here?  How can we hate others when we are told to love our neighbors?  How can we hate our wives when we are told to love our wives?  How can we hate our own lives? That’s one step away from suicide.  The New Living Bible helps us understand it better.

Luke 14:26 ‘If you want to be my disciple, you must hate everyone else by comparison–your father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters–yes, even your own life. Otherwise, you cannot be my disciple.’

The key words are ‘by comparison’! We must seek His Kingdom and His will as our primary concern. Following Him is not without cost – you have to place Him before other important people in your lives. You even have to place Him before yourselves.
I remember a story my father relayed to me about his own father. At his wedding, after the ceremony and during the reception, his father made a speech. In the speech he addressed his new wife and publicly told her that she would never enjoy first place in his life. He went on to say that that position was reserved for Christ, because he was a disciple of Christ. But he added that she would always enjoy first place after that.
If we are going to be His disciples then He comes first in our lives, to such a degree that to could even be conceived that we hate other things that would take the place of this first love.

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