Following

 DEVOTION

THE GOSPEL ACCORDING TO LUKE

FOLLOWING

Luke 14:25-27

25 Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: 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. 27 And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

NIV

This is not a new concept, the fact is that we need to seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will added to us. There can be no distractions between us and Jesus. There will always be some members of our family or our extended family that do not get it. They cannot see how we want to live by faith. They do not understand we cannot be invested in the world because we are invested in Jesus and cannot have both. Therefore, there will be some tension, or conflict within the family even though we still love one another. Hate is a strong word that Jesus used here, that if we do not hate our family, we cannot come to him. The Greek word here does mean to hate, to detest, but by extension, it can mean to love less.

Nevertheless, the point is that Jesus has to be the first in our hearts, above anyone else. Now the word of God tells us husbands to love our wives and to manage our children or family. However, the point still is about putting Jesus first, picking up our cross, and following him, which means forsaking our own interests or ourselves for him. This we must ponder on more tomorrow.