We all know the part of today's Gospel (from Luke 14) where Jesus says you have to hate your father and mother, wife and children,etc., if you want to be his disciple. We all also know that this is supposed to mean, not so much that you hate them, that you have to be willing to give all those things up. It's kind of tricky to see how the one is supposed to mean the other.
But have you ever noticed that this bit about having to hate your family is embedded in an analogy to two other situations, sort of like mini-parables, and that Jesus sums it all up by saying, "In the same way," — I presume, in the same way as in the two examples — "In the same way, every one of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple."
So… to the examples. The examples, paraphrased, take this form:
A person (A)
without (B)
cannot (C).
So what (A) does not figure out ahead of time
whether he has (B)?
If he finds he does not have (B),
he won't even begin to (C).
In the first example:
- A = a person who wishes to construct a tower
- B = sufficient money
- C = complete the construction
In the second:
- A = a king marching into battle
- B = a sufficiently strong army
- C = oppose another king with a larger army
And in Christ's main point:
- A = anyone who comes to Me
- B = ("hate" for mother and father, wife and children, sisters and brothers) AND (carrying his own cross and following Me)
- C = be My disciple
"In the same way, everyone of you who does not renounce all his possessions cannot be my disciple."
How is it "in the same way?" First of all, it's not a matter of an arbitrary prerequisite; it's a simple statement of fact. There's nothing fair or unfair about this declaration; it is part of what it means to be a disciple of Jesus. If you don't have enough money, you can't finish the tower. If your army isn't strong enough, you can't oppose the enemy king. Christ isn't saying "you aren't allowed to be my disciple" if you don't renounce all your possessions, your family, and your life; He is saying there's no way to get around it. He is not a meanie; He is a realist.
What else makes it "in the same way?" Apparently, part of this renunciation is a clear understanding of the cost. Both the would-be builder and the would-be victor have to count the cost and figure out whether their own resources are enough, not just to start, but to carry the work through to completion. So does the would-be disciple. Here Christ counts it for us. Discipleship will require everything we have: everyone we love, everything we own, our very life.
But wait, you say, we might not actually have to give those things up for Christ. Some people are asked to choose between their families and Christ, between their possessions and Christ, between their lives and Christ. Not everyone. We just have to be ready to do it. That must be what He means when he says we have to renounce them all.
But: no.
Each of these things — the construction project, the army campaign, discipleship — is a long process, with costs that are spent all along, that nevertheless has its beginning in the decision of a moment. The builder, if he chooses to build, will spend the money penny by penny as the tower is built. The king, if he chooses to go into battle, will lose his troops man by man over the course of the offensive. And the disciple, if he chooses to follow Christ, will — he WILL — lose his family, lose his possessions, and lose his life in the end. You can't take it with you, right? Eventually, there will come a point when none of these remain and there is only the disciple and his cross.
The decision of the moment — whether to start construction, whether to march into battle — comes after counting the cost and understanding if he has enough to finish the job.
It is worth noting that the would-be disciple doesn't get to keep his family, life, and possessions even if he chooses not to follow Christ. They will be given up… just not for Him.
bearing blog 