Love and Love More

“If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple." Luke 14:26

I recently had the privilege of speaking with a military veteran from the Vietnam War who was a double recipient of the Purple Heart. As we chatted, the conversation briefly turned to religion. This led the gentleman to say, "I asked a pastor once, 'If God loves me, why should I fear him?' The pastor didn't have an answer." I chimed in with,"There are two kinds of fear; fear that makes you afraid and fear that means you respect someone's power." Continuing, I mentioned that if you are a Christian the fear you have is one of awe and respect at who God is. However, if you are not a Christian you should be afraid of what happens to those who don't believe.. He said, "I have never heard that before."  Hopefully, God can use what I said. However, his question was a good one. How often have we heard people say, "Why would a loving God send a person to Hell?" The short answer is that God doesn't send anybody to Hell. Rather, a person chooses to go to Hell because they reject God and His offer of salvation, found only in the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ said, "Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Matthew 25:41)." God originally created Hell for the devil and his angels, not for man. However, for those who reject Jesus Christ as their savior, He hasn't created any other place for them to go. But, often times people get confused by verses that suggest God does not love them, when He says He does, and that they should be afraid of Him. In Luke 14:26, Jesus seems to be saying that in order to be His disciple, you must hate your mother, father, wife, children, brothers, sisters and your own life. Not only does this seem harsh, it also appears to contradict the Mosaic Law where it says, "Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you (Exodus 20:12)." However, Jesus is using something called a Hebraic idiomatic expression. An idiom is an expression, a term, or a phrase whose meaning cannot be deduced from the literal definitions and the arrangement of its parts. In this case, Jesus is using it as a way to establish and define the magnitude of what He is talking about; love. He is not saying you should hate your father and mother, etc.

For example, in Genesis 29:30-35, it reads, "So Jacob went in to Rachel also, and he loved Rachel more than Leah, and served Laban for another seven years. When the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her womb, but Rachel was barren. And Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben, for she said, “Because the Lord has looked upon my affliction; for now my husband will love me.” She conceived again and bore a son, and said, “Because the Lord has heard that I am hated, he has given me this son also.” And she called his name Simeon. Again she conceived and bore a son, and said, “Now this time my husband will be attached to me, because I have borne him three sons.” Therefore his name was called Levi. And she conceived again and bore a son, and said, “This time I will praise the Lord.” Therefore she called his name Judah. Then she ceased bearing."  Leah gave birth to four of Jacob's sons. Normally, if a man hates a woman, they are probably not engaging in this type of behavior on a consistent basis to the point where they are having children. When the scripture says that Leah was "hated," it isn't as if Jacob didn't want anything to do with her and wanted her out of his life. It doesn't mean he hated her at all. What it means, and the scripture confirms, is that Jacob loved Rachel more than Leah. Therefore, when Jesus says that the price of being His disciple is to hate your parents, loved ones and yourself, He is saying that you should love Him to the point that, in comparison, it would look like you hated these other things. You love your family and friends, but you love Him more. With all this in mind you can now have a clearer picture as it relates to how a loving God can allow someone to go to Hell. God loves those who reject Him and His offer of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. He doesn't hate them. But, He loves those who accept His offer of salvation more. This is summed up nicely in John 3:16. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." God loves those who don't believe in His Son, Jesus. He just loves those who do believe in His Son more. Those who believe have eternal life. Those who don't believe, perish.