Large crowds often accompanied Jesus as he traveled from place to place. One of these times, he used the opportunity to tell the people that choosing to be his disciples required greater love for him than for family members. (Luke 14:25, 26)

“If anyone comes to me,” said Jesus, “and does not hate his father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, and even his own soul [himself], he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:26) In this context, “hate” basically means to love to a lesser degree, with this strong term serving to contrast the greater love for Jesus that a disciple would be called upon to have. When the wishes and objectives of close family members ran counter to the example and teaching of God’s Son, his disciples would not go along with them, thereby demonstrating their superior love for him. To remain loyal to him, Jesus’ disciples would even be willing to face death. The individual’s love for him would therefore prove to be greater than that for his own soul or for himself.

Stressing that discipleship would not be an easy course, God’s Son said that a person could not be his disciple unless he carried his own beam (staurós) and followed him. (Luke 14:27) In the Roman world, crucifixion was regarded as the worst form of punishment. The condemned man would carry the beam (to which he would later be tied or nailed) to the place of execution. There he would be mocked and die a slow, excruciating death. For one to carry the beam as a disciple of God’s Son would mean pursuing a course that entailed reproach and suffering for his sake.

Choosing to become a disciple of God’s Son demanded serious consideration. Jesus illustrated this in terms his listeners could readily understand.

A man who planned to build a tower would first have to calculate the expense to determine whether he could afford to do so. If he failed to evaluate the cost and then laid a foundation for the tower and was unable to complete the project for lack of funds, he would be subjected to ridicule. Observers would say that he “began to build but was unable to finish.” (Luke 14:28-30)

Similarly, a king who was about to march out to battle with another king would have to consider carefully whether he could gain the victory with 10,000 men when having to face an opposing force of 20,000. If he recognized that this would not be possible, he would send a delegation of ambassadors to the other king to sue for peace, doing so while the superior force was still far away. (Luke 14:31, 32)

Jesus did not minimize the great cost that being his disciple involved. It could mean the loss of close family members, possessions, and even one’s own life. As Jesus expressed it, a person could not be his disciple unless he was willing to give up all his belongings. (Luke 14:33)

When next referring to salt, the Son of God appears to have been illustrating that his disciples needed to have the desirable attributes of this substance. Salt is good, for it can be used for seasoning and as a preservative. Those who heard Jesus used an impure salt that could become tasteless. Under humid conditions, the sodium chloride could progressively leach out, rendering the substance useless for flavoring and as a preservative. People would then discard it as a worthless substance, for it would not add anything beneficial to the soil and could not serve as fertilizer. (Luke 14:34, 35)

Thereby Jesus implied that his disciples needed to be a force for good, counteracting the tendency toward moral decay among their contemporaries and contributing to making life more pleasant for others. This would require that they continue to live exemplary lives and prove themselves to be kind, compassionate, and impartial in their dealings with fellow humans. If any of his disciples would cease to exercise a wholesome influence on others, they would reveal themselves to be like salt that had become worthless. That Jesus wanted those who heard him to think seriously about how his words applied to them is evident from his concluding words, “Let the one having ears for hearing, hear.” (Luke 14:35)

Notes:

At the time Jesus sent out the twelve apostles, he included comments about the necessity of having greater love for him than for family members and concerning the requirement of carrying the “beam.” (Matthew 10:34-39)

On earlier occasions, Jesus also referred to salt when teaching about the qualities his disciples needed to have. (Matthew 5:13; Mark 9:50)