Lost in translation.

And another thing!

September 10, 2025

Gospel: Luke 14:25-27

25 Now large crowds were traveling with [Jesus], and he turned and said to them, 26 “Whoever comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and even life itself, cannot be my disciple. 27 Whoever does not carry the cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.

“Whoever comes to me and does not hate [their family]… and even life itself, cannot be my disciple,” Jesus says. This has got to be one of the most challenging verses in the entire Bible. How can Jesus, who tells us to love our neighbors, tell us to hate anyone, much less our parents, children, spouses, and siblings?

This is a translation problem. It’s not a word-for-word translation problem, but a cultural translation problem. Every culture has its patterns and rhythms for how people speak. In church, even in the middle of coffee hour, if someone calls out “the Lord be with you!”, people will respond “And also with you!” It’s our pattern. We know the ways we expect teacher or politicians or news anchors to talk. We know the standard figures of speech and when someone is exaggerating for effect.

Hebrew speakers exaggerated for effect all the time. It makes things more memorable. In Genesis, it says, “Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated.” It’s catchier than “I like Jacob more than Esau.” “Hate” in that phrase, and in what Jesus says, is a comparison. “Hate” is to love something less than something else.

When we read Luke 14 as a chapter, we see crowds of people following Jesus. Jesus warns them that this isn’t an easy thing they’ve started. It will cost them. You can’t hold a stable job and be home with your family every night when you’re following a wandering preacher. Your family will be upset. Life as you know it will change. Be prepared, Jesus says.

Jesus wants followers who will become disciples. The Way of Jesus is a life-long commitment. One could say that the commitments goes longer than life itself. Crowds are great for getting the word out, but dedicated people are the ones who will be the foundation of the church.

Those people need to be willing to value Jesus more than life as they’ve known it. We need to be willing to follow Jesus, even when it challenges us, pushes us, and interrupts life as we’ve known it.

Jesus speaks hard words. He’s a man who is walking his way to his own death. He may as well speak truth as he goes. The glory of God i

s that, while those hard words are true, the promises of life and hope that Jesus offers are also true. Jesus invites us to carry our crosses alongside him, to death so that we can walk alongside him through death into the life that has no end.

By all means, love your family. Love your neighbors. Forgive and be forgiven as often as you need. And love God even more than that. Love God, listen to God, and follow God above all the things that tie you to your life. What is coming, in this world and the next, has a richness that cannot be seen any other way.