LUKE 14: 26

When Jesus was preaching to His Disciples and the multitudes, there is one word that could sum up the main theme of His teachings- Love.

                    A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. John 13:34

Also in Mathew, chapter 22. Jesus tells the rich man that Loving your neighbor is the second greatest commandment;

Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Mat.. 22:37-39

However in the Book of Luke when Jesus was talking to the multitudes of people, He said:  

“ If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he can not be My disciple”.  Luke 14:26

At first look, the above scripture implies that Jesus is telling us to HATE our families and ourselves. First note that this goes against the love Jesus spoke about above. Verses like these are one of the many that some people struggle with when they read it at face value and sometimes decide that the Bible contradicts itself. However it must be understood that the scripture does not contradict itself. Situations like this is an indication that further interpretation or understanding is needed.

            This verse is one that requires a look at the original language to get a proper understanding of its true meaning. Sometimes words in other languages can have different meanings depending on the context.  Also, sometimes there is no direct translation of all the words that were used in the original language. This can limit our understanding of a word or phrase. That is what is happening in this verse in Luke. If you don't get the correct interpretation of HATE in the original language, you won't understand the correct meaning of this verse. The word Hate when referred to in the original Greek tells us that ‘Hate’ (Miseo) is a word that means to have relative preference for one thing over another. Another words, what is being said here by Jesus is that HE, must be first preference in our your lives, yes, even over all of our family. It does not mean we are to hate them. It is what it means to solely and truly give your life to Jesus.