Did The Disciples Leave Their Families to Follow Jesus?

Did the disciples leave their families to follow Jesus? Were they married with children? It seems that Jesus wouldn’t have them abandon wives and children, right?

Excerpt From The Answer

Jesus is not abrogating the commands to honor your parents, provide for you family (worse than an infidel if you do not!), much less break the vows and commitment to God’s law and commandments. Hate is used here as a comparative form, following Me, loving Me, serving Me, being My disciple takes priority over your life. Compared to being My disciple, it is like hating your family. Loyalty – not the way we think of loyal friends, dogs… – in the OT and New pertains to our primary affection and attention. 

Do we love God so much that compared to earthly matters, it looks like we hate them does not mean a literal hate, vilify, disowning, or angry emotions. For e.g., in Psalms we read of hating the disloyal. Ps. 101:3 I hate the work of those who fall away… meaning those who are disloyal to God’s lovingkindness, he will have nothing to do with them. Loyalty to Jesus, being His disciple, must take priority over all the worldly affections, even our family and possessions. To follow Him means to set aside worldly attachments. Bottom line, our love of Christ and our life of following after Him is to have our affection, attention, and priority over all so that it would seem like we “hate” the things of the world.

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