A Reflection On Priorities

When I want my love for God to be central in my life

Jesus’ words in Matthew 10—that if we love our family more than we love Him, we’re not worthy of Him—are startling. And in a sense we can dismiss them with a disclaimer: “None of us is worthy of Him anyway; that’s why we call it grace.” Acknowledging our universal unworthiness, we can move on without dealing with this radical call. But we must linger at these words longer if we really want to know the mind of Christ.

When we consider these verses in the context of the whole Bible, we know that Jesus does not oppose love for family. Rather, He opposes disproportionate love—that which depreciates His desire to have us love Him wholeheartedly. He can have no rivals in our hearts, not even good ones. In reality, He is more valuable than any other person or thing in all of existence. He is where true worth lies. When we value others more, we are not living in truth.

If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine.

Matthew 10:37