Not so long ago there lived a young man who loved the Lord with all his heart, with all his soul, with all his mind, and with all his strength. Early every morning he searched the scriptures so that he might better know and understand this One whom he loved so dearly.

One day, while reading the 14th chapter of the gospel of Luke, he came upon verse twenty-six. Here is what he read:

“If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own life also, he cannot be my disciple.” 

He stopped and read no further. “Why would a God of love require me to hate my own family?” he wondered. “I should think He would want me to love the most those who are dearest and nearest to my heart.”

Remembering reading a similar statement a few days earlier, he began turning the pages of his Bible looking for the verse. He found the words he was looking for in the book of Matthew. There he read:

“He that loves father or mother more than me, is not worthy of me; and he that loves son or daughter more than me, is not worthy of me.”  

Once there was a land, wide from east to west, though narrow from north to south. Along the northern border of this land there ran a mighty river. Visible from the southern border was the edge of a vast desert. The country itself was called Voel, and it was filled with many towns and villages. 

In the center of Voel was the City of the King. Now this city was very large – many times larger than the biggest town. Surrounding the city was a great wall – a wall so great that all in the city were safe from any danger outside the walls. And as you already may have guessed, the King lived in this great walled city. He was a strong, valiant man - able to defeat his best soldier in combat. He was also a compassionate, loving man - caring deeply for even the least of his subjects.

Bitter enemies of Voel lived at both ends of the kingdom, and they had large, well-trained armies. Both the king to the east and the king to the west were impatiently waiting for his own army to grow large enough in numbers so he could destroy the land of Voel. 

Determined to protect his kingdom from a surprise attack, the King of Voel kept spies in each of his enemies’ armies. The spies did their work, for one day a spy returned to the palace of the King with important news. The two bitter enemies of Voel had formed an alliance and planned a two-pronged surprise attack in 10 days. 

The King knew the only hope for the survival of all his subjects was to bring them within the walls of his city. So the King called two of his servants who ran faster than any other servants he had. He commissioned them with the task of warning every village and town of the imminent danger, telling the citizens of Voel to come to the City of the King where they would be safe. The two servants were to start at the extreme borders, one servant at the western border, the other at the eastern, and work their way back to the City of the King. “When you stop at a village or town, remain only long enough to warn them of the impending danger. Then rush on to the next town, for all must hear. It is my will that none should perish.” These are the words the King said to his two servants. 

The first servant did exactly as the king said. He quickly went to the outermost village near the western border of the kingdom. There he cried out to the people of the village, “I am sent by the King. You are in great danger. Unless you flee to the City of the King you will surely die.” The people of this village did as the servant said, quickly fleeing to the safety of the King's city. The people of the next village also responded immediately, and the next as well. In the fourth village the people would not believe what the servant said. He pleaded with them for a short time, but then, remembering the King's admonition that all must hear, he moved on to the next village. And thus did this servant until he reached the City of the King. Although some did not believe his warning, most believed and sought safety from the enemy's armies in the City of the King.

The second servant went quickly to the outermost village near the eastern border of the kingdom. To the people of this village he cried out, “I am sent by the King. You are in great danger. Unless you flee to the City of the King you will surely die.” The people of this village immediately fled to the City of the King. The people of the next village also responded immediately and were saved. Then the servant came to the third village. It was in this village that he had been born and raised. Many of his friends and family, whom he dearly loved, lived in this village. When the servant cried out to the people of this village, they did not believe him. In fact, they laughed at him and told him he must be playing some kind of joke on them. This grieved the servant, for he did not want his family and friends to die. The servant began arguing with the people, offering every bit of evidence he could think of to convince them of the danger they were in. At last, the people of this village believed. But now it was the ninth day, and on the tenth the foreign army would attack. The servant ran with the people of his home village as they fled to the City of the King. As he ran, the servant passed four villages and six towns.  He only stopped at three, for the soldiers of the enemy’s army were now within eyesight. So he ran until he reached the safety of the King’s city.

When both servants had returned to the City of the King, the King called for them. The two servants went before the King to give a report of their service. When the King bade him speak, the first servant fell down at the feet of the King and began to weep. “My Lord, I have failed you, not all were saved. Some would not believe my warning. If I had perhaps remained in those villages and tried to convince them they might have been saved.” But the King stood up and took the servants hands. “Rise up and rejoice,” said the King. “For many people are with me this day in my city because you obeyed me. Rise up and rejoice. I will honor you for what you have done, for you have loved all my subjects just as I love them.” 

Then the King turned to the second servant. “My Lord, thank you for entrusting such an important task to me. Indeed, this day I rejoice in that all my dearest friends and family are safe. It took time to convince them, but they finally believed and came to your city.” 

“You wicked, selfish servant.” said the King. “You disobeyed me because you love your family and friends more than you love the other subjects in my kingdom. You placed their well-being above the well-being of those you could not warn for lack of time. To save the lives of those you held so dear you unjustly sacrificed the lives of others who deserved to live just as much as your family and friends. Because you did not go to all to whom you were sent, seven villages were drowned in the innocent blood of the people you did not warn. You evil and worthless servant.” 

That same day the evil, worthless servant was put to death. Then the King publicly honored the servant who loved him and all his subjects as he, the King himself, loved them.

“Now listen to the meaning of the parable, my son.” “The Servant who was put to death loved his family and friends more than he loved the King and all the King’s subjects. His love for his family and friends was not true love, but selfish love – if there is such a love. But don't go to extremes and in so doing miss the truth of the story.”

“Indeed, the servant should have loved his family and friends. But he acted on his love in a way that caused others to suffer unnecessarily. He wanted what was best for his friends and family. That is good. But when we seek the good of some to the harm of others, that is not love. If the servant had loved the King and all his subjects, he would have left his family and friends in their unbelief so he could warn everyone. He would have held the well-being of all the people he was commissioned to warn to be equal in value to the well-being of his family and friends. True, leaving his family and friends knowing they would die, would have hurt him deeply. It might even appear to an outsider that continuing on so he could warn everyone meant he hated his friends and family. And once they were under attack, it’s probable they would curse him for not staying long enough to convince them. But such is the nature of man and the nature of love.”

“You see, love seeks the good of all. It does no harm to anyone. Love cannot seek the good of one or some at the expense of others. Our Father in Heaven loves this way.  He loves everyone and wants what is best for everyone. So, although He is a God of love, one type of love which He tells us is not acceptable is a love for one person to the harm of another. He asks you to love as He does, even if your love for the good of all makes it appear as if you hate those nearest and dearest to you.” 

“Well, my child, do you now understand why we are not worthy of God if we love even our family and closest friends in a manner that seeks their good at the expense of others? And do you now understand why Jesus tells us that following Him requires a love for everyone that may at times make it seem as if we hate our own family and friends?”

“Yes, father. Thank you.”^[1]

What is written in this book has nothing to do with being super- spiritual. The things written here relate to the basics, the foundational building blocks, the first steps of Christianity. These truths are not for a select few, but for any who will forsake their selfish ways and take on God’s holy ways. From here, we grow to understand and put into practice the deep, rich truths of God.

It seems, however, that many do not want to be Christ-like. They just want the benefits of Christianity. They do not want to die to self, but they want what God promises to give to those who do. They want grace without repentance, happiness without holiness, power without purity, God’s promised abundant life without quality Christian character, and eternal life without death to sin. They want to simultaneously satisfy their yearning for spiritual things and selfish things. They want a self-satisfying sense of spirituality without the reality of death to self. They are self-deceived, and in their self-delusion they perpetuate a useless, empty, shallow form of Christianity – if such a thing exists.

What about you? What is it you really want? What do you value the most? What is your primary goal in life? Who, or what, has captured your heart? Do you see love primarily as something you need from others, or as something you direct toward God and others? Do you share God’s concern for relationships built on mutual love and trust? Do you see that holiness is the only way for love to be effective in building meaningful relationships and protecting the good of all? Does love compel you to be concerned about how your choices and behavior affect others? What is the abundant life to you? Is it the good life, or God’s way of love? 

As a mirror reflects the image of your face, so your choices and behavior reflect the image of your heart. They reveal what you believe, who you love, and what you want. To learn the truth about yourself, examine your repetitive, day-to-day, choices and behavior. If it is difficult for you to examine yourself honestly, ask someone who doesn’t think very highly of you to examine you and tell you what he or she sees. Then weigh what they say against what Jesus says are the identifying traits of a godly life.

“If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it; but whoever loses his life for My sake shall find it.” (Note: Matthew 16:24-25)

Do not be deceived. No one can have the best of both worlds. God does not pay sin’s penalty for anyone He cannot purify from the contamination of sin. He does not justify anyone He cannot sanctify. 

The purpose of this book is to point the way to purification and sanctification for those who have trusted in God for salvation from the penalty, the power, and the practice of sin. Read it with that in mind.

There is no reason to accept blindly what is written here. If you are wise, you will search the Scriptures to see if what is said is true. For this reason, I have included many passages of Scripture to help in your research. Hold everything written on these pages up to the light of God’s Word before accepting it as God’s truth. If you lack understanding of what is being said, ask God for discernment and wisdom. Ask God to enlighten you through the work of His Holy Spirit. Think carefully and thoroughly. Be careful not to reject what is different just because it is different. Go back to God, again and again, and ask His help in discerning the truth.

May the Lord be your life, and His Word your joy. May you love God above all others and above all else. May you trust God completely. May God’s love make you secure, especially as you die to self and live unto Him. May relationships of love and trust be more precious than anything else on this earth. May you love as God loves you, giving that love to others as you have received it from Him.

^[1]This story was written by Marc Bayne and edited by David Bayne.