The Tower Builder is found only in Luke 14:28-30. The Tower Builder and The Warring King (Luke 14:31-33) are
parabolic illustrations of the cost of discipleship that Jesus outlined in Luke 14:25-27:
Large Crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them, he said: "If anyone comes to me and does not hate his
father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters--yes, even his own life--he cannot be my disciple. And
anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:25-27, New International Version).
The Story
"Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it? For if he lays the foundation and is not able to finish it, everyone who sees it will ridicule him, saying, `This fellow began to build and was not able to finish.'" (Luke 14:28-30, New International Version).
The tower mentioned was probably a common sight in Jesus' day. Vineyard owners would build a tower and post
guards to prevent thieves from stealing the harvest. [William Barclay, DAILY STUDY BIBLE SERIES, LUKE
(Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1958), p. ?]. The story is that of planning. A primary step in planning to build a tower is figuring material and labor. One should have enough money before beginning to build. Otherwise, one could become a laughing stock because of a partly-finished tower.
The Interpretation
Before interpreting the parable, Luke 14:25-27 must be addressed, since the parable illustrates this passage. Jesus was on his way to the cross, whereas the crowds thought that he was on his way to establish the messianic empire. (Barclay, Ibid.). Since Jesus was going to pay such a terrible price for our salvation in the near future, and since he knew that his followers would also be persecuted, he had to prepare them. The idea of Jesus saying that his disciple must hate his (or her) father, mother, wife (or husband), brothers and sisters, even his (or her) own life sounds wrong to our western ears. Didn't Jesus command us to love one another? Isn't hate condemned by God? Didn't God institute the family and didn't Jesus command us to love God, others and ourselves? Here are two passages in Jesus' own words:
One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, "Of all the commandments, which is the most important ?" "The most important one," answered Jesus, "is this: `Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' The second is this: `Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than
these." (Mark 12:28-31, New International Version).
"A new command I give you: love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will
know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:34-35, New International Version).
How is Jesus' command to hate reconciled with his command to love everyone? If Jesus' command to hate everyone
were taken literally, it would destroy the family and the church, both of which God himself instituted. It would in
fact destroy all human relationships, and precipitate murder and wars. A literal interpretation is obviously wrong.
The answer lies in the Bible itself. Jesus' use of the word "hate" here is a Hebraism, which the crowd he was addressing understood. Adam Clarke comments on Jesus' use of the word hate in Luke 14:26,
Matthew, chap. x. 37, expresses the true meaning of this word, when he says, "He that loveth father or mother more than me." In chap. vi. 24 he uses the word HATE in the same sense. When we read, Rom. ix. 13, "Jacob have I loved, but Esau have I hated," the meaning is simply, I have loved Jacob, the Israelites, more than Esau, the Edomites. That this is no arbitrary interpretation of the word HATE, but one agreeable to the Hebrew idiom, appears from what is said on Gen. xxix. 30-31, where Leah's being HATED is explained by Rachel's being loved more than Leah. (Clarke, COMMENTARY ON THE HOLY BIBLE, p. 878).
What Jesus meant was that God must be placed first. We must love him as Jesus did. Jesus loved his Heavenly Father
more than material things, more than worldly power and prestige, more than his earthly mother and father, brothers and sisters, more than anyone. He loved his Heavenly Father more than his own life, which he was about to demonstrate when he would give his life for us. He also loved us more than his own life. This is the cost of discipleship. Here is a paradox: you can't love your family without "hating" them. God's love seeks the best for the beloved. If we love with a mere selfish human love, we hurt our family. If we love them with the love of God, we help them. We must place God first. He loves our family more than we
possibly could. To pick up our cross and follow him means to be in compete and continuous submission to the will of God--as a way of life. [WESLEYAN BIBLE COMMENTARY (Kansas City: Beacon Hill Press), LUKE, by Ralph Earle, p. 290]. Jesus is our role model. If we truly love God, we will do this. "Now," Jesus says, "count the cost. Are you able to
build that tower? Are you able to be my disciple?
CENTRAL TRUTH
GOD REQUIRES THAT WE LOVE HIM MORE THAN ANYONE.
Conclusion
You may be thinking, "I don't think that I can be Jesus' disciple under the conditions that he lays down." Actually, we cannot love God first without his help. He gives us the ability by placing his love within our hearts. It all comes down to a decision for each of us. Decide for God--his way is the only way.
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