Why did Jesus say to hate your family?

From this, we can easily discern that when Jesus said “hate” in the verse prior, he wasn’t talking about malice or violence. He was talking about getting your priorities straight. As a Christian, Jesus must be central to your life in every way. He must be more important than your father, mother, sister, brother, spouse, child, friends, employer, employee, etc. As sad as it is to say, I think the reality is that a lot of us choose to side with our family instead of with Jesus. We’re Christians by name only, simply to appear in good social standing.