“‘And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for my sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit eternal life.’” -Matthew 19:29
Not much is known about the personal lives of the first disciples of Jesus. Scripture reveals a bit about their occupations—Matthew was a tax collector, and several were fishermen. When Jesus called them, each man left what he was doing—in the middle of work—to follow Jesus. They left their tasks for the day unfinished, but they might have left behind more than that.
We know that Peter was married because Scripture makes mention of his mother-in-law (Matthew 8:14). It is also possible that other disciples were married (1 Corinthians 9:5). If they were married, there’s a good chance some of them had children—and parents, siblings, grandparents, cousins, friends, and so on.
The disciples didn’t just leave behind jobs and material possessions. They left their families. This is not to say they completely abandoned their loved ones; Jesus preached against divorce, after all (Matthew 5:31-32). But they did leave them for an extended period of time, and there was no telling when they would be united again. It was as if the disciples left on an urgent business trip without booking a return flight home.
The cost of discipleship is high. Peter said he and the rest of the disciples gave up all that they had to follow Jesus (Matthew 19:27). Indeed, Jesus said that those unwilling to give up everything cannot be His disciples (Luke 14:33).
Why would these men pay such a high price to be a disciple of Jesus? It’s because their reward was greater—the cause was greater. For the sake of God’s Kingdom, the disciples were willing to be separated—even for great lengths of time—from the ones they loved most. It was a sacrifice they were willing to make to do what God had called them to do.
There may be a time when God calls you to step away from something—or someone—you love for a season to go serve Him. Some will refuse to go because there’s no guarantee when they will be able to return. Those who choose to obey understand and accept what Jesus promised. There is a cost to following Him, but any loss of an earthly family will be rewarded exponentially in a spiritual family.
Your spiritual family comprises fellow believers. Brothers and sisters of the faith are called to show compassion and support each other like a mother and father. They are called to love and bear burdens like a spouse or a child.
What if you are called to go so that you can grow this spiritual family? Imagine how many brothers and sisters in Christ or spiritual children you could gain.
Jesus was well aware of what His disciples had given up. Their sacrifice would not go unrecognized. By believing in and proclaiming Jesus, they gained a multitude of spiritual siblings, Jesus as their Husband and Brother, and God as their Father.