Rejection from People Versus Acceptance From God

Merriam-Webster describes the action of rejecting as "to refuse to accept, consider, submit to, take for some purpose, or use." Rejection is a feeling that all people have felt if they have been on earth for an extended period of time. It can leave us feeling left out, lonely, and even depressed. It is human nature to want to fit in to some extent. As a believer in Christ, however, we are called to live differently from the world or from what people typically do. God calls those who believe in Him to be set apart, or different, from the rest of the world.

"22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness" (Ephesians 4:22-24, NIV).

Throughout the Bible, we can see numerous examples of people who were rejected by man but accepted by God. Despite how the world viewed these people, God was able to use them in a mighty way.

Examples of People in the Bible who were Rejected by Man

• David

  • 1 Samuel 16:1-12

    • David was rejected by his father. In 1 Samuel 16, we see Israel's prophet Samuel invite Jesse, David's father, along with all of Jesse's sons to a sacrifice. During this time, Samuel planned to seek out the son that God chose to be the next king for Israel, but Jesse didn't even bring David.

      • "6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.”

        7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The Lord does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:6-7, NIV).

        • Despite David's rejection by his father, God still saw his heart. This can show us that even when people you want to see you reject you, God still sees you.

    • David was later rejected by his brother as well. When David was sent by his father to bring food to his brothers at the front lines of a battle, he began to ask about Goliath, the large Philistine man who was intimidating the Israelite soldiers. His brother, however, responded harshly to him. "28 When Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard him speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, 'Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the wilderness? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.' 29 “Now what have I done?' said David. 'Can’t I even speak?'" (1 Samuel 17:28, NIV). Even with the way David's brother spoke to him, he, through his trust and submission to God, was later able to defeat the giant Philistine Goliath with one hit to the head using a sling shot and a rock he found on the ground.

• The woman with the alabaster box

  • Matthew 26:6-13

    • When a woman came to Jesus with an alabaster box of expensive perfume and poured it on his head, the disciples judged her harshly by stating that what she did was a waste. They further stated that the perfume could have been sold and the money given to the poor. Jesus, however, corrected them by affirming an important principle that it is never a waste to give one's best to honor God. Then, like David, this woman was also accepted by God through Jesus, who said, "13 Truly I tell you, wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her" (Matthew 26:13, NIV).

• Jesus

  • Matthew 27:27-31

    • After Jesus was arrested and put on trial, he endured extreme cruelty at the hands on the soldiers before he was later crucified. He was stripped, mocked, beaten, and even spit on. Jesus was perfect and holy in every way, and yet, the world hated him. Before any of this happened, Jesus still, knowing what was to come, surrendered his will to the will of his Father's saying, “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done" (Matthew 26:42, NIV).

God's Acceptance

Something that all believers have to come to terms with is the fact that the world will hate you, so rejection is bound to happen, especially when we are living to imitate Christ. Jesus made this clear when speaking to his disciples in which he said, "18 “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. 19 If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you" (John 15:18-19). So, if the world hated Jesus, how do you not expect the world to hate you as well when we are made in his image, and we are called to be holy like him? This, of course, does not make rejection easy, but we can be content and joyful knowing that God accepts us and loves us. When we see David, the woman with the alabaster box, and Jesus, they each had one thing in common: their willingness to surrender to God because of their overwhelming love for Him. The beautiful thing is that despite how the world feels about us, God accepts us as his sons and daughters when we accept him into our lives. When we believe in God, we become his children, grafted into his family (John 1:12-13).