So, I was sitting in church yesterday just minding my own business and my Pastor began reading from the book of Mark. The scripture hit me like a ton of bricks:
Mark 8:27-29 (NIV) Jesus and His disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way He asked them, "Who do people say I am?" 28 They replied, "Some say John the Baptist, other say Elijah, and still others, one of the prophets." 29 "But what about you?" He asked. "Who do you say I am?" Peter answered, "You are the Messiah."
Over the last couple of weeks I have heard and seen so many mentions on the subject of rejection, and when I heard this scripture it just seemed to make sense. (BTW - when you hear something mentioned over and over you probably need to think about it.) He wasn't preaching about rejection. So, I got two lessons in one.
I am absolutely positive that everyone reading this has had his or her share of rejection in life: as a child in school, in the workplace, in family relationships, in romantic relationships, and even in church. Can you relate? I can! Many times the people that matter most to us are the ones that hurt us the most deeply. We open ourselves up. We trust. We build up expectations. We rely upon them, and then the rejection hits us like a ton of bricks. So, why does this happen? Why does it hurt even more than a death? Why is it so often completely crippling?
I believe that the answers to those questions are in the questions themselves...and in the questions that Jesus asked His disciples. Please do not get me wrong. God created us to have emotions. He gave us tears that cause not only an emotional release, but a physical release as well. He even made sure that we would understand that Holy Spirit is on the job when we are mourning. (Matthew 5:4 NIV "Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted." He sees our suffering, and King David went so far as to say that God keeps track of every one of our tears. (Psalm 56:8 CEB "You yourself have kept track of my misery. Put my tears into your bottle—aren’t they on your scroll already?")
So, God expects us to be sad and mourn at the loss of someone or something important. However, He does not expect or want us to allow the loss to destroy us. There is a time for mourning, and then we must get on with life. As followers of Christ, we know that He literally died to pay our sin debt. He is the lover of our souls. He is to be the director of our lives and the definer of our beings. Right? He says that everything that we need for life and Godliness comes from Him. Right? He also says that we are going to experience troubles in life, but that we should not fear when troubles come because He has already overcome it all. Right?
I can hear all of you Christ followers out there saying Yes and shaking your heads up and down. So, why is it that we allow mere humans to crush our souls? Why do we left flawed people define us? Why do we take our cues about our worth and destiny from people who do not behave responsibly with their own lives? Why?
I believe that it is because we are asking Jesus' first question instead of His second. When Jesus asked His disciples who people thought He was, He got all kinds of answers. The bottom line was that nobody really seemed to know, but everyone had an opinion. Do you feel like that?...everyone has an opinion about you, but no one really seems to know you? Of course, that is human nature. We form opinions from what we have heard or seen whether or not it is factual. The problem comes when we allow those opinions to define us. We, as Christ followers, have got to stop asking, "who do people say I am, " and start asking God, "who do YOU say that I am?" We have got to stop giving people the power to shape us, and allow our Creator to finish His work in us.
I am not saying that God does not use people to help us grow and mature. On the contrary, I believe that He uses all kinds of things to speak to us. I am, however, simply saying that the voice of God comes from the perspective of loving us and building us up. Sometimes that means pointing out something that needs to change in our lives, but He never...ever....ever brings condemnation. His voice is comforting even when it brings conviction. He is the very essence of love. So, that is how we can tell the difference. Rejection and condemnation go hand in hand. They are not from God, and their opinions should not be considered. The only opinion that we should consider is that of our Maker. He actually knows the truth and loves us anyway!
It is well.
