“He was despised and rejected by mankind, a man of suffering, and familiar with pain. Like one from whom people hide their faces he was despised, and we held him in low esteem.”
Isaiah 53:3

Today I am going to talk to you about something that is hard for me to even type about- rejection.

Rejection is one of the hardest subjects for me to talk about because it is one that I have felt very deeply.

For most of us, the first time we feel rejection is at an early age. Maybe it’s that group of friends you wish you could be with, but who don’t quite accept you. Maybe it’s your own mom or dad. Or maybe it’s that time on the playground that your “friend” decided to play with someone else.

Then you get into the hormones world and rejection comes at an even greater speed. Being rejected by that boy you “love” in highschool can seem like a soul-crushing event that leaves you feeling ugly and unwanted.

But all this is nothing compared to the rejection I felt when my marriage fell apart due to drugs. Although it was my decision to walk away, I was choosing not to live in the constant cycle of being rejected for a substance. That was hard. I would not and did not want to live that way, and I knew I didn’t want my future children to live in it either.

The choice was gut-wrenching and I spent many a nights on my parent’s guest bed in anguish, crying to the point words would not come. Rejection seeped into my bones and my self worth went out the window.

Now, it takes a lot to make me cry.

I am a lot stronger than I used to be in a lot of areas, but that did not come without extreme pain.

Whether it is rejection from friends, family, bosses, or love interests- no one likes to be rejected.

It wasn’t until I read a book called “Uninvited” by Lysa Terkeurst that I realized why- rejection communicates to us, “There is something wrong with you.”

Think about it…

When we are rejected what is the first thing we ask, “What is wrong with me? Why me? What is the matter with my body? What is the matter with my mind? Am I not pretty enough? Am I not smart enough? I am not worth it? Am I not worth a relationship?”

We question our worth because we have put our worth in the person who is rejecting us. When in reality, putting our value in anything or anyone other than Christ will always lead us feeling empty.

Consider this, Christ felt more rejected than any human could. His own creation rejects Him.

Imagine having a child and one day your child says, “You know what, I don’t love you. I don’t believe what you say and I don’t believe in you.” Ouch, that would hurt. Especially if you have poured your whole life into this child and cared for him.

Jesus feels that everyday.

On the cross He felt the unimaginable pain of rejection as God turned away and Jesus died. God could not look upon sin and so He had to deny His own Son His presence. Imagine that pain of being denied by your own Father, on top of having to take on the sin of the world.

The most painful thing about the crucifixion was not the physical pain, it was the weight of the sin of the world on the perfect Lord’s shoulders as He gave Himself for mankind.

^“For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin.”
Hebrews 4:15

Jesus is not unable to empathize with us in our struggles, weaknesses, and rejections. He felt the weight of the world’s murder, rape, drunkenness, theft, adultery and unbelief while knowing some would never accept His sacrifice.

Regardless of who you believe Jesus was, this was what He believed about Himself. This was his view of what He was doing- dying for the world.

So either Jesus was a lunatic, or He is who He says He is.

I take comfort that I serve a Savior who understands my rejection and loves me through mine.

I take comfort that even when people reject me He says…

“You are loved.
You are valued.
You are useful.”