Sermon # 42 - Rejection To Restoration Series

Today’s meditation is taken from Matthew 21:42, Jesus said to them, "Haven't you ever read what the Scriptures say? 'The stone which the builders rejected as worthless turned out to be the most important of all. This was done by the Lord; what a wonderful sight it is!' (GNB)

There are two important parts of this verse that I wish to highlight. The first one is ‘what was considered worthless or rejected by men’ and the second part is ‘made important by God.’

Anyone who places their faith in Jesus Christ has the assurance that his or her sins are forgiven and they become children of God. Their lives are filled with joy, and they presume that now that they are children of God everyone will accept them. Contrarily, everyone who chooses to walk with integrity on this journey of faith will experience rejection by people.

Paul was initially rejected by the disciples

We read about Saul in the New Testament whose only aim was to trouble and persecute all those who believed in the Lord Jesus. Saul made it a point to find out all who were followers of Jesus, got to their gatherings, and made sure that they were tortured and imprisoned. This was how Saul chose to establish his self-righteousness as an ardent Jew. However, when Saul met the risen Lord Jesus on the road to Damascus, there was a great transformation in Saul, who was renamed as Paul, as he began to follow Jesus, and boldly preached the gospel of the Lord Jesus to everyone.

This was what happened to Paul as we read in Acts 9:26, “Saul went to Jerusalem and tried to join the disciples. But they would not believe that he was a disciple, and they were all afraid of him.” (GNB)

As one who had become a believer, Paul was eager to be accepted in the company of those who believed in Jesus. Sadly, at that time the disciples of Jesus rejected Paul, as they were afraid of him, and also doubted his conversion.

Remember that when people reject you, the Lord is aware of it, and He knows the pain and anguish that you go through, because Jesus Himself was rejected by many people in various situations. Wistfully, one major group that rejected Jesus were the religious leaders of His day, who were the ones who were teaching the scriptures to others. If we put our faith in the Lord Jesus and patiently run the race set before us, we will in due time be lifted up, and this is for certain.

Jephthah was rejected by his own family

We read about Jephthah in Judges 11:1-2, Jephthah, a brave soldier from Gilead, was the son of a prostitute. His father Gilead had other sons by his wife, and when they grew up, they forced Jephthah to leave home. They told him, "You will not inherit anything from our father; you are the son of another woman." (GNB)

Jephthah was a valiant soldier from Gilead, but sadly since he was born to a prostitute, he was disinherited from the family. We all know that a child is not responsible for the mistakes that their parents have made, but Jephthah was rejected by his brothers because of the wrong his father had committed in going to a prostitute. Think about the heartache that Jephthah must have gone through.

It is one thing to be shunned by outsiders, but to be rejected by one’s own family is by far the most painful situation. As you take a stand to walk this journey of faith you may be jilted by people, even those close to you, but do not lose heart for at the right time the Lord will lift you up.

Jephthah was recognized as a leader

This is what happened to Jephthah as we read in Judges 11:3, “So Jephthah went away because of his brothers and lived in the land of Tob. In the land of Tob, some rough men began to follow Jephthah.” (ERV)

Jephthah was a mighty warrior, but when his brothers opposed him, he did not fight back. Sometimes we quarrel with those who shun us, and try to restore that relationship, but we read that Jephthah ran away to the land of Tob, and this is what happened.

We read in Judges 11:4-6, “After a time the Ammonites fought with the Israelites. The Ammonites were fighting against Israel, so the elders in Gilead went to Jephthah. They wanted Jephthah to leave the land of Tob and come back to Gilead. The elders said to Jephthah, "Come and be our leader so that we can fight the Ammonites." (ERV)

Look at the turn of events as the elders of Gilead got back to Jephthah, and beckoned him to come back to be their leader to fight against the Ammonites. Jephthah was shunned, and had to relinquish his position as son in the family, but God brought him back to the same place to be the leader of the people of Gilead. That was the Lord’s doing.