Rejected and broken? Isaiah 53:3-4, 1 Corinthians 11:24
Patricia Ann, Originally posted on Tuesday, May 20, 2014
He is despised and rejected by men,
A Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.
And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him;
He was despised, and we did not esteem Him. Surely He has borne our griefs
And carried our sorrows;
Yet we esteemed Him stricken,
Smitten by God, and afflicted. Isaiah 53:3-4
Was Jesus ever broken hearted?
1 Corinthians 11:24 (NKJV) …and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.”
Rejection
There is no doubt that we all experience rejection at some point in our lives. Some of us take it in stride letting it slide off our backs. Some of us take rejection personally, but seem to be able to let it go after a short time.
Still, others become deeply hurt by the pain of rejection.
God's word tells us: Psalm 34:18, "The Lord is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and sayeth such as be of a contrite spirit. Psalm 51:17: "The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt
not despise.”
I think of Jesus and the rejection that He faced.
His friends and even some of His family rejected him. Others despised Him for who He was, the Son of God.
They didn't understand. They didn't want to know Him.
Jesus' intentions were always good.
He loved people.
His goal was to teach them His Father's word. There was much that He wanted to share with the people in His time.
He had few followers. Most of the people at the time did not believe. Jesus showed miracles by creating wine from water, feeding the multitudes, raising the dead, and healing the sick.
Still, He was rejected.
His followers remained few.
Did you ever wonder how Jesus’ heart hurt?
Did it hurt for those who chose not to know him?
Did it hurt because of the rejection that they showed him?
Was Jesus ever broken hearted?
Has all the rejection that we have experienced in our lives ever compared to what Jesus experienced at the hands of the Roman soldiers and their followers?
Even the priests and His disciples refused to recognize Him for Who He was.
John 19:15 (NKJV) But they cried out, “Away with Him, away with Him! Crucify Him!” Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?” The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”
Matthew 26:56 (NKJV), "...but all this was done that the Scriptures of the prophets might be fulfilled. Then all the disciples forsook Him and fled."
While we may think that we have been totally rejected and broken, does our brokenness compare to the pain that Jesus bore for us, as He was placed on the cross; spikes driven into His hands and feet after He was forced to carry the very cross that would hold His dying body?
Matthew 26:67 (NKJV), Then they spat in His face and beat Him; and others struck Him with the palms of their hands,
Matthew 27:28–30 (NKJV), And they stripped Him and put a scarlet robe on Him.
When they had twisted a crown of thorns, they put it on His head, and a reed in His right hand. And they bowed the knee before Him and mocked Him.
Isaiah 52:14 (NKJV) Just as many were astonished at you,
So His visage was marred more than any man, and His form more than the sons of men.
Luke 22:44 (NKJV), ...and being in agony, He prayed more earnestly. Then His sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.
I wonder how Jesus felt as He walked among the people... being hated.
He was mocked, ridiculed, put down and verbally abused.
We know that Jesus often sought a place of solitude, so that he could be with His Father and hear His words.
Jesus knew the burdens that He was to carry.
He knew that He would be hated, ridiculed and ultimately killed because of who He was.
Yet, this is awesome news.
And He gives us an answer to our pain in Matthew 10:12-14 (KJV).
And when ye come into an house, salute it.
And if the house be worthy, let your peace come upon it:
but if it be not worthy, let your peace return to you.
And whosoever shall not receive you, nor hear your words, when ye depart out of that house or city, shake off the
dust of your feet.
Because Jesus knows the hard hearted actions on mankind, He gives us the authority to turn from the rejection.
He tells us that in order for our peace to return to us, that we are to walk away from those who reject us. He tells us to shake the dust off of our feet.
And this is not an easy thing to do, especially if it is a family member, spouse or friend that has shown us rejection.
In order for us to continue to do the work God has called us to do, we must turn away from those who do not accept us and go forward spreading the good news of Jesus to other people in different places.
Our Lord never intended for us to stagnate in a place of rejection with a broken heart.
There are many people who have never experienced the love of Jesus and who are anxiously awaiting the gift of His love through us, as Jesus disciples. Let us go out into the world, rejoicing in His love and not hesitate to walk away from those who reject us because of who He is in us.
We can and should offer forgiveness to the ones who have wounded us with the cruelty of their words and actions.
In return we will receive a renewed spirit, peace and inner joy.
While dying on the cross, Jesus cried out to His father in heaven, saying... "Father, forgive them; for they know not what
they do." Luke 23:34
In God's perfect timing, we will one day see that as He has perfected us to do His work... our testimonies, our compassion and our love shown to one another will bring about positive results for the Kingdom of our Father in Heaven.
My prayer for today is that in our own times of trial, when facing rejection and brokenness, we will remember that Jesus Christ is our Savior. In His love for each of us, He bore more pain and broken heartedness than we can imagine.
He tells us:... “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 1 Corinthians 11:24
So, let us remember Him and the sacrifice He made on the cross for the sins of mankind; for His love of each of us.
I pray that we choose to put our focus on Jesus and allow Him to carry us through our daily trials to a future perfected in His love and mercy.
Blessings to all in Jesus' precious name. Amen.
John 3:16 (NKJV)
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.
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