No one likes the feeling of rejection. No one enjoys being put out. Rejection stings, and it hurts to be cast out. Yet obedience to God often means rejection, and standing for the truth is often the surefire path to being unpopular.
That’s why Jesus said, “Woe to you when everyone speaks well of you, for that is how their ancestors treated the false prophets” (Luke 6:26, NIV).
He also said this: “Blessed are you when people hate you, when they exclude you and insult you and reject your name as evil, because of the Son of Man. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy, because great is your reward in heaven. For that is how their ancestors treated the prophets” (Luke 6:22–23).
The word “blessed” here means “truly happy,” or, as explained in the Amplified Bible, Classic Edition, it means “happy—with life-joy and satisfaction in God’s favor and salvation, apart from your outward condition—and to be envied.”
But how can this be? We’re supposed to be so happy that we “leap for joy” when people hate us, exclude us, insult us or slander us because of our relationship with Jesus? What?
It’s one thing if we can say, “As miserable as this rejection feels right now, I know I will have a great reward in heaven, and because of that, I will rejoice.”
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