A Pastor’s Perspective

“Accepted by Jesus, Rejected by People” by Mike Hill, pastor of Calvary Chapel Aberdeen (mjhill@ida.net) Listen to CALVARY RADIO 90.3 FM

 Imagine being born blind.  You have never seen a blue sky or the tender expression of love on the face of your parents.  Suddenly you overhear someone spit.  Then you feel a moist paste being carefully applied to your eyes.  Blurry light begins to break through as you gradually focus upon the explosion of color burst within your vision.  You can see!  “Wow!  That’s what a tree looks like!  So, that’s the tasty food I’ve been eating!”  Upon receiving sight, you encounter men glaring down at you in anger, rifling questions at you as if you had done something wrong.  “Uh-oh…is that what a frown looks like?”

The blind man who was healed by Jesus (John 9:1-41) was immediately interrogated by the religious leaders.  They felt threatened, because Jesus’ way of healing didn’t line up with their traditions or prejudices.  This man was literally touched by God resulting in a changed life, and they wanted to argue about it!  Ludicrous!  The healed man was rejected by the religious leaders and excommunicated, but he was accepted by Jesus. 

Do things like this occur today?  You bet.  Many religious leaders feel threatened by a person who says, “Jesus healed by soul.  My sins are forgiven, He’s given me new life and I now have a place reserved for me in heaven.”  The religious leaders may counter, “No, you cannot get to heaven without our way of doing things…you need to be a part of our organization in order to get right with God.”   How would the blind man respond to that?  What would Jesus say?  Jesus did say, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).

Jesus also said, “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword” (Matthew 10:34).  A sword speaks of war, division, pain, and death.  Based on what Jesus affirmed, when people make the commitment to follow Him, they become an enemy to members of their community and even to their own family.  They will experience relational war, division, pain, and death—even physical death in many cases.  “For I have come to 'set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law'; and 'a man's enemies will be those of his own household’” (Matthew 10:35-36). 

Knowing that war will occur in the home, does Jesus command followers to avoid talking about Him to prevent “rocking the boat”?  Does He command believers to “be nice” and “agreeable” if it means masking the truth?  Does He want us to put “family first” to maintain peace in the home?  No, because Jesus said, “He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me” (Matthew 10:37, 38).  Jesus wants to be #1 in your life even it means experiencing rejection by others.  The one who healed you and opened your spiritually blind eyes will also lead you through whatever relational challenges you face today.