“Then Jesus returned to Galilee, filled with the Holy Spirit’s power. Reports about him spread quickly through the whole region. He taught regularly in their synagogues and was praised by everyone. When he came to the village of Nazareth, his boyhood home, he went as usual to the synagogue on the Sabbath and stood up to read the Scriptures. The scroll of Isaiah the prophet was handed to him. He unrolled the scroll and found the place where this was written: “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come. ” He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently. Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!” Everyone spoke well of him and was amazed by the gracious words that came from his lips. “How can this be?” they asked. “Isn’t this Joseph’s son?” Then he said, “You will undoubtedly quote me this proverb: ‘Physician, heal yourself’—meaning, ‘Do miracles here in your hometown like those you did in Capernaum.’ But I tell you the truth, no prophet is accepted in his own hometown. “Certainly there were many needy widows in Israel in Elijah’s time, when the heavens were closed for three and a half years, and a severe famine devastated the land. Yet Elijah was not sent to any of them. He was sent instead to a foreigner—a widow of Zarephath in the land of Sidon. And many in Israel had leprosy in the time of the prophet Elisha, but the only one healed was Naaman, a Syrian.” When they heard this, the people in the synagogue were furious. Jumping up, they mobbed him and forced him to the edge of the hill on which the town was built. They intended to push him over the cliff, but he passed right through the crowd and went on his way.”
Luke 4:14-30 NLT
Faithful followers of Jesus cannot avoid rejection. Jesus was rejected because He was willing to tell the truth. If we are following Him, we will be rejected as well. The people in Jesus’ hometown had no problem with Him reading from Isaiah, but they couldn’t accept that Jesus was the One to fulfill the words of Scripture and proclaim the Lord’s favor. They got angry when He reminded them of how God had worked in the past—blessing Gentiles while people in Israel starved. The ministry of Jesus would be a blessing in Israel, and it would open the door for the whole world (including Gentiles) to have peace with God.
If you have ever been rejected, know that Jesus understands. His own hometown—including people He grew up with—rejected Him and even tried to kill Him. It is easy to let the opinions of others be the standard for what is right and wrong, but God’s way is more than the morality of the mob. People pleasing is not the way of Jesus. You need to be willing to speak God’s truth in our world, even if it means rejection. Don’t remain silent when God is asking you to speak. The Spirit is with you, and you can speak His Word with boldness and grace. Walk with Him and grow in confidence.
How have you faced rejection for your faith? How can you make sure you are not letting the opinions of others guide you more than the Spirit of God?
