rejection
- Venus Jackson
- Apr 10
- 5 min read
Updated: Aug 25
Mark 5 15-20
Rejection is a powerful force.
It can cause a hurt that feels like a gut punch. And that gut punch can temporarily or even permanently derail us from our mission, both physically and psychologically, as we strive to recover.
Mark 5 tells the story of a man who had been out of his mind for years. No one could get close to him. He was doing crazy stuff like living in the graveyard, cutting himself with rocks, screaming at all hours of the day and night, and showing inhuman strength by breaking any chains that attempted to bind him.
This poor man suffered until Jesus arrived and sent the spirits into a herd of nearby pigs who then went beserk and ran off a cliff into the sea.
Now the man was free! Finally, he had full control of his body again. And after all those years of being rejected by the people of his home town he was now back to normal. So everyone went running to him with arms wide open and full of joy and thankfulness that he had returned to himself...not.
His people continued to reject him out of fear. Though the Bible doesn't say so, I imagine that rejection was hurtful.
And when the man then begged to leave with Jesus, Jesus said no.
Now we have what seems to be a double rejection whammy! Rejected by his people and rejected by Jesus.
This man could have easily taken the hurt from that rejection and allowed it to overwhelm him until it turned to bitterness and anger which would only be inviting that legion of demons to come right back into him.
Instead, he did as Jesus instructed. He went back home and told the story of how Jesus had healed him. Can you imagine how powerful of an effect that this man's testimony had on non-believers? From madman to a man that has recovered so well that he can now hold a decent conversation?
Jesus's decision not to take him may have come across as hurtful in the beginning but Jesus definitely knew what he was doing.
In fact, Jesus himself was rejected by those same people that rejected the healed man. After people witnessed the man's miraculous recovery, they asked Jesus to 'leave their region.'
Why? There could be a number of reasons why they wanted him to leave.
They were still afraid of the man?
They could have been afraid of Jesus,
They could have been upset because the demon possessed man had been bringing in tourist revenue to the region as a marvel much like the girl with the divination spirit from Acts 16. And now that he is healed, no more tourists.
They could have been upset because 2000 pigs worth of revenue were destroyed.
They could have been afraid that Jesus' presence would upset the gods they served.
There could be a number of reasons why. But Jesus did as they asked and left because He knew that he had already sprouted a seed of His grace in the man that He had saved. Now the man will go out and spread His message.
Rejection can feel like the end of a relationship, project, opportunity and feed into our insecurities. But in those moments if we can remember the obedience of this man in spite of the fact that he could have felt rejected and remember that Jesus is always trying to work out situations in a way that is best for us, then we - like the man -can represent another powerful testimony in Jesus' name that is designed to save souls.
Discussion notes and Comments
~Jesus did not reject the man, He was just sending the man on another assignment. If anything the man was dealing with the spirit of offense.
~The amazing thing about the Bible is how depending on what you are currently going through in your life the same passage could take on different meanings
~Didn't the spirits know they would die after they jumped into the pigs? Responses:
It didn't matter because they were trying to prevent from being judged which would have automatically sent them to hell. They recognized Jesus and were running from God's judgement.
They didn't die. They were probably marine spirits and knew they could function under the water. They avoid dry places.
~The man was not only healed from mental trauma but probably from physical trauma as well. If he was breaking out of chains he probably had deep bruises, broken bones and fractures all over his body.
~We have to learn to use the gifts that Jesus showed us how to use instead of being fearful. We should be able to do for others what Jesus did for the man.
~Someone also shared how they have felt the hurt of being rejected by members of the church. On more than one occasion with witnesses. And how off-putting that could have been.
Responses:
Many times people are so caught up in their own issues that they don't realize that they have hurt someone else.
A number of us have felt the same way. We have to bring Jesus with us everywhere we go, especially at church. There are too many hurting people including ourselves that are easily triggered by our own past experiences. And with all that hurt colliding it is easy to feel rejected.
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week 4/15....
Religion
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