Man’s fallen condition produces behavior and actions that create rejection in people’s lives. The Bible teaches us how different Biblical characters dealt with rejection, so we can learn from their mistakes or their successes.
Definition of Reject according to Strong’s Concordance:
(Hebrew 3998): refuse and despise.
Greek (G114) to do away with, to set aside, disregard, to thwart the efficacy of anything, nullify, make void, frustrate.
He answered, “I heard you in the garden, and I was afraid because I was naked; so I hid.”
11 And he said, “Who told you that you were naked? Have you eaten from the tree that I commanded you not to eat from?”
12 The man said, “The woman you put here with me—she gave me some fruit from the tree, and I ate it.”
13 Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”
The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” Genesis 3:10-13
Rejection entered our world when Adam and Eve decided to sin. The fear of punishment and rejection came upon them because they rebelled against God. Up to this point, Adam walked with God, and he had a close relationship with the Lord. However, after the fall things changed. Adam and Eve hid themselves from God for they were ashamed of being naked.
When the Lord asked Adam how they found out about their nakedness, Adam rejected God’s design and what He had given her in the form of his wife. He also rejected Eve as he saw her as defective and blamed her for his wrongdoing. Furthermore, Eve did not take responsibility for her actions and blamed the enemy. In the process, God rejected Adam and Eve by cursing them and driving them out from the Garden, so they would not eat from the Tree of Life (See Genesis 3).
Adam and Eve had the opportunity to take responsibility for their sin and get it right with God. However, they chose to reject each other and in the process be rejected by God.
People tend to have difficulty admitting they’re wrong. It could be because they are trying to avoid rejection, but in the process of avoiding rejection they cause more rejection! Not admitting the wrong makes sin to continue to produce rejection, anger, and resentment in the hearts of those involved.
Interestingly, we can preach about Jesus forgiving our sins and being willing to give us a new slate, but we have a hard time admitting that we are wrong and that we are in need of His forgiveness. The sooner we accept our part in something, the sooner the healing begins and the faster the cycle of rejection stops.
Are there things that you have a part to take responsibility for? It may not be all your issue but you may have had a part to play in it. If so, what are you going to do about it?
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