We
have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right
to eat. For the bodies of those animals, whose blood is brought into
the sanctuary by the high priest for sin, are burned outside the
camp. Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with
His own blood, suffered outside the gate. Therefore let us go forth
to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach. (Hebrews
13:10-13, NKJV).
He
is despised and rejected by men, A Man of sorrows and acquainted with
grief. And we hid, as it were, our faces from Him; He was despised,
and we did not esteem Him. (Isaiah 53:3, NKJV).
If
you have never been despised as a Christian, then you have either
remained silent about Jesus, live in a cloister, or have lived your
life of faith in such a way that there is no discernible difference
between you and the world.
This
is true because the unbelieving world hates Christ. He said it would
and it does. Now this does not mean that it happens 24/7, or that the
intensity of contempt is unbearable, or that the hostility is always
overt, but it does mean that you can be certain you are not as
accepted in the world as you might have been before becoming a
follower of Jesus. And those who are most contemptuous may be in your
own family, or even members of your own household. It happens. It is
supposed to happen.
I
am not speaking of the contempt you may receive for being obnoxious,
or bitter, or unkind, or boastful, or demonstrating any number of
other common and pervasive human failings. That's your doing. No, the
reproach mentioned in the verse above is solely due to Christ being
pure and beautiful and majestic and good, and you being His follower
with His Spirit within you. This is true because the world is evil
and hateful in its horrid rebellion against God. It hates everything
about God (the true God of the Bible), and everything about you,
because you are His.
If
this hasn't been your experience, then maybe you are not being
attentive. Or maybe you should examine yourself as to whether or not
you are in the faith.
Open
your eyes and ears, and if you are concerned about your popularity
and acceptance, prepare for being crushed. In other parts of the
world, Christians are beaten and imprisoned and killed. If, in the
West, you are being sneered at, or spoken against, or mocked, count
your blessings. It could be much worse.
However,
it does hurt. It hurts when family turns against you. It hurts when
you are excluded or spoken of behind your back. It hurts when you
suffer public humiliation. It hurts when, through no fault or action
of your own, your are despised and rejected.
But
know this, you are in good company, for:
“Blessed
are you when they revile and persecute you, and say all kinds of evil
against you falsely for My sake. “Rejoice and be exceedingly glad,
for great is your reward in heaven, for so they persecuted the
prophets who were before you. (Matthew 5:11, 12, NKJV).
This
equation is what makes Christians an unbeatable force for good in the
world. We are never commanded to do violence, but to love and speak
the truth. We are never commanded to exact revenge, but to leave
vengeance to the Lord. We are never commanded to return evil for
evil, but the opposite. And when all of this evokes even more intense
hatred from the world, well, that is to be expected, for this
world is not our home. We are citizens of Heaven.
How
then are we to react to the enmity of the world? Simply put, like
Christ.
When
reviled He did not revile in return.
He
forgive those who drove the nails through His hands and feet, and
lifted Him on the Cross to suffer excruciating death.
He
loved the unlovable, and forgave the unforgivable, and He did so with
the complete assurance that such was His Father's will.
At
the same time, He was fierce in His condemnation of evil. He
overturned the tables and cages in the Temple and drove out the
profiteers with a whip of cords. He called those who were falsely
religious hypocrites and vipers. And He did not hesitate to stand for
what is right and good. Even His mother and siblings thought He was
crazy.
He
is our example and He never compromised for the sake of not making
waves. His entire earthly ministry was a gigantic tsunami, and He
knew it would end in persecution and death, but He did it anyway.
His
motivation was filial obedience and love.
So
to bear His reproach means that we should expect the same.
While there will be some who see Christ in us and are converted and
become members of our eternal family (closer and far more loyal than
blood relations), there will be others who will hate us passionately,
and will overlook no opportunity to disparage us and cause us pain.
Even
among our own family and friends.
But
in the end, none of that matters, for the only thing of importance is
Christ within us, the hope of glory.
His
warnings to us should be heeded. We should expect betrayal and
contempt. It happened to Him. It will happen to us. That is what He
meant by counting the cost. To ignore the warnings is to be
blind-sided by the attacks that will come.
Therefore,
my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the
work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord.
(1 Corinthians 15:58, NKJV).
