What Rejection Means to a Christian

“Then the LORD said to him, ‘Take off your sandals; the place where you are standing is holy ground. I have indeed seen the oppression of my people in Egypt. I heard their groaning and have come down to set them free. Now come, I will send you back to Egypt.’ “This is the same Moses whom they rejected with words, ‘Who made you ruler and judge?’ He was sent to be their ruler and deliverer by God himself through the angel who appeared to him in the bush." Acts 7: 34

This scripture passage reveals a deeper truth about leadership and rejection. From this scripture and throughout the bible we find examples of great prophets and leaders who were rejected by the people despite the fact that they were put in those positions by God himself. Moses for example was sent by God to deliver the children of Israel from Egypt. However, Moses did not perform this role with ease. At first the people rejected him outright. It was only on second attempt that the people accepted that he was sent by God to deliver. They still rejected and disobeyed.

As leaders in business or as prophets leading congregations, there are times when we will have visions that are too big for our followers to comprehend. This may be followed by disobedience, rejection, rebellion and so forth. It is this kind of challenges that test the character of the leader. If you really believe in your vision as a leader, these actions should not intimidate you. In fact it should make you to be decisive and take a stance because there are various factors that you need to comprehend as a leader. These include the following:

• Some people are will remain in Egypt even if you have left the place in the physical. Mentally, some people would not like to part with the past because of fear of the unknown. According to these people, the only better place is Egypt and nothing else.
• Some people will accept that Egypt was good, but are afraid of the giants ahead of them. These people would prefer to linger in the desert than to face the giants.
• However, you will also have the Calebs and Joshuas who buy into your vision that you can conquer the Promised Land. This is a rare breed though.
• You will also have the children who can go anywhere the leadership points.

The fact of the matter is that it can take you a lifetime to convince the first two groups to move forward. If these are left unchecked, they can scare off the last two groups (Calebs and Joshuas and the children). It took the Israelites fourty years to accept that Moses was sent by God to deliver them. Well, another 40 years was spent in the wilderness trying to convince them to Move on to the Promised Land. Finally, the Joshuas and Calebs as well as the children started conquering after 40 years of lingering in the wilderness. But God had to get rid of the first two groups.

We still see this in our organizations and churches today. The groups spelled out are apparent. As leaders and prophets, we need to discern quickly the right attitude and move forward. If we try to convince everyone, we will find ourselves questioning our very own dreams and goals. This is not said to condemn participatory leadership, but to assist in determining if there is consultation paralysis.

Unlike Moses, Jesus got onto the task. He moved on with his mission despite what the Pharisees were saying. Although He had many disciples, we know mostly about the twelve. These are the ones who bought into the vision and internalized it. We hear very little about the seventy but very little is said about them in the scripture. In actual fact there was a time when most of them turned away. Imagine what would have happened if Jesus looked at that rejection as a signal for a wrong vision and purpose. There would not be a strong testimony about Christianity. See the difference of 40 years in the wilderness and three years of direct ministry. This is not said to criticize the great prophet of God, Moses, but to indicate how stiff-necked people and fear of rejection can derail a vision and account for unfulfilled destiny.

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