Useful Rejects

For the gifts and calling of God are without repentance. (Romans 11:29)

I wonder how possible it is for someone to continue in a state of rejection yet continue to serve the interests of the kingdom that has rejected them.

Saul was an initially a good king. But in a not so long time he became too innovative for God. He started becoming too prominent for God’s liking. God therefore rejected him as His king. It is surprising that God did not remove him as the king of His people. Sometimes I wish that is what had happened as the pain of being in the state of living your life as a useful reject is unimaginable.

That is how God works. Never will He dump one for disappointing Him especially when the said servant had had a real connection with Him. God does not recall once His call has been heeded and that is something I have always had a problem with.

I remember once arguing with God after being involved in a mission and later discovering some of the people who led enough people to Christ lived discordant lives, some even openly. I was enraged and went to God asking Him whether He had no standards. Simply speaking how does a person sleep with a neighbor’s wife yet speak in a crusade? Even worse was that the said characters seemed to draw people to Christ through their dramatics (that’s what I call what they were doing)

This is what God answered, ‘I watch over my word to fulfill it’ (Jeremiah 1: 12). In effect He was saying that it mattered little whoever was sharing His word as it was the word that was having the effect. The character or lack of it of the herald does not come between God and the effect of His word to those who hear it (Isaiah 55: 10, 11). The proclamation of God’s word is what brings the impact after it has been received.

The servant is therefore a tool to get the message out and like I always say we do not applaud a hammer when the carpenter is good as it is just a tool. No wonder Christ said this.

So likewise ye, when ye shall have done all those things which are commanded you, say, We are unprofitable servants: we have done that which was our duty to do. (Luke 17:10)

And that is where the rejection comes in. Some of us experience so much of God’s hand in our ministry that we assume that we are equal partners in the redemption enterprise. We sometimes even imagine that God cannot do without us. We even start becoming creative to increase the impact of our joint enterprise and create our own rules, rules that though looking really innovative may run counter to God’s revelation.

God is jealous. In fact He said that His name was Jealous. Any appearance that we may be sharing His visibility is therefore prone to incur His displeasure. You can be sure that He will very easily remove us from His list of servants as we have started becoming too important for Him to use. Like with Saul we become too independent to serve anybody, which is even worse with this jealous God. Remember Gideon being told that the army was too big for God to use?

Why doesn’t He then discard us? Why not tell anybody that He has rejected us? Why must we continue in a service that we have been rejected from?

The key reason is grace. God never gives up on anyone. He will continue giving us chance after chance so that we can return to Him. That is the reason He will allow us to serve as rejects so that we can consciously return to Him after seeing the dryness of our rejected service. Remember even Manasseh, the most wicked king was given such a chance and when he took it was restored? Remember David was forgiven when he repented?

God wants it to be that nobody will have any excuse when they are sent to hell. He will give us uncountable chances to examine our lives and return to Him. We are the ones who trash ourselves and in effect throw ourselves to hell. That is the reason we have useful rejects. They are in God’s school of repentance. The chances are wide open initially but the reject will continue to narrow them as he continues in rebellion.

That is why Jonah was allowed to preach in Nineveh after initially blatantly rebelling. That is why Peter led the early church even after denying Christ three times. That is why Paul was able to become apostle to the gentiles even after seeking to stamp out the church using all means at his disposal. That is the reason the fierce anger and judgment of the Lord was deferred so that Josiah could die in peace.

Cain rejected God’s offer and that was the reason he was condemned to vagrancy and the curse. King Saul refused to repent and was completely sidelined. Esau lost everything because he had no place of repentance. Judas hanged himself because he decided that he was beyond this grace. Time and time again we see God’s offer of grace being extended to the rejects with the offer of restoration. It is the rejection of that offer that finally puts the last nail on the coffin of the reject.

But God’s rejection is many times known by the person He has rejected. When David said, ‘against Thee, Thee only have I sinned…’ he was stating the fact that even before any sin can hurt anybody else, it really hurts God. He is therefore the only one who can judge it. It also means that one can be very holy in the eyes of others yet be rejected by God because He sees beyond the visible.

For I say unto you, That except your righteousness shall exceed the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, ye shall in no case enter into the kingdom of heaven. (Matthew 5:20)

God’s grace is what allows Him to continue using us even after we have crossed His line. It is the very nature of that grace that allows us to see the expression of His life as we minister so that we can reconnect to His lordship. He will even speak through us so that we can realize that He is the God of all flesh. Above all He will continue using us so that we can acknowledge that He is not limited to our holiness or the lack of it. He is God and not subject to our character or lack of it.

But I think the main reason He will continue using those He has rejected is because He wants us to acknowledge that though He may use us we are not indispensable. Nor are we the reason or channel He reaches out to His creation. Remember this

Bring forth therefore fruits worthy of repentance, and begin not to say within yourselves, We have Abraham to our father: for I say unto you, That God is able of these stones to raise up children unto Abraham. (Luke 3:8)

And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that, if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out. (Luke 19:40)

Remember God using a donkey to rebuke a disobedient prophet? This reminds us the God will use anybody and anything to deliver His message. Being used is therefore not an indicator that we are in tune with Him. And that is what the devil will use to lead us astray by convincing us that we are being used because we are spiritually attuned to God. We then will overlook grace by qualifying us for the grace we can access. Then we will sink farther and farther down the slope of useful rejection.

Are you a useful reject or a restored repentant? Do people recognize you as a minister of God after God has rejected you? Are you humbly responding to His leadership or do you know all the formulae of usefulness as you minister? Are you content with the applause you receive due to the impact of your ministry or are you prostrate before Him receiving the orders He has for you? Are you a self contained minister or are you blank unless He fills you?