... to the praise of the glory of his grace, by which he made us accepted in the Beloved. Ephesians 1:6 NKJV
Yet to all who did receive him, to those who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God. John 1:12 NIV
Have you ever been left out? Or even worse, have you been actively rejected? I bet you have. I have. I remember the first experiences with a neighbor girl when I was very young, and I have many more memories I could share, even up through adulthood, as people I thought were friends turned their backs on me for reasons I didn’t know or understand. Early on, starting with the neighbor girl, I started trying to please and work on my “image” (though I couldn’t have told you what that meant) so I would be accepted by her. But I had an amazing relationship with my father. We often went for long walks together in our small town, and he told me stories about his own life. By the time I was in high school, I understood that Dad knew what it was to experience rejection from others and himself because he grew up poor, to be used as a “prop” in college music classes for students who knew he couldn’t sing, to try for things that seemed important and fail … all this and more. But he was the best person I knew. And he accepted me. I felt that being HIS child made the difference for me. If I was HIS child, accepted by him, I was more than okay. He told me many times, “Brendy, never let yourself feel inferior. You are made by God perfectly for what He has for you to do. You can do ANYTHING that is in His will for you.”
His message sank deep into my heart. Gradually I began to understand that, far beyond what even Dad could do to give me acceptance, was what Jesus could do for me. I was accepted 100% by a perfectly holy God, not because of a carefully curated image or how pleasing I am, but because I am “accepted in the Beloved.” Jesus is the Beloved. We are accepted, not because of what we do or don't do, not because of how we succeed, not if we're good. We are accepted, not because of who we are but because of who Jesus is. If you feel invisible and rejected, it may be because you never really embraced the truth about yourself – you are accepted by God and have His full, unconditional love. It doesn’t depend on what others think about you. It is because of what Jesus has done for you. When you receive Him as your Savior and King, you are 100% accepted by God. When you know your incredible Father sees you with infinite value and capacity, when you know He is proud of you and claims you as His own, the opinions of others shrink. You can live out your inheritance as God’s dearly loved child.
My greatest inheritance from my father by far is his name. I am so proud to be known as his daughter that I took my maiden name “Mason” as my middle name. But that wonderful inheritance pales in comparison to my main identity – I am a child of God! What acceptance!
- When I recognize the acceptance I have through Jesus as a child of God, I am free!