“He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.”  ‭‭Isaiah‬ ‭53:3‬ ‭ESV‬‬

Being accepted by others drives most of us to a certain degree. We want to be loved and accepted. Of course, we eventually learn that it is an impossible task to be always accepted by everyone. 

The drive to be accepted can often tempt a person to compromise. The word compromise is not always evil – sometimes a good compromise between two people is exactly what needs to occur in a relationship. 

But, too often, a person compromises something of their character and identity in order to be accepted by someone else. 

For many years the (Ametican) church has been striving to be more relevant, approachable, and palatable. Previous generations of believers had focused more on holiness and being set apart- so much so that it created a cavernous gap between the church and the world. In response to that concern, the next generation reached out and became what we refer to as “seeker sensitive,” which in itself is a good goal. 

Today, however, that sensitivity is crossing over into compromise. What began as a wonderful, Spirit-led move to reach out to the unsaved has now become a blurring of lines, a tolerance of sin among believers, and a politically correct perversion of faith. 

We should not forget that, to be a follower of Christ is to identity with His sufferings as well as His glory. We cannot embrace only His grace and forget (or tinker with) His truth. 

Yes, Jesus was loved by sinners; but not at the cost of compromise. 

If Jesus Himself was despised and rejected, shouldn’t I expect that to be sometimes true of my own life of faith?

To be honest, I’m a little weary of hipster Christianity. I think it was and is superficial. What I desire is an authentic faith that expresses itself in love. 

My faith in Jesus Christ will not always be popular. In fact, it will become increasingly rejected in the last days. 

I am not driven to be accepted by people; I am driven by the acceptance I have already received by one Man who set me free. 

I love Him because He first loved me.