John 15:18: Embracing Not Belonging with Divine Purpose

It’s a noisy world we live in today, bombarded with the sounds of constant connection. One noise you won’t hear however, is the quiet suffering that many feel inside from just feeling like they don’t belong. Nonetheless, each day passes as this silent storm rages within, hidden behind the facades of social interactions and daily routines. It’s a crippling feeling that leads to feeling isolated and alone and like there’s something wrong with us, but it’s quite the opposite. 

 Jesus said to his disciples at the last supper, “If the world hates you, realize that it hated me first” (Jn. 15:18). The point could be argued that it was to comfort his disciples and any who follow him for the opposition they will face later on. There’s another message at the most basic human level however. Jesus knows what it’s like to feel like you just don’t belong. He never spent these moments worrying in fear and doubt however. He welcomes them throughout the gospels because it’s in these moments when we feel separated from the world that it’s an opportunity to talk to God, “He would withdraw to lonely places to pray” (Lk. 5:16). 

That doesn’t make it any easier to prevent these moments from giving us feelings of doubt and depression. We need to remember when we find ourselves feeling like this however that it’s an old trick from the devil’s playbook. He takes a beautiful gift from God, sits back and watches our own logic cloud his purpose for us as it drives us into a dark place of our mind. We see this play out almost when Jesus is alone in the desert, fasting for 40 days. The devil appears to him when he’s weakest and tries to use God’s own words against him in his second temptation. I use the word ‘almost’ because Jesus doesn’t even let it go this far. He keeps his focus on God and overcomes it. 

We need to look past the doubt and feelings of isolation and realize that we truly aren’t alone when we focus on God. It’s okay to want to belong, but it’s also okay to feel like we don’t at times. It’s not that there’s something wrong with us or anything like that. It simply means that we are also called to a much higher relationship with Jesus Christ who reminds us every day in this busy, hustle-and-bustle world that if it hates you, remember it hated him first.