Factory Rejects

When we were much younger, my family lived in London for a short while. It was so long ago, yet I still carry many beautiful memories from that season. While we were there, my mom spent a lot of time, and money, buying us girls really pretty clothes. I think that was when I realized just how much my mom loved clothes. She hasn’t changed much. Lol.

She bought some of them from big stores at expensive prices, and she bought some really cheap. But something my sisters and I definitely noticed was that some of the cheaper clothes had their labels slit in half, or even completely cut off. Of course, we asked why. My mom told us they were from a factory rejects store. Naturally, we wanted to know more. “Why are they called factory rejects, Mommy? They look good.”

Mom patiently explained that sometimes, while the clothes were being made, a double stitch was accidentally sewn where only one was needed, or a button went missing, or anything small might have gone wrong; and because of that, big clothing lines like Marks & Spencer, Next, and BHS did not want those “substandard” items associated with their brand, so they sold them off really cheap.

I never investigated further to confirm if that was exactly true, but what I do remember is this, whether pricey or cheap factory rejects, those clothes fit us well and were very beautiful. What the manufacturers considered below standard was fully accepted by my mom and us girls. Interesting, isn’t it?

As I read my Bible, I realize I come across many human factory rejects too. The only difference is that these people, considered substandard, aren’t seen that way by their Creator but by fellow creations. Isn’t it ironic that we, who didn’t create anyone, non-manufacturers, non-inventors, feel the right to deem other people imperfect, when the One who made them calls every human being good - “very good” (Genesis 1:31)? If you don’t mind, let’s look at a few of these “factory rejects” in Scripture; you might just find someone you relate to.

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One of my favourite examples is the leper Jesus touched. The healing was so significant that all three synoptic gospel writers recorded it (Matthew 8:1–3, Mark 1:40–41, Luke 5:13). Jesus touched a leper? Impossible! Unacceptable! The leper was unclean. Banished. Should be quarantined. Not allowed in public. Should not be touched by any clean person. It wasn’t the people’s fault - the law of Moses clearly said so (Leviticus 5:1,3). Funny thing is, Jesus could have healed that man without touching him. But He touched him to make a point. Just like that leper, can we accept His unconditional love and begin to see ourselves through His perfect eyes rather than the world’s? And can we, like Him, reach out to the “substandards” around us?

Then there’s the Samaritan woman. Samaritans were simply unacceptable. A little history: they began as full Israelites but intermarried with “heathens,” and so became “less than” in the eyes of the Jews (2 Kings 17:24–29). They were settled in northern Israel, and that’s where Jesus encountered her, on His way to Galilee (John 4:1–42). Already, we see the first problem; she was Samaritan. A Jew should not be talking to a Samaritan, especially not in public (John 4:9b). The second problem? She was a woman. It must have been an issue because, in verse 27, the disciples seemed bothered by it. And the third, she was an experienced divorcee now living in adultery. What a lonely life that must have been! I once read that in those days, women usually fetched water together in groups early in the morning or in the evening. But John records that she was alone at the well. Could it be that she was rejected by her own kind too? Yet, her lifestyle didn’t push Jesus away. He offered her salvation, and she accepted it. Jesus was so excited that she believed, He literally lost His appetite (John 4:31–34). What a Saviour indeed!

Zacchaeus the publican and sinner (Luke 19:1–10); Mary Magdalene, once possessed with several demons (Luke 8:1–3); Bartimaeus, the blind man told to keep quiet (Mark 10:46–52); little children, whom Jesus insisted should come to Him (Mark 10:13–14); the lonely impotent man by Bethesda’s pool (John 5:1–16); the adulterous woman condemned to death (John 8:1–11); the Gadarene demoniac (Luke 8:26–39), and several others more, all these “societal rejects” experienced compassion and acceptance from a faultless, loving, gracious Saviour.

And Jesus didn’t just start showing grace when He began His ministry; He showed it even through His lineage (Matthew 1:1-17). Tamar, Judah’s deceptive daughter-in-law who acted shamefully just to have children (Genesis 38); Rahab, the prostitute from Jericho (Joshua 2–6); Ruth, the Moabite woman - wait! A Moabite in Jesus’ lineage? Unthinkable (Deuteronomy 23:3–6); and Bathsheba, the adulteress (2 Samuel 11). Their presence in His genealogy was intentional, God’s quiet introduction to the purpose of Christ’s mission on earth.

I don’t know how you’ve belittled yourself, or how society may have defined you; but I want to remind you that your Manufacturer made you perfect. He formed and knit you flawlessly in your mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13). He knows the number of hairs on your head (Luke 12:7) and promises to care for you until your hair turns white (Isaiah 46:4). His grace covers you.

You may feel like a factory reject to the world, but to Him, you fit perfectly in the show glass. Beside you, He writes:

SEE MY WORKMANSHIP (Ephesians 2:10)
SEE MY WONDER (Psalm 139:14)
SEE MY GLORY (2 Corinthians 3:18)
SEE MY RIGHTEOUSNESS (2 Corinthians 5:21)
SEE MY BEAUTY (Ecclesiastes 3:11)

Isn’t that exhilarating? So, when anyone tries to tell you that you’re not up to standard, lift your head and, like the once-impotent man healed in John 5:11, say boldly: “He who made me whole, He who saved me, He who created me, has called me valuable (Luke 12:7, 1 Corinthians 6:20a). I am accepted in Him (Ephesians 1:6), and that is enough for me!”

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