Rejection

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"Can anything good come out of Nazareth?"  John 1:46 NKJV. (read John 1:19 - 51

Jesus had been walking around Bethabara, (Bethany) which was beyond the Jordan, when John the Baptist pointed out to them that Jesus was the 'Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world' John 1:29. The next day, Andrew and probably, John, followed Jesus, who turned around and asked them who they were seeking. They asked Him where He was staying and He replied, 'Come and see.' Andrew later went to tell his Brother - Simon Peter who went to meet Jesus. They were His first disciples.
The next day, Jesus wanting to go to Galilee, met Philip and asked him to follow Him too. Philip found Nathanael and excitedly told him that they had found, who the prophet's had spoken about, Jesus of Nazareth. Nathanael's reply sounds rather rude, 'Can anything good come out of Nazareth?' However, it wasn't derogatory. He knew the birthplace of the Messiah was not Nazareth but Bethlehem and he also knew the history of the place.

Nazareth had only been a village at the time with only a small population of a few hundred. Following the death of Herod the Great in 4BC, the Roman armoury had been robbed and the Roman's had retaliated by crucifying 2000 Jews to pay the price of such a revolt. Less than a decade later, when Jesus was only a boy, another Galilean instituted a tax revolt, resulting in further crucifixions. Therefore, it is not too difficult to understand Nathanael's words.

The main thing is, Jesus had been born in Bethlehem, as the prophesied Messiah but with His parents, moved to Nazareth where he trained to be a carpenter, and He continued doing this until He was ready to fulfil God's Word when He was around 30. Therefore, it was quite difficult for people who knew Him. In fact, when He visited His home town with the disciples, He was rejected by the people, who believed Him to be just the carpenter, Joseph's son. He said to His disciples, 'A prophet is not without honour except in his own country, among his own relatives, and in his own house.' Mark 6:4.

If Jesus was rejected, so will you be, especially by those who knew you before you became, 'religious'. Many fail to see that religion covers a multitude of faiths and myths, some of which are questionable. To follow Jesus, we are Christians.
However, for some, there is a price to pay. Some people may turn against you and that includes family and friends. When I became a Christian and was training with a bible college to be a minister, close family members were heard saying, 'We don't want a vicar in the family,' which was quite funny really because I didn't wish for this either. I was more led to evangelism. However, God has a way of changing things around.

It can be quite difficult at first, when people know you're a Christian. Some can make you feel like an alien from another planet. Some can be very hurtful and if you were to take a look at what is happening in Third World countries, many Christians are suffering terrible ordeals because of their faith. Some are imprisoned until they denounce the Name of Jesus. Some suffer death.

You may be suffering rejection in many ways. 'Can anything good come out of Nazareth?' Yes, His Name is Jesus and He is worth the rejection. He is worth the suffering. He is worth what you may be going through at this time. If you're a Christian, He rescued you from Death - from your sins, by dying on the cross in your place. He paid the price. And that is worth every bit of suffering.

He knows what you are going through. You may be the only Christian in your family, in your street or in your job. However, you're not alone. He is right there beside you - always.

I'd love to hear from you. Contact me at dailylifewithjesus@protonmail.com