The phrase “familiarity breeds contempt” seems appropriate here. Very few would accept Jesus and put their faith in Him in His home region. In fact, even His brothers had not yet put their faith in Him.
It can be terribly frustrating to try and witness to those who are closest to us. They just don’t seem to cop on sometimes. Why will others listen, but not our family?
If I can say it without sounding sacrilegious, Jesus had the same problem. His family and friends would not trust Him enough to put their faith in Him. In the same light sometimes our family doesn’t trust us enough to believe the change in our lives.
What does it take? For Jesus it took going to the cross, dying, and being raised from the dead for His family to believe.
That’s not going to happen to us. But our family needs to see that the old man is truly dead, that we have been raised to walk in a new life in Christ. When our family sees the resurrected “us” then they will know it is real, just like Jesus family knew it was real when He rose from the dead.
Don’t be discouraged when the family does not believe. Be patient and let them see the new man in Christ.
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