Every individual, city, and nation will have an opportunity to respond to the message of Jesus or to reject Him. The choices people make about the message of Jesus will determine their fate.

After Jesus returned to his hometown of Nazareth, His familiarity with the citizens became a stumbling block to their faith and to the city itself. The people mocked Jesus, saying He was only a carpenter, and that they knew his mother Mary and His brothers and sisters. “They were deeply offended and refused to believe in him” (Mark 6:3). The return of Jesus to his hometown was the essence of the phrase, “Familiarity breeds contempt.”

Jesus replied to His rejection by saying, “A prophet is honored everywhere except in his own hometown and among his relatives and his own family” (vs. 4). As a result of this lack of faith, few miracles could be performed in the city.

After the events of Nazareth, “Jesus went from village to village, teaching the people. And he called his twelve disciples together and began sending them out two by two, giving them authority to cast out evil spirits” (vs. 6-7).

Jesus gave His disciples instructions on how to deal with people who rejected His message, “Wherever you go,” he said, “stay in the same house until you leave town. But if any place refuses to welcome you or listen to you, shake its dust from your feet as you leave to show that you have abandoned those people to their fate” (vs. 10-11).

The words “abandoned those people to their fate” caught my attention. A fate awaits each of us, depending on whether we accept or deny Jesus. It means that on the day of judgement, unless they repent, people will face a negative fate, the result of their disbelief.

Some of you have been sent into the interior of disbelief that is occurring in your family, your neighborhood, or your city, to speak God’s truth. The most challenging places to speak the truth are where you are already known. You will come up against the same spirit that caused the people of Nazareth to be offended by the Lord. You will carry the same assignment the Lord gave to His disciples, when He gave “them authority to cast out evil spirits.”

This is not just a matter of having a different opinion or worldview. You will be dealing with evil spirits of disbelief, something the Western Church seems to shy away from. 

This rejection is not about you or your delivery. It’s about Jesus and His truth. When rejection happens, stay on point with your message and do not shy away from speaking the truth in love. The fate of individuals, cities, and nations is at stake. 

Jesus has given us authority to deal with whatever spirit comes to challenge our voice. If and when rejection occurs, we can continue to speak the truth boldly without fear, and leave the results in God’s hands.