Would you give up your livelihood for the ministry of salvation and healing to flourish in your community? Love will often define the answer. In Matthew chapter 8 it is written by THE SPIRIT:
33 Then those who kept them fled; and they went away into the city and told everything, including what had happened to the demon-possessed men.
34 And behold, the whole city came out to meet Jesus. And when they saw Him, they begged Him to depart from their region.
In the early 1900’s some of the great evangelists in England would come to the village and minister salvation to the people living in the area. Shortly thereafter the local pub would close down due to a lack of business. The above passage describes a similar situation where those in the local swine business wanted nothing to do with the ministry of Jesus Christ. They begged Him to leave their midst. We would normally assume that Jesus’ ministry would be embraced by those He would come in contact with but they feared the unknown and rejected Love.
The Pharisees were no different. They were well-entrenched in their customs and wanted nothing to change. They were unable to recognize the Son of GOD when He stood before them.
We must not expect everyone to initially embrace our calling and ministry. There will be those who are drawn by the Holy Spirit to us and there will be those who are drawn away by their own lusts and fears. Don’t take it personal.