“Nazareth! Can anything good come from there?” Nathaniel asked. John 1:46
You see through a filter. You see through a filter based on your upbringing, personality, and experiences you’ve had. You see everything—God, yourself, others, circumstances, etc—through this filter.
Nate was told about Jesus but he couldn’t wrap his mind around how Jesus could be cool… or relevant… let alone God. His filter wouldn’t allow it.
Everyone you encounter has their own filter. I’ve heard one or two stories in my 40 years of life about someone arguing or convincing someone else of Jesus’ significance and, like a linguistic ninja, dismantling their filter. But I’ve heard and witnessed thousands of stories of people who were loved then invited. Invited to a party. Invited on a journey. Invited into relationship. Then, somewhere along the line, with some time and proximity to Jesus and Jesus-people, the invited person realized that they too loved and believed in Jesus.
“Come and see.” No pressure. No expectation. You don’t have to change anything or clean yourself up. Just come with me and let’s be around Jesus and stuff he’s doing. Good things always happen.