OFFENCES

"Woe to the world because of offenses! For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes!" - Matt 18:7


An offence occurs when there is a violation of the law or certain predefined stance on issues. One can be said to be an offender when a person disrupts or distorts a given principle or views of an organisation or person.


Many things abound that surely offend our views or ways of life, we are constantly offended by the adverse moral view of the western world, we are often offended by religious view that doesn't align with ours...issues, philosophy and orientation are sources of offenses in our time.


We cannot avoid being offended by these things yet we must also beware of becoming an offender in like manner. The clamour for 'live and let live' will not even take offenses away, sometimes it is difficult to be quiet when something violates our religious stance, to be quiet will be to consenting, while if one is not careful, such a one becomes an offender.


The man who has never been offended is yet to be born, the man who has never offended will never exist - but in what context did Jesus make this statement, what message is he trying to pass across to us at this time.


BLESSED IS HE WHO IS NOT OFFENDED
"And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me." - Matt 11:6


To be prone to offence is to be culpable of same, though the world is bent on provoking us and sometimes we are by ourselves provoked to offences even over flimsy things, we must stay unoffended.


John the Baptist was almost taking  offence unto the activities of Jesus, maybe because of the nature Jesus' ministry was taking or some controversial matter, so he decided to enquire if this Jesus is the same to expect or this one is just a fluke.


The one who is not easily taken to offense is indeed the one who is easily blessed. The reason why we are often offended most times is because of our lack of understanding of the true nature of things.


"Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times a day, and seven times in a day returns to you, saying, 'I repent,' you shall forgive him." - Luke 17:3-4


Take heed unto yourself, that offender wants to land you in hell, take heed unto yourself the offenses are temptations to cause you to lose your salvation and rob you of a vital testimony.


If the offender sees who is bent on forgiveness, the offender will be frustrated. A forgiving heart will always receive forgiveness from God.


If we don't learn to forgive offenses, the world indeed will be full of more offenders. The devil uses offenders to provoke us into controversy and sin and we must not fall into the trap.


LOSS TO THE OFFENDED
"So they were offended at Him. But Jesus said to them, 'A prophet is not without honour except in his own country and in his own house.' Now He did not do many mighty works because of their unbelief." - Matt 13:57-58


You will miss lots of benefits if you are easily given to offenses, you will fall into many errors if you don't have enough shock absorbers to the offenses around.


Doubts and cynicism are things that easily cause the believer to be offended, the church is largely divided because we have mostly taken offense of one another and this has made the devil gain a foothold.


An offence emanates from an unregenerated man, we take offence because one church is pulling crowd, we take offence because someone is preferred than us, we give into offenses out of the old nature.


"Give no offense, either to the Jews or to the Greeks or to the church of God." - 1Cor 10:32


Offenses only cause division and nothing significant is achieved through division.


WOE TO THE OFFENDER
" Do not destroy the work of God for the sake of food. All things indeed are pure, but it is evil for the man who eats with offense." - Rom 14:20


It is possible that some of the things you do are not sin in itself, such as what you eat and how you dress, but if your motive of indulging in such acts are basically for offenses and controversy, then it is wrong.


Sometimes when our liberty causes the offending of another, we may not have walked in love. It is dangerous for us not to take heed of the consequences of our actions as regards our community. People are prone to be misinterpreted and misrepresented in many ways.


It's your life, we know. It is your clothes, we know, but if the babes misunderstand your actions, it will become counterproductive to the kingdom we all are thriving for.


"We then who are strong ought to bear with the scruples of the weak, and not to please ourselves." - Rom 15:1


Dear friend, this kingdom race is beyond just you, you cannot just be ignorant of the fact that some people's faith and standing is tied to your walk. Don't take liberty as a yard stick for leading people to hell. They don't understand why you do so, must they then go to hell on the account of your liberty?


In Apostle Paul's time, circumcision and meat to idols were the contentions then, but Paul admonished the church as it is now that we must be able to sacrifice to the standing of our brethren. Doing what you do doesn't make you a sinner or wearing what you wear, but how do you become innocent after it must have led that brother to hell?


Jesus said 'woe' to him through whom offenses come, this should make us take heed unto ourselves...don't exercise liberty to bind people in the yoke of sin.


CONCLUSION: We must realise the blessing of not been offended and the loss of being offended, yet we must be careful not to be that person through whom offences come.


Take heed and God bless you
Akinsuroju Femi