I am offended by...
This and similar statements have been used
by well-meaning parents, teachers and preachers to motivate others to do what is right. They are also used by strong-willed people to compel people in their circle to walk on eggs, or to stomp
on them. One may be offended by someone who watches movies, the other may
be offended by someone who doesn’t. In all cases, the secondary problem is
the word "offended." The primary problem is the word,
"I."
Nothing in our relationships in Christ is
about lining up with someone else’s personal agenda. Yes, there are
organizational situations where certain things must be done or not done to
achieve specific goals. Even then, though, the issue is not about leadership
being offended but about an individual being disobedient or irresponsible. We
have no business posturing ourselves as the offended ones in order to compel others to obey
God's clear commands. Nor do we have any business posturing ourselves as offended by legalism as a means of luring
others to experience freedoms before their conscience is ready.
On
three occasions individuals were tripped up by Jesus because of truth. Otherwise "offence" in the New Testament primarily
warns against causing
a weaker brother to stumble in
his faith through man-made scruples or to be trapped in sin by reckless liberty. To be vulnerable to being trapped (offended) is to be weak in the faith. The offended person is
in need, not in charge.
Self denial
and self control are biblical realities. They are not what the legalist would make them to be, nor what the
freedomist would ignore as being. I would like to conclude
with a personal testimony of my own voyage between this scylla and charybdis; but
before I do, let’s take an intermission to consider some stories at The Dead Salamander coffee shop.
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