The Danger of Offenses!

“…Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them….”Psalm 119:165

I believe that many people would agree that the “emotional sins” (like, anger, bitterness, unforgiveness, jealousy, etc) are the toughest to overcome in our quest to mature as Christian people. The interesting thing about most of the ecumenically ascribed “emotional sins” is the fact that they are not issues in our Christian development without something or someone else bringing them to us. In other words, “anger” is usually the result of being offended by something or someone, “bitterness” is harboring some sort of personal offense and unforgiveness is the essential nature of them all.

The problem in our Christian development is NOT that we don’t know what we should do in these instances, but HOW to do them from a practical perspective. Simply put, we don’t apply the Power of God in our lives enough to allow us to OVERCOME OFFENSES! How many times have you and I been offended by our employers, employees, siblings, family members, friends and even fellow Christian believers? How many times have we taken these offenses to the deepest place within our hearts without ever seeking to re-visit them again? Is this the Will of God for us: to hold these things within us - in the deepest places of our human experience? Oh no! God forbid! It is the Will of God that we apply His power in our daily lives, even within the application of overcoming offenses!

There are a great many applicable passages of scripture that effectively deal with this issue, but in Psalm 119, a striking truth is to be discovered. From verse 165, there is tremendous help for us who become so discombobulated with dealing with being offended. The text first says “…Great Peace have they which love thy law….”, which lets us know that there is a requirement to having the kind of “peace” talked about here. This word “peace” is NOT the same Hebrew word, “Shalom” that we are used to hearing, but its companion “Shalam” shaw-lam (notice the “AM” ending) which means the soundness, completeness and contentment that results from a covenant relationship. In addition, this word has an aggressive “causation root” which simply means that something caused, created or carried you to this end. The fact that it was aggressive means that it was something difficult that carried you to the covenant relationship. While “loving the law” (as the verse says) is a good indication, this is NOT aggressive enough to carry us to a covenant relationship. Loving the law (which is the same as saying “loving God”) is the relationship itself! Think about this a moment.

Next, the verse says, “…nothing shall offend them….” Nothing, is the Hebrew word Mah (maw), which is an “interrogative pronoun” (only in Hebrew will you find such grammar). An interrogative pronoun is one that asks a question. It is rhetorical in essence and is said with exclamation. In other words, the text is NOT making a statement, but resoundingly exclaiming, “…What shall offend you….” We might say something like, “are you crazy! How can this offend you?” So then, I come to this final question for this lesson, what is being offended? Offend here is the Hebrew word, Mikshowl (mik-shole), which means the occasion of increased stumbling , fortress, the strengthening of protection. WOW! PLEASE get this meaning! This is NOT merely “being hurt”, but allowing the “hurt” to increase to that of a “strengthened and protected fortress.” In other words, the offense is something that we have the potential to keep for ourselves and to protect it. This means we put it somewhere guarded, off limits and where no person can get to it! However, this can not happen if we “…Love thy law….” (The Word of a relationship with God).

What do you do with your offenses? Are they used as tools to carry you to a covenant relationship? Are you keeping them under guarded protection? Are they helping you to get deeper into your relationship with God through His Word?

Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.
Romans 8:35-37

Grace & Peace,
Roc