There’s a couple of ways to be offended. Well, there’s a LOT of ways to be offended, but they all fall into two categories.
You can be offended by something that is hurtful, disrespectful, or causes harm to you or someone else.
You can also be offended because you feel called out or “caught” for poor behavior or because you don’t like or prefer something or it gets in the way of you doing what you want, how you want (usually at the expense of others).
We learn through the life of Christ that God is offended by things that cause harm. We see how Christ confronts those causing harm and they often become offended because they don’t want to be called out.
Every church-going Christian has sat in a service and had their toes stepped on a bit. Sometimes we take the spiritual hint and reflect and sometimes we balk and fuss and roll our eyes. Neither reaction changes the truth of the gospel or of the spiritual direction (or correction) we were receiving. If we’re receptive to the Spirit, those moments help us grow. If pride and ego get in the way, those moments make us haughty and irritated and closed off.
There’s plenty of sermons that settle right in gently or even float right past us, maybe to float back to us later. But there’s a few: there’s a few that hit. And hit dogs holler.
The snarling teeth of the people in power who were offended by the gospel shared by Jesus and his disciples resulted ultimately in imprisonment and death for many of them. That’s how mad those hit dogs were.
Unethical leaders know that the message of Christ is a dangerous message that unites and activates a body of believers and robs them of their power over people. A lot of Christians are forgetting the power and promise of the body united and are allowing our body to stay fragmented with nit-picking one another’s scripture interpretations.
The gospel warns us against making idols and against the love of money and the pursuit of wealth. A lot of Christians have lost sight of this and find themselves cozied up to the idea of wealth and power, looking up to billionaires and politicians and placing their identity in their nation instead of their place as a child of God.
The gospel consistently calls us to care specifically for those in need, to seek justice, and to act with mercy. A lot of Christians are creating justifications and excuses for not doing these things and for treating people poorly and as less deserving of rights, resources, protections, dignity, and care.
“And the King will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’
Matthew 25:40 CSB
The gospel tells us that those who have the Holy Spirit in them will show these traits: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, self-control. A lot of Christians mock and dismiss these traits when their fellow siblings in Christ display them and choose leaders who rebuke these traits.
A lot of Christians are forgetting that the kingdom of God is an upside down one, where the last are first and the first are last. We don’t live a kingdom life stepping on other’s necks and doing what’s best for us and “ours’.
There’s no debate necessary for the gospel and no apology needed if you don’t like it.
If that makes you feel like growling, just remember: hit dogs holler.
