Today we are delighted to share what we are learning about being un-offendable.
As serious believers who truly want to be like Christ, this is a very noble attribute to aspire to.
We have all been there. Someone has said or done something that hurt us.
The sting of the offense has lingered for a while and disrupted our peace.
For some of us, offenses have plagued us and kept us hostage.
For others, we have experienced unjustifiable offenses and moved past them.
What we don’t know is how to grow in such a way that offenses have no impact on us.
The good news is we can be bold about being un-offendable.
We can shed the dead-weight of offenses and live in the peace and freedom Christ has bought us.
What The Bible Teaches About Being Un-offendable
Jesus is the greatest example for us about how to handle offenses.
We see that He endured unimaginable suffering on the cross for all of our sins.
He came to save yet His ministry was wrought with naysaying Pharisees seeking to undermine Him at every turn.
His very brothers doubted Him.
5 For not even his brothers believed in him.
John 7:5
Again, we see one of His twelve disciples betray Him.
Judas, who got access to His inner circle, who got to walk with Him and witness His greatness, sold Him out for money.
What did Jesus do? Our good Lord, washed his filthy feet!
If that isn’t a picture of being un-offendable, what is?
We also see Moses modeling a very noble and mature response to offensive gossiping in Numbers 12.
See my previous bible study post on this chapter.
Moses’ response was to pray for the healing of the one who opposed him.
This is what we should model as believers.
Offense is a call to prayer.
Examine The Root Cause of Offenses
It is undeniable that we have all suffered hurt at the hands of others.
However, it is crucial for us to see what lay beneath that hurt.
To attain the freedom that our soul needs, we must peel back those layers and reflect on self.
You see, the offender has much less to do with the hurt we hold on to than we would like to think.
Let us stop and ask ourselves if self-righteousness is fueling perceived offenses.
The thought that we would never hurt someone and thus do not deserve to be offended is a fallacy.
The truth, we know, is we all have sinned.
We all are capable of hurting. We all offend our Savior at times.
Too many times to count if we are honest. Yet, He keeps no record of our wrongs.
This is where we ask the Holy Spirit to teach us to be humble.
This is where we ask for help to forgive quickly.
Could Pride Be The Culprit?
The next possible root cause is pride. Pride, this sneaky, ugly sin, often propels us to cling to offenses.
When we let hurt in because we feel others see us a certain way, we must pray about our pride.
Again, this calls for the cleansing power of the Holy Spirit.
Are We Addicted To Being Right?
Another root we need to pluck is the need to be right.
This trips up a lot of us.
A good question to ask ourselves if our anger is fueled by righteousness or a desire to be right.
We can grow to be secure in knowing that we are right without feeling the need to prove this to anyone else.
We can learn to shut up and shine as Pastor Holly Furtick shared in one of her impactful sermons.
A great resource that will help achieve un-offendability (this word doesn’t exist but it sounds nice no?) can be found here.
It is day 10 of Pastor Gregory Dickow’s Fast From Wrong Thinking devotional.
This amazing resource is available through his website as well as on Youversion.
Here is his video commentary:
Scriptures That Teach Us To Be Un-offendable
Here are some verses to help us reflect and pull us to prayer.
Proverbs 10:12
12 Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.
Proverbs 17:19
19 Whoever loves transgression loves strife; he who makes his door high seeks destruction.
Ecclesiastes 10:4
4 If the anger of the ruler rises against you, do not leave your place, for calmnesswill lay great offenses to rest.
Matthew 13:57
57 And they took offense at him. But Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his hometown and in his own household.”
Matthew 6:15
15 but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.
Psalm 119:165
165 Great peace have those who love your law; nothing can make them stumble.
Proverbs 19:11
11 Good sense makes one slow to anger, and it is his glory to overlook an offense.
James 1:19-26
19 Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger;
20 for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.
21 Therefore put away all filthiness and rampant wickedness and receive with meekness the implanted word, which is able to save your souls.
22 But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.
23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror.
24 For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like.
25 But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing.
26 If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless.
Micah 6:8
8 He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you?
To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God.
1 Corinthians 13:5-8
5 It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.
Prayer – Make Me Un-offendable
Father, I sincerely want to be un-offendable. Thank You Lord for this new perspective. Thank You for liberty. Thank You Jesus for Your example. You endured unspeakable offense and still You said, "Forgive them Father for they know not what they do". Holy Spirit, help me to remember those very words and prompt me to pray that very prayer going forward throughout life. Help me to be so satisfied and filled up with Your love that it creates an impenetrable barrier to obvious and perceived offenses. Again, I boldly ask for the lens of Christ. Help me to see these offendable instances as perfect opportunities to inject love and to come to You in prayer. Remind me Holy Spirit of the truth that love is the principal thing. It is always required and always appropriate, especially since it is an opportunity for me to run to You. Thank You for this profound growth Lord. Make me un-offendable in Jesus's name. Amen
Song Recommendation
This song is so therapeutic.
It can help us to let go of offenses.
It speaks the truth that God will fight our battles if we would only let Him.
Listen to the lyrics and let this song wash over you today.
May it bring you joy and healing.
Special Thanks
We are super grateful to Pastor Gregory Dickow of Life Changers Intl Church for inspiring this post.
He has created a life-changing 40 day spiritual fast that has incredible impact.
We at Stating Faith highly recommend that you take this fast.
Fasts from food, as prescribed in the bible are most definitely beneficial.
By all means, do those if led to.
They have transformed the lives of thousands(perhaps millions) of people especially when there is a heavy focus on praying more.
Consider though that a fast from food isn’t likely to transform us fully if we neglect to fast from wrong-thinking.
Should the whole world take this fast, we would live to see heaven come to earth.
Final Word
As you can tell, we are very passionate about this topic.
We want to be free of offenses and we want you to be too.
We want to respond in love and never be reactive.
God wants us all to rest in His peace and live in His love.
Let us grasp this freedom His love gives.
Will you accept the challenge?
Til the next post…
Stay Blessed.