¹ “but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.

² At dawn he appeared again in the temple courts, where all the people gathered around him, and he sat down to teach them. ³ The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group ⁴ and said to Jesus, “Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. ⁵ In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?” ⁶ They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.

But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. ⁷ When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, “Let any one of you who is without sin be the first to throw a stone at her.” ⁸ Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.

⁹ At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. ¹⁰ Jesus straightened up and asked her, “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?”

¹¹ “No one, sir,” she said.

“Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.”

John 8: 1-11 NIV

7min read

The spirit of offence is a trap. It is where we walk around believing we are entitled to hold onto this feeling that empowers, but it is against the spirit of Christ.

Offence can be described as ‘drinking poison and expecting the other person to die.’ 

Over the past six months I have found myself feeling bitterness and resistance, where my heart was against what should have been for the Church. And over this period I have found my heart desiring to no longer serve, seeing the Church in a negative light instead of its goodness. It was this trap that was blinding my eyes to the burden I chose to carry, because I was not able to see my part in this story. And I was unable to recognise the rotting fruit that began to seep into my body. My eyes had become calloused and my heart was building a wall of protection around itself. My desire was to isolate myself because seeing the person who caused this feeling was too painful. And it was through God’s grace and mercy that I began to recognise, I had become offended.

Over these last few months, I had been deceived in believing that the people around me that I were offended by were against me, that they were not holy, but carried a different spirit to mine. I was so focused on the hurt and the pain, that any reason to go deeper into the offence was magnified. I believe my heart was already in the wrong posture, so I distanced myself as a form of protection. In the book of John 8. An adulterous woman was brought to the feet of Jesus. The Pharisee’s questioned Him, but their hearts had already decided the state of what this woman’s consequence should be. Are we like that in the body of Christ? I know I have been. My expectation of other people can be so great at times, that when I feel let down, when I feel like I was deserving of more, I see them in a light that condemns them, instead of being like Christ and showing them grace. Jesus asks the woman “Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?” “No one, sir,” she said. “Then neither do I condemn you,” Jesus declared. “Go now and leave your life of sin.” He poured out His grace to her. It’s Jesus’ grace that gives freedom. Who are we that we can look at our brothers and sisters and condemn them? And it was a reminder to me that it is only by God’s grace that I can call myself righteous. We all sin, we all full short of the goodness of God. We all struggle. We all do what is unworthy in the eyes of a Holy God. Who are we then that we can turn to our brothers and sisters in Christ and strike them down? We all need His grace.

“Some time later there was an incident involving a vineyard belonging to Naboth the Jezreelite. The vineyard was in Jezreel, close to the palace of Ahab king of Samaria. ² Ahab said to Naboth, “Let me have your vineyard to use for a vegetable garden, since it is close to my palace. In exchange I will give you a better vineyard or, if you prefer, I will pay you whatever it is worth.”

³ But Naboth replied, “The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my ancestors.”

⁴ So Ahab went home, sullen and angry because Naboth the Jezreelite had said, “I will not give you the inheritance of my ancestors.” He lay on his bed sulking and refused to eat.

⁵ His wife Jezebel came in and asked him, “Why are you so sullen? Why won’t you eat?”

⁶ He answered her, “Because I said to Naboth the Jezreelite, ‘Sell me your vineyard; or if you prefer, I will give you another vineyard in its place.’ But he said, ‘I will not give you my vineyard.’”

1 Kings 21: 1-6 NIV

And It is as though these people in my life became an idol of worship. It made me step back and question was I causing my heart to become adulterous in the way I saw these people, that I gave over my peace because of expectation that they should be without sin? Because of their position in the Church? Because of how I believe they should treat me? What a burden to carry! Jesus is the only one who is without flaw. When we expect people around us to be Christ, they will always fall short. And part of our responsibility as believers of Christ is to offer grace, and love them like we are loved. We do not have the right to judge, we serve a perfect judge who will make all things right in His time. But we are called to raise each other up with truth and grace as a body of believers. 

Over these last few weeks I believe God has stirred my heart about where I place expectation. And it began when I laid down my feelings asking Him, why do I feel this way? The expectation we carry against other people can become a burden we place for someone else to meet our needs. God is the only one who can fill that void in its entirety. He is a lover of our souls, He loves our hearts so deeply that man’s efforts can be small in comparison. And He calls us to rise up greater than our feelings and not throw our pearls to swine. And in 1 Kings, Jezebel goes with force and takes what she believes is rightfully owed. That is not the spirit of Christ. When we believe we have the right to be offended, we are stripping ourselves of the peace that God gives us, taking matters into our own hands and causing our emotions to become our god. His grace empowers us to receive His grace and it empowers us to give His grace.

I thank God that He gave me His grace during this time of confusion, walking alongside me during this time of darkness. And I thank God that He allowed me to feel this burden so I can understand what it means to find freedom from offence.

What a gracious and merciful God we serve.

Where Jesus is found, grace abounds.  

Nadia x

All for His Glory.