TAKE THAT BACK
DAY 21: It could be argued that we live in a world where we are all too easily offended. Blame it on mammas and daddies who coddled their children too much; or our litigious societies that make it profitable to be offended because you can sue for just about anything. Perhaps it is the modern psycho-analytical age that encourages us all to say how we feel and put our self-esteem above all else. We are offended by what is taught in schools and what is not. We are offended by things on the TV, in the news, and when another driver cuts in front of us in traffic. We are offended by what other people wear, what they believe, what they say and what they do. We are offended in our homes, at our offices, and in the streets. Sometimes justified, often times not, everywhere we turn there is something that we find offensive.
But who is actually to blame for the offense? For example, If I show up at a dinner party wearing jeans but my hostess is in satin and pearls and she is offended by my attire, did I actually do the action of offending.... NOPE. I just put on my comfy jeans. She had an expectation that wasn't met and that brought on her unhappiness. Now, I was definitely the object of her unhappiness, but the bottom line was that the choice to have an emotional reaction was all hers. Even if I had behaved in a way that was unacceptable, it becomes "unacceptable" only measured against a preconceived standard...hers.
So- having given this a lot of thought, you could argue, that in every case when a person is offended, they have actually caused the offense to themselves by choosing the emotion of offense, right? Try getting a cash settlement from that in court! The reactions we have to the people and situations around us are a direct result of the thoughts we are thinking. When a situation violates what we think is proper or fitting, it collides with what we think of ourselves or our place in the world. The contradiction between how we want things to be in our lives or our vision of ourselves and what actually happened creates an emotional upset: we get offended. It's our way of rejecting the challenge to our view.
Our view of ourselves and our place in the world is very important to each of us and, whether we are right or wrong, when that view is threatened we react defensively. If we can justify the inconsistency by dismissing the offender, we might be able to keep our vision in tact. This is an awesome strategy in some cases. There are real jerks in the world who collide with us from time to time. There are social and moral injustices that ought not be embraced. We should be offended and our values kept in tact. But if we discount every challenge to our view of ourselves and our place in the world as just another offense, what will we miss?
A great deal if the people in my Bible reading today are any example. Jesus returned to his hometown after some time traveling away beginning his public ministry. It seems that when all his hometown friends and neighbors heard him teaching in the synagogue they were a bit outraged. They agreed he seemed to have special wisdom and they saw his miracles but still they asked, "What makes him so great?"
They talked amongst themselves about how he was nothing but a carpenter's son. He was as ordinary as them. They knew his mom and his brothers and sisters who all still lived right there among them. And all together they came to a conclusion.
Matthew 13:57 And they were deeply offened and refused to believe in Him.
A Messiah living next door just did not fit into their view of what was proper and fitting. And so they rejected Him. Soon, many others whom Jesus would encounter would also be offended by him and would reject Him. What He had to say made every person evaluate their view of themselves as "acceptable" and their actual need- forgiveness. Most were offended by that and rejected not just the message, but Jesus, too. Some, though, heard Him and gave his words the chance to challenge their views of themselves and their place in the world. Those who gave Him a hearing are the ones who were not offended, but humbled themselves and realized they were the offenders.
God used this verse to challenge me NOT to be offended about what I will read and hear Him say to me in the coming weeks and months as I spend time everyday with the Bible. He always speaks the truth and I don't want to miss the opportunity to see myself as He sees me, correct my own ideas of what is proper and follow Him. He may also send others to challenge my views and I might want to be careful about dismissing them too quickly, too.
What have you been hearing Him say?
Day 21 of 365 day Bible Reading: Read a little or read a lot...
Genesis 42:18-38
Genesis 43
Matthew 13:47-58
Matthew 14:1-12
Psalm 18:16-36
Proverbs 4:7-10
So- having given this a lot of thought, you could argue, that in every case when a person is offended, they have actually caused the offense to themselves by choosing the emotion of offense, right? Try getting a cash settlement from that in court! The reactions we have to the people and situations around us are a direct result of the thoughts we are thinking. When a situation violates what we think is proper or fitting, it collides with what we think of ourselves or our place in the world. The contradiction between how we want things to be in our lives or our vision of ourselves and what actually happened creates an emotional upset: we get offended. It's our way of rejecting the challenge to our view.
Our view of ourselves and our place in the world is very important to each of us and, whether we are right or wrong, when that view is threatened we react defensively. If we can justify the inconsistency by dismissing the offender, we might be able to keep our vision in tact. This is an awesome strategy in some cases. There are real jerks in the world who collide with us from time to time. There are social and moral injustices that ought not be embraced. We should be offended and our values kept in tact. But if we discount every challenge to our view of ourselves and our place in the world as just another offense, what will we miss?
A great deal if the people in my Bible reading today are any example. Jesus returned to his hometown after some time traveling away beginning his public ministry. It seems that when all his hometown friends and neighbors heard him teaching in the synagogue they were a bit outraged. They agreed he seemed to have special wisdom and they saw his miracles but still they asked, "What makes him so great?"
They talked amongst themselves about how he was nothing but a carpenter's son. He was as ordinary as them. They knew his mom and his brothers and sisters who all still lived right there among them. And all together they came to a conclusion.
Matthew 13:57 And they were deeply offened and refused to believe in Him.
A Messiah living next door just did not fit into their view of what was proper and fitting. And so they rejected Him. Soon, many others whom Jesus would encounter would also be offended by him and would reject Him. What He had to say made every person evaluate their view of themselves as "acceptable" and their actual need- forgiveness. Most were offended by that and rejected not just the message, but Jesus, too. Some, though, heard Him and gave his words the chance to challenge their views of themselves and their place in the world. Those who gave Him a hearing are the ones who were not offended, but humbled themselves and realized they were the offenders.
God used this verse to challenge me NOT to be offended about what I will read and hear Him say to me in the coming weeks and months as I spend time everyday with the Bible. He always speaks the truth and I don't want to miss the opportunity to see myself as He sees me, correct my own ideas of what is proper and follow Him. He may also send others to challenge my views and I might want to be careful about dismissing them too quickly, too.
What have you been hearing Him say?
Day 21 of 365 day Bible Reading: Read a little or read a lot...
Genesis 42:18-38
Genesis 43
Matthew 13:47-58
Matthew 14:1-12
Psalm 18:16-36
Proverbs 4:7-10
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