The spirit of offense has become very prevalent within
the body of Christ. The permeation of this spirit within the church is
responsible for the substantial amount of disunity among Christian brothers and
sisters. The spirit of offense is very strong and there are countless
things which can bring about offense. Typically offenses are brought
about by wounded persons or individuals misunderstanding the actions or words
of others.
Hurt People Hurt Others
“Hurt people hurt people”, this saying is true on
many levels. Many people experience tragic circumstances within their
lives which make it extremely difficult for them to navigate their way through
their lives normally. As a natural line of defense, people will build emotional walls to protect themselves
from further hurt or vulnerability against physical or emotional attacks.
For example, in cases where there has been some form of sexual abuse, the individual may
exhibit a rough or unfriendly demeanor. While this explanation is not for
the purpose of minimizing a person’s negative actions, it is, however, aimed at
shedding light on the possible causes of
that person’s negative actions. People naturally respond negatively
to negative situations because the mind has difficulty managing or processing
what has occurred. There is ALWAYS hurt at the root of the
behavior of a hostile or angry person. Anger is normally an immediate response to disrespect or an offense. Sometimes the pain from the offense
can prove to be more devastating than
an individual can handle. With growth and maturity, people will be
able to look beyond the exterior of an offensive person and encourage them to change
the interior.
When we encounter people who exhibit traits that may be
bothersome to us, we may find ourselves wondering why they do not seem to be aware of their issues and work to rectify
them. Many of our inadequacies are similar to a piece of lint resting
on the back of the head. Others
can see it clearly, but it is invisible to us. Even looking into a mirror,
we do not see the lint unless we get a second mirror and do a complete
inspection of the area. Unfortunately, we do not always have a second
mirror at our disposal. Some of our major issues are recognizable to
others but not to us. If we were instructed to list ten negative things about ourselves,
most of our lists would stop at number
two or three. However, another
person could quickly identify most or all of our negative traits. It
is difficult to adequately recognize all of our own positive or negative
traits. Frustration, as a result
of an offense, will cloud our judgment and prohibit us from understanding this
fact. However, when we demonstrate the same level of patience with
another individual as we would like for others to offer to us, our vision in
regards to their issues as well as our own will become clearer.
