Don't Be Offended

In John 16:1, Jesus said He didn't want the disciples to be offended. A person could take that passage and run with it today, especially in our highly sensitive, emotional culture. The Greek word translated "offended" in this verse is just as broad as our English word. It could mean many different things, depending on the context. The way you hear it most of the time today is about someone getting their feelings hurt. A person reads something they don't like and is offended, displeased, upset, or indignant. It hurts their feelings. Jesus does care for the disciples and is helping them because they are sorrowful (John 16:6), but it's not that kind of offended that He has in mind in this context.

 Another usage is to sin or break the law, such as in Shakespeare's Henry V, "If it be a sin to covet honor, I am the most offending soul alive."  We are closer to the mark here because Jesus did not want them to sin, but in what way? There is another usage of "offend," which combines the ideas we have so far. It's when you are tripped up by something and made to fall. Someone or something might happen that causes you to stumble on your path, or someone says or does something to make you stop on the right way and take off in the wrong direction. It's something that happens to you that's bad or vexing, that, in turn, causes you to do the wrong thing. You might have a stomach ache and wonder why you are in such a bad way until you remember the offending Ghost Pepper in your burritos earlier.

 In just a few short hours from the events in John 16, Jesus would be arrested, tried, and crucified. Their Lord, their Messiah, their hope, would be dying on a cross. They would be under attack, kicked out of their synagogues, and hunted down by people thinking they were doing God's work. Men that taught the Bible now use their interpretation to justify putting Jesus to death. But Jesus is telling the disciples this would happen, hurting their feelings, making them sad, and offending their sensibilities, so they would not be offended when the troubles started.

 The preventative for the offense was having faith in Christ. Jesus was about to die, but He would rise from the dead. Jesus is faithful to His promises and will fulfill His word. Jesus came to do the will of the Father, and He will not fail. When all was at its darkest and looked like all was lost, the disciples were to trust Jesus. Believe Christ. Faith is knowledge, assent, and trust. Jesus tells them what He's going to do and what's going to happen. That's the knowledge part. They will assent to that truth when the offense comes and trust Jesus' words. When facing death, the disciples remembered what Jesus said, knew that Jesus was faithful, and rested in His promises.