As a young woman, I blamed God for almost every unfortunate turn of events in my life. This spirit of offense led me to blame him for everything from shattered athletic dreams to hard breakups.
At the time, I was largely unaware of the enemy’s schemes. I had not yet learned that Satan’s primary battle strategy is to lead us to embrace the spirit of offense, angrily blaming God for the troubles of life.
Rejecting the Spirit of Offense
Several years ago, I sensed God leading me to make a commitment to never again hold onto a spirit of offense toward him in challenging times.
Our family had just endured a long series of disappointments and painful losses. I was on the brink of holding these losses against God when I sensed him calling me to step into a new level of trust.
I made the commitment to never again blame him in anger, and my life has been filled with much more peace since that time.
One of the keys for overcoming the works of the enemy is rejecting a spirit of offense toward God.
Satan prowls around the earth like a lion looking for souls to devour. He devours not only by causing physical harm but also by attacking our minds. If he can lead us to angrily blame God for the deaths of our loved ones, the destruction of our relationships, the downfalls of our greatest dreams, and other losses in life, he wins.
The losses are his frontlines of attack. Once the enemy breaks through those frontlines, he goes for our hearts. If Satan can lead us to turn our backs on God and walk away from him, he wins the battle.
We see this strategy many times in Scripture.
Biblical Examples of the Spirit of Offense
One of the most notable examples is Job. After all his possessions were destroyed and his children were killed, Job’s wife encouraged him to “curse God and die.”
Job responded, “Shall we actually accept good from God but not accept adversity?” (Job 2:10).
Despite a long litany of losses, Job refused to turn his back on God or curse him.
Through this story, we see that the enemy’s primary tactic was not only to destroy all that was precious to Job, but to lead Job to harden his heart toward God. This is his strategy against us, too.
Another example of Satan’s use of the spirit of offense can be seen in John the Baptist.
After years of proclaiming that Jesus was the promised Messiah, John was imprisoned by Herod. During this imprisonment, he sent word to Jesus through his disciples, asking whether Jesus was the Messiah or if they should expect someone else.
Most scholars suggest that John asked this question because he was growing weary and discouraged in his circumstances.
Jesus’ Words
Jesus replied, “Go and report to John what you hear and see: those who are blind receive sight and those who limp walk, those with leprosy are cleansed, and those who are deaf hear, the dead are raised, and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is any person who does not take offense at Me” (Matthew 11:4-6).
Why would someone take offense at Jesus?
There are many possibilities. Underlying most of these reasons for offense, we find the same roots: When God’s ways don’t make sense to our finite minds, we face the temptation to become offended.
Here are some examples of questions we ask when we’re feeling tempted to blame God:
How could a good God possibly allow my loved one to die?
If God is loving, why do I have cancer?
How can I be expected to trust a God who allows his children to suffer?
If God is fair, why have I been overlooked for so long?
Why would God allow my loved one—whom he brought into my life—to betray me?
Why has God allowed me to lose everything?
Resisting the Spirit of Offense by Working Through Anger
Most of us will face similar questions if we live long enough. I’ve learned that wrestling with these questions is important.
Talking to God about our disappointments, grief, and even anger is a crucial part of healing. However, we need to be careful not to get lost in our feelings of anger. If this happens, our hearts harden, leading to offense and bitterness toward God. In the process, we cut ourselves off from our true source of all hope and healing.
Apply It to Your Life
Perhaps you’ve faced the loss of a dream.
Maybe you’ve lost a loved one, a marriage, a career, or a child.
When these times come, we face a pivotal choice: We can turn away from God with offended hearts, or we can turn toward him and let him begin the work of healing our hearts.
If you’ve turned away from God in offense today, it’s no coincidence that you’re reading these words. Jesus is pursuing you.
He is inviting you to turn to him and let him begin the work of healing your heart. I encourage you to begin this journey of healing by praying, “Lord, please forgive me for holding onto a spirit of offense toward you. I don’t understand your ways, but I want to move toward healing.”
Instead of turning away from God, continue your journey by turning toward him. This might include talking to someone who can help you navigate your feelings, reading your Bible (the Psalms are a good place to start), regularly talking to God, and finding a church where you can worship with others. Jesus often uses other people to help us find healing.
Will you follow Him today?
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Stacey Pardoe
Featured Image by Pexels from Pixabay
