Shabbat shalom chaverim and welcome to the day we traditionally call Shabbat Shuvah because it is the last sabbath assembly in the current season of Repentance or Teshuvah before Yom haKippurim tomorrow evening. This is the first time in a while since I have presented a message to you live but as this is a short message I thought that I should appear at least once in public again as this is such an important message. Please pray that I will be able to complete this as I am never very sure how well I am going to be one one day to the next.

The topic I feel strongly led to bring up again is familiar to most of you. You may remember a few years ago we did a course called 'Offences: The Bait of Satan'. Well, it's a subject so important in our day of whole communities taking offence at the mere mention of a single word that we dare not skirt around it.

But I don't want to talk about the woke culture we are currently having to endure but rather how that culture may have impacted us unawares. Have you noticed in the past several years how much offense has taken place in the messianic community/church and in our inter-personal relationships? Never mind politics today. And notably the worst place to find people easily offenced is in social media...including, I am ashamed to say, in Christian and Messianic social media? Offense seems to be THE hallmark of our woke age.

I don't doubt that you, like me, have experienced this first hand. I know I have offended people and been offended. And there is a good chance you have too. Unless you live like a hermit in the mountains. At this point, I think it’s an epidemic in our society and it needs to be talked about openly. As a believer, I don’t look at offense as just an emotional reaction to someone’s opinion or action. I think it goes far deeper into an issue of our flesh and the demonic realm. So I hope this short sermon will help you become more aware of your own heart and what is happening to those around you. I also hope that the simple tools I will share with you will help you dismantle a spirit offense in your life.

Let's dive into the Bible and see what offense looks and acts like, so if you want to get your scriptures out, we shall be focussing on a couple of passages in particular. We see the word 'offended' being used 25 times in the KJV and NKJV. You may think to yourself, 'Hmmm...that’s not that much...it’s not that big of a deal.' But you'd be wrong. The thing is it is a BIG deal when you read what these scriptures are actually saying.

So, let’s first look at the Hebrew word for 'offense' and for that purpose turn with me to Proverbs 18:19 if you would:

"A brother offended (pasha) is harder to win than a strong city, and contentions are like the bars of a castle" (Proverbs 18:19, NKJV).

Now for the Greek word for 'offense' which the Greek translator has used in rendering the next text from the New Testament from Aramaic. Turn with me now if you would to Matthew 24:10:

"And then many will be offended (skandalízo), will betray one another, and will hate one another" (Matthew 24:10, NKJV).

>Signs of a Spirit of Offence in Your Life or in Others

We have looked at the meaning of 'offence'. Let’s now see how offence manifests in our lives and/or in the lives of those around us.

The biggest key element that offence does to people is break up echadness, oneness or unity. It loves to conquer and divide which we clearly in the Proverbs 18:19 which I'll read in the KJV this time:

"A brother offended (pasha) is harder to be won than a strong city: and their contentions are like the bars of a castle" (Proverbs 18:19, KJV).

So what is 'contention'? Contention is to have a heated argument. The result of a heated argument is that it creates a gap or a chasm between you and that person. Think back on a time when you were last offended. What did you do? You wanted to let that person know how wrong they were and then you created distance between you and that person. You became upset, and perhaps even disgusted by what that other person said or did. You perhaps thought to yourself, 'I can’t believe they would say that...don’t they...' or 'Good grief, I can’t believe they did that...how could they...?' You know what I mean.

Even Yah'shua/Jesus said that He came not to bring shalom or peace in Matthew 10:34-35) but prophesied that the gospel would bring division. Why? Because the world is offended by it. But we are not of this world. Do you remember how He worded it in John 15:18-19?

"If the world hates you, you know that it hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world [system], the world would love its own. Yet because you are not of the world [system], therefore the world hates you" (John 15:18-19, NKJV).

But what happens when fellow brothers and sisters in Yah'shua/Jesus become offended with each other over trivial things? Or how about denominations being offended by other denominations instead of being united over the essentials of salvation? We can, and must, seek common ground and build healthy spiritual relationships on that. But to disfellowship someone over Calvinism, for example, instead of 'agreeing to disagree' as mature and wise human beings who know and love Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ), that is not only foolishness but spiritually harmful. I firmly believe this type of avoidable division in detrimental to the body of Christ because it causes unnecessary division. And the messianic community/church needs to be united when the world is united against it.

Unity is extremely important in our pursuit of Yahweh and His calling. Again, you are all familiar with Psalm 133:

"Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity! It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments; As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there Yahweh commanded the blessing, even chayim (life) le-olam-va-ed (for evermore)" (Psalm 133, KJV).

Here we see that the power of unity is likened to the anointing oil that touches not just the head (leaders/ministers in the messianic community/church) but goes all the way down to every single member of congregations. But this message is not about the anointing so I won’t go into that here. But the anointing of the Ruiach haQodesh/Holy Spirit is powerful as it protects, heals, purifies and sets us apart.

Pete Harper once said this:

"In the Elohimhead/Godhead we discover perfect and infinite unity, and what exists in the Elohimhead/Godhead Yahweh desires to see in the Messianic Commumnity/Christ’s church. It can be a fraction only, humanly tender and susceptible to wounding, but it must be the same kind. Just as Father, Son, and Ruach haQodesh/Holy Spirit honour one another, so must we. In our individual focus of worship and service toward the Elohimhead/Godhead, we are to find the sacrificial self-denying unity of the Body of Christ — and nowhere else. 'In Him we have redemption' (Eph.1:7, NKJV); in Him we are called with a 'qadosh/holy/set-apart calling' (2 Tim.1:9, NKJV)."

'I’m right and you are wrong…' How many times have we felt that way? That in itself is not offence but it’s what you do with it that can become offence. It’s what the Greek word for offence implies. Skandalon is originally referred to as the bait in a trap. When something happens or is said it is like bait for a trap. Will you engage and be trapped by offence or will you not take the bait and move on? Or for people on social media…scroll on?

I like what Perry Stone says about this word Skandalon in There’s a Crack in your Armour:

"We derive our English words 'scandal' and 'scandalise' from this word. When a trap is set for an animal, there must be some form of camouflage to hide it from the sight of the unsuspecting creature. However, the smell of the bait, like a magnet to a magnet, pulls the animal off it’s journey to investigate the bait, and suddenly the trap catches the animal."

A lot of times we don’t realise we are being set up for offence. It’s hidden behind our pride and self-righteousness. The Pharisees and Sadducees of Yah'shua's/Jesus’s day were, as you know, extremely self-righteous and they were offended by Yah'sh (Jesus) left, right and centre (Matthew 15:12). It is also said in Scripture that self-righteousness to Elohim/God is the equivalent to filthy rags (Isaiah 64:6). No, not a dirty dishcloth or something you clean the toilet with. It’s actually referring to a menstrual rag or pad! Disgusting but pretty eye-opening at the same time. Your 'blood of offence' doesn’t cleanse, only Yah'shua's/Jesus' blood of atonement does. Therefor it is to Him that you must go.

The Pharisees and Sadducees were so offended by Christ that it made them go crazy to the point they wanted Him dead. Offence breeds hatred and anger. Like pride, to which it is closelt related, offence is the spirit or muder. It want to metaphorically 'kill' someone out nof your life until they grovel before you and admit you were right. I have seen it first hand with people I know who were once Christian that leave the faith to live a lifestyle contrary to Yahweh’s way. They are so offended by our beliefs that they actually hate us and persecute us. It breaks my heart and my prayer is that these people will one day become walking testimonies like the prodigal son.

This, then, is what offense does: it divides and brings hatred:

"Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for My Name’s sake. And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another" (Matthew 24:9-10, KJV).

You all know the passage in 1 Corinthians 13 well so I won't real it out to you now. You might like to prayerfully go through it in private before Yom haKippurinm tomorrow. It describes love as:

• Patient
• Kind
• Does Not Envy
• Does Not Boast
• Is Not Proud
• Does Not Dishonour others
• It’s NOT self-seeking
• It is NOT easily angered
• It Keeps no Record of wrongs
• Does not Delight in Evil
• Rejoices in Truth
• It Always Protects
• It Always Trusts
• It Always Hopes
• It Always Perserveres

Offense cannot coexist with love. It’s absolutely impossible. If there is true godly love there then offence will not be able to ensnare you. Guaranteed. But let us not be naïve. It can still tempt or bait you to fall for it. We must be rooted and grounded in Christ, bearing the fruit of the Ruach/Spirit and remaining in Him, to avoid being offended.

To summarise the signs of a spirit of offence here is a quick list of four identifying features.

- Creating Division - Self Righteous - Hatred & Anger - Casts off Love

Now that we have looked at the 4 signs of offence, what can we do to dismantle or break its power in our lives? Is there a way for us to not walk in offense? Absolutely. We can learn to guard our hearts against offence with the help of the Ruach haQodesh (Holy Spirit), and this is how. When you feel offended, immediately forgive the Person(s) concerned. Without delay, so it can't fester.

Forgiveness is one of the powerful things we can do when offended. The majority of the time offence is just a misunderstanding or accident. Sometimes a person didn’t mean to offend you. Let it go and forgive. Now if the person or people were being intentional and this still cauises you to be offended, then still forgive them. No matter what you feel, bring it to Yah'shua (Jesus) and let go of your offence. And ask Yahweh to forgive you for being offended. Forgiving breaks the power of offence and immediately pulls up newly forming demonic roots!

Remember too that you can't be proud and forgiving at the same time. One or the other has to stand down. Remind yourself that you are not always right or perfect either and that you have probably done the same to others. You don’t have it all together and you should be patient and kind to others no matter where they are at in life. Forgiveness and humbling yourself go hand and hand.

Remember also to pray. This also ties into forgiveness. As you to talk to Yahweh ask Him to help you out in this area. Ask Him for more love and kindness. And pray for the person or group that offended you. Bless them and ask Yah'shua (Jesus) to touch them with His love and presence.

Should I talk it out with those who offend me? Yes and No. Actually I can’t tell you if this will be good for you or not. Every person is different and who you talk to really makes a difference. Only the Ruach (Spirit) can guide your heart in this one. It’s easy to go down a slippery slope sharing your offence with a friend and then they too become offended by the person who offended you! Consider that This can so quickly turn into lashon hara, gossip or slander if you're not very careful.

Sharing your offence with a friend can also sometimes just be a way for you to feel validated in your offense! So be careful. Some people are what you might call 'verbal processors' and know they have to be careful with this. Many times those who think out loud have had to repent. But at the same time, it can be fruitful to talk to someone. My advice is to do all the three things above first before talking to someone, preferably someone older or wiser. If you do, open up with something like, 'Hey so I’m offended by this I need your help. Please help me to see the bigger picture so I can walk in Elohim's (God’s) love…' That's positive.

What about the dreaded political, spiritual, rude, weird, mean, odd things people post in Facebook and other social media? Scroll on brother/sister, scroll on. Don’t engage. If things really bug you learn to set filters on your Facebook and Instagram. You can manually unfollow certain people, groups, or pages. Or you can install web browser extensions that filter out or kill your feed completely. These are also useful if you get easily distracted by social media and need to be doing something else. Overall, don’t let the enemy steal away your time and peace over a post you can be offended by. If people are posting a ton of online offence-bait, then just simply remove it.

This one is a little more tricky. You can have control how you deal with your own emotions and reactions to things. As for someone else, you can’t. But what you can do is show love, be kind, if needs be say sorry, and pray for them. But be aware you can be sweeter than honey and they might still get mean and nasty with you anyway. Even though it’s hard,try to be the bigger man or woman. Hopefully, they will realise what they're doing and be able to remove the offense.

We'll end there. I hope this message has helped you in a practical way on this last sabbath day before Yom haKippurim. We have to be so careful with our heart and words with others. Now is a golden opportunity to deal with offences so we can approach Yahweh tomorrow with a clean slate and be pleasing to Him. That is my payer in Yah'shua's (Jesus') Name, Amen.