Do Your Words Offend Others?

Matthew 15:1-20 ESV

Then Pharisees and scribes came to Jesus from Jerusalem and said, “Why do your disciples break the tradition of the elders? For they do not wash their hands when they eat.” He answered them, “And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or his mother, “What you would have gained from me is given to God,” he need not honor his father.’ So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God. You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said:

“‘This people honors me with their lips,

    but their heart is far from me;

in vain do they worship me,

    teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’”

And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?”

He answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.” And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.”

There are two sides to man-made worship of God, both of which are based in the teachings of the doctrines of human beings and not largely in the teachings of Jesus and of his New Testament apostles. One side is the one the Pharisees were on which has to do with legalistic requirements that are of human traditions and that have nothing to do with morality or telling the truth or with love or kindness, etc., but which have to do with going through the motions of religious performance via what is external, not of the heart.

On the other side are those who are claiming to be opposed to legalism but they have gone the way of libertinism, which has to do with being lax in holding on to moral principles, and which is more permissive and lenient with regard to sinful practices, especially in matters of sexual immorality, it appears. But, although they claim to not be rule followers, like the legalists, they still have rules, they just don’t call them rules, but the rules give leniency with regard to continuing to live in sin, especially without guilt.

And they have rules, too, about not doing or saying what they consider to be offensive to the people of the world, who they are trying to attract to their gatherings. And so they say things like, “Stay in your own lane,” which means “mind your own business” and “don’t get in anyone’s face,” and “don’t talk about sin and obedience, because that offends people.” And if you are one who is holding on to the truth of the gospel, they might encourage you to go someplace else where you will be a “better fit.”

So, man-made religion is not just about legalism, but it is anything that is created in the minds of human beings and that deters from the truth of the gospel as Jesus taught it and as his New Testament apostles taught it, in context. And it produces followers who are followers of man who give lip service to the Lord but whose hearts are far from God. For they are following after the teachings of human beings over and above the teachings of Christ and of his NT apostles.

So, what is happening big time in the institutional market-driven “churches” (businesses) here in America is that they are diluting and altering the character of God/Jesus Christ and the character and truth of the gospel so as not to offend the people of the world and the flesh of humans. And so their leaders are the blind leading the blind, and both are falling into a pit which is sending them to hell on the promise of heaven and eternal life. And they are trying to get us to follow them in their hypocrisy.

So, we need to know that what is most important is that we love the people of this world enough to tell them the truth of the gospel even if it offends them. Now, don’t be brash. Be kind. Be loving. But do not dilute or alter or hold back on telling people the truth, which is the whole counsel of God that Jesus and his NT apostles taught. Do not hold back out of fear of what they will think of you, or out of fear of offending them, and out of concern that they may not like you. Tell them the truth, but say it in love, but please don’t water it down out of fear of offending them.

[Matt 7:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; John 10:27-30; Acts 26:18; Rom 2:6-8; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-14; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Co 6:9-10,19-20; 1 Co 10:1-22; 2 Co 5:10,15,21; Gal 5:16-24; Gal 6:7-8; Eph 2:8-10; Eph 4:17-32; Eph 5:3-6; Col 1:21-23; Col 3:1-17; Titus 2:11-14; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6,15-17; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Pet 2:24; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13; Heb 10:23-31; Heb 12:1-2]

Do Your Words Offend Others?

Video Talk

May 6, 2023

https://youtu.be/nVN_ggffTpE

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Should I Not Preach Jesus 

An Original Work / July 4, 2013

Based off 1 Corinthians 9:16-10:13

Woe to me should I not preach Jesus.

I’m compelled to preach the full gospel.

I make myself a slave to ev’ryone

To win their hearts to Christ.

All this I do for my Lord Jesus,

And for the sake of His Name;

Do it for the sake of His gospel,

So that I, its blessings gain.

Scripture notates the sins of others;

Written down for us as examples

To keep us from setting our hearts 

On evil as did those of old.

Do not worship other gods of man;

Do not give your hearts to them;

Not partake in immorality.

Do not test your Lord and King.

So, be careful if you think you are

Standing firm in your faith in Jesus.

God has given his word to warn us, 

So through faith we will not fall.

No temptation has o’ertaken you

Except what is commonplace.

God is faithful to not let you be

Tempted past what you can bear.

He gives the way of escape. 

https://vimeo.com/116057811