“The soul that spends time with God in quiet seasons builds reserves that sustain it in the storm.”
Thoughts from daily Bible reading for today – May 25, 2026
These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended. John 16:1
A wise monk told me several years ago, “Anytime you are offended, the amount of time it takes you to forgive and thank God is an indicator of how close you are to Christ.” Since that divine encounter, I have made it a goal, by the power of the Holy Spirit, to be unoffendable.
Jesus spoke these words deliberately and tenderly, not as a panicked warning but as a preparation offered in love. He knew what was coming. Betrayal, arrest, crucifixion, and then his departure to the Father. He knew that without adequate preparation, his disciples would be shattered by what lay ahead. So, he told them in advance, not to frighten them but to fortify them. Forewarned is forearmed. A soul prepared for suffering is far less likely to be undone by it. Naivety about human brokenness and the reality of spiritual opposition leaves the heart exposed. When resistance comes without warning, it can bruise what might have been strengthened. But the Lord’s intention in allowing hard circumstances is never to damage the heart. It is to sensitize it, making it more responsive to the Holy Spirit, more dependent on grace, and more rooted in love.
Prayer is the primary preparation. The soul that spends time with God in quiet seasons builds reserves that sustain it in the storm. Intimacy with Jesus is not a luxury for the spiritually ambitious. It is the essential equipment for anyone who intends to follow him seriously. Trials are part of genuine discipleship. 2 Timothy 3:12 states it plainly, “Everyone who wants to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” Not might be. Will be. Pride and ego are easily offended, while humility and selflessness are unoffendable.
Jesus was preparing his disciples to grow in grace. Until that point, he had absorbed much of the hostility directed at their movement. The disciples had felt fragments of the opposition but had been largely shielded by his presence. Now, with his imminent departure, they would need to stand on their own. Like a team that must step up when its leader moves on, the disciples were being called to a new maturity. The invitation was clear: stay close to Me, and you will not be destroyed by what comes against you. So, the honest question worth sitting with is this: are you easily offended? If so, what lies beneath? Insecurity, pride, fear, or the unexamined need for approval can all produce a heart that takes offense at small things. When the absence of a compliment stings, when a disagreement feels like a personal attack, when someone’s indifference to your faith feels like rejection, these reactions reveal something worth examining.
Mature faith does not wane in the face of disapproval. Humility does not withdraw to nurse its wounds. Instead, it sees conflict as an opportunity to respond as Jesus did, with patience, grace, and unconditional love toward the very people who are making things difficult. A person who is dead to self is genuinely hard to offend. When approval is no longer the goal, its absence loses its power. Keep your eyes fixed on the unoffendable Christ, and you will grow less offendable.
“My eyes are ever on the Lord, for only he will release my feet from the snare” (Psalm 25:15).
Prayer
Heavenly Father, mature my love for you and for others so that I am not easily offended. Make me quick to extend the grace I have so freely received. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Application
This week, when offense rises, pause before you react. Ask honestly, what is this revealing about what I am still holding onto? Then choose the response that looks most like Jesus.
Related Reading
Psalm 119:165; Matthew 11:6; John 15:18-19; 1 Peter 2:8
Worship Resource
Taya: Simply Worthy
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