on being offended by preaching

on being offended by preaching


I am reading through a book on speaking the truth with boldness.
This section received double underlines, stars, and highlights, along with drawings of multiple exclamation points and amens in the margins.


In a sinful world, giving offense is one of the central tasks of preaching. When the offending word is brought to bear against those who have shown themselves to be unteachable, they are written off by that offending word. When that happens, the natural temptation is to blame the word instead of taking responsibility for the sin that brought the rebuking and satiric word.


This is why, in every controversy, godliness and wisdom are to be determined by careful appeal to the Scriptures and not to the fact of someone having taken offense. Perhaps they ought to have taken offense, and perhaps someone ought to have endeavored to give it.
Douglas Wilson