March 31 | Luke 17:1-4

Pastor Dave Mann
Mar 31, 2025
2 min read

DAILY READING

REFLECTION

Offender or Offended?

By Dave Mann

Jesus often surprises me with his take on things. In only four verses in Luke 17, he manages to astound me on both ends of a spectrum: concerning those who might offend others and those who might be offended. You might say that Jesus is an equal-opportunity shocker.

First of all, Jesus warns us to be careful about leading others astray (vv. 1-2). It’s one thing to sin

in a way that only affects us personally. It’s another matter if our waywardness draws others to join us in our sins. Jesus has a penchant for protecting children, who are not yet experienced enough to protect themselves from the foolishness of others. Jesus has strong words as a consequence for those who lure children into vice. The image of a millstone around the neck and then cast into the sea, should give each of us reason to pause and think, “How might my actions cause the youngest among us to make bad choices?”

Secondly, Jesus challenges us when we are sinned against, even if it is regularly (vv. 3-4). Many of us are quick to play the victim card when we are offended. Some of us like to draw sympathy from others. Others want to keep a running tally of how much we have been hurt so that we have “the right” to get even in the future. However, Jesus is the one who has been sinned against the most on the earth, and he challenges us to develop a lifestyle of forgiveness.

Don’t get stuck in petty and foolish arithmetic as you read these verses. We might be thinking of Jesus’ words about forgiving someone even seven times in the same day. If we find ourselves counting, “That’s one. That’s two. That’s three...”, the very act of keeping score indicates that we have not forgiven the offender even the first time! The use of the heavenly number seven is simply a way of urging us to adopt a godly lifestyle of forgiveness.

Whether we find ourselves more like the offenders (vv. 1-2) or more like the offended (vv. 3-4), none of us can find ourselves righteous and fully approved by our own merit. We all need the grace of God in Jesus to find our way through this life on earth and then be welcomed into the heavenly gates.

PRAYER

Lord God, the more I read the Scriptures and walk in your ways, the more I see that I have nothing to offer you. All I have is the awareness that I need your grace and mercy. Whether I am the offender or the offended, I need Jesus’ forgiveness. I can only stand in your presence if I am clothed in Christ, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

DAVE MANN

I am a Pastor for Internationals (retired) in the UALC community. I am married to Pam, father of four, and grandfather of six. Pam and I have lived twenty of our years in other countries including France, Cameroon, Haiti, and Morocco. In retirement, we continue to enjoy writing devotionals, learning languages, and teaching English to internationals.