Pride then leads to selfishness, as we become more concerned with the preservation of ourselves than with the well-being of others. This selfishness causes the offended Christian to become focused inward and we lose sight of what God is doing in and through others. We become guarded and defensive; seeking to protect our “rights”, rather than with open arms being ready to embrace others and come to their defense! This selfish pride causes us to view ourselves as victims, but just because we may have been mistreated does not mean we suddenly have the right to hold on to an offense! For as Bevere writes, “If we don’t risk being hurt, we cannot give unconditional love. Unconditional love gives others the right to hurt us.” (p. 16) The Bait of Satan exposes one of the most deceptive snares Satan uses to get believers out of the will of God--offense. This trap restrains countless Christians, severs relationships, and widens the gulfs between us. Jesus said, "It is impossible that no offenses should come" (Luke 17:1). Although you will encounter offense, you can choose how you will react. But, please let me know on which planet you are living, because let me tell you, here in this old and mean earth sadly to say exists other rules and regulations.. fair play is a foreign word here!! Right at the very beginning of the book, John teaches that the Greek word for "offend" is skandalon, which refers to the part of a trap where the bait is set. So, even just by looking at the word "offend", we can see how an offense can be a tool that Satan, our enemy, will lay in our path to catch us, or trap us. Our enemy wants the trap to remain hidden, so we will be unaware of the danger we are headed toward, and even more importantly, he wants us to remain unaware of the very fact that we have been trapped, therefore, keeping us from even attempting to free ourselves from the trap at all! How easy the hunter's job is, if the animal he has trapped does not even realize he has been trapped and does not fight or struggle to get free! Freedom in serving, but bondage in slavery"..."A slave HAS to, a servant GETS to; a slave does the minimum requirement, a servant reaches the maximum potential; a slave goes one mile, a servant goes the extra mile; a slave feels robbed, a servant gives; a slave is bound, a servant is free; a slave fights for his rights, a servant lays down his rights" (Chapter 12)

He was amazed. She had said the “sinner’s prayer,” confessed to being a Christian, and had attended church. “Why is she in hell?” he asked the Lord.The knowledge of God’s Word without love is a destructive force because it puffs us up with pride and legalism” For also by one Spirit we are all baptized into one Body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free, even all were made to drink into one Spirit. No one has said or taught this better than Bob Mumford in his book, "The Prison of Resentment"; http://lifechangers.org/teachings/the... When you’re out of the will of God, you will not be a blessing or help to [others]...even the good relationships will be strained...Offended people react to the situation and do things that appear right even though they are not inspired by God. We are not called to react but to act.” (p. 50) I’m a person who will essentially do anything God wants if it’s framed under the category of responsibility to others. I’m also a person who hates dealing with conflict. God at the time was showing me that as I take care of myself, stand up for myself and say what hurts me and what I don’t like, others are blessed.

But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His Name: Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God” (John 1:12-13 KJV). An inspirational informative book on the topics of being offended, forgiving, reconciling and living a better life. The message of this book is very much needed in the church today--where so many are still inexplicably under the prevalent current cultural impression that it is their "right" to be offended by anything and everything. And worse, aren't being properly warned on how unforgiveness poisons us--heart, mind, and body. One of the many things I liked in this book was when Bevere showed, in chapters 9 and 10, the difference between: (a) Jesus being WILLING to offend various people because He knew it would either expose a deception or lie they had believed in error, or because He was not willing to bend or avoid the truth, and (b) Jesus being UNWILLING to offend someone if it would not have served a greater purpose...even if he would have been fully justified in doing so! It showed me: There is both a time to offend and a time when it is wiser not to offend. Very little time/instruction is spent on the how-to of forgiving those who have caused us valid, inexcusable harm. Some aids for working through the process would have been more than helpful.

John Bevere speaks smooth words that men love to hear, because they cater to their fleshly works of self-willed ambition to be like God – even to the taking of His place. Let not anyone deceive you by any means. For that Day shall not come unless there first comes a falling away, and the man of sin shall be revealed, the son of perdition, Fourth, the author's theology and discernment is badly broken and in need of repair. Consider, this "gem" from the book: This is an easy-to-read book that I read as a daily devotional. It is immersed with quotes from the Bible that expand into real life stores with advice on how to lead and live a better life as a Christian believer. I think most of us tend to avoid offending people at all costs, myself included. However, sometimes the action which would be the most beneficial for everyone may very well be taken offensively. The question is, “Are we more concerned with truth and the ultimate well-being of others, or with our reputations and what people think of us?” Yet, on the flip-side, there are other times when we act out of selfish, prideful motivations and put our “rights” before the needs of others and risk offending people unnecessarily, with no higher motivation in mind aside from our own self-centeredness, thus no benefit to anybody is gained. As Bevere points out, we would do well to learn from Jesus’ example in this regard: “...He chose to use His liberty and freedom to serve...He never wanted freedom to be a license to demand our rights and cause another to be offended and stumble” (pp. 113, 116)