Cultural Kool-Aid
A Good Offense Wins Championships: Part 2
Let’s dig a little deeper into offense. First, a quick recap of Part 1. We defined offense as a personal reaction to something perceived as insulting, disrespectful, or inappropriate. Then, we made some bad jokes about some wonderful LatinX folk (Relax. There was a point.). We looked at how some Christians have adopted the world’s language of offense to fit in - declaring outrage not from true hurt, but from a desire to be relevant and culturally aware. Oh - and marshmallows.
Offense is no joke. Except when it is. Then it is definitely offensive. Offense separates people; however, Jesus came to reconcile all things to Himself (see Colossians 1:19-20). It breaks relationships. Jesus restores relationships. His death didn’t just absorb sin—it absorbed offense: offense between God and man, and the offenses we hold against one another. This is why unforgiveness is such a big deal to God (see Matthew 6:14-15).
As mentioned, modern Christians may claim offense because it is a cultural norm. You’ll see it in churches whose social media pages read more like NPR’s homepage than that of a body of believers. Then there are the pastors who can’t help themselves by proclaiming offense, only to cause more offense in doing so. One post sets off a Rube Goldberg machine of outrage from every angle - settle down, Pastor Pete.
In our post-PC, or should I say PC-on-crack world, claims of offense are ubiquitous. The color of your skin can offend. The history of your people can offend. Even motives are parsed to offend. The thought police are ready to pounce. Think of how many terms have come to life over the past decade: trigger (warnings), doxxing, cancel culture, call-out culture, microaggressions, safe spaces, Karens, Kevins, snowflakes, tone policing, virtue signaling, gaslighting, deplatforming… It's exhausting. Honestly, after writing that list, I need a safe space.
This has created a chilling effect that permeates society. And comedy. Jerry Seinfeld, considered a “clean” comic, said he would not perform at colleges. He makes a joke about a missing sock and the college kids reach for pitchforks while the student union claims anti-sock colonialism. Offense has become so normalized, we rarely stop to figure out where it’s actually coming from.
The “world” at large is hungry for identity and fitting in seems to require having sensitive triggers. As Christians, we’re not meant to be swayed by the spirit of this age or by the tides of culture. Christ asked His Father that we be “in the world” but “not of the world” (see John 17:14-21). We are not to be part of the world’s system and go along with the culture.
That’s one side of the coin: Christians blending in - going with the cultural flash flood. Flip it, and you’ll find another, more insidious form of offense - one that doesn’t seek cultural approval, but moral superiority. Instead of going along with the crowd, they hover above it - cloaking offense in righteous indignation.
If we’re honest, the deeper issue may not be the culture out there at all. It’s the spirit that’s stirring quietly in here (me pointing at my heart… and my spleen… for some reason).
The religious spirit.
You know the one. He’s elbowing your spleen while whispering, “That’s not how you Christian.”
We’ll wrap it here, cliffhanger.
In the next part, we’ll dive into what this religious spirit is really up to.
Meanwhile, pray. Pray that you will not be “of the world.” How do we do that? How do we walk like Jesus did? He was so good at navigating offense. Also, ask God if there are relationships that He wants you to trust that He will reconcile - that He will fix. Nothing is too hard for Him. Relationships that seem unmendable are mendable. Even if it involves your cousin Kyle, that group chat, and the unfortunate meme of 2019. Is Jesus asking you to do anything to respond to His promise to reconcile that relationship?
And if the sock joke offended you, befriend flip-flops.
