Offending the Lord

This is Day 37 of my 40 day Lenten Blog.

It's Holy Week, the week leading up to Christ's Passion and subsequent Resurrection. I will be writing about each of the Sorrowful Mysteries each day this week. The Third Sorrowful Mystery is the Crowning with Thorns.

A while back there was a Tweet that offended many Christians on Twitter. In response to news that actor/director/producer Mel Gibson was planning a sequel to his movie The Passion of the Christ conservative national radio host Ben Shapiro tweeted out a joke that the byline of the sequel would be "He won't be crossed again."

This tweet caused an uproar across Twitter with many Christians vowing to never listen to Shapiro's show again because they were so offended by the tweet. But Ben Shapiro is a Jew and thus, presumably does not believe that Jesus is the Messiah. How could I be angry or offended by the tweet of an unbeliever when I offend the Lord in much greater ways every day.

Jesus is the King of the universe, but He allowed Himself to be ridiculed and mocked by the very people He came to save. At one point Roman soldiers dressed Him in a fine robe, like that of a king, placed a reed in His hand to act as a scepter, and pushed a crown made of thorns down upon His head.

This was all part of Christ's passion, and it was way more offensive to the majesty of the Lord than Shapiro's joke. But it wasn't just the Roman soldiers and the crowd who mocked Jesus' kingship. I do it every day. Whenever I sin against Him I make a mockery of His kingship. Whenever I seek my own will instead of His I make a mockery of His kingship. Whenever I let my pride overwhelm my humility I make a mockery of His kingship. Whenever my mind wonders during Mass or prayer I make a mockery of His kingship. Whenever I try to excuse my wickedness I make a mockery of His kingship.

All of those things that I do offend the Lord. And my offense is much greater than the offense given by Ben Shapiro, because I recognize Christ's kingship yet still offend Him. Until I can submit completely to His will and cast my crown at His feet to replace the crown of thorns I have placed upon His head, I have no right to judge those who also offend the Lord. Especially when they know not what they do.

R.C. VanLandingham is the author of the Peter Puckett series, a Christian children's fantasy that explores what it means to know and love Christ through exciting adventures. His books and blog can be found at rcvanlandingham.com.