“Jesus said to his disciples: “Things that cause people to stumble are bound to come, but woe to anyone through whom they come. It would be better for them to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around their neck than to cause one of these little ones to stumble.” (Luke 17:1-2 NIV)
When you cause someone to stumble, the consequences are yours to bare. In real life, those consequences can lead to broken relationships and harm to the other person. We have all caused people to stumble. For instance, I’m a WW member and I have 2 close girlfriends who battle the bulge with me weekly. I can cause them to stumble when I tempt them with food heavy in points total (how food is tracked in WW). I can cause them to stumble when I convince them to go for coffee instead of a badly needed walk. When our weekly weigh in comes round, the results will show on the scale. Then the disappointment sets in and now an emotional battle to get back on track begins. All because I caused them to stumble. When you cause someone to stumble, the consequences are yours to bare.
When you cause someone to stumble, the consequences are yours to bare.
Food is one thing, causing people to stumble in their walk with the Lord is a whole other ball game. I’ve caused people to stumble in their walk with Jesus, that guilt never goes away. I know Jesus forgives me, I know I’m not the savior of the world, He is. I know He has a plan, and I can’t thwart it. But I’d like to help Him, not hurt Him.
When I was a young adult, I attended a church that was having financial difficulties. I had issues with how the money was being handled, which led me to leave the church. That wasn’t how I caused people to stumble. I caused people to stumble because I bad mouthed the church when I left. I talked about what was going on to people who didn’t attend church. Because I did that, I just gave them more ammunition for not going to church. To this day, there are people I’m still trying to repair the damage I did decades ago. My heart breaks that they don’t go to church, partly because of my actions.
But God’s grace and mercy have helped me learn from my mistakes. I’ve not made that mistake again. Through that experience, God has taught me a myriad of lessons. I’ve learned grace, I’ve learned humility, I’ve learned wisdom. I’ve learned not to make the same mistake twice. I’ve made other mistakes since then, but I haven’t made that one again. When you cause someone to stumble, the consequences are yours to bare.
Question of the Day:
Have you ever caused someone to stumble?
Further Reading: Joshua 9:3-10:43 NIV, Luke 16:19-17:10 NIV, Psalm 83:1-18 NIV, Proverbs 13:4 NIV
