Betrayal and Offense

Betrayal and offense

The Bible unfortunately says in the future seven year tribulation period which I believe is very close, that betrayal and offense will be rampant around the world." And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another." Matthew 24:10.

Betrayal is one thing. Betrayal with offense is something entirely different.If we are betrayed without offense, we can just brush it off and not take it personal.If we are betrayed with offense, that is a deep seated emotion which goes through our spirit. Notice in the last part of Matthew 24:10..." And shall hate one another." Satan will set up three horrible emotions combined into one for the purpose of hurting people---(1) offense (2) betrayal (3) hatred.

There are many different situations around the world. Divorce, war, brothers, sisters, a friend or system may have offended you. It could be almost anything.

It's a shame adults are not like children. If you look at them interact, it's almost as if they are saying, "We are supposed to fight but we are also supposed to make up." With adults it almost seems like the offense of betrayal cuts so deep into the spirit that hatred often resides in people.

We have to start with ourselves. God's character in us would be the opposite of a spirit of betrayal. We are not called to offense or to betray people. We certainly should never have a spirit of hatred in our emotions. The Bible says we are to love Jesus Christ and other people.

If the person on the receiving end is offended, he or she might feel resentment and even fall into sin. A moral insult can do that to someone if both betrayal and offense is involved. People fail people and sometimes on purpose.

If you were offended through betrayal, there are no easy answers in the Bible. I will explain myself through an example in the Book of Revelation. "And they cried out with a loud voice, saying, how long, oh Lord, holy and true, doest thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the Earth?" Revelation 6:10.

Many of the newly converted Believers in Jesus Christ after the rapture of the Church will be looked upon around the world in an unfair way, and they will be betrayed through martyrdom. When they arrive in Heaven after their beheading,the martyrs will ask Jesus Christ Himself, "How long?"

This is a Jewish term so I am assuming many of the new converts will be of this origin. Even in a perfect environment (Heaven) they will still feel a sense of injustice inside of themselves and look to Jesus Christ Himself.

Do you see how deep betrayal can be through offense? There are different levels of betrayal and offense. If it cuts very deep, we will really need God's help. We will not be able to handle this on our own. Of course we are never to avenge ourselves through any kind of revenge. The Bible says..."Vengeance belongeth unto Me, I will recompense, sayeth the Lord"...Hebrews 10:30. If God sees fit to punish somebody or a group for something they did, He will do it.

As I was reading Genesis chapter 37, something fascinating was written. Not only does this account describe the way Joseph was betrayed, it also paints a symbolic story of what the person being betrayed goes through.

In verse 18 they conspired against Joseph. Jacob, who was their father showed favoritism towards Joseph. The brothers saw this as a gross injustice of unfairness.

In verse 19 they called Joseph a name (anger). Verse 20 says they originally conspired to kill him. I'm even surprised that some of the brothers wanted to go that far.

Verse 21 says Reuben objected. If it is a group betrayal usually somebody will resist. Actually he wanted to call the whole thing off. As you will soon see the brothers were divided into three groups. (1) Kill him (2) Sell him off (3) Call the whole thing off.

It is interesting to me that as a group they consented but did not agreed to selling him off to a foreigner. Even if there was some mercy in the group, for all practical purposes it did not help Joseph.The group consented to betrayal. I believe that is what the prophetic Word of God teaches. Betrayal is taking place now but not to the level that the 7 year tribulation period will produce.

It seems to me that the process of this betrayal is symbolic of how it operates. Verse 23 says they stripped him of his coat. If we are betrayed there is a stripping process of what is rightfully ours, even if we are living in the lap of luxury. If a society has been stripped, people with a trained eye will be able to see it.

Verse 24 says he was cast into a pit. Remember the pit was empty, dry and dark. If we are betrayed and stripped of what was rightfully ours and take offense to it, we will probably feel empty, dry and dark. A depression might even set in our spirit.

A society could fall into a pit because of stripping. I deal with people all of the time, and oftentimes the older people will say how simple and innocent times were when they were young. A sadness resides in their soul as they look at the world. Could it be that betrayal is in the middle of society and they cannot quite get around it? They wish they could but they cannot.

Verse 25 says the Ishmaelite came through ( foreigners). He was shortly sold to them. Isn't that what happens to us? If we are betrayed with offense, our environment may not look familiar to us. We might even feel like we are in a foreign place-surreal as it were.The same is true with a society.

Remember the brothers had to live with this lie for the rest of their lives, not to mention the guilt. They chose to work backwards with their problem rather than forward. An example of working forward with their dilemma would be going to Jacob (their father) and just saying," Dad, you are showing favoritism and that is not right."

Joseph's brothers chose to work backwards. There is always a certain element of deceit in this approach.

Joseph had to unfortunately carry this betrayal for years to come, even though he was a God fearing man. This weighed very heavy on his heart. I am sure this hurt him very much.

Jesus was betrayed and had to bear the weight of this offense by being tortured and dying on a cross for our sins, so we would not have to bear the weight of our transgressions. Thank you Jesus!

According to Matthew 24:10 the world will unfortunately be in a state of betrayal and offense with a spirit of hatred in the future seven year tribulation period. It may not start immediately but I am saddened by this, and I'm sure you are too. Betrayal and offense seem to come and go in cycles. I regretfully say the worst is yet to come.

If you are an unbeliever that has never accepted Jesus Christ into your heart as your personal Savior you might see why it is so important to respond to this decision today. He will not only come into your heart but you will be part of the rapture of the Church.We will experience the love of God for all eternity rather than betrayal and offense.

The more we take betrayal and offense personal, the more we will probably fall into sin. I cannot give you any simple answers if you are going through this because I gave an example in the book of Revelation. When the future martyred Believers in a perfect sinless environment (Heaven) are martyred they will still hold deep issue with their offense.

If our betrayal and offense cut deep into our spirit, we need to understand that God is sovereign and in perfect control. If we don't, we need to ask the Holy Spirit for illumination on this subject.

Also understand that the Bible says in John 15:14-15, " Ye are my friends, if ye do whatsoever I command you. (15) Henceforth I call you not servants; for the servant knoweth not what his lord doeth: but I have called you friends; for all things that I have heard of my Father I have made known unto you."

We can specifically talk to God about our problem/problems. He is watching over our situation and will help us through our lives with His presence. God promises to work all things out for good, for all those that love Him and are called according to His purpose. Romans 8:28. The Holy Spirit replaces the betrayal that may be lying dormant inside of us if we turn this emotion over to Jesus Christ.The Holy Spirit will give us supernatural peace to handle this problem.

God Bless You,
Bob D.