Then said He unto the disciples, It is impossible but that offences will come, but woe unto him through whom they come. Luke 17:1
What are the offences that the Lord Jesus is talking about in our text? The Greek word that is translated ‘offences’ in our text is ‘skandala’, which has a couple of different meanings. Skandala are sticks that are used for springing a trap or for setting the bait in a trap. Skandala are also stumbling-blocks, something that people trip over. Either or both of these meanings fit the portion that the Lord Jesus is addressing.
A bakery operated by Christians in Northern Ireland was famously slapped with huge fines and other punishment for refusing to make a cake with words that promote same-sex marriage. Several similar cases have occurred in the United States and elsewhere. These cases are based on laws that were supposed to eliminate discrimination against people. Everybody thought those laws would be wonderful when they were first introduced. But now the real reason for those laws is becoming apparent; they were designed to allow the homosexual community to promote their lifestyle and to punish anyone who got in their way. In effect, they eliminate discrimination against anyone but Christians. Those laws were the skandala, the trip-sticks for a horrible trap. Some will ask how they can get away with that. The answer – our text declares – is that they won’t. Although some Christians may suffer under these perverse laws now, those who attack them, including the unfair judges who deliver their unjust verdicts, will face a dreadful judgment. God does not take lightly the persecution of His people by the wicked.
Stumbling-blocks are much more common than we realize. Anyone who does anything to hinder others from hearing the Gospel is using a skandalum, a stumbling-block. And there is a dreadful woe pronounced on them for that. Anyone who does anything to persecute a Christian or who tries to induce a Christian to sin is using a skandalum, a stumbling-block. And there is a dreadful woe pronounced on them for that. We don’t see these woes being delivered, and we can get the feeling that these people are getting away with their crimes. But God sees all, and God does not forget! Every woe will be delivered in full measure.
There is a warning here for us as Christians, too. We must never put obstacles in the way of anyone hearing the Gospel, or of any Christians hearing and heeding the Word of God. We can be guilty of using skandala too, and shame on us if we do. We can replace the reading and study of the Scriptures with activities that have little or no spiritual value. We can offer agendas that follow our own ideas without checking to see if they line up with the Word of God.
Nobody will escape the awful woes that God will deliver on those with offenses against His people, or who interferes with God’s message to saint and sinner alike. – Jim MacIntosh