A Wounded Spirit is a sermon teaching us that there is a difference between offended, assaulted, and wounded and how to recover from each of these. We live in a time when many people feel offended, assaulted, and wounded. Human beings are human beings — they have not evolved and are not highly evolved animals. The Bible does not teach that one human is superior to another. We need to treat our fellow human beings as they are because each one is a unique creation of God, in the image of God Himself.

The Problem

The word of God teaches us there is a difference between offended, assaulted, and offended. When we are offended, we perceive that our rights have been violated. To be insulted means that our dignity and pride has been hurt. If we respect each other it would make a big difference in our world. To be wounded means we have been genuinely, truly harmed, and or placed in danger.

A talebearer is a backbiter, slanderer or gossip. The backbiter will talk kindly to your face but will talk badly about you behind your back. The slanderer is one that tells things about you that are not true and insulting things that are not true. The gossip is someone spreading things that could be true or not true but we shouldn’t interfere, it’s none of our business. The words of the talebearer’s words injure the innermost parts of a person, even to the spirit. Oftentimes with our words, we can wound somebody, assault somebody, or offend somebody.

It is also common to offend someone unintentionally. If you don’t know you are offending someone there’s not much you can do about it. Sometimes it’s how we say it. We should be careful of what or how we say it. If you know you offended someone, apologize to them. They may not accept your apology, but we are not responsible for other people’s actions. We are responsible for our own actions. If you ask for forgiveness then you have done what you should do. If you are slothful, meaning careless or lazy about what you do, you are a waster. You waste time which is your life. You might waste the opportunity to minister to others.

Look to the Lord

We need to trust and put our faith in the Lord, our Savior. We need to run to the Lord who is a strong tower for safety. God is so gracious that He will answer prayers, even for unbelievers, thereby helping them to know that He is caring, loving, and gracious to bring them to Himself. We know this because throughout scripture it says “seek the Lord.” We must first trust the Lord to be our Savior. And then those who are saved need to trust the Lord to take care of them. When the righteous have been offended, assaulted, or wounded, run to the Lord as a tower of safety.

There would be a lot fewer people being assaulted if we put away our pride. We get insulted when someone attacks our pride. The rich man has his wealth as his tower of safety and as a high wall for his own conceit. But you must humble yourself before God can honor you. We, humans, are a proud group, we trust in our own strength, ability, and intellect far more than we trust in God. Someone who doesn’t listen to hear the complete story is haughty and it is a danger and shame for him. We need to be humble before God and submit our wisdom and pride to God.

The word of God will sustain us. We may resemble God physically, but that’s not how we are most like God. We are most like God in our spirit. The spirit of a man will sustain him when the body is ill, sick, or wounded. Your spirit can get you through things that are seemingly impossible.

But what about when our spirit is wounded? How will we move on? The wise heart will seek knowledge. The wise ear will listen for knowledge and will search for and pursue knowledge. Grace and peace come to you through the knowledge of God and Jesus Christ our Lord. We need to come to know God through Jesus Christ.

If you give someone a great gift, it gets you somewhere with them. Some people believe they can buy their way to influence or out of trouble. They believe their desires and wants are greater than those of others and that causes wounds to the spirit. Sometimes we think we can settle a difference through random chance. When someone has been hurt to the point of a wounded spirit, they put up walls of defense and put up casing around their own heart. They close off other people and it’s hard to reach in to get to that spiritual part of that person to be able to help them to come to restoration. And that is the heart of the problem.

The Cure for a Wounded Spirit

What is the cure for the problem of a wounded spirit? Sometimes those we trust, have authority over us, or who we feel safe with will persecute or hurt us. But our hearts can be strong if we have been reading, meditating, and studying the word of God. People can attack you without a cause. Do not be distracted, stand on the word of God.

The word of God can encourage us, it can renew our spiritual strength. We need a strong spirit to sustain our infirmity. We need to feed that spirit and strengthen it. We need to feed our minds on truth. We need to feed our spirit on the word of God. By doing these things you will strengthen your mind and your spirit. You can take in knowledge and take in truth and be very proud in your thinking but if you don’t exercise it and put that truth to use, which is wisdom, you’re going to become a “fathead.” You can also become spiritually fat.

As we take in the word of God we need to exercise the word of God. We should live it out and share it with others. When you know the truth and come across untruth, you will recognize it immediately. Lying is the work of Satan. We need to seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness to be right with God. Praise God daily and often to encourage your heart. It will strengthen your faith as you reflect on how God has blessed you.

The protection against getting offended is to be at peace. Be at peace in your mind, in your spirit and you won’t get so offended. People will still say and do bad things to you but you can still be at peace. You get that peace by reading, memorizing, and studying God’s word — it brings you to peace. It is a promise to all those who love the Lord and love the law and love His righteousness and love His ways. It is a promise to those who give their hearts, their minds, and the spirit, placing all in submission to God and follow His way. You don’t need to deal with being offended, God will take care of it. We need to put our faith and trust in the Lord for salvation and once saved, keep His commandments.

As we read and meditate on the word of God our hearts begin to be protected from being offended. The more time you spend with the Lord, the more time you’ll spend in His word, read, meditate, and study, the more love will grow in your heart. The love of God is going to grow in your heart and that is going to help you in getting along with other people. We grow in our desire to obey God and to do His will. There will always be people who will do you wrong and they plan on doing it deliberately and carry out their plan.

The goal of the Christian life is to grow up and be like Jesus. Think about the times when Jesus was cruelly treated, He always responded correctly. Not just at the cross but even before then. People would try to trick Him with their deceitful questions, but he always answered them with wisdom so as to leave them speechless. After that nobody asked Him any more questions. We ought to grow to be like Jesus.

Cry to the Lord

When you hurt, cry out to the Lord to help you with your trouble, to understand your situation according to His word. When you see and understand the healing the Lord can give to your wounded spirit, you’ll praise Him and praise Him before others and that will help them. You’ll encourage them and you may lead and bring them to the Lord. We are eternally secure with the Lord and no man shall pluck us out of His hand. We are in the hand of the Good Shepherd.

You can trust Him. You trusted Him to save you and keep you saved. Can you not trust Him to keep you from the offenses of this world and the wounds that are going to come and they will? Can you not trust Him from the insults that are aimed right at your heart? Trusting the Lord to be saved is the beginning.

But when you have been saved let His word become a part of you, integrating it in the most inner part of you, that is, into your spirit. And then let Him heal your spirit. And as you let God heal your spirit, you will get a great understanding of “great peace to those who love thy law and nothing shall offend thee.”

A Wounded Spirit sermon starts with verses from Proverbs 18:8-19:

⁸ The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.

⁹ He also that is slothful in his work is brother to him that is a great waster.

¹⁰ The name of the LORD is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.

¹¹ The rich man’s wealth is his strong city, and as an high wall in his own conceit.

¹² Before destruction the heart of man is haughty, and before honour is humility.

¹³ He that answereth a matter before he heareth it, it is folly and shame unto him.

¹⁴ The spirit of a man will sustain his infirmity; but a wounded spirit who can bear?

¹⁵ The heart of the prudent getteth knowledge; and the ear of the wise seeketh knowledge.

¹⁶ A man’s gift maketh room for him, and bringeth him before great men.

¹⁷ He that is first in his own cause seemeth just; but his neighbour cometh and searcheth him.

¹⁸ The lot causeth contentions to cease, and parteth between the mighty.

¹⁹ A brother offended is harder to be won than a strong city: and their contentions are like the bars of a castle.

Genesis 1:27:

²⁷ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

James 3:8-10:

⁸ But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

⁹ Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God.

¹⁰ Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be.

Psalms 119:161-176:

¹⁶¹ SCHIN. Princes have persecuted me without a cause: but my heart standeth in awe of thy word.

¹⁶² I rejoice at thy word, as one that findeth great spoil.

¹⁶³ I hate and abhor lying: but thy law do I love.

¹⁶⁴ Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgments.

¹⁶⁵ Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall offend them.

¹⁶⁶ LORD, I have hoped for thy salvation, and done thy commandments.

¹⁶⁷ My soul hath kept thy testimonies; and I love them exceedingly.

¹⁶⁸ I have kept thy precepts and thy testimonies: for all my ways are before thee.

¹⁶⁹ TAU. Let my cry come near before thee, O LORD: give me understanding according to thy word.

¹⁷⁰ Let my supplication come before thee: deliver me according to thy word.

¹⁷¹ My lips shall utter praise, when thou hast taught me thy statutes.

¹⁷² My tongue shall speak of thy word: for all thy commandments are righteousness.

¹⁷³ Let thine hand help me; for I have chosen thy precepts.

¹⁷⁴ I have longed for thy salvation, O LORD; and thy law is my delight.

¹⁷⁵ Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me.

¹⁷⁶ I have gone astray like a lost sheep; seek thy servant; for I do not forget thy commandments.

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