A bitter root judgment

Published 5:07 pm Wednesday, July 30, 2025

This article is going to be an eye-opener for some of you. The reason I am sharing something so personal is that I want to expose one of the evil plans of our enemy that I am in the process of walking through. I have been a born-again believer for over sixty years now and fell into a trap that I think is probably one of the number one strategies of our enemy to keep us from fulfilling our best life – His plans and purposes.

I have two very dear friends that I traveled with this past spring to Europe and the UK. We have known each other for a few years, but have never spent more than a short time together. We were living in very close quarters (hotels and Airbnbs) and also driving to our different destinations in the same vehicle for a number of weeks. After just a few days, our different personalities, preferences, and ways of looking at things became not only obvious but challenging.

I allowed myself to become offended over a few of those differences, but did not recognize that I had not dealt with those situations right away or in the right way. At some point, I moved into unforgiveness, which created more tension as we were trying to move together in the assignments we felt like the Lord had directed us to do.

John Bevere wrote a book many years ago called The Bait of Satan. He likened it to a trap that was set to snare a bird. Once the bird had walked into the cage where the bait was – food that attracted the bird – the cage door shut, and it was trapped inside the cage with no way of escape. When we allow ourselves to become offended with someone or more than one person (several or a group of people), we take the bait and can move into unforgiveness.

The sobering reality is that if the offense is not dealt with, unforgiveness can turn into bitterness. Bitterness then becomes a root of bitterness, which the scripture says defiles many. “See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God, that no root of bitterness springs up to cause trouble, and by it many be defiled.” (Hebrews 12:15) A cross reference in “Deuteronomy 29:18 speaks of a root bearing poisonous and bitter fruit, turning people away from God. It signifies a potential for deep-seated resentment, unforgiveness, and anger that can negatively impact individuals and the community.” “In a biblical context, a root of bitterness represents unresolved anger, hurt, resentment, and unforgiveness that can take root in a person’s heart.” “Bitterness can cause trouble, defile others, distort perspectives, create distance from God’s grace, fuel anger, disrupt peace, and ultimately destroy both the individual’s heart and their relationships.” (Google AI)

I did not realize that was what had happened right away, but as time went on, I was having a lot of negative mind traffic. I was waking up at night with tormenting thoughts and even dreams. Several people that I confided in advised me to walk away from the relationships, but very likely because I was only sharing my perspective from a wounded, offended viewpoint. They did not know these two women that I had misrepresented because the offense turned bitter.

You may be asking, how could a person who has been a believer for this long fall into a trap like this? I can’t answer that fully, but one thing has become clear. I am quite certain the Holy Spirit was trying to make me aware of my offense, but I did not seem to have ears to hear His voice. But He is so faithful and used the Word of God (in my regular reading) to open my heart. Once I saw what had happened, I was quick to repent before the Lord. However, when other people are involved, it takes a little time to go back and take care of the “bitter root defilement.” I am in the process of asking for forgiveness to both the two friends I traveled with, as well as those who were exposed to my one-sided perspective.

It would have been easy to walk away from this experience and justify my actions based upon my personal experience of becoming offended at actions and attitudes, some of which were not what they appeared to be. We are still working through a few of the items where we will have to allow each other grace to see and do things differently. Our goal is to restore the relationship so that we can continue to work together.

Jesus, in His sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), spoke about many important life lessons, including the warning to not judge others (Matthew 7:1-5). Read it for yourself if this article is speaking to you. It helps to put things in a proper perspective. All of us have things in our own lives that need His love, mercy, and grace, and we want to give those same blessings to others.

The Apostle Paul was writing to the Roman church, and in the very first chapter, he lists over twenty different things that were ungodly actions or traits that God would have to judge if not repented of. We all were or are probably guilty of one or more of the things on this list (verses 28-32). Included in that long list is “unloving, unforgiving, and unmerciful.” He goes on in chapter two to warn those who continue to “practice” these things (they become a habit or a regular part of a person’s life) to repent. Paul’s exhortation then moves (verse 4) into the “riches of His goodness, forbearance and longsuffering” – then stating that “the goodness of God leads you to repentance.” I love it that God finds a way to warn and correct each one of us who desire to please Him and walk in His ways. I am so grateful for His correction in my life.

Psalm 141:5 TPT “When one of your godly ones corrects me or one of your faithful ones rebukes me, I will accept it like an honor I cannot refuse. It will be as healing medicine that I swallow without an offended heart. Even if they are mistaken, I will continue to pray.”

I hope that my transparency will help someone who reads this article to consider just how important it is to maintain short accounts. If you have gotten offended, deal with it right away and don’t allow it to become a snare of offense.