What's on Your Mind?: Being a Stumbling Block

The elect have a certain propensity for placing stumbling blocks in their own paths (Ezekiel 14:1-4)  and those of fellow believers (Ezekiel 44:12; Romans 14:13; 1 Corinthians 8:9).  It is embarrassing or convicting enough for God to point out what has gotten in the way of ourselves or others, but how awful if the Lord of glory turned to me and said, "You are a stumbling block to me" (Matt 16:23).  Ouch!  Yet that is what he did to Peter in front of the others.  Here are Origen's comments on the passage.

But if Peter, at that time because of the saying, “God be propitious to you, Lord, this shall not be unto you,” (Matt. 16:22) was called a stumbling-block by Jesus, as not minding the things of God in what he said but the things of men, what is to be said about all those who profess to be made disciples of Jesus, but do not mind the things of God, and do not look to things unseen and eternal, but mind the things of man, and look to things seen and temporal, but that such still more would be stigmatized by Jesus as a stumbling-block to Him, and because stumbling-blocks to Him, as stumbling-blocks to His brethren also?  As in regard to them He says, “I was thirsty and you gave Me no drink,” so also He might say, “When I was running ye caused Me to stumble.”  Let us not therefore suppose that it is a trivial sin to mind the things of men, since we ought in everything to mind the things of God.

Commentary on the Gospel of Matthew, Book XII, cap. 23

So what's on your mind today?