To Offend or Not To Offend

Jesus did and said many things to offend the religious leaders of his day. But in Matthew 17:24-27 Jesus makes a case for him being exempt from paying the Temple Tax, but his next sentence is, "But so that we may not offend them..." pay the tax.
How are we to follow Jesus in this regard? Do we offend people by what we say and do or should we avoid offending them even when we know we are right?
The answer has to deal with the content of the offense. In the passage today, Jesus doesn't do anything on purpose to offend the religious leaders. That's a model to follow. On the other hand, Jesus taught truths that offended them and he had no problem doing so. We can follow that too.
Sometimes the truth contained in God's word offends people. But we are called to proclaim it boldly, not arrogantly. And sometimes what we do to help and bless people offends them too. The bottom line there is that we must obey God rather than men. We seek God's highest glory and if that offends some people.... oops, sorry.