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Meet people in marital strife7/7/2023 In other words, if the person will not respond to biblical teaching at all, then the person is either not truly a Christian or is living in sin to the extent that he or she should be treated as an unbeliever.Īn example of this can be found in Paul's writings to the Corinthians. If the entire church cannot bring about resolution, the person is to be treated as an unbeliever. The final step is found at the end of verse 17. If a personal discussion and involving one or two others will not work, church leadership should be able to intervene in the process and bring resolution and restoration to the situation. If this is ineffective, the local church is the next step in resolving conflict among its members. This involves other witnesses without making the matter public, again allowing resolution without making the problem evident to everyone. When a personal discussion is ineffective, the Bible teaches to take one or two others to confront the person. This can solve many problems without it becoming public. The beginning step is to personally address the issue with the other person. Matthew 18:15–20 provides an outline for handling major church conflicts. This is a serious situation, and so it requires a very structured approach. In serious cases, it is safest to follow the procedure for church discipline in order to be sure that the process is transparent (Proverbs 11:14).Ĭhurch discipline is the process used for conflicts involving overt sin or critical doctrinal error. Good leaders should be willing to hear complaints and take them in a humble, considered manner (1 Peter 5:1–3). It should only be done when a person is strongly convinced that it is necessary (1 Timothy 5:19). When handled poorly, they can lead to lifelong grudges and broken churches.Īpproaching leadership over a disagreement should be done carefully and in a spirit of humility (Hebrews 13:7, 17). When handled correctly, these situations can be great opportunities for a church to grow (Acts 6:1–7). As with all other issues, church members need to pursue humility and truth, while avoiding gossip or arrogance. A Christian needs to be very, very careful not to be judgmental or critical of a fellow believer over something that's really none of their business.ĭisagreements with leadership are somewhat harder to handle. Musical styles, use of media, movies, food, sports, and so forth aren't inherently linked to any particular doctrine. The truly difficult part of this is realizing that many of the traditions and preferences a church practices fall into this category. In fact, some conflicts-if not most-have more than one guilty party (Matthew 7:1–5). Some differences are simply not worth creating a commotion over. When those disagreements are over issues of "Christian liberty," the easiest resolution is simply to agree to disagree. The Bible is quite clear that on many issues, Christians are going to disagree. The easiest church conflicts to handle are-or at least, should be-simple differences of opinion. Unless the issue is one of serious doctrinal error, or overt sin, it's better to maintain unity than to fall on one's sword over a petty issue (Psalm 133:1 Ephesians 4:1–3). Churches are made of imperfect people, so they will never be perfect. When a conflict isn't resolved exactly as a person would prefer, often the best resolution is simply to forgive and move on (Matthew 18:15–35). If the only steps Christians knew to take in handling disagreement were to be humble (James 4:10), loving, and patient (James 1:19–20), then the vast majority of conflicts would be resolved easily (Colossians 3:12–15). This means knowing more than appearances (John 7:24), more than gossip (Proverbs 16:28), and more than assumption (Proverbs 18:13). Also, it's critical that these discussions are based on truth (1 Corinthians 13:6). The goal of every discussion should be unity, not "winning" or self-advancement. Each of these requires a different approach, even though all of them need to share certain basic principles.Īny disagreement between church members needs to be grounded in love and gentleness (Ephesians 4:15). Church conflict can arise over differences of opinion, disagreement with leadership, or instances of blatant sin. How we approach disagreements between fellow church members has a lot to do with what the nature of the argument is. There are principles provided throughout Scripture that are instructive in handling church conflict. How should conflict within the church be handled?Ĭhurch conflict is inevitable, but how should we handle the conflict that occurs in the church? What does the Bible teach? The entire book of 1 Corinthians was written to address the problem of a divided church church conflict is not a new problem.
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