Conflict Resolution
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· 14 viewsResolving conflicts within the body of Christ strengthens the unity of the fellowship and glorifies God.
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Scripture Reading
Scripture Reading
Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution.
And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables.
Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.
But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch.
These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them.
And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.
We would be wrong to assume the early church was without conflict in house. We have been speaking about the oppression the followers of Christ faced regarding preaching and hearing the Gospel of Christ. We breeze over oppression as we discuss it. Prolonged cruel and unjust treatment. Mental pressure or distress that is constantly coming your way simply because you will openly discuss your faith in Jesus Christ. That type of treatment can become debilitating for a movement.
We didn’t focus on the issue Ananias and Sapphira presented to the fellowship but sin amongst those who believed was present. Sin is the type of behavior that can debilitate a movement. Now we are going to discuss this example in how they handled an in-house issue. Keep this in mind:
Resolving conflicts within the body of Christ strengthens the unity of the fellowship and glorifies God.
We are being the most like Christ when we are forgiving and reconciling.
Let’s jump into the text.
Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution.
Hellenists were Jews who were raised or who adopted Greek custom. The root word in Hellenist is Hellas which means Greek. At this time in history there is a huge Greek influence in the area, largely due to the empire Alexander the Great built through his military conquest. He was a Greek King. His Greek culture spread through the whole area. Not only that but consider what happens when there is a war. People get dispersed.
The war in Ukraine has caused many Ukraine citizens to flee the country. If you remember a couple years ago the Syria bombings, many Syrians left and took refuge in other countries. As the people are dispersed, so is the culture.
Jumping back into the context of the sermon, you have jews who were dispersed, living amongst people who speak greek and have greek custom. Those Jews have kids, and they grow up only speaking Greek. They move and are living in Jerusalem where the Jews there speak Aramaic and in the temple they speak Hebrew. Yet the hellenist doesn’t speak any of this. The ground is set for there to be issues as there are two different cultures coming together for worship.
Church ministries should expect issues to arise so long as it is filled with people.
When there are different cultures represented in a local body, we must be intentional in ministering to each.
Not dealing with what appears to be unfair treatment, intentional or not, will blow up a church ministry.
The scripture says a complaint arose against the Hebrews. The Hellenist felt there was a lack of care or attention given to their widows. If you don’t care for some of us, you don’t care about all of us. The difference between them was not who they believed in, it was their culture.
How do the apostles, who are Hebrew, deal with this situation?
And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables.
The center piece of any and every church ministry, should be the preaching and teaching of the Word of God.
Where does our strength come from? Our joy? Our faith? Our love? Our power? Our life?
So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
The ministry of the body flows from the leadership of Christ.
Preaching cannot stop because someone feels neglected. If the preaching of the Word stops, the whole church is neglected. This is not a shepherd leaving the ninety nine to go get the one situation. In that case, the sheep wandered off and was lost. This is a member of the flock feeling neglected.
Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.
The issue of neglect is either an opportunity for division and loss, or unity and service.
With wisdom given by God, the apostles call for seven men with good reputations amongst the people, full of the Spirit and wisdom.
While serving the people, you must care about the people, you must love the people, you must speak to the people. If you are not full of the Spirit there is a good chance you are full of yourself. Philippians talks about counting others more highly than yourself in humility, but that is impossible if I’m prideful and counting myself more higher than others.
Godly wisdom is necessary when giving godly counsel. You will need to be equipped with wisdom when serving in any ministry. Wisdom is a problem solving skill. Wisdom will either help to solve the problem or prevent one from ever occurring.
How will anyone possess these qualities if they are not taught. Therefore...
But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”
The apostles handled the complaint as God would have them to do it. Let’s sum this up as we head toward the finish line.
They remained focus on the source of the answer.
They did not panic.
They trusted God. (working in the people)
Empowered the people to handle the complaint.
These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them.
And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.
Resolving conflicts within the body of Christ strengthens the unity of the fellowship and glorifies God.