December 06, 2012
Sharp dispute. This chapter shows how conflict in the church (and elsewhere) should be handled.
There was a sharp dispute over what should be required of the Gentile believers. One side believed one thing and the other side believed the opposite. There was going to be no way to reach an agreement between the two sides, so the church sent Paul and Barnabas along with some others to Jerusalem so the apostles and other elders could decide what was correct. After they heard all the different opinions, a decision was made and a compromise was reached. Paul and Barnabas, along with two other men the elders chose, went back to explain the decision to the people. During this whole time, even though there was a sharp dispute, God's message was still going out. On the way to and from the meeting Paul and Barnabas were still preaching and encouraging. The arbitration process wasn't easy, and there were long debates, but a decision was reached and strife was prevented. Later, Paul and Barnabas also had a strong disagreement about how to proceed. It was so serious that they separated and went their own separate ways. They didn't seek revenge on each other. They agreed to disagree and went their own ways while still spreading the message of Christ.
In early 2007, when this whole breakdown with my sister and brother-in-law and "the storm" was still in the beginning stages, my sister and brother-in-law contacted our pastors multiple times; they were ostensibly trying to seek help with solving a disagreement between leaders in the church (us) and them. The truth is they were trying to manipulate our Senior Pastor (our Pastor's own words) and threaten him by telling him this lawsuit was going to become very public and therefore damaging to the church because their leaders were involved. Their letters and phone calls to our Pastors had nothing to do with seeking help to settle a "strong dispute." It was entirely about using manipulation, threats, and scripture to get what they wanted, which was us back under their control until their deceitful plans could be fulfilled.
My sister and brother-in-law were angry, and they wanted us hurt. They wanted to embarrass us and have us removed from our leadership positions which they knew we were passionate about. Our Pastor followed biblical principle and suggested arbitration. My sister and brother-in-law said they served on a board affiliated with a nationally known religious organization, trying to "appear" as religious and affiliated with well-known leaders. (This was a very exaggerated claim.) Since my sister and brother-in-law claimed to have a relationship with the nationally known religious organization, our Pastor offered to set up an arbitration with someone of their choice from within that organization. My sister and brother-in-law refused his offer. Our Pastor then offered to speak with their pastor, and my brother-in-law told him there wasn't one since they just went to a small "home" church.
Our Pastor offered every biblical option, and my sister and brother-in-law refused them all. They didn't want a compromise. They didn't want reconciliation They wanted control. They wanted domination. They wanted revenge. They wanted our humiliation at church and in our community. They wanted the completion of their underhanded schemes. And they were determined to get it. So they rejected all of God's ways and devised and proceeded with a plan that directly violates God's own words. Dangerous. Dangerous ground.
And the things they planned for us? The humiliation, embarrassment, removal, etc.? None of it has happened. None!
Next Entry: Acts 16:1–40
Sharp dispute. This chapter shows how conflict in the church (and elsewhere) should be handled.
There was a sharp dispute over what should be required of the Gentile believers. One side believed one thing and the other side believed the opposite. There was going to be no way to reach an agreement between the two sides, so the church sent Paul and Barnabas along with some others to Jerusalem so the apostles and other elders could decide what was correct. After they heard all the different opinions, a decision was made and a compromise was reached. Paul and Barnabas, along with two other men the elders chose, went back to explain the decision to the people. During this whole time, even though there was a sharp dispute, God's message was still going out. On the way to and from the meeting Paul and Barnabas were still preaching and encouraging. The arbitration process wasn't easy, and there were long debates, but a decision was reached and strife was prevented. Later, Paul and Barnabas also had a strong disagreement about how to proceed. It was so serious that they separated and went their own separate ways. They didn't seek revenge on each other. They agreed to disagree and went their own ways while still spreading the message of Christ.
In early 2007, when this whole breakdown with my sister and brother-in-law and "the storm" was still in the beginning stages, my sister and brother-in-law contacted our pastors multiple times; they were ostensibly trying to seek help with solving a disagreement between leaders in the church (us) and them. The truth is they were trying to manipulate our Senior Pastor (our Pastor's own words) and threaten him by telling him this lawsuit was going to become very public and therefore damaging to the church because their leaders were involved. Their letters and phone calls to our Pastors had nothing to do with seeking help to settle a "strong dispute." It was entirely about using manipulation, threats, and scripture to get what they wanted, which was us back under their control until their deceitful plans could be fulfilled.
My sister and brother-in-law were angry, and they wanted us hurt. They wanted to embarrass us and have us removed from our leadership positions which they knew we were passionate about. Our Pastor followed biblical principle and suggested arbitration. My sister and brother-in-law said they served on a board affiliated with a nationally known religious organization, trying to "appear" as religious and affiliated with well-known leaders. (This was a very exaggerated claim.) Since my sister and brother-in-law claimed to have a relationship with the nationally known religious organization, our Pastor offered to set up an arbitration with someone of their choice from within that organization. My sister and brother-in-law refused his offer. Our Pastor then offered to speak with their pastor, and my brother-in-law told him there wasn't one since they just went to a small "home" church.
Our Pastor offered every biblical option, and my sister and brother-in-law refused them all. They didn't want a compromise. They didn't want reconciliation They wanted control. They wanted domination. They wanted revenge. They wanted our humiliation at church and in our community. They wanted the completion of their underhanded schemes. And they were determined to get it. So they rejected all of God's ways and devised and proceeded with a plan that directly violates God's own words. Dangerous. Dangerous ground.
And the things they planned for us? The humiliation, embarrassment, removal, etc.? None of it has happened. None!
Next Entry: Acts 16:1–40
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