Conflict is an opportunity.

How should we view church conflict and disputes?  Why are the churches fighting instead of loving one another?  What is the cause of the church's conflict and dispute?  One of the reasons is the lack of recognition of diversity.  In other words, there is a conflict and dispute in the church because we don’t accept the fact that there are people with various gifts in the church.

Often we look at marital disputes and say: 'You and I are just different, not wrong.'  But when we think about marital relationships, we are prone to say “You are wrong” instead of “You are just different” and admitting and accepting the differences between a husband and a wife.  As a result, the couple argues and fights.  Likewise, I think that all human relationships are quarreling with each other because they think “You are wrong.”  The reason for conflict, dispute and fighting in human relations in the church is because we treat each other with the thoughts and attitudes that “You are wrong” even though we are just different.  In this thought and attitude I think there is a bitter root of pride saying, “I am right.”  In other words, since we have the deep-rooted thought “I am right, you are wrong,” we criticize the other people and even slander them.  After all, the profound cause of the conflict is pride.

Apostle Paul exhorts in Romans 12:16, “Be of the same mind toward one another; do not be haughty in mind, ….”  The reason why we cannot be the same mind toward another is because of our proud heart.  In other words, we quarrel and fight because we are wise in our own estimation (v. 16).  If we look at ourselves with our own eyes and think that we are wise, we will have conflict and dispute in the church because we are looking at the other person with the attitude “I am wise and you are foolish.”  “This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, but is earthly, natural, demonic” (Jam. 3:15).  If we have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in our heart, we must not be arrogant (v. 14).  If we are arrogant, then we are lying against the truth (v. 14).  What is the wisdom in the Bible?  Look at James 3:17 – “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, reasonable, full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy.”  If we truly have the wisdom that God gives us, we must have tolerance as peacemakers in the church (v. 18).  But if we do not recognize the various gifts the Lord has given to each of us and judge and criticize the gifts given to other members on the basis of “my gifts,” there will be conflict in our church.  The church also has conflict because we are “worldly”.  In other words, there is jealousy and conflict in the church because we are “mere infants in Christ” (1 Cor. 3:1).  There is conflict and dispute in the church because we are not able to eat “solid food” but only drink “milk” (v. 2).

                Those who are worldly are not taught by the Holy Spirit (2:13).  They don’t accept the things of the Spirit of God because they are foolishness to them (v. 14).  They cannot understand the things of the Spirit because they are spiritually appraised (v. 14).  Therefore, they don’t participate in or do what the Holy Spirit does in the church.  One of the works of the Holy Spirit is to keep the unity of the church (Eph. 4:3).  Although the Bible clearly commands us to keep the unity of the Spirit, those who are worldly don’t obey this command.  They don’t obey because they are still fleshly and don’t follow the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 3:3).  Like the saints in the church at Corinth who said “I am of Paul” and “I of Apollos” (1:12), those who are still fleshly in the church say ‘I am of the senior pastor,’ ‘'I am of the assistant pastor’ and so on even though they are just “Servants through whom you believed” (3:5).  I think the bigger problem is the church leaders, not the laymen.  Although we, the church leaders, are just the Lord’s servants, like Paul and Apollos, who have been entrusted with the Lord’s flocks, we tend to forget this and cause the church to be in conflict, dissension and division.  In other words, even though we are just like Paul and Apollos who plant and water (v. 6), that is, we are nothing (v. 7), we are guilty of dividing the church, the body of Christ.  We are just planting and watering.  It is only God who causes the growth (vv. 6, 7).  We are nothing.  We must not be mistaken to think that we are something.  God is everything.  But forgetting this fact, we are causing church conflict and division.  In the end, we are seeing the conflicts and divisions of the church through our church leaders who are worldly and fleshly rather than the laymen who are worldly and fleshly.

In order to prevent church conflict, we must all be “spiritual” (v. 1).  In other words, we must all grow up in Christ to do away with childish things (13:11).  We should no longer to be drinkers of milk (3:2).  We must be spiritual people who can eat “solid food” (v. 2).  We must live according to the guidance of the Holy Spirit, who searches all things, even the depths of God (2:10).  The Holy Spirit who dwells in us enables us to know the things freely given to us by God (v. 12).  We must discern the divine grace that God has given us (vv. 13, 14).  We who have known the mind of the Lord (v. 16) must love the church as Jesus loves His body, the Church.  We should love “Thy Kingdom,” “The house of Thine abode,” “The Church our blest Redeemer saved With His own precious blood” (Hymn “I Love Thy Kingdom, Lord” v. 1).  We are to humbly serve His church with the heart of Christ.  Although we may have many troubles when we humbly serve the Lord, we must handle it with the strength of our Savior).

The church is one because of Jesus.  There is unity in the church, the body of the Lord.  At the same time, there is diversity in the church.  The members who received various gifts gathered to form one body in the Lord.  Therefore, we have responsibility to keep unity in diversity.  The responsibility is that we should all share our mind.  How can we share our mind together?  There is only one way.  That is, we all embrace the mind of Jesus Christ (Phil. 2:5).  In emptying ourselves and humbling ourselves, we must recognize and acknowledge each other's gifts.  And we must strive to keep to the unity of the Holy Spirit by using the various gifts given to each other in peace and with wisdom from above.

Want to keep unity in diversity

Pastor James Kim