Fourth Discourse in Matthew: Handling Conflict

f another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one.But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector. Truly I tell you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven. ~ Matthew 18:15-18
Peace cannot be kept by force. It can only be achieved by understanding. ~ Albert Einstein
Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may fear less. ~ Marie Curie


There are many mornings these days that I wake up and lament after I've read the news. Conflict seems to be everywhere, and more often than not it becomes exacerbated by the yelling over each other and not listening to each other.

 We try to shame each other, condemn each other rather than try to understand each other.

 Not understanding breeds fear, which then breeds more misunderstanding. We get ourselves into a terrible spiral.

 We see it everywhere, don't we? Maybe we expect it in the political realm, but it happens in churches as well. I've seen churches all but torn apart by conflict that comes from not understanding each other.

 By not listening to each other.

 You can't really understand if you don't listen, can you?

 Jesus seemed to be well aware of this, providing what I think is some of his most practical wisdom in this passage. He seems to know that as his followers grow and form communities, conflict will arise. It's the human condition.

 So he gives some clear guidelines for trying to understand each other - by giving ample opportunity for listening.

 What might it look like if we followed this wisdom in all areas of our life? In conflicts that arise in our homes or in our workplaces?

 Would that help us see a way for us to try to understand each other politically? Socially? Communally?

Meditation: Spend some time in silence asking God to show you who it is you need to try to understand.

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