I hate conflict. Don’t you? I mean, conflict can rob me of sleep. It can upset my stomach. It can harm if not sever long-standing relationships. I have even seen conflict cause people to turn away from God.
As much as I hate conflict, conflict has always been with us. Always! Prior to Adam and Eve’s clash with God in the Garden of Eden, Lucifer rebelled against the Lord in, of all places, heaven. As a result, he and a third of the angels were expelled from God’s presence.
I don’t think it is by accident that the very first book of the Bible, Genesis, is replete with conflict. Of course, we are aware of the fact that Cain murdered his brother Abel. However, not everyone realizes that in the same chapter that details that killing we find another homicide. Genesis 4:23 declares, “Lamech said… hear my voice! You wives of Lamech, listen to what I say. I killed a man for wounding me, a young man for hitting me.” Later on, in Genesis we read of the world’s first war, of Sarah’s conflict with Hagar, Isaac’s conflict with Ishmael, Jacob and Esau, and Joseph’s fight with his brothers.
The rest of Scripture adds such accounts as David’s war with Saul, Jesus’ ongoing quarrel with the Pharisees, Paul and John Mark, the Jews and the Gentiles…. You get the idea.
While interpersonal conflict should not surprise us, it cannot help but disappoint us. I am thinking of two Christian brothers. They both attend the same church. They worship together, serve God together, and have known each other for many years. Yet, the truth is, they really do not like each other. I have heard them lob venomous words and make cutting accusations. I have flinched at times due to their mean-spiritedness. I have hurt due to the pain that they have inflicted upon one another. Is it right? No. Is it reality? By all means! Conflict happens.
Many things feed into interpersonal conflict. Think of the 3,500-year-old disagreement between the Arabs and the Jews. Most if not all of us have had a personality clash with someone. They simply rub us the wrong way. Then there are clashes that occur between the young and the old, the rich and the poor, the management and labor…. You get the idea.
An 80-year-old woman was arrested for shoplifting. When she went before the judge, he asked her, "What did you steal?" She replied, "A can of peaches." The judge then asked her why she had stolen the can of peaches and she replied that she was hungry. The judge then asked her how many peaches were in the can. She replied, "six." The judge then said, "I will then give you six days in jail." Before the judge could actually pronounce the punishment, the woman's husband spoke up and asked the judge if he could say something. The judge said, "What is it?" The husband said, "She also stole a can of peas." Do you think that couple had ever had conflict in their home?
I am a preacher. A lily-white preacher. Nonetheless, I have had people dislike me for no other reason than the color of my skin. While pastoring in South Dakota I encountered a number of Native Americans that had a very strong dislike for the “white man.” Then I have had people reject me because of my vocation. I remember calling on a family years ago. When the lady of the house welcomed me and my wife in the front door, her husband was making a mad dash out the back door. He didn’t like preachers.
I am also conservative, Protestant, and Christian. I drive a Volvo in a GM town, I support Israel, I hate abortion…. Any one of those things could easily separate me from someone else. The same could be said of each and every one of you. Again, many things, even things beyond our control, can feed conflict. Conflict seems to come naturally.
The Redeemed Team
As much as I hate conflict, conflict has always been with us. Always! Prior to Adam and Eve’s clash with God in the Garden of Eden, Lucifer rebelled against the Lord in, of all places, heaven. As a result, he and a third of the angels were expelled from God’s presence.
I don’t think it is by accident that the very first book of the Bible, Genesis, is replete with conflict. Of course, we are aware of the fact that Cain murdered his brother Abel. However, not everyone realizes that in the same chapter that details that killing we find another homicide. Genesis 4:23 declares, “Lamech said… hear my voice! You wives of Lamech, listen to what I say. I killed a man for wounding me, a young man for hitting me.” Later on, in Genesis we read of the world’s first war, of Sarah’s conflict with Hagar, Isaac’s conflict with Ishmael, Jacob and Esau, and Joseph’s fight with his brothers.
The rest of Scripture adds such accounts as David’s war with Saul, Jesus’ ongoing quarrel with the Pharisees, Paul and John Mark, the Jews and the Gentiles…. You get the idea.
While interpersonal conflict should not surprise us, it cannot help but disappoint us. I am thinking of two Christian brothers. They both attend the same church. They worship together, serve God together, and have known each other for many years. Yet, the truth is, they really do not like each other. I have heard them lob venomous words and make cutting accusations. I have flinched at times due to their mean-spiritedness. I have hurt due to the pain that they have inflicted upon one another. Is it right? No. Is it reality? By all means! Conflict happens.
Many things feed into interpersonal conflict. Think of the 3,500-year-old disagreement between the Arabs and the Jews. Most if not all of us have had a personality clash with someone. They simply rub us the wrong way. Then there are clashes that occur between the young and the old, the rich and the poor, the management and labor…. You get the idea.
An 80-year-old woman was arrested for shoplifting. When she went before the judge, he asked her, "What did you steal?" She replied, "A can of peaches." The judge then asked her why she had stolen the can of peaches and she replied that she was hungry. The judge then asked her how many peaches were in the can. She replied, "six." The judge then said, "I will then give you six days in jail." Before the judge could actually pronounce the punishment, the woman's husband spoke up and asked the judge if he could say something. The judge said, "What is it?" The husband said, "She also stole a can of peas." Do you think that couple had ever had conflict in their home?
I am a preacher. A lily-white preacher. Nonetheless, I have had people dislike me for no other reason than the color of my skin. While pastoring in South Dakota I encountered a number of Native Americans that had a very strong dislike for the “white man.” Then I have had people reject me because of my vocation. I remember calling on a family years ago. When the lady of the house welcomed me and my wife in the front door, her husband was making a mad dash out the back door. He didn’t like preachers.
I am also conservative, Protestant, and Christian. I drive a Volvo in a GM town, I support Israel, I hate abortion…. Any one of those things could easily separate me from someone else. The same could be said of each and every one of you. Again, many things, even things beyond our control, can feed conflict. Conflict seems to come naturally.
The Redeemed Team
