Read James 4:1 – 6
The Nature of Conflict: It’s Personal
According to Ted Kober, President of Ambassadors of Reconciliation, “Conflict may be defined as ‘a difference in opinion or purpose that frustrates someone's goals or desires.’ These differences can range from simple disagreements such as where to go to dinner to more serious controversies that lead to divorce, lawsuit, or someone leaving a profession.”
Would you believe me if I told you that often times (if not most of the time) conflict among believers and/or Churches is the main source of Spiritual Battle? Satan is never happier than when God’s beloved children are battling one another. The real question lies in what is the source of our personal conflict? Since we are children of God who are saved grace why is it that we fight so often? There is a saying, “Where two or more are gathered there will eventually be conflict.” According to author Ken Sande, “Conflict affects our marriages, families, churches, neighborhoods and workplaces. It affects Christians and non-Christians alike, bringing us low, damaging our relationships, and tarnishing our witness to the world.”[1] Is this what God wants for his people? I can boldly answer that question with an emphatic, “NO!”
“Where do quarrels and fights among you come from?” The answer, “It comes from selfish desires that are at war in us.” When we look at any unhealthy disunity or conflict in our lives it is almost always a guarantee that the root of the problem is selfish desire. We see this in the modern church. There are conflicts or fights over the style of music that is played for the time of worship, communion, baptism, theology, placement of furniture in the building, our core purpose, jealousy, bitterness, anger and they are all rooted in selfish desire. Douglas Moo writes, “The seventeenth century Jewish philosopher Spinoza observed: ‘I have often wondered that persons make boast of professing the Christian religion – namely love, joy, peace, temperance, and charity to all men – should quarrel with such rancorous animosity and display daily towards one another such bitter hatred, that this, rather than the virtues which they profess, is the readiest criteria of their faith.’ Some battles to be sure, need to be fought. But even they must be fought without sacrificing Christian principles and virtues.”[2] In the second verse James expands on the nature of these sinful desires and he uses some strong language to describe their actions like envy, kill, and covet. Now it is uncertain as to whether these people were actually killing one another out of selfish desire (which isn’t entirely improbable) but we can safely assume that he is using an analogy like Jesus as he described a person as a murderer as one who harbors hatred in his/her heart. A person who holds animosity in his heart towards another is just as guilty as the person who actually commits murder. This is probably what James is suggesting.
Would you believe me if I told you that often times (if not most of the time) conflict among believers and/or Churches is the main source of Spiritual Battle? Satan is never happier than when God’s beloved children are battling one another. The real question lies in what is the source of our personal conflict? Since we are children of God who are saved grace why is it that we fight so often? There is a saying, “Where two or more are gathered there will eventually be conflict.” According to author Ken Sande, “Conflict affects our marriages, families, churches, neighborhoods and workplaces. It affects Christians and non-Christians alike, bringing us low, damaging our relationships, and tarnishing our witness to the world.”[1] Is this what God wants for his people? I can boldly answer that question with an emphatic, “NO!”
“Where do quarrels and fights among you come from?” The answer, “It comes from selfish desires that are at war in us.” When we look at any unhealthy disunity or conflict in our lives it is almost always a guarantee that the root of the problem is selfish desire. We see this in the modern church. There are conflicts or fights over the style of music that is played for the time of worship, communion, baptism, theology, placement of furniture in the building, our core purpose, jealousy, bitterness, anger and they are all rooted in selfish desire. Douglas Moo writes, “The seventeenth century Jewish philosopher Spinoza observed: ‘I have often wondered that persons make boast of professing the Christian religion – namely love, joy, peace, temperance, and charity to all men – should quarrel with such rancorous animosity and display daily towards one another such bitter hatred, that this, rather than the virtues which they profess, is the readiest criteria of their faith.’ Some battles to be sure, need to be fought. But even they must be fought without sacrificing Christian principles and virtues.”[2] In the second verse James expands on the nature of these sinful desires and he uses some strong language to describe their actions like envy, kill, and covet. Now it is uncertain as to whether these people were actually killing one another out of selfish desire (which isn’t entirely improbable) but we can safely assume that he is using an analogy like Jesus as he described a person as a murderer as one who harbors hatred in his/her heart. A person who holds animosity in his heart towards another is just as guilty as the person who actually commits murder. This is probably what James is suggesting.
[1] Biblical
Peacemaking: Applying the Gospel to Conflicts of Daily Life (Peacemakers
Ministries 2011), www.peacemaker.net
[2] Moo, p.
181
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