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4 Key Questions to Ask Before Helping Others Resolve Conflict

He who passes by and meddles in a quarrel not his own is like one who takes a dog by the ears. (Proverbs 26:17) Though helping to resolve conflict between fellow believers is an act of love, meddling in disputes is not. Inserting yourself into a conflict that isn’t yours is about as helpful as grabbing a pit bull by the ears. It will not...

The Causes of Conflict

“Stop contention before a quarrel starts.” (Proverbs 17:14) The best way to treat divisions is to avoid them. So to maintain peace we must identify and guard against the external and internal causes of conflict. The chief external threat to unity is God’s chief enemy, Satan. “He seeks to keep his own kingdom free from divisions but seeks nothing more than to cause divisions in the...

Humility

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. (Philippians 2:5–7) Pride is the main source of conflict, which makes humility essential for unity. Only humility...

Called to Something Better

You are jealous of one another and quarrel with each other. Doesn’t that prove you are controlled by your sinful nature? Aren’t you living like people of the world? (1 Corinthians 3:3, NLT) Followers of Jesus Christ are not to live like people of the world. We are not to live in envy, strife, and division. These vices belong to worldly people, not to those...

Pursue Peace

Let us pursue the things which make for peace and the things by which one may edify another. (Romans 14:19) Peace doesn’t happen by accident. We must pursue the things that make for peace. Human beings naturally quarrel and manipulate to get what they want. However, it takes effort to resist our impulses, rest in the gospel of peace, and pursue the things that produce...