For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. (1 Timothy 2:5, NASB)
I remain convinced that all of us have face conflict in our relationships regardless of our spiritual maturity level. The question is not whether you have conflict, it’s how will you handle this challenge for the glory of God?
Believers come from diverse backgrounds, varied DNA, assorted denominations, and widely different life experiences. Yet we attempt to do life together! We try to not just get along with each other, but to flourish in those relationships. Maybe we’re nuts for trying this, but the concept of “one body, one faith” was God’s idea, not ours.
What about your church group or Links Fellowship? You study the Scriptures together, wanting to apply these truths to your life. But when you see things differently, you are met with the task of being peacemakers. Not just what you say but how you say it really matters. Remember that part about speaking “the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15)?
We make good progress when we recognize that reconciliation is not the same as ultimate resolution. One well-known pastor explains it this way: “Reconciliation means re-establishing the relationship. Resolution means resolving every issue.”
Resolution is not going to happen. Even best friends will never come to agreement on every issue. But we are commanded to love our neighbor as our self. We have the responsibility to build bridges, not walls.
Jesus is the great reconciler. God’s plan included Jesus coming to this earth because we were in conflict and could not get along. We needed to be reconciled to God through the blood of Jesus. In fact, we become more like Jesus when we try to be peacemakers and reconcile our relationships with others in our sphere of influence.
At a recent Links Players staff meeting, we discussed two questions: What is a Links Fellowship? Why do they exist? I came up with concise elevator speech reply—you know, the kind of answer you could give between floors while you travel together on an elevator. It is simply this: “We study the teachings of Jesus so that we can apply these truths to our life today. We do this because we believe it to be relevant and important.”
Reconciling any conflict is important. So God, our prayer today is that “we could see from the other person’s perspective and speak the truth I have learned in love and focus on reconciliation instead of trying to resolve every issue to our benefit.”
My good friend, Gary, ends every phone conversation with these words: “Randy, give someone a chance today.” We do this when we seek to be reconciled with others. Let us do just that in every situation for as much as it depends on us (Romans 12:18). Peacemakers give everyone a chance, becoming lights in the storm.
—
Randy Wolff
September 9, 2014
Copyright 2014 Links Players International
The Links Daily Devotional appears Monday-Friday at www.linksplayers.com.