Take your Bibles if you would with me to 1 Corinthians chapter six. The first chapter, 1 Corinthians in the sixth chapter this morning. I wanna speak to you this morning on how to resolve conflict without a concussion. Or how to have a good Thanksgiving. How do you deal with conflict? different ways that human nature causes us to respond. Sometimes we just walk out. I don't want conflict. I'm going to avoid it at all costs. Some others want to talk it out. Let's just keep talking and talking and talking until there's a resolution. And some people want to work it out. Yeah, I'll work it out all right. The Bible doesn't leave us hanging when it comes to conflict resolutions. I heard a statement this week, a man said, if you're married, you have a communication problem. I'd never heard of Tommy Terrific before, but I heard him say that. If you're married, you have a communication problem, and chances are, if you're a Christian, you have experienced conflict. God's made us human beings, and as human beings, from time to time, there's going to be conflict. But even more so, I think, for Christians, because Satan, is a master of division. He loves to divide the church. Jesus prayed in John 17 that they may be one as we are one. God is working towards unity amongst believers in the church. Satan is actively working to divide us. Have you ever had a concussion before? How many have ever had a concussion before? You remember it, don't you? One time I was getting ready to do a Christian school chapel in Westerville. I was a little bit late. I'd gotten there, and I was racing through an icy parking lot. Went back, hit my head on the ground, bounced right back up out of embarrassment, ran in, and it was time for chapel to start. And I was doing the chapel, and I was just, my hands were more limber than usual, and I was saying a whole lot more. And in fact, one point in doing the chapel for this group of elementary students, my Bible went flying. And I realized something wasn't right. You probably know this. I've had more than one. You can probably tell. When you get a concussion, there's been a conflict, right? There's been something to remember. There's a daily reminder of the previous contact. And so if you have ever experienced conflict in relationships, it's like a concussion. Sometimes those relationships are never quite the same. Sometimes there's a lingering sting. Many churches have closed their doors, not because they've ran out of money, but because they've run out of patience. God wants us to be unified, and even to work through conflicts in the church for his glory. The Corinthian church was a carnal church. Last week we talked about the fact that there was unconfessed sin in the church that had been not addressed by the church. And so Paul's challenge was to them to deal with this moral issue in the church. Loving confrontation, but his goal was always restoration. For this person who was unwilling to repent, to make a restoration of their Godly living in the church, he said, you're gonna need to excuse that person. You're gonna need to let them leave the church. You're gonna ask them not to be a part until they're willing to make things right. The carnality in Corinth continued, not just in the areas of morality, but in legality. Look at chapter six, verse one. He says, dare any of you, having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust and not before the saints. The Corinthian church was a competitive church. They were a quarrelsome church. That's what it tells us in chapter one, verse 11. He says that there are contentions among you. Chapter three, verse three, for ye are yet carnal. For as there's among you envying and strife and divisions, are ye not carnal and walk as men? There was conflict going on because they were carnal. They were proud. What do you do when you're backed into a corner? You claw your way out. And for some of the believers of the church at Corinth, they had found conflict with one another, so much so that they were seeking legal solutions. They were backed into the corner. Either they were gonna climb their way out or they're gonna scratch the face of the one who put them there. For some of the church, this meant taking one another to a court of law. There'd been some kind of a civil crime, whether it's loss or damage. People had conflict. Lawsuits were filed. And Paul's gonna challenge them, bringing them before unbelieving judges. A couple of things are true in life. Conflicts are inevitable, you'll have them. But resolutions will be a choice. They'll be your choice. You can live with conflict, or you can find God-given biblical solutions. Let's begin reading at verse one. We'll read through verse eight, pray, and then jump into the message. Paul says, Dear any of you having a matter against another, go to law before the unjust and not before the saints. Do ye not know that the saints shall judge the world? And if the world shall be judged by you, are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that we shall judge angels, how much more things that pertain to this life? If then, verse four, ye have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are least esteemed in the church. I speak to your shame. Is it so that there is not a wise man among you? No, not one that shall be able to judge between the brother, look at verse six, but brother goeth to law with brother and that before the unbelievers. Now, therefore, there is utterly a fault among you because you go to law with one another. Why do ye not rather take wrong? Why do ye not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded? Verse eight. Nay, ye do wrong and defraud, and that your brethren. Father, as we look to your word today, I pray that you would guide us through this passage by the Spirit. We're thankful for Jesus Christ, loved us and died for us. and has given it a way by which we as believers in the power of the resurrection can live for you and can live right with one another. I pray that your word would speak to us today. I pray that we would be challenged and we would be changed. In his name, amen. In order to generate loyal customers, loyal consumers, modern technology has designed media that will activate sectors of our brain that were previously only used for emergencies. I'm no scientist. But what I understand, these sectors of the brain are to be engaged for one of two reasons, to fight or for flight. and most who try watching the news and reading the scroll at the bottom, you're engaging this sector of your brain. For people who scroll social media, it's designed to engage these sectors of your brain. That's why it's dangerous, especially with very young children, to always give them devices, but let me follow that up with, it's dangerous for all of us if we are taking in whatever the world offers us unchecked. Because there are sectors of your brain that are always in ready combat. But it also means that when we put the device down or turn the TV off, the emergency responders in our brain are becoming increasingly desensitized. Vigorous minds have become stupor minds, not stupid, stupor minds. I think one of the casualties of this is our ability as human beings to resolve conflict. I think as Christians we have to understand our minds are being conditioned, not towards godliness, but we are being influenced by a world that doesn't want you to resolve conflict. We're gonna have to be different from the world. Proverbs 13 verse 10 says, only by pride cometh contention, but with a well-advised is wisdom. You know, I'm gonna give you three simple points this morning. Number one, you can address conflicts biblically. You can address conflicts biblically. Verses one through three, the apostle Paul shares that the church is entrusted with judgment. He gives the illustration. He says, you're going to law before unbelieving judges. You're bringing your cases. What the Apostle Paul is not saying, there's not place for the court of law. In fact, Jesus said, why are you coming to me for judgment? Why don't you go to the court of law, right? He's not saying there's not a place for that. The kind of conflicts that they were probably experiencing were maybe land disputes or maybe some kind of loss, somebody had lied to another, and rather than bring those problems to fellow believers in the church, they're going outside of the church, maybe to spare themselves the embarrassment of the church, or because they wanted somebody to give finality, ultimate authority, some teeth to the decision. For whatever reason, as they were taking each other to court, Paul brings this up as a matter to be discussed. Several questions have been brought to the Apostle Paul by the Corinthians. This, I believe, was one of them. The instance in chapter five of a man who had an immoral relationship, who was still a part of the church, that was one of the questions that was brought up, and Paul helped him to see how to resolve that problem. And in chapter six, here's another question. What do we do about Christians who take other Christians to court? How do we handle that? And the Apostle Paul's answer comes, really two things we see. One is that the church is entrusted with judgment. He says in verse two, and he gives us, he takes it from the moment, this life, and he takes them into the realm of eternity, okay? And he says, I want you to understand how valuable you as a believer, you as a church, are to God. God has not only saved you from sin he has put his indwelling Holy Spirit inside of you and he has given you the ability to use discernment to make decisions to be judges and where will this be he says in eternity he says and if the world shall be judged by you Are ye unworthy to judge the smallest matters? Know ye not that ye shall judge angels? He says the saints are going to judge the world. The saints are going to judge angels. That's believers, the called out ones, and we will in eternity, perhaps the millennium, we'll have a part in judging the unbelieving nations, a part in judging fallen angels. We'll have a part in that. And he says, don't you understand how important it is that while you're on this earth, that you learn to solve problems. You seek reconciliation for conflict. So the church is entrusted with judgment. How much more, he says in verse three, how much more things that pertain to this life. And so it's possible for you Christian, we need to understand, God values the church. God values you as individual believers. and God has equipped you to be able to make decisions. Number one, you can address conflicts biblically. Number two, you can address conflicts spiritually. Look at verse four. If ye then have judgments of things pertaining to this life, set them to judge who are the least esteemed in the church. He says take, essentially he's saying take somebody who doesn't have an official position, just take anybody in the church who's a believer and they're gonna do you better than bringing this case before an unbelieving court of law. This is a spiritual solution. He says in verse five, I speak to your shame, is, is it so? that there is not a wise man among you, no, not one that shall be able to judge between his brethren. And essentially he's saying this, set it up, make it a formal occasion, but in the church, whether you have a table or however you do it, I don't know if you need to buy a gavel here, but find somebody who is spiritually minded, led by the Holy Spirit of God who can help to resolve the conflict. That's God's ideal, that we learn to solve conflicts ourselves. And he goes on to explain why it's a dangerous thing. He says in verse seven, what happens when we go before the world? Now therefore, there is utterly a fault among you because you go to law with one another. Why do you not rather take wrong? And what is he saying? He says here's the danger here, there's loss. It's gonna hurt the church's testimony, the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ. when you're going before the unbelievers to solve your petty indifferences. You know, to take it before Judge Judy or used to be Judge Wapner on the people's court. You remember Judge Wapner? But to take your conflict before an unbelieving world is a dangerous thing. He's not talking about criminal activity. He's not talking about abuse. He's talking about probably land disputes, contract you know, violations, here's something that needs to be addressed. You can address conflicts biblically, the Bible has answers to problems, but also we can resolve conflicts spiritually, and that includes people. God has gifted us as a church with fellow believers, different parts of the body, we'll learn more about in chapter 12, but God has gifted us uniquely to help care for each other. Part of the privilege of being a part of the body of Christ is being a part of the body of Christ. We care for one another. In fact, I'm gonna skip ahead to chapter 12 for a moment, because it says in verse 24, 1 Corinthians 12, 24, for our comely parts have no need, but God hath tempered the body together, having given more abundant honor to that part which lacketh. Verse 25, that there should be no schism in the body, but that the members should have the same care one for another. Here's that schism here is this conflict. And God has gifted us By who we are, when you get saved, the Holy Spirit of God comes to indwell you. You are given a supernatural spiritual gift to be used, not just in ministry and service to reaching the lost world, but also to building up one another in the body of Christ. That's God's plan. Isn't it amazing? That's marvelous. You are gifted to be a part of the body of Christ. And guess who the head is? It's not your pastor. It's Jesus Christ. And so we follow his lead. We listen to his voice. But what a shame when we choose not to be a part. What a shame when we stay home. What a shame that we don't gather when the church gathers. God has gifted you to be a part of the body of Christ. I'm not getting anything out of it. Well, maybe you're supposed to give something to it. Maybe God wants to use you in the life of another, and it may not happen in the service. It might happen in the hallway before. It might happen by inviting someone to your home after church on Sunday night. It might be because you've taken an interest in somebody other than yourself. We're called to church. We are a called out gathering of people called to do business for God. And our business is to love each other, to share the gospel. You can address conflicts spiritually. Number three, you can address conflicts practically. Look at verse seven with me here. The second part of the verse. He says, why do you not rather take Wrong. Why do you not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded? Verse eight, nay ye do wrong and defraud. You're causing people to lose out. You're causing the church itself to lose out. You're trying to gain something and in so doing, what you're pursuing, your victory is causing the entire church to suffer a loss, to take a hit. And that's dangerous. Paul gives this illustration here and he says, wouldn't you rather just take the wrong? When you go to court, you're looking for a winner. One wins and one loses. But Christ is saying, I want to get the victory. And that might mean neither of you feel that you have claimed the title. He gives this example here. He says, why do you not rather suffer yourselves to be defrauded? Why aren't you willing to even lose out? Because you're more concerned about the God-honoring relationship than you are concerned about being right. It's right must be done. Truth must prevail. And everybody behind you is a trail of broken people who you have trampled over. You've steamrolled them. Being right! And he says, there comes a time, as Christians, when there's a conflict that you might need to humble yourself. You might need to eat crow. You might need to say, you know what? If that guy never pays me back, you know, I'm gonna give that to the Lord. I'm gonna trust the Lord with that. because I'm more concerned with God being honored in this relationship than me being right. And so that may mean we have to humble ourselves. So what is the Apostle Paul saying? I think this is what he's saying to us as a church. Reconciliation is reasonable amongst Christians. It's reasonable that we can settle our differences. It's reasonable, with God's help, the power of the Holy Spirit, that we can find solutions. It's reasonable with the suggestion here as a spiritually-minded third party, spiritually-minded third party, whether informally or whether it becomes a formal matter. We bring it before members of the church, say, could you help us resolve this? We're not getting anywhere. We have examples in Scripture of the Apostle Paul used his Roman citizenship. He pulled out his Roman card, and he reminded them of his citizenship. He wasn't afraid to use the law to his advantage. when it came before an unbelieving world. He had a work to do for God. Now, he didn't always use that. There were times he didn't pull out the Roman card, but there were times he did. He's not saying that we should ignore the government. God ordained it. We have been given privileges and rights as American citizens. Praise the Lord for those. When it comes to matters between the body of Jesus Christ, we have to be Not so much seeking our right, but the righteous glory of Jesus Christ. And sometimes that means including a third party to help us settle things. Or, reconciliation is reasonable when I have a willingness to lose out if that relationship is saved. There's two words that Paul uses in these verses to describe what was taking place. Shame and wrong. So what you're doing, it's a shame and it's wrong. What had happened? The Corinthian church. They were a gifted church. They met together. They were genuinely saved, but they had overlooked the eternal significance of the church. God tells us in this passage, we find that the church is a court, it's a conscience, and it's a community. It's valuable. The local New Testament Bible-believing church is a gift by God to this world. It's a gift to each other to build up one another in the faith. But we are a force to be reckoned with so long as we understand who we are. The Corinthian church was a church that God wanted to mightily use. He had big plans for this church. It was in a strategic location. It had been a city that had been entirely given over to idolatry. What had been happening? The gospel came and people got saved. Their lives were being changed. And these people were gonna have lightning effect on the surrounding region if they stayed together. They needed to understand who they were. They had also underestimated the spiritual influence of other saints. They had forgotten that God had put people in the church who had the Holy Spirit inside of them, who God could use to help each other solve problems. Have you overlooked those sitting next to you, those who gather with our church, those who are members of our church? Have you overlooked the value that they offer to you and to God? You say, well, where do you find that? It's all throughout our New Testament. God values individual believers. He values us as we come together as a local body. I believe in church membership. We band together for the glory of God, for the work of the gospel, but as well the building up of each other and the saints, and it's good to know who's a part of that, who's willing to be somebody you can count on, and we're committed together according to God's word. It's a wonderful thing. It's a beautiful thing. The Corinthians also had put personal rights over righteous relationships. Wherever there are people, there will be problems, right? It's true. But there are biblical solutions for problems. The Bible has answers for life. The Bible has answers for your life and my life. Offended parties should both be willing to welcome solutions that come from the body of Christ. Offended parties should be willing to welcome solutions from the body of Christ. What do we want? Well, we want the authority. I'm gonna show who's boss. We want authority. God wants submission. We don't have time to go to the passages, but Matthew chapter five through seven, Jesus outlines for us in his Sermon on the Mount what it means to put God first and put others first. Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are they that mourn. Blessed are the persecuted, I mean, et cetera. It's being willing to take the loss. We want authority, but God wants submission. We want finality. I just want this settled. I want this addressed. I want this dealt with. That's what we want. We want finality. God wants charity. God wants you to see that brother or sister week by week in church services and say, you know what? There was a time when we had something between us, but by God's grace, it's covered by the blood and we've reconciled. God's okay, as the church gathers for the Lord's table, somebody in the room says, you know what, I'm not right with my brother or sister across the aisle. While the elements are being passed out, maybe you get up from your seat and you go over to your sister and say, I can't, you know how I've talked about you? I have gossiped about you, I've been critical of you. That brother gets up and says, you know what, I've caused you harm, and I was wrong. Will you please forgive me? You say, well, that would sure mess up the service. No, that would make the service, because God is at work, his spirit is at work. Sometimes we're so confined to the formality of church service that we forget we're a body of Christ, we're a family. And the most important thing happening here is God's work in our life. We can't be effective in reaching the world until we're effective in relating to one another. We want finality, but God wants charity. We want dignity. I must show that I am right. I must be respected. We want dignity, but God wants humility. We want victory. Everyone needs to know that I am right. But God wants glory. And sometimes he cannot get the glory when you're fighting for your own victory. God has a work to do in his church. There's a number of examples, I probably don't have time to get to all of them, but I'll look at a couple of them here this morning. Christ Jesus gives us an example of how to do this. First Peter chapter two and verse 19, that's the first one. For this is thankworthy if a man, for conscience towards God, endure grief, suffering wrongfully. For what glory is it, verse 20, first Peter 2, 20, For what glory is it when ye be buffeted for your faults? Ye shall take it patiently. But if when ye do well and suffer for it, take it patiently. This is acceptable with God. For even hereunto were ye called because Christ also suffered for us. Leaving us an example that ye should follow in his steps. who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he reviled not again. When he suffered, he threatened not, but committed himself to him that judgeth righteously. Jesus Christ is an example for us of somebody who was sometimes mistreated, and he took it as from the Lord. Another place in the same book, over in chapter three, verse 17. It says, for it is better if the will of God be so that she suffer for doing, for well doing, than for evil doing. For Christ, verse 18, for Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God. being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit. Jesus Christ is an example. I won't turn to Philippians chapter two. That's another place you can go in this regard. There's also the record of the saints. Who has God made us to be? The passage that was our scripture reading this morning outlined what is our purpose as Christians. And charity is the bond of peace. Still in 1 Peter chapter 2, look at verse 9. Who are we to be as a church? Who are individual Christians? He says, you're a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a peculiar people that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness and into his marvelous light. God has plans for the church. Hey, it's a royal priesthood. It's a privilege to be a Christian. It's a privilege to be a part of Christ's church. We're to testify by our life and by our lips. It says in verse 10, which in time past were not a people, but now are the people of God. That's who we are, we're God's people. Do we represent him well? Does the world around know by how we resolve conflicts that we're a royal priesthood? that we're a testimony to, are we a testimony to a watching world? Because we respond differently, rather than put up our dukes, we humble ourselves and we seek resolution in a God-honoring, Christ-glorifying way. The church's first mission is love, 1 John 4, 7. This is what we are and we are to be. Beloved, let us love one another. "'For love is of God, and everyone that loveth "'is born of God and knoweth God.'" It says there in verse 10, "'Herein is love, not that we loved God, "'but that he loved us and sent his Son "'to be the propitiation for our sin.'" Verse 11, "'Beloved, if God so loved us, "'we ought to love one another.'" So that loving one another means a willingness to resolve conflicts, God wants us to solve problems. He's given us what we need to do it. So how can I, a mere mortal, seek to resolve conflicts with idiots? I'm glad you asked. You and I have been given a supernatural power. The last passage I want you to turn to this morning is Philippians chapter four, verse five. There's one verse of scripture that really tells you and I how we can find common ground in conflict. Philippians chapter four and verse five. Here we have a supernatural power given to you and I as Christians to resolve conflict. Here's what it says. Are you ready? This is a good one. Let your moderation be known unto all men. The Lord is at hand. You say, I don't get it. Okay, let me explain. Lord, moderation is an important word. It means a sweet reasonableness, a gentleness. It means one who seeks the best for everyone else, not themselves. The Bible Knowledge Commentary described it this way. It's a non-retaliatory spirit. It's being satisfied with less than you're due. It's not arguing one's rights to the uttermost. It's what God demonstrated to us in Psalms 130, verse three. I know I said last verse, but I'll read it for you. You don't have to turn there. It's what God demonstrates to us. Psalm 130 verse three says, if thou, Lord, shouldst mark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand? God, if you're counting sins, if you're counting offenses, ain't nobody gonna make it, right? For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. But it says in verse four, but there is forgiveness with thee that thou mayest be feared, hallelujah. There's forgiveness in Jesus Christ. You and I can have forgiveness for our sins, and we can, by God's help, according to Ephesians 4, 32, we can have forgiveness towards one another. God enables it. God has a plan, and that plan is this. Number one, be ready to meet. If you have an unresolved conflict with another Christian, be ready to meet with them and another spiritually-minded Christian. Be ready to meet. Number two, be willing to lose. Be willing to give up your stake. Number three, be more interested in the kingdom of Christ than your own kingdom. Conflicts are inevitable, but resolution will be a choice. It will be your choice. Do you have a concussion from a previous conflict? Maybe an ongoing conflict and your head is ringing because it's not resolved? Perhaps spending time together with family this week is already giving you a headache because of an unresolved conflict. God means for you and I to restore relationships, to be made right. And the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians chapter six tells us one way not to do it. Don't take them to court. God's not honored in that. Value the church and be willing Be willing to take it on the chin. How will you, in the days ahead, resolve conflicts? Because guess what? You're gonna have them. Because we're a bunch of human beings who, in our natural man, go around like little robots, pursuing the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Guess what? Those robots bump into each other and sparks fly. When the conflicts come, how will you choose to respond to it? Will you humble yourself? Will you seek Christ's glory rather than your own? If it's with another believer, will you seek a God-honoring resolution? The Corinthians were a very gifted church, and they had great potential. Guess what? We're a gifted church. Blue Book Bible Church has great potential. What would stop it today? What would hinder us today? unresolved conflict. May Jesus Christ help us to follow his word. It's the best way. It's the blessed way. God will use us to do his work, but we must be willing to do it his way. Father, I thank you for your word this morning. Thank you for sharp words that Paul spoke that speaks to our hearts. Help us, Lord, when conflicts arise, to not to take matters first into our own hands, but to submit ourselves to your authority and your word. I pray that we would love each other enough to seek to live in unity and harmony as a church. And I pray, Lord, that we wouldn't get a reputation of being a perfect place, but we'd have a testimony to this community of a broken people who are saved by grace, who are willing to say hard things and do hard things to maintain relationships that bring you praise. In Jesus' name, amen.