Exhortation

In any sizable congregation, there are going to be disputes. Two members go into business, it fails, and they fight about who’s responsible for what. One member borrows the lawnmower from his neighbor and breaks it; who pays? Someone makes a thoughtless comment and damages a friendship.

The issue is not whether there are disputes, but how we handle them. Jesus requires us to be reconciled, and He teaches us to begin privately, one member seeking resolution with another. Disputes cannot always be solved at that level, and so other members or the elders get involved.

Whatever happens, we must appeal to other believers to help us resolve disputes. When Paul finds out that Corinthians are taking one another to the Roman courts, he rebukes them: “Is it that there is not among you one wise man who will be able to decide between his brothers, but brothers goes to law against brother, and that before unbelievers?”

For Paul, this is not an incidental point. It is rooted in his vision of the church and the church’s future. Because we are the body of the Supreme Judge, we share in His judicial activity. “Do you not know that the saints will judge the world?” Paul asks, and then adds: “If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute small law courts?”

As Jesus said, it is better to settle quickly before you get to court. As Paul says, it is better to be wronged and defrauded than to lose a brother. But if you must appeal to a judge, make sure that judge is competent to judge angels.