Galatians 6:1: Brethren, if a man be overtaken in a fault, ye which are spiritual, restore such a one in the spirit of meekness; considering thyself, lest thou also be tempted.
There are many areas of a church where conflict can develop requiring disciplined attention. However, most of them tend to fall under one of three categories: 1) conflict due to blatant sin among believers, 2) conflict with leadership, 3) conflict between believers. Admittedly, many issues can cross over and actually involve two or more of these categories. How are these to be handled? Who has the right to address? What is the goal? To discover the Biblical answer, we turn to:
- Historical Context: The book of Galatians was written somewhere between 48 and 55 A.D. by the Apostle Paul. Galatians was not written as an essay in contemporary history. It was a protest against corruption of the gospel of Christ. The essential truth of justification by faith rather than by the works of the law had been obscured by the Judaizers’ insistence that believers in Christ must keep the law if they expected to be perfect before God. When Paul learned that this teaching had begun to penetrate the Galatian churches and that it had alienated them from their heritage of liberty, he wrote in a spirit of inspired agitation. For Paul, the issue was not whether a person was circumcised, but whether he had become “a new creation” (Galatians 6:15). If Paul had not been successful in his argument for justification by faith alone, Christianity would have remained a sect within Judaism, rather than becoming the universal way of salvation. Galatians, therefore, is not only Luther’s epistle; it is the epistle of every believer who confesses with Paul: “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Galatians 2:20).
- Grammatical Usage: “Overtaken” in the Greek is “prolambano” meaning, “not a determined sinner but one who in an unguarded moment is caught up on a trespass…not a premeditated practice of evil as noted in 5:21; “fault” is “paraptoma” in the Greek meaning, “a false step… a trespass”; “spiritual” in the Greek is “pneumatikos” meaning, in context, “men in Christ who walk so as to please God”; “restore” in the Greek is “katartizo” meaning “to mend and furnish completely”. The tense indicates the continuous present suggesting the necessity for patience and perseverance in the process; “meekness” is “prautes” and its meaning is not readily expressed in English. “Meekness” in English has a mild-manner almost weak connotation. The contrary is the meaning in the Greek as it is understood as a ‘fruit of power’ or self-less authority as a result of being filled with and therefore controlled by the Spirit similar to Jesus who dealt with people from the authoritative position as having the infinite resources of God at His command.
- Literal Application: “Brothers, if in fact a man is overtaken by some fall by the wayside, you who filled with the Spirit must restore him in an attitude of meekness, as you safeguard yourself in order that you likewise not be tempted.”
- Contextual Interpretation: The result of justification by grace through faith is spiritual freedom. Paul appealed to the Galatians to stand fast in their freedom, and not get “entangled again with a yoke of bondage (that is, the Mosaic law)” (Galatians 5:1). Christian freedom is not an excuse to gratify one’s lower nature; rather, it is an opportunity to love one another (Galatians 5:13; 6:7-10). Such freedom does not insulate one from life’s struggles. Indeed, it may intensify the battle between the Spirit and the flesh. Nevertheless, the flesh (the lower nature) has been crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20); and, as a consequence, the Spirit will bear its fruit such as love, joy, and peace in the life of the believer (Galatians 5:22-23). Paul is not concerned here with any particular sin or any particular sinner. He is speaking of any “fall by the wayside” which might overtake any Christian in an unguarded moment, as a result of which he is in need of counseling and restoration to a position where God can use him again. This is to be done by a Christian brother who is in a spiritual condition to minister effectively with the fallen brother. Thus we see the task of restoration is committed to a restricted class of believer. The carnal Christian does not qualify.
- Scriptural Comparison: Believers who blatantly sin pose a conflict for the church as described
in 1 Corinthians 5. The church that does not deal with sin among the members
will open the door to more problems. The church is not called to be judgmental
of unbelievers, but the church is expected to confront and restore believers
who are unrepentant of sins such as those listed in 1 Corinthians 5:11: ”
. . . anyone who calls himself a brother but is sexually immoral or greedy, an
idolater or a slanderer, a drunkard or a swindler.” Such individuals are
to not be accepted by the church until they are willing to repent. Matthew
18:15-17 provides a concise procedure for the confrontation and restoration of
a believer. Confrontation should be done carefully, meekly, and with the goal
of restoration (Galatians 6:1). Churches that lovingly discipline sinning
individuals will curtail a great deal of conflict in the church.
At times believers might not be content with the direction or actions of church leaders. This was the case early in the history of the church (Acts 6:1-7). Complaints about the lack of care of a certain group in the church were taken up with the leaders. This was remedied, and the church grew (Acts 6:7). The early church used a conflict to improve the ministry. However, when churches do not have a clear process for dealing with such concerns, people tend to create their own platforms. Individuals may begin polling others in the church, get involved in gossip, or even develop a bloc of “concerned people.” Leadership can help avoid this by leading like selfless, loving shepherds that are examples of servants rather than ones that lord over others (1 Peter 5:1-3). Those who are frustrated should respect the leaders (Hebrews 13:7, 17), be slow to accuse them (1 Timothy 5:19), and speak the truth lovingly to them, not to others about them (Ephesians 4:15). On those occasions when it appears the leader is not responding to the concern, an individual should follow the pattern set down in Matthew 18:15-17 to ensure that there is no confusion as to where each stands.
The Bible warns that people in church may have difficulties with conflict. Some conflict is due to pride and selfishness (James 4:1-10). Some conflicts come about because of offenses that have not been forgiven (Matthew 18:15-35). God has told us to press toward peace (Romans 12:18; Colossians 3:12-15). It is the responsibility of each believer to seek to resolve a conflict. Some basic steps toward resolution include the following:
1. Develop the proper heart attitude – Meek (Galatians 6:1); Humble (James 4:10); Forgiving (Ephesians 4:31,32); Patient (James 1:19,20).
2. Evaluate your part in the conflict – Matthew 7:1-5 (removing the log from your own eye first is necessary before helping others).
3. Go to the individual (not to others) to voice your concern – Matthew 18:15. This is best done in love (Ephesians 4:15) and not to just get something off your chest. Accusing the person tends to encourage a defensiveness. Therefore, attack the problem rather than the person. This gives the person a better opportunity to clarify the situation or to seek forgiveness for the offense.
4. If the first attempt does not accomplish the needed results, continue with another person or persons that can help with mediation (Matthew 18:16). Remember that your goal is not to win an argument; it is to win your fellow believer to reconciliation. Therefore, choose people who can help you resolve the conflict.
Excommunication
is the formal removal of an individual from church membership rolls and the
informal separation of company from that individual. Matthew 18:15-20 gives the
procedure and authority for a church to do this. It instructs us that one
individual (usually the offended party) is to go to the offending individual.
If he/she does not repent, then two or three go to confirm the situation and
the refusal to repent. If there is still no repentance, it is taken before the
church. This process is never “desirable,” just as a parent never
delights in having to discipline his/her children. Often, though, it is
necessary. The purpose is not to be mean-spirited or to display a “holier
than thou” attitude. Rather, it is to be done in love toward the
individual, in obedience and honor to God, and in godly fear for the sake of
others in the church.
The Bible gives an example of the necessity of excommunication in a local
church, the church at the city of Corinth
(1 Corinthians 5:1-13). In this passage, the apostle Paul also gives some
purposes behind the biblical use of excommunication. One reason (not directly
found in the passage) is for the sake of the testimony of Christ Jesus (and His
church) before the unbelievers. When David had sinned with Bathsheba, one of
the consequences of his sin that God mentions is that the name of the one true
God will be blasphemed by God’s enemies (2 Samuel 12:14). A second reason is
that sin is like a cancer; if allowed to exist, it spreads to those nearby just
as a little yeast leavens a whole loaf of bread (1 Corinthians 5:6-7). Also,
Paul explains that Jesus saved us so that we might be set apart from sin, that
we might be “unleavened” or free from that which decays spiritually
(1 Corinthians 5:7-8). Christ’s desire for His bride, the Church, is that she
might be pure and undefiled (Ephesians 5:25-27). Excommunication is also for
the long-term welfare of the one being disciplined by the church. Paul, in 1
Corinthians 5:5, states that excommunication is a way of delivering “such
a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved
in the day of the Lord Jesus.” This means that excommunication can somehow
involve God using Satan (or one of his demons) as a disciplinary tool to work
in the sinner’s life physically to bring about true repentance in his/her
heart.
Sometimes the disciplinary action of the church is successful in bringing about
godly sorrow and true repentance. When this occurs, the individual is able to
be restored to fellowship. The individual involved in the 1 Corinthians 5
passage repented, and Paul encouraged the church to restore him to fellowship
with the church (2 Corinthians 2:5-8). Unfortunately, the disciplinary action,
even when done in love and in the correct manner, is not always successful in
bringing about such restoration, but is still needed to accomplish the other
good purposes mentioned above.
- Conclusion: Conflict is best handled when individuals prayerfully and humbly focus on loving others, with the intent of restoring relationships. Most issues of conflict should be manageable if the above biblical principles are followed.