DEALING WITH TENSIONS AND CONFLICTS IN CHURCHES AND CHURCH ORGANISATIONS – PRACTICAL EXAMINATION AND SUGGESTIONS – PART 3
We have been looking into areas where tensions and church conflict may arise. So far we have examined a number of these and today we continue with more, so let’s begin.
[F.1]. ENSURE GOOD ELDERSHIP
I have been for a while in this and that church and it is disappointing in some to see activity but very little substance. This is because the depth is missing and we could conjecture many reasons for that. For a godly man coming into that situation of an ungrounded church, he needs to start at the bottom. It is wrong to appoint a leadership or the equivalent of an eldership as the people are biblically unqualified. The true man of God needs to meet the people where they are and work on two things.
The first is to preach salvation and give invitations for salvation. The second is to take systematic training beginning with the basics and building up, building stronger and stronger Christians. The book of Romans is one of the most remarkable books in the bible, sometimes called “The Gospel According to Paul.” The beauty about Romans is that it can be carefully taught to beginners and mature Christians at their levels. It contains the fundamentals.
Over time with careful nurturing of the people and especially individuals, you can begin to form a group of godly men that could be termed elders, but who need instruction further for their advancement.
Of course you will get opposition if you want to preach faithfully. Tensions will begin to surface. You could be accused of changing the structure of the church or the identity or the ethos. Nevertheless, stand your ground as we had in Part 1 and preach the full counsel of God. There is an absolute certainty these days, I can tell you, for that to be done. Faithful men sold out to the Lord will have opposition and tensions may be high. Jeremiah was persecuted and locked in a foul rock cistern with sludge underneath. He was maltreated but never retreated from the ministry God gave him. There is one other little help I can give you. Look for common Christian men of maturity to share with and pray together, like a peer contact.
[F.2]. AMBITION - MALE AND FEMALE AND FEMALE OVER MALE
I enter a minefield and can only speak what I know. There is no need for attack. The education system these days promotes self interests above the group interests. The rights of the individual are set out as very important. The ME generation is all to the fore.
Once feminists used to be rather extreme in dress and behaviour in the early 1900s, but now they are more sophisticated. The western world promotes the equality of male and female in everything in its distorted modern concept of sexuality, and equal representation as in Parliaments or Committees, etc. even to the inclusion of unisex toilets. The world sees no difference between the two sexes; the education system supports that.
However the church is not the world and neither should it have the world’s values and that means the way God has stated for a church fellowship to work. We can’t go changing that because it might now conflict with the modern distorted world. Feminists are everywhere in the world and I wrote on this in a Series “We Are Not Ignorant Of Satan’s Devices Or Schemes.” It can be found in one of the articles in the series - https://www.sermoncentral.com/sermons/2-we-are-not-ignorant-of-satans-devices-or-schemes-part-2-ron-ron-sermon-on-spiritual-warfare-277292
Some women have entered church leadership and control congregations, and more and more women now are in leading positions as you see in the Anglican Church of Britain, the Episcopalian church in the USA, and the Uniting Church in Australia, and in many of the Pentecostal divisions. It is one of the greatest causes of tensions in churches by the feedback I receive, mainly from conservative Christians. More often than not the women who have risen to/taken these positions are quite dominant and some are non-biblical in their approach. In a number of liberal churches agenda drives some women, especially a racial and socialist one. I have seen some church sites that are into critical race theory, climate change and social issues on the fringe. Some of the Australian churches are supporting Palestinians and condemning Israel (to their detriment, I might say). The Uniting Church progressing from the Methodists in the 1980s contains some of these radical ideas.
I do not intend exploring the feminist move into churches any further but I do confirm that the tensions are in the churches where this happens. God’s headship in creation is negated but it remains fixed because man is head under Christ. {{1Corinthians 11:3 “but I want you to understand that Christ is the head of every man, and the man is the head of a woman, and God is the head of Christ.”}}
Ministers, be very careful of this move in your churches and of women wanting to influence thinking through personal ambition. I don’t think this would happen if the preaching of the word is sound and the people in your church are converted and biblically established. Some women in these headship positions are not saved. You ought to be very aware of what Paul has written here but if it is raised you will get hostile opposition as I have seen and you will hear comments like, “Paul was a misogynist,” or some other denial such as, “That was the culture then. It is not ours now.” “What about Deborah?” Well you might think the culture has changed but {{Hebrews 13:8-9 “JESUS CHRIST IS THE SAME YESTERDAY AND TODAY, YES AND FOREVER. DO NOT BE CARRIED AWAY BY VARIED AND STRANGE TEACHINGS, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, through which those who were thus occupied were not benefited.”}}
This following passage is all about headship. Godly women understand that but ambitious women will flout this message from God that could not be clearer, and it creates conflict in churches, very real conflict in ones, the more conservative ones – {{1Timothy 2:9-14 “Likewise, I want women to adorn themselves with proper clothing, modestly and discreetly, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly garments, but rather by means of good works, as befits women making a claim to godliness. Let a woman quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness, BUT I DO NOT ALLOW A WOMAN TO TEACH OR EXERCISE AUTHORITY OVER A MAN, but to remain quiet, FOR IT WAS ADAM WHO WAS FIRST CREATED AND THEN EVE. It was not Adam who was deceived, but the woman being quite deceived, fell into transgression,”}} Breaking that command is willful disobedience.
Women do have a ministry and I think the wives of elders and deacons can be very beneficial when a ministry is needed with a couple. Women have a marvellous ministry of gifts to other women including teaching the bible and their gifting can assist the church in many ways but the verses above do set out a division made by God. The women who faithfully ministered to Jesus and His disciples were an enormous support but none of them was Peter or John or Thaddeus.
[F.3]. COMPROMISE BY WANTING THE WORLD’S THINGS AND ADOPTING THE WORLD’S WAYS
Change! Change! Change! This world thinks it must keep changing things when they are fine and working fine. We see that all the time with computer applications and government agencies, forms, and innovations, and it all becomes a pain usually because it all is unnecessary.
This is a very tricky area when it comes to churches. People came into the churches a few through the Pentecostal movement and the young people brought in their music style which is more from the rock bands in performance. That is why churches have adopted song leaders with several musicians leading everybody with loud noise and trendy stuff called Christian songs. Some of the lyrics are terrible and why this mind numbing repetition, and repetition of the repetition? It has come from the world’s music scene, that is why.
I remember a certain Baptist church I visited when these new-fangled songs (frequently from Hillsong) were starting to come into prominence. Maybe this was about 1995. A song leader was driving a song and the congregation was dispassionately trying to keep in step. Then an older man rose up near the front and shook his fist at the performance and said something I did not catch. It was obvious he was distressed or angry. What is my point you might ask?
Well that was thrust on to the congregation and isolated some of the older people who don’t relate to the word’s style of music. Where was the concern and discernment in that case? It is obvious that discord was introduced and it was not even considered what the outcome might be. That is one way you can create real tension in a church.
This is a very subtle area and pressures are brought into a church by some enterprising person who has a new way of doing something because he/she has seen it in the world. A proper church functions by the leading of the Holy Spirit, not by using the world’s methods.
These intrusions of the world into the church puts church leadership in a difficult position. Most people don’t want to make decisions that mean “No,” and sometimes grudgingly cave in. I spoke earlier on standing your ground when you feel uneasy about these things. Feeling uneasy usually means it is not correct. Proceed with caution.
I am not outlining any more of these moves to introduce into the church what has come from the world, and the church Pastor needs the leading of God and absolute assurance before he permits anything. More to the point the decision should be made by discerning men in the eldership position. Remember we live in confused times when the main denominations around us are collapsing for a host of reasons, mainly liberalism and WOKE agendas in churches. I am aware of moves in several nations where the genuine Christians are leaving the church denominations and moving to smaller “more biblical” churches.
In the 1980s onwards trendy ways of involving people in decision making began to emerge. I saw it prominently in education. Just one of these was brainstorming when people would suggest ideas or words that suited a theme and the coordinator would write all these down as they were given. Then again there was the group approach when the attendees were put in 4 or 5 groups and would come up with ideas on how to do this or that, and then each group would report back.
On maybe a couple of occasions I saw that method in operation in a couple of churches around a subject like, “How can we make evangelism more effective?” The people were well meaning but I do question the method. What I did notice is that different ideas were given and a list compiled, but to my knowledge nothing ever happened. I thought to myself, “That is the world’s ways. Rather a waste of time. What is God’s way?” You might add to what I say, but I think God’s way all comes down to being led by the Holy Spirit, waiting on God, praying, and searching the scriptures to determine what is God’s will.
Pastors, above all things preach your heart out to ensure the people before you know the gospel and are converted through the conviction of the Holy Spirit. When you have a converted church with people that have a desire to follow the Lord and not to engage in Sunday playacting, then you have a congregation that would resist the intrusion of the world in the churches.
This is one reason why my heart lies with the Christians of Africa and parts of India and the house churches of China and the Middle East and any other oppressed peoples. These people are genuine, unfettered from denominational ties, just groups of Christians in small meetings honouring the Lord. I really love that. That is what is genuine in our faith. These people often meet simply as the early Christians did. Many of the problems I have been outlining here are not relevant to them as they are single minded. May the Lord bless and prosper these people. They are a fine example to us.
Some of the Christians in the affluent, lukewarm, uncommitted world need to read publications that come from such organisations like The Barnabas Fund and Voice of the Martyrs and FEBC Radio. It might open some eyes. Our congregations need to be taught carefully about compromise and the sharp distinction between the world and the fellowship of God’s people. Keep the world out of the churches.
[F.4]. UNSAVED PEOPLE IN LEADERSHIP ROLES. APPLY DICTATES OF THE WORLD
In some places and denominations ministers are assigned to parishes and circuits, etc. but not choosing to go there, unlike the Baptists that have a calling system. Consider this scenario for a moment. A rather young minister relatively on fire for the Lord, is sent to a certain church and when he gets there he finds that a number of church positions, eg. Secretary, a couple on the Church Board and some others are social “christians” who are not saved. After the initial shock, what is he to do – not forgetting sincere prayer of course?
He can’t ask these people to step down because the social membership would not allow it or would not approve it. He has unsaved people in leadership. It is a dilemma that is most daunting but he must not compromise any biblical standard. This is where great wisdom from God is needed. What would you do?
I have my own ideas but just briefly, I would say that he must engage the community and preach the gospel for all he is worth seeking the salvation of souls. Maybe he has to sidestep the church idea for a bit and engage the people in personal work to win them to Christ.
That was one situation. The same principle applies in bigger churches where you know there are unsaved in leadership. I think you must speak to them about their commitment and salvation. You don’t want to chase them away but you can’t leave that position stand especially if it is an elders group or Committee or Board. It is rather useless to speculate on an unknown case but if the church contains saved and unsaved, and the unsaved want to have some control then already you have tension and potential conflict in that church.
Dealing with people on paper is very easy. In real life it is one of the most difficult things to do. Some can be stubborn and very problematic. I remember being on a Diaconate as Secretary once a long time ago and one man there was very difficult. He was described to me as a contra-suggestive and I think that was so. He caused conflict in the Diaconate, and once he said in summing up something he was saying, “I am a socialist.” That was the problem because most socialists are humanists. I did not know how to handle that situation being fairly young (now I do) but it was a real tension in that church, more so in the diaconate.
People in a church who are unsaved and aim for leadership roles will work according to the principles of the world and even bring worldly ideas into a church. Refer to an earlier section of compromising with the world.
