What comes to mind when you hear the word "conflict?" Anger? Fear? Anxiety? A person’s name or face? A memory of a past event or a word spoken that you want to forget but can’t?
Some of us fear conflict, like the grass in the African proverb, “when bull elephants fight, the grass always loses.”
Others of us dread conflict much like opening the proverbial can of worms without knowing how to get them back in.
Others of us, however, seem to deal with it quite well like the Pastor who solved the squabbles between two members of the pastoral staff by telling them to “step into the hallway and hash it out. If you cannot reach an agreement in fifteen minutes, I’ll have to let one of you go.” In five minutes they were back. Both were smiling.
What is conflict? The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines conflict as a “clash between hostile or opposing elements, ideas, or forces.” It used as both a noun and a verb.
Conflicts contain disagreements, issues, arguments, disputes, and quarrels. In fact, those are words that describe conflicts.
Conflict is a part of life; it is a part of human history. A study reported in the Canadian Army Journal regarding the frequency of human conflicts came up with this interesting statistic – since 3600 B.C. the world has only known 292 years of peace. During this period there have been 14,531 wars, large and small, in which 3,640,000,000 people have been killed.
Conflict is a continuous reality of life that we cannot escape. But, what can we do with conflict? Scripture has much to say about conflict and we will be looking at a significant passage that is filled with conflict. But according to Peacemaker Ministries, a wonderful Christian ministry that provides training and consulting in conflict resolution, there are three main ways of dealing with conflict.
The first option is escape or “peace faking” as they call it. The second option is attack that they call “peace breaking.” The third option is conciliation or “peace making.” This morning I want us to keep these three categories in mind as I share with you this thought: The salvation that Jesus Christ has made possible for us came through conflict resolution.
Our main text for today is Matthew 26 because it describes several conflicts and the resolutions to those conflicts that occur during this tense and tumultuous period of time in which the Son of God both experienced and walked through deep conflict to finally resolve the largest conflict there is: between humankind and God. I will not be reading the entire chapter but referring only to sections of it as we go along.
As we begin at verse 1, we have to go only a short distance to discover conflict resolution at work. As we read in verse 3, there is a meeting of the leading priests and other leaders at Caiaphas’ home. Caiaphas was the high priest who, as we recall in Exodus and Leviticus and other places in the Old Testament, was the only one who could enter the tabernacle and offer the sacrifices of the people to God.
But, Caiaphas and others were not talking about the Passover celebration. They were plotting how to get rid of Jesus! They had enough of Him. They wanted to get rid of Him. Why? They did not believe He was the Messiah! They were also jealous of Him!
John makes an interesting comment in his gospel account. We read in chapter 12 and verse 19 these words, “Then the Pharisees said to each other, “We’ve lost. Look the whole world has gone after him!” They are observing the reaction of the crowd as Jesus enters Jerusalem on what we now call “Palm Sunday.”
This observation causes conflict within them. Jealousy sets in. They are crushed because someone else is getting all of the attention. But, just a few days later, Matthew lets us know they are plotting their comeback. They are not going to lose to some upstart from Nazareth! They are not going to lose to someone who others believe is the long-awaited Messiah! They are going to get rid of Jesus!
They are engaging in conflict resolution. Actually it is murder! But, murder is as one way of resolving conflict. Though I do not recommend it!
But, they are not the only ones who are dealing with conflict and conflict resolution. A few miles away in Bethany the disciples are dealing with a situation as we read in verses 6 through 10. An expensive jar of perfume is poured over Jesus’ head and the disciples are very perturbed about how it was used and they complain, their method of conflict resolution, to Jesus about it.
So here we are only into verse 13 of Matthew 26 and there is plenty of conflict to go around. But, there’s more as we continue.
In fact, the two different scenes are linked by the actions of one man - Judas Iscariot - as we read in verses 14 through 16. Something happens within Judas that makes him go to Jesus’ chief antagonists and provide them with the opportunity they are looking for.
Why did Judas do this? Well the scriptures make it clear that the Messiah would be betrayed. Judas was the one who did it. And Luke states in the 22nd chapter of his account that "Satan entered into Judas Iscariot." What does that mean?
Can you recall a time in your own life or in the life of someone you know that at a certain point you or they started doing things that you or they looked back at and thought, "What in the world was I thinking?" It was as if you were possessed. As if you were under the influence of something.
I would suggest that something did possess you. Something brought you under its influence - evil. Evil possesses us in the form of jealousy, resentment, anger, rage, lust or fear. I also suggest this idea not to minimize or deny the reality of evil or Satan but to suggest that the same thing happened to Judas for as we read in Matthew 27:3 "When Judas, who had betrayed him, realized that Jesus had been condemned to die, he was filled with remorse."
Judas experienced some very deep internal conflict that had to do with expectations about Jesus and His work. Over the centuries some scholars have suggested that Judas had a great deal of political hope pinned on Jesus and when he realized that they would not be fulfilled he turned against Jesus. Judas resolved this conflict through betrayal. But, he also resolved his inner conflict through suicide. Something that I also do not recommend.
As we continue to move through Matthew 26 we notice conflict arising during the Last Supper as Jesus’ words about His betrayal create conflict within the twelve. Jesus is not exempt from conflict either. As we read in verses 36 through 46, He wrestles with what He knows is certain death and the doing of His Father’s will.
As we move into verse 47, internal conflicts and behind the scenes resolution plans become external and the arrest of Jesus takes place with violence involved. Conflict is rampant. It seems to be everywhere. There is no escape.
The arrest and trial of Jesus as we continue to read in both chapters 26 and 27 describe a variety of conflicts that are all resolved by a variety of means: In 26:56 flight is the means of conflict resolution by the disciples. In 26:69-75, Peter uses denial to resolve the conflict within himself out of fear of death as well. In 27:11 - 26 Pilate is not exempt from conflict resolution as he washes his hands of this arrest and trial and gives in to the Jewish demands to crucify Jesus.
I have never looked at this very important time in human history in this manner. Conflict is everywhere, there is no means of escaping it and various means of conflict resolution take place from the violent act of the crucifixion to the tragic death of Judas. Why? It is because good and evil were locked in mortal combat.
God, through Christ, was taking the final steps of reconciliation with humanity and Satan and His forces were fighting back. For God to be successful He had to resolve the conflict with humanity as well as within humanity.
And it was only by death on the cross that Jesus Christ made it possible for the conflict between humanity and God to be resolved once and for all. And as each person seeks forgiveness, a method by the way of conflict resolution, we are also have the means to resolve our conflicts within ourselves and with others the right way because of what Christ has done for us. I say we have the means, because we have to choose to use those means to correctly resolve our conflicts.
The book of James is a book that is blunt. It speaks of a faith that is expressed in action day in and day out. And in the fourth chapter of this blunt book we read these words: “What is causing the quarrels and fights among you? Isn’t it the whole army of evil desires at war within you? You want what you don’t have, so you scheme and kill to get it. You are jealous for what others have, and you can’t possess it, so you fight and quarrel to take it away from them. And the yet the reason you don’t have what you want is that you don’t’ ask God for it. And even when you do ask, you don’t get it because your whole motive is wrong-you want only what will give you pleasure.”
Evil is ugly. Evil is terrible. Conflict is rooted, as James says bluntly, in our evil desires. At its core though, evil is self-centeredness. I want my way when I want it and how I want it and don’t you dare get in my way! And conflict abounds like the fires out west.
Let me say this again, the salvation that Jesus Christ has made possible for us came through conflict resolution. And let me add, because it did so, it is the only true basis for conflict resolution because the basis of conflict is self-centeredness.
Jesus became our perfect high priest. He replaced all the Caiaphas’ who have ever lived. And because He is our perfect high priest, He “understands our weaknesses, for he faced the same temptations we do, yet he did not sin,” as we read in Hebrews 4:15.
Jesus did not practice peace faking. He did not run from the conflict of His arrest, crucifixion, and death. Nor did He practice peace breaking by calling down the legions of heaven to rescue Him or by using murder to stop His accusers.
Jesus practiced peace making as He reconciled the world to Himself. And that is our calling as well as Paul reminds us in 2 Corinthians.
As we partake of communion this morning, as we recall Jesus’ peace making between God the Father and us, I ask you this question, “Are we a peace fakers, who runs from conflict and denies there is a problem? Or a peace breakers who turn to verbal or physical attacks to get your way? Or a peace makers who chooses to go the hard way and seeks reconciliation as the only way out of conflict?
As followers of Christ, there is only one right answer. Will it be ours?
