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Think of an area of conflict in your church or in the church at large today. Dr. Blomberg says that if we focus on the two doctrines of the crucifixion and the resurrection, the issues of Christian behavior will begin to fall into place. Explain how such a focus would affect a resolution of the area of conflict you have identified.
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15 Replies
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A conflict I see in churches today is the division of the body (whole church). With different interpretations of the Bible, churches put down other churches and judge the pastor and those that attend. They make films/videos exposing these differences, too. However, when we focus on the crucified and resurrected Christ–the differences seem meaningless and Christ is on the throne in everyone’s hearts.
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I cannot identify any current conflict that my church is facing. But I find that often conflicts involve an element of personal offence, so that however much we justify it by some “objective” or “doctrinal” basis, there is a sense in which one party is personally offended and refuses to negotiate peaceably nor to forgive; or maybe this hostility is even from both sides.
From this angle, a re-focus on the Cross will help. This helps us to see how much Christ has suffered for us to bring us as one into the family of God, and therefore how much we have grieved the Spirit of Christ in this conflict. It also helps us see that, in contrast to the injustices Christ tolerated, our current grievance is truly petty. This may help both parties to humble themselves and resolve the conflict peaceably.
#Corinthians
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I see an area of conflict that involves the version of Bible that should be used. King James only and nothing else, or some other belief. As long as the version clearly communicates the crucifixion and resurrection and all of the principles that reflect those beliefs, version or translation should be a personal preference. The church should not dictate which version of the Bible is the only correct version. However, we as believers do need to guard against improper or misguided translations that change basic Biblical principles to justify the behavior of the culture.
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The example of Christ’s sacrifice as attornment and then the miraculous resurrection should be the only focus. Not all of the many things that arise and separate churches and people.
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Within the children’s ministry, there are a lot of differing opinions on the best way to teach the children. Instead of letting pride come into play, they could allow God’s work through each individual to teach the children as individuals