Introduction:
1. Satan wants to divide people and make enemies. Jesus wants to unite people and make _______________.
2. Christians should not be slaves to anger and resentment as many others are.
3. Broken relationships serve Satan and hurt the work of Jesus in saving the world.
4. Imperfect humans will always have differences and problems, but Jesus teaches us how to avoid many problems and quickly solve the one that do arise.
A. The greatest cause of conflicts between people is pride and self-centeredness, Matthew 18:1-5.
1. What were Jesus’ disciples arguing about? Mat.18:1 & Lk. 22:24_______
2. If we are always to concerned about who is the greatest, rightist, best, smartest, most loved, has most authority, treated best, ect., will we be likely or less likely to run into conflict with others?
3. According to Jesus, what must we do to “self”, if we are to follow him? Mat. 16:24-25.
4. What did Paul say has happened to the “self” of a Christian?
Rom. 6:6
5. Did Jesus, our example, insist on His rights, or did He voluntarily lay them down? Phil. 2:5-8
6. Should my main aim be to please myself, or to be redemptive toward others as Jesus was? Romans 15:1-3
7.
If we “bear crosses” and “lose” our lives (or rights)
to make it better for others, what will we find? Mat,
8. What is the guidline for all our relationships? Eph. 5:21
_______________
a. Is this the way the world thinks? ______________
b. Are Christians different? ____________________________
B. We cannot afford
the cost of broken relationships. Mat.
18:6
1. How bad is it for a person to be the cause orf offense or sin in another person’s life? Mat. 18:6-7
__________________________________________
2. If I have done wrong to another and have not cleared up the matter or made it right, what does Jesus say about my worship? Mat. 5:23-24 ____________
3. If a wronged person will not forgive, can he receive the grace and forgiveness of God? Mat. 6:14-15 _______________________________________
4. When a person is filled with resentment and bitterness, how do you think it affects his emotional climate of his family or church?______________________
5. What is necessary before outsiders can believe in Christ and be saved? John 17:20-21
_____________________________________________
6. If our fights and divisions disgust outsiders so that they fail to believe in Christ, who will be partly blamed for the loss of their souls on the day of judgment. ______________________________________
C. Because conflicts
with others can threaten our own salvation and that of others, we must
determine the things that offend and take them away.
Mat. 18:7-14
___________________________________
1. When we look for the causes of trouble between ourselves and another person, where does Jesus tell us to start? Mat. 7:1-5
_____________________________
a. It will help to study and list the things in you that upset the other person.
b. Are you reacting too strongly to ordinary faults within the other person? In an imperfect world people are not going to stop things that offend us. Much of the solution has to be in controlling our reaction to the wrongs. How does love react? 1 Cor. 13:4-7 ______________________________________
2. We should be willing to gibe up things that cause sin and conflict as we
would be to give up a ________________or____________ or _________
Mat. 18:8-9
3. A Christian should even be willing to be _____________________rather
than prolong an ugly conflict. 1 Cor. 6:7; Mat. 5:39-41
3. If something I enjoy causes spiritual problems for another, what should I
be willing to do? ________________________________________________
Romans 14:13; 15; 19;21.
D. Jesus has given us
a way to clear up conflicts and deal with wrongs.
Mat. 18:15-20 and Mat. 5:23-24
1.What are the three steps Jesus gives for dealing with a person who has done wrong to you? Mat. 18:15-17 ____________________________
a. What then is important?________________________________________
2. When one person has wronged
another, does Jesus say which of them should be first to go to the other? Mat.
____________________________________________________
3. With what attitude or spirit should you approach a wrongdoer in order to help him? Gal. 6:1
4. Considering the damage that a lasting conflict does, how
quickly should we try to resolve our conflict with another person? Mat.
______________________________________
E. We must forgive as God forgives Mat. 18:21-35
1. Whose job
is it to pay people back who do wrong?
2. Why does our own salvation depend on us forgiving others? Mat. 6:14-15
___________________________________________________________
3. Who gains an opportunity when we keep anger and resentment in our hearts? Eph. 4:26-27 ___________________________________
4. Who is our example in forgiving others? Luke 23:33-34 _____________
5. Do you think forgiveness is a feeling or a decision? (can a feeling be commanded?)
6. When people mistreat us, instead of paying back evil for evil, we
Christians are to overcome evil with ________________
Many marriages, church fellowships, and working
relationships have been saved and kept together simply because the people
involved valued the relationship enough to do what it took to keep
harmony. Little strains in
relationships, like little tears in a garment, must be mended before they grow
bigger. We must be willing to
communicate or say “sorry” whenever it is needed. We can and must keep our relationships right. Our relationship to God depends on our
relationship to others. Only when Jesus
is Lord of our relationships can our lives be filled with His grace and power.