Christians in Conflict: Q&A with the Apostle Paul about Christian Conflicts.
1 Corinthians 6:1-8 (5/16/2021) Pastor Joel Dover
Christians in Conflict
Q&A with the Apostle Paul about Christian Conflicts
1 Corinthians 6:1-8
Getting Started:
1. Let’s begin by re-reading 1 Corinthians 6:1-8 and refresh our memories about
this week’s focal text. Take your time and really let the text sink in.
2. Did you learn anything new from this week’s message that you want to share with
the group? How were you challenged? What one thing really stood out to you?
3. Was there anything that you heartily agreed or disagreed with in this week’s
sermon...and why?
Exploring the Text:
1. This week we learned that there were Believers in the Corinthian Fellowship who
were suing one another over earthly disputes. Let’s discuss how this kind of
church dynamic could impact health/unhealth among the Body as a whole...and
the witness of Jesus in the community. How does dysfunction in the Body of
Christ impact our witness in the greater community?
2. Let’s take a look at these supplemental scriptures and see how the Lord might
add to what we learned this week. How do these scriptures inform
lawsuits...even general conflict...among Christians?
a. Leviticus 19:17-18
b. Matthew 5:43-45
c. Matthew 22:36-40
d. Galatians 5:13-15
3. How does a lack of forgiveness when others wrong us lead to spiritual defeat and
failure. How is a desire to make someone else pay for their sins against us the
antithesis of the gospel message? Hint: Remember terms like mercy, grace,
reconciliation, forgiveness, and repentance.
Christians in Conflict: Q&A with the Apostle Paul about Christian Conflicts.
1 Corinthians 6:1-8 (5/16/2021) Pastor Joel Dover
4. If we have conflict with another believer, how does Matthew 18:15-20 instruct us
to begin handling the issue? Where does suing our brother fall into God’s plan
for reconciliation when one Christian sins against another?
5. What if I have already forgiven another Christian several times before? Am I
required to forgive them again when they wrong me? Hint: Matthew 18:21-35.
Digging Deeper:
1. The Bible teaches Christians to accept being wronged without retaliation, when
our first instinct is often to lash back. Let’s look at a few additional scriptures to
unpack this idea further.
a. Proverbs 25:21-22
b. Romans 12:14-21
c. Matthew 5:38-45
2. Paul closed this discussion with the Corinthian Fellowship by noting their failures.
We know the opposite of failure is success. Let’s close this week by reiterating
the paths to failure in handling conflict among Christians...and also the path of
success.
