Restoring Broken Relationships

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	11 Corinthians -  18And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation. Reconciliation - the ending of conflict or renewing of a friendly relationship between disputing people[1]  BY the Blood of Jesus and our acceptance of it through repentance has ended the conflict that we as sinners had with our heavenly Father.  We have been reconciled to our Father through Jesus Christ. Our message is drawn from II Corinthians 5:18 – Restoring Broken Relationship. The Lord has given his people the ministry of restoring broken relationships. Philippians 2:1-2  If there is therefore any exhortation in Christ, if any consolation of love, if any fellowship of the Spirit, if any tender mercies and compassions,  make full my joy, that ye be of the same mind, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.    Interpretation:  Paul wrote, If you have gotten anything at all out of following Christ, if his love has made any difference in your life, if being in a community of the Spirit means anything to you, agree with each other, love each other, be deep spirited friends.  As Christ has restored us to the Father through spiritual encouragement, mercy, compassion we ought to be able to restore others using the same spiritual ingredients. Our ability to get along with others is a mark of spiritual maturity. Romans 15:5 - Now the God of patience and of comfort grant you to be of the same mind one with another according to Christ Jesus: A person that has a consistent pattern of problems getting along with others is one that has deep-rooted problems, invented issues, and needs the Power of God to be able to release the past and grab hold to a future of Hope/Healing in Christ.  ONE CANNOT BE USED BY GOD TO RESTORE BROKEN RELATIONSHIPS IF THEIR RELATIONSHIP WITH CHRIST IS BROKEN. II COR – God has restored us to Himself through Jesus and given us a ministry of restoring others to himself. Broken fellowship between Christians is a disgraceful testimony to unbelievers John By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. This is why Paul was so embarrassed that the members of the church in were warring with one another and  even taking each other to court.  1 Cor 6:5 I say this to move you to shame. What, cannot there be found among you one wise man who shall be able to decide between his brethren. Paul was shocked that no one in the church was mature enough to resolve the conflict peaceably.  Christians should not take one another to court.  This act is not a witness to unbelievers, even those authorities that rule in the court of law. The church has been established by God to be a spiritual court house where conflicts can be resolved by The counseling power of The Word of God. 1 Corinthians 1:10- And I call upon you, brethren, through the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that the same thing ye may all say, and there may not be divisions among you, and ye may be perfected in the same mind, and in the same judgment, (Youngs literal translation). God desires for his children to be PEACE MAKERS Matthew 5:9 - Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. (To be a peacemaker one must be able to resolve conflicts and have a desire to avoid them also).  Peacemaker are those who work for peace, they make it their ministry.  They actively seek to resolve conflict.  Peacemaking is one of the most important skills that we can develop. Peacemaking is not avoiding conflict.  Avoiding conflict is running from a problem, pretending it does not exist, or being afraid to talk about it.    Peacemaking is not appeasement-Always giving in, acting like a doormat, and allowing others to always run over you is not what Jesus had in mind.  We must also learn to stand ground in the face of evil opposition.  11 Corinthians 5:18 - And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation, 19to wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them, and hath committed unto us the Word of reconciliation.  Not imputing-Not CONDEMING them concerning their evil LIFESTYLE. HOW TO RESTORE A BROKEN FELLOWSHIP Talk to God before talking to the person.  Pray about the conflict rather then gossiping about it to another person. Many conflicts are caused by prayerlessness.  Instead of looking to God, we look to others to make us happy and then get angry whey they fail us.   James 4:1-2  1From whence come wars and fighting’s among you? Do they not come even from your lusts (fleshly passions) that war in your members?2Ye lust, and have not; ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain. Ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. Always take the Initiative/by planning a PEACE conference – It does not matter whether you are the offender or the offended.  God expects for YOU (His Child) to make the first move.  Don’t wait for the other party.  Go to them first.  Restoring broken fellowship is so important.  Matthew 5:23-24-`Perhaps you are bringing your gift to God at his altar. There you remember that your brother has something against you. 24If so, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First, go to your brother and make things right with him. Then come and give your gift to God. Do not Procrastinate, make excuse, or promises.  Delay only deepens resentment and makes matters worse.  In conflict, time heals nothing, it causes hurts to fester.  Acting quickly also reduces the spiritual damage to you.  Unresolved conflict blocks our fellowship with God and keeps our prayers from being answered.  1 Peter 3:7 Husbands, also live with your wife the way you know is right. Respect her because she is a woman. She is not as strong as a man. Also respect her because God has given her, as well as you, the blessing of life. In this way, you will not stop God from doing what you ask him to do.  (Unresolved conflict can hinder the blessings of God). Sympathize with their feelings – Use your ears more than your mouth.  Before attempting to resolve any disagreement you must first listen to people’s feelings.  Philippians 2:4 -Each one of you should not think only about himself, but about other people also.   LOOK OUT FOR – Is the Greek word for skopos, meaning telescope and microscope.  It means pay close attention.  Focus on their feelings, not the facts.  Begin with sympathy, not solutions.    Do not try to talk people out of  how they feel at first.  Just listen and let them unload emotionally without being defensive.    RESENTMENT MAKES US ACT AND THINK IN FOOLISHWAYS.  David admitted, Psalms 73:21-22 When my heart was grieved and my spirit embittered,  22 I was senseless and ignorant; I was a brute beast before you.   Proverbs 19:11- A man's wisdom gives him patience; it is to his glory to overlook an offence. An old saying is, People do not care what we know until they know that we care.  Confess your part of the Conflict – Matthew 7:5 - You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.   Plank –A long piece of wood used to cover things.  Spiritually speaking the Plank has blinded you from seeing your own part in the conflict.  Speck – Very small spot or stain.   The Plank is larger than the speck.   Your part in the conflict was more dramatic than the other persons.  OWN UP TO YOUR PART IN THE CONFLICT-IT MAKES YOU A BIG PERSON. IT IS BETTER TO BE A PLANK OF A PERSON THEN A SPECK OF A PERSON.  Hallelujah.