Dealing With Conflict

Don’t be selfish…  Be humble….  Don’t think only about your own affairs, be interested in others too, and what they are doing.  Your attitude should be the same that Christ Jesus had.  Though He was God, He did not demand and cling to His rights.”  Phil. 2:3-6

Three things jump out at us from this passage of Scripture. The first of which is Selfishness. It is my way or the high way. Folks that do not get their way by bullying, try to get their way by manipulations. It is still selfishness. The second thing we see there is Pride. God says be humble because when we act in pride, we tend to be demanding and unsympathetic.

When we act in pride, we hold grudges and keep scores. That was what you did November 5^th, 1982 at five o clock. You did it again in 2012. When we act out of pride, we refuse to admit mistakes. Do you know anybody that has done wrong and instead of just saying sorry and apologizing sincerely, they try to confuse the situation or justify it? Have you heard people say things like I was under pressure that is why I did it? Or the very popular one is I was angry that was why I did it. What you are saying in essence is when you get angry, self-control goes out of the window. You are just proud. Saying sorry won’t kill you.

Humility is not thinking less of yourself. I need to correct this for a lot of people. Humility is not thinking that you are no good, you are always wrong and the other person is always right.  That is not humility; that is false humility and that is not what the Bible is saying. Humility is not thinking less of your self. You are who God says you are. Humility is thinking less about yourself and more about the other people. Huge difference! When you think less of yourself you are tampering with what you should not tamper with which is your worth in God. You should not tamper with that.

You are who God says you are, so stand tall. But think less about yourself. The third thing we see there is Rights. The world teaches us to stand up for our rights. While it is good to be the voice of the voiceless on a social scale,  on a personal scale, that is not how we should live as Christians. When you became a Christian, you gave your rights to God. You do not have rights anymore. Why would Jesus say if they slap you on one cheek, turn the other cheek? It is because you do not have rights.

Prayer: Lord, help me to respond in my relationships in light of You, in Jesus Name.