Daily Devotional

In the book of Colossians we read, "But now ye yourselves are to put off all these: anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy language out of your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you have put off the old man with his deeds."

Jesus said that if a brother offends you, you must approach the brother and discuss the fault with him. This is where many fail; because instead of addressing the problem with the brother, everybody knows what happened and the brother is left ashamed and abandoned.

What do you need to do to address disputes? Well, firstly, do not listen to gossip. If somebody wants to talk to you about somebody else, even if it is in confidence, ask yourself, "Is the brother here to defend himself? If not, what does the Bible say I must do?" If you feel that the discussion could cause disunity, stop the person from discussing the issue with you.

When somebody has wronged you, the Word says that you must address it with the person — nobody else. If the brother refuses to listen do not tell others about it. Jesus went on to say, "If he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established." Go to your leader in the church and address the issue through your spiritual leaders.

And then, "If he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector." In other words, if he refuses to listen to anyone, Colossians 3 says, "put on tender mercies, kindness, humility; bearing with one another, and forgiving one another." Continue to pray for that person; pray that God will bring that person to repentance. The Bible says that love conquers all things. In everything we do, even dealing with conflict, one must put on the bowels of love and chastise in love.