Conflict Resolution
(John 14: 23-29)
For a person who desires to get along with most people, who goes out of his way to avoid personal conflict, I’ve made a pretty good living in the art of conflict resolution. As a police officer I would respond to all sorts of calls, many of which involved some sort of conflict from a minor accident to a domestic dispute, all having the potential to go sideways if we didn’t handle it properly. As a prosecutor and a defense attorney there were all sorts of conflicts that needed resolving short of a trial. That usually involved some sort of plea bargain negotiations that came with an agreed upon punishment that might also include an apology and restitution. The most challenging conflict resolution cases were in the area of divorce litigation and settlement. One of the parties is so hurt by what got them to the point of divorce that they either can’t let go or want to inflict a little pain before parting. I remember one allegedly amicable divorce involving two older individuals who had no children in common. They entered into the marriage with their own separate property and after a short while the marriage fell apart when Maryanne discovered Joe’s unfaithfulness. In spite of the fact that they had nine previous marriages between them Maryanne was particularly aggrieved. Nevertheless, opposing counsel and I got it all worked out and appeared before the judge to enter an agreed settlement and decree. The judge was reciting the agreement into the record and to confirm it asked Joe if that was his understanding and if there was anything left out of the agreement. Joe said it sounded good but that he would really like to have the yellow-headed Amazon parrot. I felt Maryanne bristle and it all went sideways after that when Maryanne insisted upon custody of the parrot. Maryanne found something to fight over and was prepared to go to battle over it. Fortunately, Joe was a good sport, knew he had done her wrong, and relented. The judge awarded Maryanne the parrot and I thought all was good until, on the way out of the courthouse, I was chastised for not getting her a birdcage. I’ve retold that story to others as the day the judge gave my client the bird.
And it’s the challenge of conflict resolution that Jesus is talking about in our Scripture reading from John’s gospel for this morning. Jesus knows that his disciples will be faced with some challenges and that they will be called upon to resolve conflicts both internally and externally, and they won’t have the benefit of the training and experience I’ve had.
Jesus is preparing his disciples for his ascension to heaven and has previously told them that he has already prepared a place for them. He has assured them that he is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and that no one comes to the Father but through him. He reminds them that if they know him, they know the Father and have seen him. He tells them that whoever believes in him will do the work he does, and even greater works, and that if they ask for anything in his name, he will do it. He promises that he won’t leave them as orphans and that the Father will send another companion, the Spirit of Truth. And he reassures them that because he lives, they will live also.
Today’s scripture is in response to Judas, not Judas Iscariot, who asked: Lord, why are you about to reveal yourself to us and not to the world? Judas merely asked what the other disciples were wondering. The disciples were still expecting Jesus to establish an earthly kingdom and overthrow Rome, especially in light of his defeating death on the cross, and they found it hard to understand why he did not tell the world at large that he was the Messiah. I think the short answer is that it is up to us to tell the world that Jesus is the Messiah, the one who came to save, and that it is our task to resolve the conflict within our world in his name. Jesus answered: Whoever loves me will keep my word. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them. Whoever doesn’t love me doesn’t keep my words. The word that you hear isn’t mine. It is the word of the Father who sent me. I have spoken these things to you while I am with you. These are very reassuring words and I’m sure they believed them but it’s only natural that they had their doubts, especially when you consider they were firsthand witnesses to what can happen when you speak truth to power.
Knowing what they’re thinking and wanting to reassure them that they won’t be alone in this endeavor, he tells them: The Companion, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything and will remind you of everything I told you. Jesus is promising the disciples that this Holy Spirit would help them remember what he had been teaching them. The disciples were eyewitnesses of Jesus’ life and teachings, and the Holy Spirit would help them remember these teachings, remember the mission, without taking away their individual perspectives, their life experiences and who they were. This promise ensures the validity of the New Testament which records many of the things they subsequently did in Jesus’ name.
To underscore what he has just told his disciples he says: Peace I leave with you. My peace I give you. I give to you not as the world gives. Don’t be troubled or afraid. You have heard me tell you, ‘I’m going away and returning to you.’ If you loved me, you would be happy that I am going to the Father, because the Father is greater than me. I have told you before it happens so that when it happens you will believe. Jesus leaves peace with them, but it is no easy peace as persecution and death are coming. But what he is telling them is that the peace he gives them is a peace which comes from a right relationship with God. A peace that lasts and endures.
And that’s the message for us Christians as we struggle to make sense of all that is going on in the world around us. The Holy Spirit can help us in the same way as the first disciples were helped and guided. The Spirit’s ministry, first and foremost, is to teach and reteach. So, as we study the Bible, we can trust him to plant truth in our minds, convince us of God’s will, and remind us when we stray from it. The end result of the Holy Spirit’s work in our lives is deep and lasting peace. Unlike worldly peace, which is usually defined as the “absence of conflict”, this peace is the confident assurance that God is in control in any circumstance.
Sin, fear, uncertainty, doubt, and numerous other forces are at war within us and all around us and we long for a peaceful resolution of these conflicts. The peace of God moves into our hearts and lives to restrain these hostile forces and offer comfort in place of conflict. With Christ’s peace we have no need to fear the present or the future. All we have to do is willingly accept the peace Christ offers us.
Let us pray.
Gracious and loving Father, how we thank you for your gift of the Holy Spirit who helps us in our conflict resolutions that are best handled through the peace given us by your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. We praise you for the peace within us that flows like a river. We praise you for the abundant joy that springs from us like a fountain. And we praise you for the love we have that is as deep and wide as any ocean. Because of this peace, joy, and love there isn’t anything we can’t face with the calm assurance that you are always present in our lives. We are blessed and in Jesus’ name, we praise you. Amen.
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Conflict Resolution
It’s up to us to tell the world that Jesus is the Messiah, the one who came to save, and that it is our task to resolve the conflicts within our world in his name.