Preaching About Conflict In The Local Church

Should the pulpit be used as a place to address issues of congressional conflict? After first examining the nature of conflict within human groups, William H. Willimon discusses how to prepare sermons on controversial subjects, suggesting ways to use the biblical text to examine divisive issues. He comments on the importance of style and delivery tone when dealing with difficult topics.

Charles Rodney Free discovered that in California, there were 5,000 churches that had at any given time, passed through a serious controversy between their members and the pastor in the preceding six months (Barnas Survey). The level of tithes and offerings was way down below the previous years. Numbers of pastors were dismissed. Almost none of the pastors had ever had any training in the management of conflict in the local church. Bishop Free offers you his know-how on managing conflict in the local church. Learn now how to protect your ministry and your future.

The Mastering Ministry Series covers the various challenges of a ministry encounters and teaches how to deal with them-one subject at a time. Mastering Ministry is a perfect "survival guide" for today's pastor addressing relevant topics such as worship, preaching, controversies, evangelism, church management, pastoral care, fundraising and personal growth.

There are several other books on the topic of conflict in the local congregation. They all make their contribution towards solutions to this problem. However, this brief work zeros in on specific happenings, how they affected the congregation and/or the minister, and are then followed by a denouement of each case. This book also suggests that in many cases there are practical remedies that from experience can be shown to work. Also included in this writing there are some general suggestions on how to approach the overall problem of such conflict in any church in which it may occur. As stated in the book, people are people. And as long as there are people there will be problems. But informed and fair handling can nearly always bring remedy or improvement. Even declaring a type of conflict unresolvable, and one party or the other walking away from it, is an improvement over continuous quarreling. Names of people and places are not used out of respect for the privacy of all concerned. About the Author The author, Cleon Spencer, has had a varied experience with people, both within and outside the church. So with a people oriented mindset, he seeks, in this his third book, to bring his experiences to a unique focus on trouble spots that frequently exist in the administration area of a local church. Hopefully the author's descriptions of these troubles will help bring about understanding of them, which in turn will make the troubles more treatable. This being so, the local church thus treated, will be more likely to go on to become a successful congregation; which is the goal and purpose of the book. It is the author's sincere desire that this book will be effective in the above stated manner.

The Folly of Preaching contains a wealth of theoretical and practical insights into preaching from some of today's best-known preachers, scholars, and homiletics teachers. Many of these contributions derive their inspiration from Paul's letters to the church at Corinth, in which the apostle vigorously defends both the message of the gospel and his own manner of proclaiming it. Several of the twelve exemplary sermons rounding out The Folly of Preaching continue reflecting on the key theme of grace amid weakness and need, expounding passages from Paul's Corinthian correspondence. Of all the current preaching books available, few come close to the compilation here of eminent figures in contemporary preaching. Contributors: Elizabeth R. Achtemeier Charles G. Adams Donna E. Allen John L. Bell David G. Buttrick Tony Campolo Stephen C. Farris John N. Gladstone Edwina Hunter Michael P. Knowles Cleophus J. LaRue Thomas G. Long Martin E. Marty Haddon W. Robinson John R. W. Stott Diane McLellan Walker

The book is organized into three divisions, and as the title implies, there is a brief letter in the form of a New Testament epistle to the contemporary church, a portion of which begins each chapter. The first division reexamines the gifts and redemptive possibilities of anger and conflict. The barriers to healthy anger-conflict are considered and addressed. In the second, attention is given to conflicts surrounding the Bible. There is a chapter on conflict and reconciliation in the Bible, followed by suggestions on how people who read the Bible differently from each other can resolve some of those differences. Consideration is also given to discovering biblical priorities for the contemporary church. The third division offers "vistas of change and reconciliation." Parables of hope and promise are provided. Insights from the studies of persons and communities as well as ethics and theology are summarized. There is reflection on those unresolved conflicts that continue in spite of our best efforts. Then moral imagination is engaged to visualize the opportunities for a church that moves beyond its present stalemates.

Every day, a pastor faces armies of despair, fatigue, exhaustion, and frustration. That blessed hope of a Spurgeon church has morphed into a Paul prison. Every time he looks up, there is another attack. First errors are found, then sin; doctrinal arguing leads to internal strife. The army of the nation’s culture surrounds for the kill. The pastor places his baptism handkerchief on a broom handle and crawls out to surrender. Just then, he looks to the horizon to see a glorious alliance of sixty-six armies. The enemy turns in fear—many ride away, while others engage, only to be routed. The preacher had forgotten that there are more with us than against us. No matter the mess, God is with us. He has given his Spirit to move among us, and he has given us his word to defeat every attack. Grab this handbook and be encouraged; you can preach your way out of every mess.