Jesus is Lord of the members of His church, meaning that what believers say and do and how we treat one another in the body of Christ reflects upon His name. When we have divisions, factions, quarrels, and strife among us, we dishonor the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

At the outset, we should recognize that conflict in the church is unavoidable. No church has ever existed where there were not conflicts among its members. Sometimes we may have the wrong idea that a good church is a one without any problems, but the only churches without any problems are those without any people. Conflict certainly occurs in the church, and in 1 Corinthians 1:10-17, Paul explains why conflict happens in the church and what to do about it.

Christians should not be overwhelmed by the inevitability of conflict in the church, nor should they be disillusioned by its existence. Rather, they should expect conflict. This is why a sizable portion of Paul’s letter to the Corinthians is taken up in addressing church conflict—25% of the letter!

I emphasize this point because it is easy for newer believers to become discouraged when they first encounter church conflict. Many have the idea that all will be peaceful and there will be no substantive disagreements when they step foot into a solid church. However, it doesn’t take long before these people realize that their idealistic view of the church does not match the reality. When that crossroads appears, it is tempting to become cynical; or if the conflict or criticism was directed at them, to become embittered or deeply hurt.

One way to protect ourselves against such cynicism and bitterness is to recognize that we will encounter conflict in the church; we will be sinned against; we will run up against people who differ from us, and there will be disagreements. As sinners within the church, we sin, and our sin is sometimes directed toward other people (knowingly or unknowingly), creating conflict. Since we cannot avoid church conflict, we need to know how to handle it biblically in order to resolve it in a way that honors Christ and preserves the unity of His body. That is exactly what Paul gives us in this passage: the cure for church conflict.

Before we jump into the solution, we should first highlight the importance of resolving conflict in the church and preserving the unity of the body of Christ.

The Corinthian church was riddled with many problems—one we would be hesitant to attend, let alone join as members, given the seriousness and extensiveness of their issues.

• They had someone in the church who was practicing sexual immorality and having sexual relationships with his stepmother;
• They had some members who were visiting prostitutes;
• They had members in the church actively involved in lawsuits against each other;
• They had problems with divorce and remarriage;
• They had members living with no love or care for other members of the church;
• They had members participating, perhaps unwittingly, in demonic worship;
• Their worship service was marked by disorder and partiality;
• Some in the church were saying there was no such thing as the resurrection from the dead;
• Some members of the church were being rebellious against its leadership.

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