2 Corinthians 5:18-20

“All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation: that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men’s sins against them. And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation. NIV

Resolving conflict is not one of my favorite parts of ministry but is a necessary part if we want to keep order and peace among the brethren. If a person comes to me about another person the bible says that they are to go to that person one on one first. So I usually will send them back to the other person to talk to them in hope that they can work things out on their own. If that doesn’t happen and both parties are at odds with each other, then as a leader our responsibility is to step in as a mediator.

People say that listening is an art form, that not anyone can do it or that it takes a “special” person to be a good listener. Although I will say that some people are better at listening than others I disagree that it is a gift.

I believe everyone has the ability to listen if they wanted to; even Jesus speaks it many times to the churches that “All who have an ear let him hear what the spirit is saying.” Well, we all have ears and that was Jesus point. He gave us two ears and one mouth .and that alone should tell us something.

The Samaritan woman had discoursed with Jesus about her life. This portion of Scripture begins with discernment, “Sir I see that You are a prophet.” That was worship and reverence. Worship is recognizing Who God is and what he represents.

She then added, “Our fathers worshipped (past tense) on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place we must worship (present tense) is in Jerusalem.” The Samaritans had a past experience of worship and it was mountain worship. It was not the true worship because it was based on past tradition. The Jews on the other hand had a present experience of worship- in Jerusalem. It was the center of worship- the dwelling place of God.

The Samaritan woman had discoursed with Jesus about her life. This portion of Scripture begins with discernment, “Sir I see that You are a prophet.” That was worship and reverence. Worship is recognizing Who God is and what he represents.

She then added, “Our fathers worshipped (past tense) on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place we must worship (present tense) is in Jerusalem.” The Samaritans had a past experience of worship and it was mountain worship. It was not the true worship because it was based on past tradition. The Jews on the other hand had a present experience of worship- in Jerusalem. It was the center of worship- the dwelling place of God.