Proposing Judges

**Malohaut** · April 25th, 2005, 08:34 AM

Peace be with you. I say again, peace. Let there be no animosity between us my friends. If there is any hurt or anger or issues, we should deal with them and not leave them be. For undealt issues will become a thorn and a wedge between us. I wish to recommend we assign a judge or a couple of judges for our guild for the purpose of arbitration. Let them be godly, trustworthy judges. And whatever decision the judge comes to, both parties should accept with no, hear me, with NO resentment or anger. If you have an issue with your brother, and a judge rules in your brother's favor, listen to the judge and accept what was said with your heart, that there may be no anger or hatred in your heart.

So I propose 2 things for our guild.

1st, as I mentioned above, vote in judges for arbitration.

2nd, adopt a conflict clause according to the bible.

Suggested clause:

Matthew 18: 15-17 "If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over. But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’ If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector."

When conflicts arise, first, cool down and take some time to let your emotions settle and your mind clear. Then, approach your brother or sister whom you find offense or have been offended. Try to talk to them privately. If nothing can be resolved, then ask for the help of two or three close friends, friends that you both trust. If, with their help and advice, nothing can be resolved, then bring the issue before a judge. Whatever judgement is made, respect, honor, and adhere to.

And if you feel a judge is judging in a non-scriptural way, they can be appealed, that judge brought before the fellowship, and then himself judged and voted. That way, there is protection against unfair or corrupt judges.

As for those who may quote, "Judge not lest ye be judged." in protest of assigning judges, I say not to worry. God doesn't want us to judge and condemn each other, for condemnation is for the Lord. " 'Vengence is Mine' says the Lord." But judges used for arbitration is a God-made establishment as given help the israelites before they sinfully sought kings. God said to respect the authority appointed. And that means those appointed will have greater accountability before the Lord. But those appointed should also trust the Lord and let the Spirit guide him or her into righteous arbitration.

So first, I propose these things. If it is agreed upon, with your permission, I will setup a vote to implement this idea. If it is voted in, then we nominate one judge and vote for that one judge. Should there be a need for more, we can always vote for more.

So what do you think?

**Icthus** · April 25th, 2005, 11:27 AM

I have been out of the loop.

Are we having issues that a judge is needed or are you suggesting we should be prepared?

**Avesther** · April 25th, 2005, 11:44 AM

I am looking into this idea, what the need is and implementation if required.

**Bowser** · April 25th, 2005, 03:18 PM

btw - being angry is not at all a bad thing. Jesus was angry many times, and with good reason. I don't think we should go around always being polite and in-turn lying to each other, but we should indeed not resort to hatred. Just my thoughts

**LITSAFALDA** · April 25th, 2005, 08:04 PM

Hmmm ken most of us are just telling it like it is or letting bowser or godspeon deal with it with a post etc addressing the problems. I tend to try to love people too much even when they hurt me including real life. ( Just this morn my boss was not too nice.)
Just my opinion. Blessings,"Angel"

**Malohaut** · April 25th, 2005, 09:43 PM

People will get angry. This is true. And there is such a thing as righteous anger. But not one of us is perfect, and sometimes we will do things to hurt each other. Sometimes we will do them out of anger, and sometimes we will hurt each other without knowing about it. Conflicts always arise in churches and in bodies of Christ. Conflicts are Satan's tool to bring division and strife to the body, so that it will stop functioning. God knows this, and that is why the bible gives advice about such conflicts. Leave your sacrifice at the alter and be reconciled to your brother. If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. I say to you, forgive your brother, seventy times seven. Look at the first church. They were not without conflict, and they were just a generation away from Christ, and still, they needed advice and correction from Paul and John and James and the like to help put an end to conflicts and bring peace before division tore apart the church.

I'm recommending a judge for such cases, to help deal with issues and to be there to help with problems so that they do not get out of hand and cause hatred between themselves and the offending party, or to get discouraged and leave. Churches are dying daily, many due to such conflicts left unchecked. I just want to remind you to try and be reconciled to each other. And if that doesn't work and there is still pain, don't let it go. Keep trying to find a way to resolve the matter. And a judge would be the best thing for that. And if a person is not willing to listen to the body or the judge, then that person would be a danger to the body of Christ and could cause future strife. This is very scriptural in trying to keep people who claim to be Christian from infiltrating and destroying the churches; but is also a scriptural way to bring love and forgiveness and resolution to our sinful and unintentional mistakes.

Now bear in mind, I am calling nobody here a wolf. I am calling nobody here a Judas. I'm only saying that if you truly want this to be a fellowship in Christ, and you truly want this to be Christ's body, then there needs to be a defense system put in to help bring peace to conflicts and help weed out the weeds sent by Satan. It is something for our future, and something I highly recommend. But it is only a recommendation. For some of you, its just a game, and just something to go in and play and fellowship. That is fine. For others, its a guild and a very close body of Christ. That is also fine. Whatever the majority decides, I will respect and adhear to. And if you find the idea of a 'judge' to be silly and not worth considering, then I will respect that and drop the issue. I just wanted to try and clarify my case and what I see is a need. Pray on it and seek the Lord's wisdom on this.

**LionOfJudah** · April 26th, 2005, 12:02 AM

i disagree Bowser, Jesus was very rarely angry, infact i can only recall once when he was really angry (cleansing of the temple). truthfully how often are you angry and burning with the things that angers God, just something to think about that i was challenged to when i made that statement.

**Bowser** · April 26th, 2005, 01:18 AM

Originally Posted by LionOfJudah

i disagree Bowser, Jesus was very rarely angry, infact i can only recall once when he was really angry (cleansing of the temple). truthfully how often are you angry and burning with the things that angers God, just something to think about that i was challenged to when i made that statement.

I'm typically not an angry individual.

There is a difference between a 'righteous anger', as was brought up above, and a 'foolish anger'. I don't believe that Jesus was ever foolishly angry, and we shouldn't be that way either; which is why we should always keep our attitudes in check.

Having a temper and throwing a fit because you can't have your way can be a bad thing, but being rightly angered and upset by some of what your friends do and then rebuking them, perhaps because they have sinned, is certainly not wrong.

All in all, our every decision and action should be backed by prayerful thoughts and choices.

And...I take back my statement about Jesus being angry 'many' times. There were a few times he got onto his disciples because of their lacking to understand, and of course he was noticeably angry when he entered the temple. So, he was probably angry a handful of times rather than many, as I had said before, lol.

**Plankeye** · April 26th, 2005, 10:21 AM

Jesus = God. So Jesus was angry more then once. The old testiment speaks to this on several occasions. But that is what you get with a jealous God.

**Odale** · April 26th, 2005, 06:24 PM

Originally Posted by Bowser

Having a temper and throwing a fit because you can't have your way can be a bad thing, but being rightly angered and upset by some of what your friends do and then rebuking them, perhaps because they have sinned, is certainly not wrong.

No one should ever pitch a fit because they cannot have their way. We should always put others before ourselves, Always.