A minister friend of mine from Southwest Virginia was describing a disturbing conflict in the church he served. His problem was something he called “the cedar tree board.” It seems that the church board would meet and discuss the issues facing the congregation and come to decisions regarding a plan of action. Consensus would be reached and plans would be made to deal with the issue.
However, there were two elders who had effectively seized control, and because they had been in power so long, no one was willing to stand up to them. When the meetings adjourned, these two elders would meander outside to the front lawn of the church and pause beneath a cedar tree on the way to their cars. There they would discuss the meeting they just left, and often they would come to an agreement between them to negate the decisions made and reverse the outcome of the meeting. Hence, “the cedar tree board.” It was common knowledge that the decisions of the cedar tree board superseded the outcome of any other body.
When Disagreement Becomes Conflict
Disagreement can be healthy. It causes us to reevaluate and either solidify our positions based on further study or change our position in light of new information. The two members of the cedar tree board were a lot like Peter. They advocated one thing, but then by their actions they revealed something quite different. The word hypocrite is from a Greek word meaning “a stage actor.” Disagreement between Peter and Paul was not the problem. It was Peter’s hypocrisy that caused the damaging conflict.
Walking Your Talk
We must make our behavior match what we say. It’s much easier to conform our actions to popular culture, but that’s not the way of the cross. When what we say doesn’t match what we do, even the people we are trying to placate discount us as fakes and eventually see through our charade. God sees through it immediately. Consistency and transparency are the goals we must pursue to avoid conflict in the community. |L
Walker Gaulding is the senior minister at the Rappahannock Church of Christ in Warsaw, Virginia. He and his wife Mary Bob have three daughters: Kylie, Spencer, and Olivia.
