Church in Conflict

As for most Christians in discussions with non-Christians, I get occasions to discuss the gospel with my unconvinced friends. Often I find them saying to me that, "Religion is the cause of all wars". This is normally a verbal palm-off to avoid Christianity. But look at a large number of conflicts and you will find that at the centre there are religious tensions. Their assertion seems justified.

I have found this puts me on the defensive. I usually attempt to show that in fact the common factor in confict is (wait for it) human beings. In fact it is the corrupt human heart that is at the centre of human conflict. This thesis also accounts for the political, ideological and tribal/ethnic conflict that also exists. This is all true. But I have also found that my friend is unconvinced. Perhaps my approach has been too simplistic.

Recently, it has occurred to me that I must not forget an essential fact of history: God is building his church. At the very centre of the story of man is the fact that the church is being prepared purified as the Bride of Christ. The preparation work is not done without opposition. In fact the church becomes the locus of conflict.

This is no abstract tidy thought. The conflict is not limited to the some abstract "spiritual realm" but intrudes on real life. Therefore is it any surprise that, wherever the church is, at times history erupts in tension and real physical conflict?

Perhaps with my friends, rather than seeking to play down the role of war in the church’s history as an embarrassing side effect, I must use it as evidence that the church is of vital significance in history.