The word STRIFE (or "strifes") is mentioned more than 40 times in scripture. STRIFE is defined in the dictionary as a heated and often violent conflict, a bitter dissension involving ANGER, quarreling/arguing, conflict, and/or negative confrontation directed at other people. Variations of the synonym CONTENTION are mentioned an additional 20 times and were often used interchangeably with the word STRIFE by the KJV translators of the biblical texts.

The fallen nature of the human being is to be in STRIFE and it's the Flesh that leads us into it. Indeed, the first example of it in scripture is the murder of Abel by his own brother Cain which was brought on by the latter's ANGER toward both God and Abel (Genesis 4:1-8). When it had become apparent that Cain was ANGRY, God warned him that he must RULE over it or his ANGER would lead him into sin (Genesis 4:7). God's warning shows that Cain had within himself the ability to have chosen not to allow his ANGER to result in sin but he gave into it and made the wrong choice. God's warning also shows that when we allow our ANGER to take us into STRIFE, the Lord indeed considers it to be sin. In other words, Cain's ANGER itself was not the sin but unchecked it led him into the sin of STRIFE. The Holy Spirit is saying the same thing to Believers today: "you are faced with many opportunities to become involved in STRIFE but you must make the choice to overcome your ANGER and avoid sin."

The truth is the ability to be ANGRY has been given by God to each and every human being. God has a positive purpose for ANGER and if it were not so then He Himself would not occasionally manifest WRATH and we know from many scriptures that He has certainly done so in the past. Jesus became ANGRY at the moneychangers in the Temple early in His earthly ministry (John 2:14-16). Believers are created in the image of God; therefore, there's a Godly purpose for ANGER and that purpose is to provide Christians with the ability to resist evil and the enemy. We're supposed to get ANGRY at evil so we'll be led to resist it. The Bible says: "Hate evil, you who love the Lord, who preserves the souls of His godly ones; He delivers them from the hand of the wicked" (Psalm 97:10). It also says: "The fear of the Lord is to hate evil" (Proverbs 81:3); therefore, to HATE evil is the beginning of wisdom (derived from Psalm 111:10). The Hebrew word translated HATE carries the connotation of personally contending with and overcoming an enemy. ANGER is therefore required for the generation of Godly HATRED of evil.

And so, from a biblical standpoint ANGER that's under the RULE of our mind and will (the soul) and is directed against evil and unrighteousness is NOT sin and serves the purposes of God. Indeed, according to Scripture it is applied wisdom. But when ANGER is no longer RULED by the soul and is used for ungodly purposes, it becomes STRIFE and STRIFE is always sin. Instead of resisting the enemy, STRIFE opens the door to him so he can freely enter into your portion of the Kingdom of God to steal, kill and destroy (John 10:10) what God has given you to watch over. Through STRIFE the enemy causes to decrease what God has provided for increase. It brings lack and poverty and sickness and disease. Instead of victory it produces an insidious defeat that most Believers overlook when they're trying to figure out why they're having problems. STRIFE must be recognized for what it is and then resisted at all costs: "drop a contentious issue before STRIFE breaks out" (Proverbs 17:14).

Believers get into STRIFE without giving it much thought. It's around us all the time and we forget we're supposed to be different than people in the World. And, we forget we're supposed to continually exercise our authority and resist the enemy. The Bible says, most clearly in the KJV translation, that contention (STRIFE) comes from PRIDE (Proverbs 13:10). Also, "he that is of a PROUD heart stirs up STRIFE" (Proverbs 28:25). In other words, ANGER taken to an ungodly conclusion is rooted in PRIDE.

Now, many of us have a somewhat limited understanding of what PRIDE really is. We tend to think of it as meaning "arrogance" or the opposite of "humility." Certainly these things are included but the deeper biblical meaning is that PRIDE more accurately equates to self-centeredness, self- consciousness and selfishness. PRIDEFUL people are focused on themselves including the introverted, timid and shy folks who regulate what they do and say by what others will think of them. The prevalence of FALSE humility in the Church today is rooted in PRIDE; if our humbleness is only for the sake of appearances, it's PRIDEFUL. In sum then, STRIFE springs from being self-focused, from putting ourselves ahead of others in importance, from being self-absorbed.

Most people including most Believers blame the actions and words of others or their circumstances for their ungodly ANGER. But Scripture says something different: it says that our ANGER comes from within OURSELVES. Neither people nor circumstances have the power or authority to cause our ANGER. We're not subject to their control. No, it's our own PRIDEFULNESS that's to blame. Cain murdered his brother because he was PRIDEFUL and refused to RULE his ANGER. We still are engaging in STRIFE thousands of years later because we are by nature PRIDEFUL and refuse or neglect to RULE our ANGER.

There are basically three directions in life that STRIFE takes:

1) Strife toward other people - The form of STRIFE we most frequently think of involves our relationships with others. STRIFE is common in the Church even though the Bible says that to sow STRIFE there is an abomination to God (Proverbs 6:19). Rather, the Body of Christ is supposed to exemplify love; in fact, we're to be known by our LOVE for each other so that all men will know we're disciples of Christ (John 13:34-35). To be in STRIFE with other people is sin and violates the following instruction: "Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you" (Ephesians 4:32).

2) Anger at ourselves - One form of STRIFE we tend to overlook is that a lot of Believers are ANGRY at themselves. We see ourselves as failures or as falling short of some self-imposed expectation. We don't like who we are and condemn ourselves for not being more godly, more righteous, more successful, etc. But friend, we have to receive God's love for ourselves so we can love others. If we're ANGRY at ourselves, we'll tend to be ANGRY with others. We have to see ourselves as a person of value because God loves us and that's the way He sees us. The truth is when you were born again, you became a new creature (2 Corinthians 5:17) and nothing you can do or say can change the perfection God sees in you. To be in STRIFE with yourself is to put yourself in disagreement with God.

3) Strife toward God - A lot of people are mad at God. They're offended because He didn't act as they thought He should or He "permitted" something to come into their lives that they didn't like. The main thing we can assure you of today is that God wasn't the source of your hardships. He wasn't the cause of your trials. The truth is God CAN ONLY DO GOOD. Your ANGER at God has been misdirected; it should be redirected to the one who has come to kill and steal and destroy (John 10:10). God does not use the devil's tactics; He does not put the Curse on us; no, we've been redeemed from the Curse (Galatians 3:13). Stop blaming God for what has happened in your life and ask for revelation of the real causes.

STRIFE always causes division and the devil is a divider of the Brethren. STRIFE is his tactic to reduce our effectiveness. When you see STRIFE in the Church, in marriages and homes, in businesses between partners and workers, you can be sure that the enemy is behind it and that someone has not taken the RULE over a moment of ANGER. The enemy uses our PRIDE, our self-focused nature embodied in the Flesh, to disrupt our walk and cause us to be less than we should be. STRIFE takes the following progressive forms:

Irritation = to be provoked or exasperated
Impatience = adverse to waiting or delay, intolerant, fretful under trial or suffering
Contentiousness = quarrelsomeness, easily offended
Resentment = displeasure, indignation or ill will over a perceived offense
Bitterness = strong animosity, anguished resentment over a perceived offense
Unforgiveness = holding onto an offense

Friend, Christianity is about forgiveness and reconciliation and restoration and love. We're not supposed to be bearing grudges or thoughts of harm against others, even against our adversaries. Believers who continuously enter into and prolong STRIFE are in sin, they're living in the Flesh and they're selfishly insisting on putting themselves ahead of others and ahead of the Word of God which is warning them in no uncertain terms to avoid it. Our carnal nature thinks we're punishing the other party with our unforgiveness but the truth is the other party usually doesn't even care about it and we only wind up hurting ourselves with our refusal to walk in love. STRIFE is costly. It can cost us our prosperity and even our lives. It cannot be ignored by the serious and mature Christian.

There is something immeasurably important about STRIFE that every Believer needs to understand and come to grips with today. Jesus COMMANDED us more than once to love one another (Matthew 22:37-39 and John 13:34). If we're always in STRIFE how can we be fulfilling this COMMANDMENT? And the relevant point is that if we're not fulfilling our love walk, our faith will be ineffective (1 Corinthians 13:2) and if our faith is not working it's guaranteed we'll not be experiencing the fullness of biblical prosperity. Indeed, the Bible says it's impossible to please God without faith (Hebrews 11:6). This is why the Bible also says that "a man's PRIDE will bring him low" (Proverbs 29:23) and that "PRIDE goes before destruction" (Proverbs 16:18).

The Bible also says that CONFUSION and every evil work come from STRIFE (James 3:16). Have you ever considered that "every evil work" can include sickness, disease, lack, insufficiency, poverty and everything else listed in Deuteronomy 28:15-68 (the curses) including death? Did you know that the Greek word for CONFUSION in this scripture means disorder, instability and tumult? Believers who are constantly in STRIFE are people whose lives are in tumult. They are unstable and double minded. They are unable to hear the voice of the Holy Spirit or discern His direction for their lives. There's difficulty in marriage and in the home and while this is the most common place for STRIFE, it's also the most overlooked. Domestic STRIFE causes financial problems and those financial problems continue to be the number one cause of divorce both in this country and in the Body of Christ as well.

Many Believers know what the Word of God says on this subject but they refuse to submit to it and insist on walking in unforgiveness year after year. Friend, God will not be mocked and Jesus warned us in Matthew 18:34-35 that if we refuse to forgive others, our heavenly Father will be moved (by His own Word, by His own Covenant) to allow those folks to be turned over to the "torturers" or "tormentors." We need to take seriously that this scripture is saying in red letters, Jesus speaking, that those Believers who insist on walking in STRIFE will be left open to demonic attack and influence in their lives. Their authority in Christ will be suspended and they'll be Believers who manifest fear, confusion, illness, insecurity, separation, financial difficulties, interpersonal problems and any of the other conditions mentioned in the list of curses. Do you believe Jesus was kidding us here? Many Christians know about this scripture but don't take it seriously. They don't believe it could happen to them; but the Word is clear and Jesus who is love didn't mince words. Take a look at your life and see if you've misjudged what's at stake.

If you have ongoing STRIFE in your life today, the Word of God urges you to take steps to RULE over it. The costs are too high to continue in STRIFE and particularly in the form known as UNFORGIVENESS. God has a better way.

Now, no one is saying it's an easy task to RULE one's ANGER. What has to happen is that we count the costs and then make a decision, a choice to forgive and to then avoid walking in STRIFE as if it were one the plagues of Egypt. The Flesh fights on behalf of STRIFE every step of the way and we must make this decision over and over again, day after day, week after week and year after year, every time we're faced with a temptation to enter into STRIFE. Therefore, only by the Holy Spirit are we able to RULE over our ANGER and stay out of STRIFE.

Fortunately, we have a weapon at our disposal to help us overcome the Flesh. There is a fruit of the Holy Spirit called LONGSUFFERING (Galatians 5:22). In other translations it's called PATIENCE but it's a type of patience related to "forbearance." In Ephesians 4:1-3 the same Greek word is used when the Apostle Paul says the following:

"walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience (longsuffering), showing tolerance for one another in love, being diligent to preserve the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace."

Friend, each Believer has within him/herself the power of the Holy Spirit to stay out of STRIFE. The qualities are within. So by faith release them to work on your behalf. In doing this we will come to RULE over our ANGER by emphasizing the following attributes when we're faced with temptation:

• We need to ask ourselves WHY the other person is doing/saying the thing that's provoking our ANGER.
• We need to give up our rights to prevail in any confrontation.
• We need to regard others as more important than ourselves (Philippians 2:3).
• We need to keep in mind that the only way to deal with SELF is to deny it. We'll never be able to satisfy it.
• We need to keep in mind that God's opinion of us is all that counts, not what other people think.
• When faced with a difficult interpersonal issue, decide to forgive and pray that God will bless the other person.
• We need to leave it to God to fight our battles and to deal with those who've wronged us.

Most Christians haven't given enough thought to today's topic. STRIFE is so endemic to our environment that we don't take proper note of it. What we need to remember though is that the Word of God is carried out in our lives by Laws or Rules of conduct that work automatically. We're no longer under the Mosaic Law but even under GRACE there are biblical principles that automatically produce either blessings or curses. Unresolved STRIFE cuts off the blessings and opens the door to the enemy to come in and kill, steal and destroy all that God has given us. So, if you want to enjoy the fullness of biblical prosperity in your life, you must learn to RULE your ANGER and resist STRIFE. We have within us the ability to do this and the Holy Spirit is ready and willing to help.

Thanks for reading PLN today. We hope this message has blessed you and opened your understanding to the subject of STRIFE. We'll be looking for you again in three weeks on June 13. In the meantime, may the Lord bless you and your family with the fullness of biblical prosperity and every spiritual blessing.

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