The Peacemaking Pastor: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Church Conflict

by Alfred J. Poirier

Publisher:

Baker

, 2006

Overview

Peacemaking: The healing alternative to conflict in the church

Every pastor faces conflict in the church, and Alfred Poirier has this loving reminder: we can run, but we can't hide. Jesus set the example as the Incarnate Peacemaker, and Scripture clearly calls his servant-pastors to be ministers of reconciliation. So the issue is not whether to be a mediator but what kind of mediator to be.

Key Features

• Seeks to ground peacemaking on a solid biblical and theological foundation, and to place it within the ecclesiastical context
• Attempts to remedy the current deficiency in pastoral studies by providing pastors with an overview of biblical peacemaking
• Approaches the subject by exploring who we are as people in conflict, who God is as the reconciliator, and how God calls us to respond

Contents

• Hope for a Heretic
• The Paths of Conflict
• The Heart of Conflict
• God's Glory in Conflict
• Peacemaking in the Family of God
• Confessing Our Sins to Another
• Granting True Forgiveness
• Looking out for the Interests of Others
• Pastor as Mediator
• Mediation and Arbitration
• Church Discipline Principles
• Church Discipline Practices
• Toward Becoming a Peacemaking Church

Top Highlights

“Second, we tend to assume that peacemaking is meant to be merely corrective and not something constructive.” (Page 13)

“For the sake of simplicity, we will define conflict as ‘a difference in opinion or purpose that frustrates someone’s goals or desires.’¹ That is, conflict results when my desires, expectations, fears, or wants collide with your desires, expectations, fears, or wants.” (Pages 29–30)

“Transactional forgiveness, conversely, is bilateral. Both the offended and the offender are involved—the offended rebuking, the offender repenting; the offender confessing, the offended granting forgiveness.” (Page 156)

“Love is made possible because of the truth of who Christ is. Peacemaking can be embraced because Christ is the incarnate Peacemaker.” (Page 24)

“Conflict is not necessarily a consequence of sin, though it is assuredly a frequent occasion for it.” (Page 30)

Praise for The Peacemaking Pastor

"In solidly scriptural fashion a veteran pastor here explains how the local church through its leaders can become the community of peaceand safety that it is alled to be rather than the hotbed of hostilities that it too often is. This is a very salutary book on a very sensitive subject."

J.I. Packer, board of governors' professor of theology, Regent College

"A culture of peace should characterize God's covenant people. The Peacemaking Pastor by Alfred Poirier is a solid overview of biblical peacemaking, which can help pastors and their chruches carry forth the gospel of peace in their personal, family, church and community lives."

Tony Evans, senior pastor, Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship, president, The Urban Alternative

"Funded by an unusual combination of research and practical experience, Alfred Poirier's The Peacemaking Pastor is essential reading for everyone who cares about the peace and purity of Christ's visible church. Every pastor and elder knows the challenges to 'preserving the unity of Christ's body in the bond of peace', but this book offers rich wisdom for this task. Read it before the storm and you will be much better prepared to handle it!"

Michael Horton, professor of systematic theology and apologetics, Westminster Seminary California

Product Details

• Title: The Peacemaking Pastor: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Church Conflict
• Author: Alfred J. Poirier
• Publisher: Baker
• Print Publication Date: 2006
• Logos Release Date: 2011
• Era: era:contemporary
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Reader Edition
• Subjects: Church controversies; Conflict management › Religious aspects--Christianity; Religion › Christian ministry--Pastoral resources
• ISBNs: 9781441201423, 1441201424
• Resource ID: LLS:D76365BA9897DBFA481CD1D722571DA1
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2023-07-14T00:48:08Z

About Alfred J. Poirier

Dr. Alfred Poirier (DMin, Westminster Theological Seminary) is visiting professor of pastoral theology at Westminster Theological Seminary. Dr. Poirier has held a number of additional teaching positions and has also served as a pastor at Rocky Mountain Community Church (PCA) in Billings, Montana for 26 years. Dr. Poirier’s academic interests lie in the areas of pastoral counseling and expository preaching. He is the author of The Peacemaking Pastor (Baker, 2006), and Words that Cut: Learning to Take Criticism in Light of the Gospel (Peacemaker Ministries) and several articles in The Journal of Biblical Counseling. Dr. Poirier has been married to his wife, Trudy, for 41 years and together they have 3 children: Sarah Clark, Sonja Stordahl, and Anya Valeriano; and ten grandchildren.