I was recently involved in an incident with another Christian, and it has caused me to pontificate upon 1 Corinthians 6, which clearly tells us not to go to court against fellows brothers and sisters. This is very difficult since we live in a fallen world and even Christians are not perfect. This is a biblical command though. With that in mind, what are we to do when a Christian has wronged us, and it deserves legal attention?
Because so much is heavily weighted on the other party's belief, we must first verify that they indeed are a Christian. There will be evidence, outward evidence if you will. If there is not, then we can and should rightly assume that they are not a Christian and treat the matter with such in mind.
If they indeed are a Christian, we must settle our disputes between one another, many times involving the church if necessary. This often means more mercy because we are to treat them as Christ would treat them. This does not mean they get away with the incident, but it does, however, mean that we are as merciful as possible toward them. How can we treat those who are not in Christ with mercy if we cannot even treat those inside the body with mercy?
With that said, if we are going to err, it is better to err on the side of mercy than judgment. Keep this in mind when handling legal issues, and by all means necessary, do not go to court with a fellow brother or sister because then you are the one in sin.
