God is pleased when those who call upon his name dwell in unity with one another. What parent doesn't want his children to be united in the truth? Christians should always strive for unity with other Christians. If a professing Christian is unwilling to sit down with an unbiased, Christian mediator, something is wrong. When one Christian is silenced and not able to present their case, justice is distorted and God is not pleased.

The Bible is clear in Proverbs 18:13, If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame. God is pleased when both sides of a matter are heard and considered before a decision is arrived at. The difficulty is when one side is unwilling to meet with a mediator.

When a person does not have a strong case built upon facts, they will not want an unbiased mediator to listen to both sides. Instead, they will insist that they are right and demand that the other side agree with them. They will also go around and spread lies about the one they refuse to meet with. Such an approach is evidence of a weak case.

This is exactly what Ralph has done. He refuses to meet with an unbiased Christian mediator to resolve this conflict. Instead, he claims that this is a Matthew 18 case. The clear fact of the matter is that this is not about Matthew 18 for many reasons.

1. We are not even in the same church
2. The first time he ever approached me about any sin, he had my son and his wife with him. He had already spoken about me to others including his elders. 
3. He himself says in his May 11, 2022 email, "Daniel, Darlene & I met with you last June as a Stage/Level 2 confrontation, in accordance with Matthew 18, where you again refused to repent of the sins CLEARLY spelled out for you. "
4. When did he follow the Stage/Level 1 part of Matthew 18. This was the first time he had ever approached me about these huge accusations like living in sin, being unloving, having NO fear of God, etc. 
5. He tells people not to have anything to do with me because I am under church discipline. Yet, he is claiming he is wanting to follow step 3 of church discipline. He relentlessly pursues me, all the while telling everyone to avoid me. 

The truth is, his approach has nothing to do with Matthew 18, and it has nothing to do with loving me.