Joshua 22

Verses 1-6, “Then Joshua called the Reubenites, the Gadites, and half the tribe of Manasseh, and said to them: 'You have kept all that Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, and have obeyed my voice in all that I commanded you. You have not left your brethren these many days, up to this day, but have kept the charge of the commandment of the Lord your God. And now the Lord your God has given rest to your brethren, as He promised them; now therefore, return and go to your tents and to the land of your possession, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave you on the other side of the Jordan. But take careful heed to do the commandment and the law which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, to love the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to keep His commandments, to hold fast to Him, and to serve Him with all your heart and with all your soul.' So Joshua blessed them and sent them away, and they went to their tents.”

The tribes who had already received their inheritance on the east side of the Jordan River had lived up to their promise to help their brethren conquer the Promised Land. Therefore Joshua tells them they can now return to their land and blesses them as he sends them away. But just because they had done well in this one thing doesn't stop Joshua from giving a warning to continue walking in obedience. When we have spiritual success, it is easy to slip into pride, which can set you up for failure. 1 Corinthians 10:12, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.”  We cannot take credit for God's successes or think we are immune to falling into sin. I Timothy 4:16, “Take heed to yourself and to the doctrine. Continue in them, for in doing this you will save both yourself and those who hear you.”

Verses 10-12, “And when they came to the region of the Jordan which is in the land of Canaan, the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh built an altar there by the Jordan—a great, impressive altar. Now the children of Israel heard someone say, 'Behold, the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh have built an altar on the frontier of the land of Canaan, in the region of the Jordan—on the children of Israel’s side.' And when the children of Israel heard of it, the whole congregation of the children of Israel gathered together at Shiloh to go to war against them.”

Building an altar was alarming to the rest of the Jews because it was an indication that their brothers had fallen into pagan worship. As soon as they heard of it, they immediately responded.  Notice they didn't sit back and wait for the leader to deal with it. They whole congregation was willing to do what was necessary to prevent this sin against God from affecting them all. Church leadership is actually the last step in dealing with a brother or sister in sin. Matthew 18:15-17, “Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.  But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that ‘by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.’  And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.”

Verses 16-20, “Thus says the whole congregation of the Lord: ‘What treachery is this that you have committed against the God of Israel, to turn away this day from following the Lord, in that you have built for yourselves an altar, that you might rebel this day against the Lord? Is the iniquity of Peor not enough for us, from which we are not cleansed till this day, although there was a plague in the congregation of the Lord, but that you must turn away this day from following the Lord? And it shall be, if you rebel today against the Lord, that tomorrow He will be angry with the whole congregation of Israel. Nevertheless, if the land of your possession is unclean, then cross over to the land of the possession of the Lord, where the Lord ’s tabernacle stands, and take possession among us; but do not rebel against the Lord, nor rebel against us, by building yourselves an altar besides the altar of the Lord our God. Did not Achan the son of Zerah commit a trespass in the accursed thing, and wrath fell on all the congregation of Israel? And that man did not perish alone in his iniquity.’ ”

Phineas was the High Priest at the time, and with his authority, he led the confrontation, along with representatives from each tribe. These men were representing the will of the others, not acting because the others refused to do what was necessary. God had commanded there to be only one place of sacrifice. We do not get the option of changing His requirements just because we feel like doing so. Many people call themselves Christians, but do not obey the commands of God. They are simply not His children based on their lack of obedience. 1 John 2:17, “And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”

Verses 21-29, “Then the children of Reuben, the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh answered and said to the heads of the divisions of Israel: “The Lord God of gods, the Lord God of gods, He knows, and let Israel itself know—if it  is in rebellion, or if in treachery against the Lord, do not save us this day. If we have built ourselves an altar to turn from following the Lord, or if to offer on it burnt offerings or grain offerings, or if to offer peace offerings on it, let the Lord Himself require an  account.  But in fact we have done it for fear, for a reason, saying, ‘In time to come your descendants may speak to our descendants, saying, “What have you to do with the Lord God of Israel? For the Lord has made the Jordan a border between you and us, you children of Reuben and children of Gad. You have no part in the Lord.” So your descendants would make our descendants cease fearing the Lord.’ Therefore we said, ‘Let us now prepare to build ourselves an altar, not for burnt offering nor for sacrifice, but that it may be a witness between you and us and our generations after us, that we may perform the service of the Lord before Him with our burnt offerings, with our sacrifices, and with our peace offerings; that your descendants may not say to our descendants in time to come, “You have no part in the Lord.” ’ Therefore we said that it will be, when they say this to us or to our generations in time to come, that we may say, ‘Here is the replica of the altar of the Lord which our fathers made, though not for burnt offerings nor for sacrifices; but it is a witness between you and us.’ Far be it from us that we should rebel against the Lord, and turn from following the Lord this day, to build an altar for burnt offerings, for grain offerings, or for sacrifices, besides the altar of the Lord our God which is before His tabernacle.”

The response of the accused tells us much about their hearts on the matter. If they had truly been in sin, you may have seen anger (attacking the messengers), defensiveness, and even justification of their wrongdoings. Instead, they give their rationale and put the matter to God and the leaders to judge. The say, "if it is in rebellion, or if in treachery against the Lord, do not save us this day." How often do you see this response to confrontation in the church today? Even in the case of misunderstandings, as was with this alter, situations simply have to be addressed for the health of the body of Christ. Both sides need humility, and because of the spiritual importance, let go of personal pride. Otherwise, roots of bitterness will spring up and defile you.