An altar at the boarder
Joshua 22:1-10
“So much more a lot sooner”
I. Intro
II. Vs. 1-3 Remaining faithful while being faithless
III. Vs. 4-8 Choosing those who didn’t chose you
IV. Vs. 9-10 Worshiping at the alter of fear
Intro
For seven years the nation had been mostly faithful to following God but now they were entering into a time of peace. Nations and people often lose in “peace” what they have gained in war as they no longer depending or cling upon the Lord as they did so during battle. One of the mysteries that will be revealed in eternity is why so many of us believers preferred living on the boarders adjacent to the promises and blessings of God, venturing over to fight battles and gain perishable bounty but never moving there permanently. What this chapter reveals is that the decision for those 2 ½ tribes of soldiers who fought along their brethren for 7 years so that they could inherit the promises yet returned to their homes on the other side was not based upon:
- Laziness or complacency
- Neither was a lack of love or obedience.
If not those things what then? It was as those who wondered in the wilderness; a simple lack of trust in the God who promised such things would be able to provide something better than what they could for themselves.
Vs. 1-3 Remaining faithful while being faithless
Vs. 1-3 Joshua gives these soldiers from the 2 ½ tribes on the eastern side of the land of promise what amounts to an honorable discharge after they had served seven years in securing the land of promise for their brethren. Ah but their return home was almost the cause of a civil war as we shall see next week. Remember that these two and half tribes were to remain in the army based upon a promise they made twice once with Moses and once with Joshua at his inauguration as leader of the nation, (Deut. 3:12-20, Josh. 1:12-18). It is for this reason that Joshua says in verse 3 “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.”
For seven years these two ½ tribes had been away from family fulfilling the promise they made both to Moses and Joshua. There is much to be admired by these men who had set aside what they thought was best for them that may obtain what was promised to others. But there is also something very sad about it as they had been separated from their families and none of that was necessary. Their separation was based upon the decision to accept what they felt was best for their lives instead of receiving what God had promised. Oh they kept their word to Moses, they obeyed the voice of Joshua but they couldn’t trust God’s Word.
I’m afraid there are far too many “borderland” believers, (good folks) who have traded in trusting God for settling for things outside of His blessings. One day my friends we all will see the magnitude of what encompassed all the Holy Spirit spoke of through the apostle Paul in Ephesians saying that “every spiritual blessing in heavenly places” was ours and what we willingly (with out coercion) traded it in for. For the lack of a mustard seed of faith we so often lose sight of the vistas from the mountains that would have moved to reveal endless lands of promises from the provision of His abundant grace. Don’t get me wrong we will be rejoicing in His glorious presence but what we shall see is that we could have been enjoying so much more a lot sooner!
During those seven years of battles and appropriation of the promises to each tribe these guys walked in what was rightly their own inheritance had they only chosen to trust God above what they though was best. I wonder if at any time as they walked through the land of promise if they thought to themselves, “What was I thinking; I endured separation from my loved ones for so little when all of this could be mine without any separation.” They had obeyed the Lord on behalf of others but couldn’t trust Him in their own lives and such is the mystery with regards to our own lives.
Vs. 4-8 Choosing those who didn’t chose you
Vs. 4-6 I can not overstate this point as we read the words of Joshua in verse 4 “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.” Go to your tents while your brothers enjoy their houses, go to the land of your possession while your brothers enjoy all of the Lord’s blessed inheritance. And this sacrifice was not what God had for them but rather what they chose for themselves. My brothers and sisters when will we learn that trust and surrender to God rewards us with far more than we can ever accomplish apart from them? Here we are told that Joshua admonished them and then blessed them. This was just a reiteration of the promise the whole nation made back in chapter 8 where they promised to each other before the Lord to be faithful to the Lord. The motive for their obedience had to be love for the Lord their God. If they loved Him, then they would delight in walking in all His ways and obeying all His commandments. First the threefold admonishment:
- They were faithful to keep their word now Joshua says, “Hey guys be faithful to keep God’s word!” What an appropriate word to those who showed the character to keep their word but not enough character to be faithful to God’s Word. Saint’s we far too often find it easier to trust people who even with the best attentions are unable to keep their promises all the while finding impossible to trust God who can not ever break His. Along every life I know (especially my own) lies unopened promises discarded not for lack of opportunity, not because they were outside of our grasp but rather simply because we didn’t trust the Lord enough have put a treasure in them. Oh the riches of God’s grace that stand unclaimed to those who are in such desperate need for them. There are in our country billions of dollars that go unclaimed every year from folks who didn’t realize or had forgotten that they had funds available to them. But far worse than this is these fellows who knew that they had unlimited blessings available to them yet they just didn’t think that they were as valuable as the scant pennies they had chosen for themselves.
- They were faithful to love their brethren enough to leave their loved ones and sacrifice their lives in order that 9 ½ tribes would inherit what God had promised. So here Joshua looks out at these wonderful folks and says, “Guy’s go back and apply the same love you showed to your brethren to Your God.” Had they of done this they would not have settled outside of His blessings. The apostle of love, John, wrote in 1 John 4:19 “We love Him because He first loved us.” Could it be that they failed to trust God for what He had promised because they didn’t receive His love for them? I can say that in my own life that this is often the case. “I’m not worthy, I don’t deserve it”, we cry. But friends that is only applicable if the basis of His blessings is dependant upon our righteousness! It isn’t, it is based upon God’s righteousness which was imparted to us by faith in Christ.
- Notice the order here they are first to hear God then to Love Him and now finally walk in His ways, keep his commandments, hold fast to Him and serve Him with your heart and soul. Joshua nails it here as there problem appears to have been based upon their doing before they ever realized their being in the Lord. It seems as though they sought to walk in His ways, keep His commandments, hold fast to Him and serve Him before they heard His heart towards them and them simply responded to God in love. So how about you have you heard God’s heart towards you? In that well quoted verse in Jeremiah 29:11 the Lord reminds the nation of the verge of captivity because they had walked away from Him that, “I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope.” You see God knew His thoughts towards His people but His people had forgotten them and acted as much.
Ah but notice that Joshua didn’t send them away back home to their tents and goods with just an admonishment. No he sent them back with a blessing as well! To give an admonishment without a blessing would be like providing a car with out the fuel to make it go. Folk’s it is not wrong for you and I to ask God’s blessings upon our lives as apart from His hand and power we are unable to be a blessing. That raises two specific reason for our lack of blessings both addressed by James in James 4:2-3:
- Vs. 2 “You do not have because you do not ask.”
- Vs. 3 “You ask and do not receive, because you ask amiss, that you
may spend it on your pleasures.”
It is interesting to note that these words of Joshua sound similar to the words the Lord said to Aaron and his boy’s in Numbers 6:24-27 where He said, “The Lord bless you and keep you; The Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace. So they shall put My name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them.”
Vs. 7-8 Because of their obedience Joshua didn’t send them home empty handed as verse 8 says that Joshua said to them, “Return with much riches to your tents, with very much livestock, with silver, with gold, with bronze, with iron, and with very much clothing. Divide the spoil of your enemies with your brethren.” This yet again is another way that God was speaking to their heart about His abundant blessings if they would just trust Him. When they trusted God they were blessed yet we are told in verse 9 that they took the plunder and returned to the land outside of the promises of God. You would have thought that they would have said, “Hey wait a minute, seeing that God blesses us this much just because we honored our word how much more will He bless us if we trust Him and enter into the land of promise? That’s it I’m going to get the wife kids and cattle and head on over to the land of promise!” Now saint’s that is not all that different then us when you think about it as we live close to border between the world and Christ seeing the blessings, receiving a little plunder but not willing to head out into the fullness of what He has for us.
Vs. 9-10 Worshiping at the altar of fear
Vs. 9 Finally we are told that they “departed from the children of Israel at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to go to the country of Gilead”, God’s word never called the country of Gilead the land of promise. In fact God told Abraham in Genesis 17:8 that He was giving, “to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”
These fellows were leaving behind far more than the Children of Israel they were leaving behind the possession of the blessing and the promises of God. They had sought what was best for them but had to pay for what was a blessing given by God for others. How many times is that the situation for the people of God? Oh dear ones learn this lesson so that you don’t miss out on what the Lord so wants to bless you with.
Vs. 10 As the men of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh made their way east they would have passed landmarks that brought back all the memories of the great things God had done and apparently their hearts began to disturb them, as they built a “great, impressive altar” and according to their own words in verse 24 they had done so out of fear.
Now an altar was what folks used for worship and according to verse 24 it was for “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?” Oh does that not sum up the problem as they were indirectly worshiping their fear of trusting the Lord. That being the fear; why not just move across and enjoy the land of promise? The reason is that they simply didn’t think even after receiving the spoils walking in the blessings of God that what God had for them was better than what they had chosen for themselves.
They no doubt were happy to be going home but they were also saying good-bye to their brothers whom they had fought alongside. And most importantly they were leaving behind the nearness of the tabernacle where the presence of God dwelt along with the land that God had promised to bless. All of this caused them to become insecure and fearful they were going home to the land that they had chosen for themselves but that caused them to feel isolated from the nation of Israel.
When you read Numbers 32, you will discover that there is no record that Moses consulted the Lord about this decision. Moses’ first response was that of anger mingled with fear, lest God judge the nation as He had at Kadesh Barnea. What Moses was concerned about was that the men of Reuben, Gad, and the ½ tribe of Manasseh do their share in fighting the enemy and conquering the Promised Land which they agreed to do. There’s no question that Canaan was God’s appointed land for His people; anything short of Canaan wasn’t what He wanted for them. The two and a half tribes made their decision, not on the basis of spiritual values, but on the basis of material gain; for the land east of the Jordan was ideal for raising cattle. The fact remains that by making this decision, these 2 ½ tribes divided the nation and separated themselves from the blessings of the land of Canaan. They were farther away from the tabernacle and closer to the enemy. The two and a half tribes portray believers who have experienced the blessings and battles of Canaan—their inheritance in Christ—but prefer to live on the border, outside God’s appointed place of blessing.
They decide to solve the problem which they created by building a large altar of stones by the Jordan River, on the Canaan side, as a reminder to everybody that the two and a half tribes also belonged to the nation of Israel. Had these tribes been living in the land of Canaan where they belonged, nobody would have questioned their nationality. But living outside the land, they gave the impression that they were not Israelites. This is now the eighth memorial erected in Canaan but it’s the only one erected to let people know they’re God’s people. Warren Wiersbe makes this observation as it relates to Christianity today saying, “In recent years we’ve seen a spate of “religious” bumper stickers, jewelry, decals, and other items (including mirrors and combs with Bible verses on them), all of which are supposed to help identify the owners with Jesus Christ. While these things might occasionally open doors of opportunity for witness, how much better it would be if our Spirit-led conduct and speech made the lost sit up and take notice.”
Joshua 22:11-34
“Altered by fear instead of love”
I. Intro
II. Vs. 11-20 Cross over
III. Vs. 21-29 Altered by fear
IV. Vs. 30-34 What we worship is our witness
Intro
The altar that was built to remind future generations of the unity shared by the nation almost caused civil war with the present generation and it this that we shall look at this morning.
Folks how ironic it is that Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh were not even living in the land of God’s choice, yet they feared lest the children across the river would lead their children astray! It seems to me that the danger was just the opposite. Further more notice verse 25 a they say “For the Lord has made the Jordan a border between you and us” which seems to suggest that they accused God of creating the problem in separation between the 2 half’s of the nation when in reality it was their own choice in the first place! They were the ones who had made the Jordan River the dividing line! In choosing to live east of the Jordan, the two and a half tribes separated themselves from their own people and from the land God had given to all of them. They put their cattle ahead of their children and their fellow Jews, but they blamed God and the other tribes for the problem that they created. What kind of “witness” was this huge pile of stones? It was a witness to expediency, the wisdom of man in trying to enjoy “the best of both worlds.” The two and a half tribes talked piously about their children, but it was their wealth that really motivated their decision to live east of the Jordan.
Vs. 11-20 Cross over
Vs. 11-14 According to Deut. 12; Lev. 17:8-9 there was to be one altar of sacrifice at the one sanctuary that God had appointed and as such the 9 ½ tribes saw this as violation of the clear teaching of the Word. So when news of the “great impressive altar” comes to the 9 ½ tribes living in the land of promise they react by gathering for battle against their brothers who had fought alongside them to secure their inheritance. Of interest is that it is not Joshua that gathers these 9 ½ tribes together it is rather they themselves that do. But what was the basis of this automatic reaction? Well it appears based upon their words in verse 18 that their reaction was based upon the fear that their rebellion against the Lord today would cause the Lord to be angry at “the whole congregation of Israel” tomorrow. In other words they were afraid of losing the blessings of God and the enjoyment of His inheritance based upon the failure of the 2 ½ tribes. And the fear was to a degree which they were ready to go to civil war to insure that they keep their possessions. Now I can see this from different angels:
- Oh to God that I would have such a heart for the things of God that I would be willing to go to battle with anything and everything that would threaten my possession under His grace. Now to me this is a right view when we gaze out our inheritance from a practical basis, one in which based upon our obedience we can leave the benefits of His grace and love.
- Ah but that raises a question here, a note to self if you will: Does my security even in His love and grace depend upon my zeal to keep it? If that is the case then all is lost as Paul describes to the Jews in Romans 10:2 saying that “they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.” This view if you will is from the perspective of my position in God’s grace which isn’t up to me to maintain be seated in heavenly place far away from my ability to mess it up.
So in both cases the 2 ½ tribes who built “great impressive altar” and those who gathered on the verge of a civil war were reacting on fear (verse 18, 24). The 9 ½ tribes were afraid that what they thought the 2 ½ tribe were doing would cause them to lose what God had given them and the 2 ½ tribes were afraid that in the future they would be shut out and denied access to the tabernacle to worship God. And all of this could have been avoided had the 2 ½ tribes simply chosen to enter into the fullness of the promises of God.
Hey saint’s what this ought to reveal to us is the source of all our fears and anxiety is based upon our’s and others refusal to walk in God’s love and blessings for us. When you and I chose to not receive God’s love for us we will automatically become insecure and will begin to search for something to fill the void left by our refusal and then will be anxious as what we have replace God’s love with will never satisfy the longing in our hearts.
Vs. 15-20 Joshua had just commended these two and a half tribes for their loyalty, and now they are being accused of and act of treachery or trespass (verse 16, 20 and 22), the word carries the idea of “backsliding” which is gradually moving away from the Lord and meant that they were no longer following the Lord. In building an unauthorized altar, these two and a half tribes were guilty of apostasy. It is clear that Phinehas and his entourage assumed that this “great impressive altar” was for the worship of something other than the living God. Why did they assume that? Well most likely they weighed the evidence, here were 2 ½ tribes who chose to live apart from God’s promises, people and the tabernacle. Second the fact that the altar was great and impressive suggests a part of the fallen nature doesn’t it. I mean our flesh has a bent on making huge monuments to the foreign things that we worship don’t we? Jesus said in John 4:24 that “God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” In other words we cannot worship God any way we please, or justify a manner of worship just because we like it. Phinehas illustrates his concern by two events in their recent past:
- Vs. 17 The iniquity of Peor: The first was the participation of Israel in the heathen rites of the Moabites, when the men committed harlotry with the Moabite women (Josh. 22:17; Num. 25). As a result, 24,000 people died. At Peor. Interestingly enough it was Phinehas that end the plague in Numbers 25:7
- Vs. 20 The sin of Achan: This sin was only seven years ago where Achan after the victory at Jericho when he took some idols and hid them for himself and brought “trouble” upon himself and the people of God, (Joshua 7:10-26). His sin led to defeat at Ai and the deaths of thirty-six Jewish soldiers. It also led to his own death and that of the members of his family.
Vs. 19 In verse 19 the delegation gave a wise word of counsel: “Come over and dwell with us, because we have the Lord’s tabernacle in our land”. Oh what a right on heart, “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”. No man-made altar could substitute for the presence of the Lord among His people in His tabernacle. It’s too bad the two and a half tribes didn’t take this advice and claim their inheritance within the land that God had promised to bless (Deut. 11:10-32).
Think of this, these folks had just said good-by to those men who had fought along side them for 7 years. The land was at peace but when they heard that there had been an altar built these fellows who had said their good-by’s were picking up their weapons to take on those who had fought on their behalf. What would cause such an action from the 9 ½ tribes living in the land of promise? These fellows weren’t warmongers, they weren’t jealous, what caused such a reaction? Well it might surprise you but I believe it was love for God which was even above their love for their brethren. There was no doubt great sorrow and heart ache at the thought of having to go to battle against ones they loved so much but if there was to have to be a line drawn in the sand between love of their countrymen and love for God they were on the right side of the line. But their love for God didn’t mean an absence of love for their brethren even if it meant a loss for them. In verse 19 the 9 ½ tribes invited the 2 ½ tribes to cross over and become apart of them which means they would have to give up some land and cites to accommodate this. “Hey Bro’s,” they said, “If the carnality of those who live near you is causing you to stumble, come live with us!” This was self-sacrificing love that didn’t sacrifice love for God for the love of their brethren. This would have meant less for the 9 ½ tribes who chose to live in the land of promise and enjoying their inheritance but it was a sacrifice they were willing to make to safe their brethren from what they thought was false worship.
So how about saints, are you willing to let go have what you enjoy to see others come into the fullness of what God has for them. Nothing excites me more than watching you all cross over from the border of the Christian experience into the baptism of Jordan experience of the Holy Spirit whereby you come into your “every spiritual blessing in heavenly places” encounter. Folks this isn’t an invitation made to non-believers, no it’s an offer to those who are believers but just aren’t settled in the land of God’s abundant blessings. For those of you who are living in the New Covenant, who have put on Christ as your provision and are enjoying the land of your rich inheritance in Christ do you not realize like these 9 ½ tribes you have other folks’ treasure? Oh, they may have not yet decided to dwell with you but don’t stop inviting them to cross over so that they can dwell with you.
Vs. 21-29 Altered by fear
Vs. 21-29 Here we are given the reply to Phinehas by the 2 ½ tribes and the first thing they say is that “God knows our hearts”. The misunderstanding came when the 9 ½ tribes judged the actions of the 2 ½ tribes and misinterpreted their hearts. The accused tribes invoked the name of the Lord six times as they replied to the charges; and in so doing, they used the three fundamental names for the Lord: “El [the Mighty One], Elohim [God], and Jehovah [the Lord].” The fact remains that when the whole nation misinterprets what is supposed to be a good deed, and it brings them to the brink of war, then there must be something wrong with that deed.
Now I love what these 2 ½ tribes have to say, “The Lord knows our heart and if you find that we are about to our already have engaged in idolatry they go ahead and wipe us out!” What a good way of handling folks who have impugned the motives of your heart as they trust the Lord and don’t argue against what is right. In their response they put themselves in the shoes of their accusers, something we would all do well to do. Oh what a better place the world and specifically God’s church would be if we all headed Paul admonishment in Philip. 2:3 where he said, “Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.”
According to Joshua 4:20-24 somewhere near this “witness altar of fear” erected by the 2 ½ tribes stood and altar of stones of the twelve men that had carried from the midst of the Jordan River placed at Gilgal. It reminded the Jews that they had crossed the river and buried their past forever. The altar was for a witness but a witness of fear and insecurity not the worship of God’s love and acceptance. I’m afraid that the truth is that most of us have established in our lives two altars one where we sit far too little at the feet of His love and grace and the other one a “Replica” (verse 28), a witness that we far to often worship at the altar of fear and insecurity. The building of this altar was based upon fear and also that they had chosen to separate themselves from the place of worship so this was to serve as a witness to both the 2 ½ tribes as well as the 9 ½ tribes that they were still God’s people. The tragedy of this situation was that it was all complete unnecessary if those 2 ½ tribes would have simply chosen to walk in all of God’s promises and blessings.
Vs. 30-34 What we worship is our witness
Vs. 30-34 Unity had been restored, civil war avoided all because they listened to the Lord. Hey saints take a gander at our conflicts with each other and you will see that the reason for the vast majority of them is our own pride and unwillingness to humble out and as quoted earlier “esteem others better than our self”. So they named the altar “Ed” as the names means “witness”. They have unearthed an ancient picture of this altar and it is rather large and round but very thin on top, hum. No I’m kidding. Why did this turn out so well? Because there was as clear understand that truth wouldn’t be sacrificed on the altar of love. Ah but it is also obvious that the 9 ½ tribes that were courageous in truth were also courageous in love. It is what the psalmist said in Psalm 85:10 “Mercy and truth have met together; righteousness and peace have kissed.”
Ah but here is the rest of the story as they say. According to 1 Chron. 5:25-26 we are told that these 2 ½ tribes were “unfaithful to the God of their fathers, and played the harlot after the gods of the peoples of the land, whom God had destroyed before them. So the God of Israel stirred up the spirit of Pul king of Assyria, that is, Tiglath-Pileser king of Assyria. He carried the Reubenites, the Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh into captivity.” You see these fellows named their altar Ed or witness as it was to be an “A witness between us that the Lord is God”. But the problem wasn’t the stones as a witness no the problem was that these 2 ½ tribes weren’t and had they simply lived in the land and obeyed God they would have been worshipping at the altar of love instead of erecting one out of fear.
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