10When they came to Geliloth near the Jordan in the land of Canaan, the Reubenites, the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh built an imposing altar there by the Jordan.
11And when the Israelites heard that they had built the altar on the border of Canaan at Geliloth near the Jordan on the Israelite side,
12the whole assembly of Israel gathered at Shiloh to go to war against them.
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15When they went to Gilead—to Reuben, Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh—they said to them:
16"The whole assembly of the Lord says: ‘How could you break faith with the God of Israel like this? How could you turn away from the Lord and build yourselves an altar in rebellion against him now?
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17Was not the sin of Peor enough for us? Up to this very day we have not cleansed ourselves from that sin, even though a plague fell on the community of the Lord!
18And are you now turning away from the Lord? "‘If you rebel against the Lord today, tomorrow he will be angry with the whole community of Israel.
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20When Achan son of Zerah was unfaithful in regard to the devoted things, did not wrath come on the whole community of Israel? He was not the only one who died for his sin.’"- P117
The eastern tribes build a large altar near the Jordan. The rest of Israel suspectsrebellion against God and gathers to go to war. They send Phinehas and thetribe leaders to confront them. They warn of the consequences of unfaithful-ness and urge the tribes not to rebel against the Lord by worshiping at an altarother than the one He blesses.- P117
Upon their return, the tribes living east of the Jordan build an altar by the river. The other tribes hear of it and misunderstand it as rebellion against God because God’s appointed place of worship was the tabernacle at Shiloh. Sacrifices could only be offered there. Although they misunderstood their fellow Israelites’ intentions, the rest of the congregation’s willingness to confront them is noteworthy. They want no other altar of worship among God’s people except what God had appointed. The altar at Shiloh foreshadows the cross on which Christ made the ultimate sacrifice: - P118
There is no other way for us to be able to draw near to God. Let there be no other altar of worship in our lives.- P118
The tribes from west of the Jordan are ready to go to war against theirbrothers if need be. But first, they warn the two and a half tribes that theconsequences of rebellion will affect the entire congregation. Do not imag-ine that this confrontation came easy for the ten and a half tribes. They areconfronting men who fought by their side, sharing the struggles of war.
But rather than rushing to fight their brothers, they first seek to reasonwith them. - P118
When we have concerns regarding the behavior of our brothersand sisters, let us not be quick to quarrel with them. As Christ commanded(Matt. 18:15-20), let us approach them and explain our concerns, seekingtheir restoration and our unity.- P118
I learned an important lesson that day: Accountability is not about punishment; it‘s about love.
Proverbs 27:17 tells us, "As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpensanother. As Christians, we are called to encourage, exhort, uplift, andstrengthen one another, and one very important part of this is holding eachother accountable. In this way, we spur each other to live a life that is notonly pleasing to God but also inspiring to those around us.- P119
Lord God, I don’t like confrontation, but I know that it is sometimes necessary. Grant me the discernment I need to know when to talk only to You and when to express my concerns to others. In Jesus’ name, amen.- P119
