The Necessary Circumstances for Unity.

Steve Gentry

[0:09] We’ll go ahead and have a seat. [0:10] Welcome to Village Church. [0:11] This is your first time here. [0:13] My name’s Steve, one of the pastors here at Village Church. [0:15] And as always, I am thankful and grateful to see each and every one of you. [0:18] If you have a Bible, go ahead and open it to Joshua 22.

[0:21] We’re going to be covering that entire chapter this morning. [0:24] The final three chapters of Joshua contain charges to the nation of Israel. [0:30] So the end of 21, they had rest from war and they had driven out the people that had stood against them. [0:36] They’re now seeking to spread and take the territory of the promised land. [0:41] And now in these three chapters are going to contain really three different charges to the people of the nation, [0:47] by which Joshua encourages and exhorts everyone in Israel to continue to maintain the faith that has brought them to where they are.

[0:57] They are to continue to live their lives under the lordship of God by seeking to obey his commands and show his glory to the entire world around them. [1:06] Because that is the purpose for which God had given them the promised land. [1:11] We’ve seen through the book that God is faithful to his promises, that he works for the good of his people. [1:15] And the response to God’s work must be one of submission. [1:19] Your faith is actually going to be seen by your obedience to the calling of God in your life, [1:24] because you cannot show that God is the lord of your life without living and building a life of willful obedience to him.

[1:33] And that obedience, of course, reveals a dynamic faith that moves forward according to every call and every command that God has given. [1:41] It’s through building dynamic faith that we live the life that God has called us towards, but it is not about how showing great we are. [1:49] It’s not about how showing how pioneering you are. [1:52] Rather, it is about showing the worth and the value of God in our lives. [1:57] Your faith is only going to be as powerful as the one in whom that faith is anchored. [2:02] And so now that Israel’s in the promised land, it’s being portioned out, they don’t have to be at battle all the time.

[2:08] Their faith is going to be revealed by their continued obedience to the call of God, [2:14] because God is explicit about what he wants from his people. [2:18] I see people in life trying to follow God, trying to obey the commands that God has given. [2:24] And I see people fail in two regards. [2:27] The first one is just simple disobedience. [2:29] It’s not complicated at all.

[2:32] You sin because you are disobedient. [2:34] You’ve given into temptation. [2:35] You believe something or someone more than you believe the voice of God in your life. [2:40] But the second way that I see people fail is when they try to complicate the calling of God in their lives. [2:47] It’s when you seek to add to what God has commanded, because you are convinced that your way is a little more streamlined than God’s way. [2:55] You’re convinced that you have a more nuanced path, maybe than God thought of when he gave his very simple commands,

[3:02] because there are times in life when the best of intentions can lead to the worst of results, [3:07] because you even subconsciously think somehow you are more wiser than God. [3:12] You think that you’re just trying to help him out a little. [3:14] You’re trying to make him a little more palatable to other people. [3:17] You think, really, you’re trying to make him a little more palatable to yourself. [3:21] And you think in a foolish way that you can somehow make his commands better.

[3:25] And such is the case of what we’re going to deal with today with a decision that the leaders of Reuben, [3:30] the leaders of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh tried to help their people, [3:35] but almost caused an all out civil war within the nation of Israel. [3:40] And so I want to begin reading in verses one through nine. [3:42] And here’s the charge that Joshua gives to these two and a half tribes. [3:47] The text says that at that time, Joshua summoned the Reubenites, the Gadites, the half tribe of Manasseh and said to them,

[3:53] You’ve kept all that Moses, the servant of the Lord, commanded you and have obeyed my voice and all that I have commanded you. [3:59] You’ve not forsaken your brothers these many days down to this day, [4:03] but have been careful to keep the charge of the Lord your God. [4:06] And now the Lord your God has given rest to your brothers as he promised them. [4:11] Therefore, turn and go to your tents in the land where your possession lies, [4:16] which Moses, the servant of the Lord, gave you on the other side of the Jordan.

[4:19] Only be careful to observe the commandment and the law that Moses, the servant of the Lord, commanded you [4:25] to love the Lord your God and to walk in all his ways, keep his commandments and to cling to them [4:30] and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul. [4:34] So Joshua blessed them and sent them away and they went to their tents. [4:38] Now, to the one half of the tribe of Manasseh, Moses had given a possession in Bashan, [4:44] but to the other half, Joshua had given a possession beside their brothers in the land west of the Jordan.

[4:50] And when Joshua sent them away to their homes and blessed them, he said to them, [4:54] Go back to your tents with much wealth and with much livestock, [4:58] with much silver, gold, bronze and iron and with much clothing. [5:02] Divide the spoil of your enemies with your brothers. [5:05] So the people of Rubin and the people of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh returned home, [5:10] parting from the people of Israel at Shiloh, which is in the land of Canaan, to which the land

[5:15] to go rather to the land of Gilead, their own land, of which they had possessed themselves [5:20] by the command of the Lord through Moses. [5:24] Number one, this morning, you need to see that the reward for obedience is worth the sacrifice. [5:29] The reward for obedience is worth the sacrifice. [5:34] Here’s a blanket rule of life that’s very simple. [5:37] Obedience leads to blessing.

[5:40] You need to realize that that is a natural law that God has given the way that the world works. [5:43] But it’s also a special revelation that God has given through his word. [5:48] And he looks to these tribes and he says, you’ve been obedient, [5:51] and therefore enjoy the reward for your obedience. [5:53] And he speaks directly to these two and a half tribes as they go back across the Jordan [5:58] to the plains on the other side of the river where they had collectively decided

[6:03] that they would spend their days after the conquest of the promised land. [6:08] Moses had given charge to these people. [6:10] He had foreseen that possibly they were asking for that land so that they would not have to cross [6:15] the Jordan, so that they would not have to fight the battles that stood before all of Israel. [6:20] And Moses had commanded them and said, you must go with the nations, all the men of battle. [6:26] And you must fight with your brothers to take the promised land.

[6:30] And only when rest is given by the Lord, do you then have the ability to go back over. [6:36] And it required faith for these men to do that. [6:39] They had to leave their families for long periods of time in order to engage in battle, [6:43] in order to be obedient to the calling of God in their lives. [6:46] But they had done it. [6:47] And now comes the time to which Joshua releases them.

[6:51] He says, now we’ve had rest from battle, go back to the land. [6:55] And because of the faith that you have exhibited through your action, God will bless you. [7:03] He sends them back and he says, you’re going to have plenty. [7:06] The promises of God are yours. [7:08] But note what Joshua also says, he says, do not become unfaithful. [7:14] The only way, just so you know, a little secret tip, the only way to avoid being unfaithful is to be faithful.

[7:20] And so God tells them, be faithful to the promises of God. [7:22] Keep the word of God in front of you. [7:24] Love him. And you love him by keeping his commandments. [7:28] And you keep his commandments by being faithful to everything that God has called you to. [7:33] It is the actions of their faith that led to the reward of God. [7:37] And it would be their actions of faith that would continue that reward

[7:42] and continue the possession of that promise in their lives. [7:46] Joshua says their land contained wealth because that was the reward [7:50] that God had given them for their sacrifice. [7:52] And I’ve said it many times. [7:54] God sees the sacrifice that his people make to remain faithful to him [7:59] in a world cursed by sin, and God blesses it.

[8:03] God always promises reward for those that are faithful to them. [8:08] And so a very simple principle, when you obey God, [8:12] it is because you believe that faithfulness to him will be better than unfaithfulness. [8:18] And the opposite of that is true. [8:20] When you are unfaithful to God, [8:23] you believe that your unfaithfulness will reap a greater reward

[8:28] than your faithfulness will.

[8:31] Two completely polar opposite realities, but not complicated at all, is it? [8:38] Faithfulness and unfaithfulness [8:40] both seek a reward, even though those rewards are opposite. [8:46] And only one of those rewards will be true. [8:49] Unfaithfulness to God, hear me, will never reap the reward of God, [8:58] no matter what you paint that up in, no matter what you excuse it by,

[9:04] no matter what issues you have in your life by which you think less faithfulness [9:10] to God is required of you because you’ve had this happen in your life [9:15] or because you’ve had that happen in your life or because this person hurts you over here [9:19] or because you experience this tragedy over there. [9:23] God still looks to you and says, [9:26] do you want my reward? Then be faithful to my commands.

[9:31] And when you go the path of unfaithfulness, [9:36] you are there by saying, I don’t want the reward of God because I believe [9:40] the reward of the world or the reward of someone in the world or the reward [9:44] of something in the world is going to be better than that, which God says [9:48] I am designed to have in my life. [9:52] Therefore, Joshua reminds these people

[9:54] that is only ever going to be through their continued obedience, [9:58] that they were going to continue to experience the favor of God in their lives.

[10:03] Disobedience will never lead to the blessing of God. [10:06] And we know that in theory. [10:09] You’ll agree with I’ve not said anything controversial. [10:12] Oh, yeah, it’s biblical. That’s true. [10:14] It’s true. And some you’re going to go right out that door. [10:16] And you are going to be as unfaithful as you can possibly be all week.

[10:20] And then if anybody has the audacity to call you on it, [10:25] well, you just don’t understand the things that I’m dealing with. [10:28] You can be the biggest snowflake in the world. [10:30] The rules aren’t any different for you. [10:32] You are not some unique particle in the universe [10:35] that has reasons that are superior to everyone else’s reasons.

[10:39] The same God that designed me is the same God that designed you. [10:43] The same God that has commanded me is the same God that has commanded you. [10:47] And I know your life may be different, [10:49] but the calling of God is exactly the same. [10:52] Your faith is exhibited through your obedience [10:55] to the commands that he has given.

[10:58] And God is so gracious that he reveals what those commands are. [11:03] And here’s the key. [11:04] God reveals his command so that they can be obeyed.

[11:09] That’s not crazy. [11:11] That’s reasonable. [11:12] He doesn’t give you commands so that you can disobey them. [11:16] He doesn’t give you a command so that it’s some kind of trap. [11:19] It doesn’t bring a calling into your life and then laugh [11:22] because there’s absolutely no way you can live by his design.

[11:26] No, every calling that God brings into your life [11:29] is one by which he will give you the strength to live up to [11:33] because of your faith in Jesus Christ. [11:36] God’s commands are not arbitrary. [11:41] God’s commands are always purpose filled. [11:44] They are always designed by him to show his goodness

[11:47] through his people to the world around you. [11:52] God has created everything. [11:54] And because of that, he can be trusted to tell us how we are designed to live. [11:59] And faith is always going to be revealed through submission to that reality. [12:04] That’s why this is a constant theme throughout the book of Joshua. [12:07] So why it’s this constant theme throughout a book that’s centered upon

[12:11] the idea of building dynamic faith in God and maintaining [12:14] that faith over the long haul of life. [12:17] In Joshua one eight, he kicks off the book [12:20] by both commanding obedience and defining the result of that obedience. [12:24] He gives us the theme. [12:25] He says the book of the law shall not depart from your mouth,

[12:28] but you shall meditate on it day and night so that you may be careful [12:33] to do according to all that is written in it. [12:35] For then you will make your way prosperous and then you will have good success. [12:41] If you do this, then you will have that. [12:44] Is that complicated? [12:46] It’s difficult. I didn’t say it was easy, but it certainly isn’t complicated.

[12:50] If you want the promises of God, obedience will light the path towards them. [12:55] But then in Joshua five, six, the opposite is explained [12:59] for the people of Israel walked 40 years in the wilderness [13:02] until all the nation, the men of war who came out of Egypt [13:06] perished because they did not obey the voice of the Lord. [13:10] The Lord swore to them that he would not let them see the land

[13:13] that the Lord had sworn to their fathers to give to us [13:16] a land flowing with milk and honey. [13:19] If you are unfaithful, you will not receive the promise. [13:24] If you are unfaithful, the path to the promises of God [13:29] will be dimmed for you. [13:31] You won’t see them.

[13:33] If you want the judgment of God, [13:37] disobedience will obscure the path to his promises [13:39] and lead you down the road of condemnation. [13:43] God is not arbitrary. [13:44] God graciously gives us his commands [13:47] so that we will see the path that leads to his glory.

[13:51] The path to God’s kingdom is faith that is revealed through obedience. [13:56] There’s no other way. [13:58] Disobedience never leads to blessing. [14:03] But you will try to convince yourself of that. [14:08] All of you will at some point or another. [14:11] You will try to convince yourself that your situation is so unique

[14:17] that you have to go into sin just a little bit more [14:23] so that you can get the promise of God. [14:25] That’s unreasonable. [14:26] It doesn’t even make sense. [14:27] And it’s not going to work out. [14:30] You want instant gratification and you believe somehow

[14:34] God is holding out on you because he’s not delivering his promise fast enough [14:39] or he’s taken something away that you wish he hadn’t taken away. [14:43] And you believe that that excuses you to be unfaithful to God in some way. [14:49] And so you start to reason it out. [14:52] I deserve better. [14:55] You start to reason it out.

[14:56] I should have more. [14:59] We have a society now that is hellbent [15:03] on giving ourselves therapy all the way to the gates of hell. [15:08] We don’t want to repent. [15:10] We want some type of therapy to explain why we are sinners. [15:14] Friends, I can save you a lot of money.

[15:17] You sin because you’re a sinner. [15:19] All right. Here’s the deal. [15:21] I watch YouTube with my kids sometimes, and I hate the ads, [15:24] but I’m unwilling to pay to get rid of them.

[15:27] And somehow through something that I’ve said, [15:30] because Big Brother’s always listening or something that I’ve typed in, [15:34] this commercial for this online therapy has been a hit. [15:37] It started popping up or maybe it’s the voice of God telling me [15:39] I need something. I don’t know.

[15:44] But one of the commercials, the girl was like, you know, [15:46] I’ve had such a great relationship with my therapist for the past five years. [15:49] And I just laughed and said, they saw you coming, sister. [15:54] You build her a big house. [15:57] They’ve been billing you and billing you and billing you. [16:00] There are some truths in therapy.

[16:02] All of them happen to be from God’s word. [16:04] But the reality is, is that the reason that we are so committed [16:09] to a life of seeking the therapeutic for our sin, [16:14] and it is because we are unwilling to make the changes [16:16] that God has been clear that we need to make. [16:20] Friend, the reason that you can’t find help

[16:22] to solve your problems is because you’re looking in the wrong place. [16:27] You’re looking for the answer in unfaithfulness. [16:30] When God says the answer is only ever going to be found in faithfulness, [16:35] that promotes a life of obedience to him. [16:38] Is how Jesus put it in Matthew seven twenty one. [16:41] This is the human dilemma, I believe.

[16:43] Jesus says, not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord, will enter the kingdom of heaven. [16:48] But the one who what does the will of my father who is in heaven? [16:54] The fact of our world is many people want the blessing of God. [16:59] But it is only those that submit to the will of God [17:02] that will ever reap God’s blessings. [17:06] No one, friends, understand this, will ever walk the path

[17:10] of continual disobedience and see the kingdom of heaven. [17:14] It will never happen. [17:16] It is only those that believe to the point of trusting Jesus [17:20] with the design for their lives that will inherit the kingdom of heaven. [17:25] And thus his blessings both in this life [17:28] and in the eternity that is to come.

[17:33] And so secondly, the story gets interesting because we have this great charge. [17:37] And it’s like if I was writing the book of Joshua, I would have stopped at verse nine [17:41] and I would have sent twenty two is done. [17:43] But of course, we have the human element. [17:46] The prophecy comes from God. [17:48] You’ve been faithful.

[17:49] Reap the reward. Continue to be faithful. [17:51] You will continue to reap the reward. [17:53] And I love the way these narratives happen because they don’t tell us [17:56] really the gap of time that takes place between what Joshua says [18:01] and what happens next. [18:03] All that it does is it ends Joshua’s speech and then immediately says they’re unfaithful.

[18:07] And it’s so fascinating because it’s almost this perpetual cycle. [18:12] And I get very judgmental on the people of Israel because I’m like, [18:15] don’t they know that this never ends well? [18:17] And then I consider my life and I need to look in the mirror and say, [18:20] don’t I know that this never ends well? [18:24] But yet here we are putting ourselves in front of the same temptations

[18:28] over and over. [18:29] And it’s insane because we think giving into the same temptation [18:32] is somehow going to reap a different reward next time. [18:36] It’s only ever going to reap bad things in my life [18:40] because God has not designed for me to live that way. [18:44] But look at what happens starting in verse 10.

[18:47] And when they came to the region of the Jordan, that is in the land of Canaan, [18:51] the people of Ruben and the people of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh [18:54] built there an altar by the Jordan, an altar of imposing size. [18:59] And the original language, that just means that the big old altar [19:02] and the people of Israel heard it said, behold, the people of Ruben [19:06] and the people of Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh have built the altar

[19:11] at the frontier of the land of Canaan and the region [19:14] about the Jordan on the side that belongs to the people of Israel. [19:19] Don’t you just wish they just sat on the other side of the river? [19:22] And when the people of Israel heard it, the whole assembly of the people of Israel [19:27] gathered at Shiloh to make war against them. [19:31] I think it’s a fascinating narrative.

[19:34] Because we’re very quick to almost excuse it, [19:36] so it seems like an overreach, but it’s not. [19:40] Skip down to verse 16. [19:43] The people have gathered and they’re now accusing these two and a half tribes. [19:47] Verse 16, thus says the whole congregation of the Lord. [19:51] What is this breach of faith that you have committed against the God of Israel

[19:54] and turning away this day from following the Lord by building yourselves [19:58] and alter this day in rebellion against the Lord? [20:01] Have we not had enough of the sin at Peor [20:04] from which even yet we have not cleansed ourselves [20:08] and for which there came a plague upon the congregation of the Lord [20:12] that you too must turn away this day from following the Lord.

[20:16] And if you too rebel against the Lord today, then tomorrow [20:19] he will be angry with the whole congregation of Israel. [20:23] But now, if the land of your possession is unclean, [20:27] pass over into the Lord’s land where the Lord’s tabernacle stands [20:30] and take for yourselves a possession among us. [20:33] Only do not rebel against the Lord or make us as rebels

[20:37] by building for yourselves an altar other than the altar of the Lord. [20:42] Our God did not Achan, the son of Zara, [20:45] break faith in the matter of the devoted things [20:47] and wrath fell upon the whole congregation of Israel. [20:50] And he did not perish alone for this iniquity. [20:55] And so the congregation gathers and we know from the verses previous

[20:59] and just post this that the priest Fanejas went with them [21:03] and they make this accusation. [21:04] They look to them and they say, you have breached the faith [21:08] because you have built an altar in the area [21:12] that God says you cannot build an altar. [21:15] And the way that we know this is because in Deuteronomy 12, 13 through 14,

[21:20] the text tells us Moses is writing, he says, take care that you do not [21:24] offer your burnt offerings at any place that you see, [21:27] but at the place that the Lord will choose in one of the tribes. [21:31] There you shall offer your burnt offerings and there you shall do [21:35] all that I am commanding you. [21:37] God would tell them you cannot worship me

[21:41] wherever, however you want. [21:44] I have designated that my presence is in the tabernacle. [21:47] And at this point in Israel, it was in the promised land. [21:50] And God had said, that’s the only place that I want you to make sacrifices. [21:55] And for whatever reason, the two and a half tribes had built [22:00] this imposing altar on the other side of the river.

[22:04] The nation of Israel comes to them and says, your reasons don’t matter. [22:09] You have done something that is against the Lord. [22:12] And number two, understand what God demands is more important than what you intend. [22:18] What God demands is more important than what you intend. [22:22] We live in a culture right now [22:24] that will try to condition you to understand that intentions matter

[22:29] more than actions. [22:31] It’s not true. [22:33] It’s not true at all. [22:36] Your actions matter. [22:38] And so very quickly in our culture, what we do is, is we’ll see somebody [22:42] commit some type of heinous sin.

[22:44] We’ll see somebody commit absolutely wicked sin [22:47] that hurts other people, tears other people down, ruins God’s design, [22:53] creates victims. [22:54] And we will try to give that person therapy, [22:57] because the reasons why they did it matter more than why they did it. [23:01] Ask the victims if that’s true.

[23:04] The content of what you do always matters to God. [23:11] Your intentions are not lords [23:15] that must be submitted to. [23:18] Some of you believe that you are condemned [23:21] to just follow whatever motivates you day by day. [23:25] However, I feel if I feel this way, I do that.

[23:27] If I feel that way, I do that. [23:28] I’ll get around to obeying God when I feel like it. [23:31] You’re creating a false God. [23:34] And that false God is your feelings. [23:37] Your feelings do not trump the commands of God. [23:41] Doesn’t take long, as I said, it seems by the narrative’s

[23:44] chronology for things to go off the rails with these two and a half tribes. [23:49] Narrative purposefully reads as though it all took place soon [23:52] because it teaches us something about the human condition. [23:55] God calls us to faithfulness. [23:57] But we have this default mode that always tends towards sinning against God. [24:04] Ultimately, we know that the power of the spirit in our lives,

[24:07] through our faith in Jesus Christ is more powerful than any temptation. [24:11] It’s going to be coming into our path. [24:13] Yet I can only assume that every single person gathered here [24:17] has some type of issue in your life where you see a perpetual pattern of sin [24:23] and you don’t know how to walk away from it. [24:26] And the answer is never going to be to make yourself feel better

[24:30] about your unfaithfulness, to say things like, well, I meant well.

[24:36] That’s what we’ll do, because we want to excuse ourselves. [24:40] God would tell them [24:42] you’re supposed to sacrifice here, but they want to sacrifice over there. [24:47] Now, we can only assume because the text doesn’t really tell us [24:50] a clear picture of why they did it. [24:52] But my assumption is, is that it began with just geographical ease.

[24:57] It’s not easy to get across the Jordan River. [25:00] And this points us to something that had happened earlier [25:02] with these two and a half tribes and that Moses had made a concession [25:06] and a compromise. [25:07] God did not call them to that side of the Jordan River. [25:11] God had called them all to the promised land.

[25:13] But these two and a half tribes, they really liked it on that side of the river. [25:17] And they looked to Moses before he died. [25:19] And they said, just let us settle here before we ever go over. [25:23] We know the narrative, and I’ve talked about it earlier in the book. [25:26] But Moses looks to them and he perceived what they were trying to do. [25:31] And that was that they didn’t want to fight in Canaan.

[25:35] So Moses looked at him and he said, look, if you want to stay here, [25:37] I’ll let you stay here. [25:39] But God says, you’ve still got to go fight. [25:42] They had been faithful to that, [25:44] but they had removed themselves from the promised land. [25:46] They were settling on the other side of the Jordan.

[25:48] And very quickly, they settled into a leisurely life [25:52] by which they didn’t want to have to go over the river for their worship. [25:57] It’s my assumption the text is not clear on that. [26:01] But it does show us something about the human condition [26:05] because word reaches the rest of the nation. [26:07] And they’re taking it very seriously

[26:10] where we might actually excuse their actions. [26:16] Their perceived disobedience, as I said, almost brings all out civil war [26:20] because this is no small offense. [26:23] But our modern sensibilities, I think, often struggle to comprehend this. [26:29] Oftentimes, I’ll see people that are reading Old Testament narrative [26:31] and they’ll see God bring great judgment onto people for their sin.

[26:35] And they’ll be like, was it really a big deal? [26:38] I mean, isn’t God kind of overreacting? [26:42] I can tell you very clearly, [26:44] that’s never the voice of the Holy Spirit in your life.

[26:48] That’s the voice of sinful flesh, [26:52] because you know that your sins are even worse than that. [26:57] And so we tried to kind of bring God down to a level [27:00] where he would respond the same way that we would respond and he would listen. [27:05] Well, why were you unfaithful? [27:06] OK, well, I understand.

[27:08] Well, don’t do that again. [27:10] The way some of you parent, how’s that working out?

[27:16] And our culture, [27:18] many of us are conditioned to seek to empathize with the guilty [27:23] more than we understand the wrath of the authority. [27:28] And that is not to our benefit. [27:31] Scripture treats the worship of God as a serious issue. [27:36] Here’s what you need to receive from this.

[27:38] God is not to be worshiped, however you see fit. [27:42] We want everything to be built around our preferences, [27:46] our personalities, our love languages, whatever it is. [27:50] But the foundation for worship is not about what you prefer, [27:55] nor is it even about what you are comfortable with. [27:58] The foundation of worship in Scripture is about the object of worship.

[28:04] If God is worthy to be worshiped, [28:07] then you must form your worship around his preferences [28:11] before you ever take into consideration your own. [28:16] And that’s why I think this text gives us an amazing principle. [28:19] And that is that we must always be open to correction [28:23] from the wisdom of leaders.

[28:26] I can tell you that’s a tough issue for me because I’m a leader in the church. [28:31] And sometimes I have to correct people. [28:33] And sometimes you’re really great about it. [28:35] You’re like, oh, OK, I understand. [28:38] And sometimes you’re just so mean. [28:42] Sometimes you don’t receive the correction very well at all.

[28:45] And typically, I don’t want to correct anybody. [28:48] You have no idea how apathetic I am about your lives. [28:52] I’m not looking for anybody to correct. [28:54] I just want to be left alone most of the time. [28:57] But God’s given me a word, and his word is clear and his word is true. [29:01] And if you go outside of the bounds of what God has called you towards

[29:04] or what God has called his church towards, [29:06] what’s the responsibility of the pastors to kind of insert ourselves [29:09] in what we hope will be a helpful way? [29:11] And I love it when God brings our hearts together and repentance comes out [29:16] and we can join together in unity. And I hate it.

[29:22] And God gives us the wisdom of his word, [29:24] and you reject to the clear counsel of God’s word. [29:29] Because it’s only pride that ever leads you there, and pride is the foundation [29:34] of bad worship. [29:36] Keep in mind that this is a nation that had experienced [29:39] the severity of God’s judgment for sin.

[29:44] And the sin of those within the camp, they mentioned two instances [29:47] in the passage that we’ve read, they first mentioned the sin of peor. [29:52] And I didn’t read the text that says that Fanejas, the priest, was with them. [29:56] We’ll get to that in a minute. [29:57] But Fanejas, the priest, is with them. [29:59] And I think it’s because he was specifically involved

[30:03] in what happened of the judgment of God at the sin at Peor, [30:07] because the nation of Israel during their time of wandering [30:10] had gone into a land where Baal was being worshiped. [30:15] And some of the men of Israel began mixing with the women [30:18] of this pagan nation to the extent where they were having sexual relations [30:23] that were actually involved in the worship of Baal.

[30:27] And so God sends a plague of sickness to the nation of Israel. [30:32] And people are getting very ill and people are dying. [30:35] And God goes to Moses and he says, this is what is happening. [30:40] And you must lead the people to repent of it. [30:43] And as this is going on, somehow [30:47] the text is very unclear in Numbers 25 of how they knew that this was going on.

[30:52] But a man of Israel flagrantly and flamboyantly [30:57] grabs one of the foreign women and goes into his chamber [31:01] to engage in relations. [31:05] And God looks to Fanejas and points it out. [31:09] And here’s what Fanejas does. [31:10] I wanted to go on Etsy and get this done in some great calligraphy.

[31:15] This is one of my favorite Bible verses, and I wanted to put it [31:18] on the wall of our dining room. [31:19] And my wife said, no, pray for her. [31:24] It’s God’s word.

[31:29] When Fanejas, the son of Eliezer, [31:33] son of Aaron, the priest, saw it, he rose and left the congregation, [31:37] took a spear in his hand and went after the man of Israel [31:41] into the chamber and pierced both of them, the man of Israel [31:45] and the woman through their belly. [31:46] Now, I’ll leave it up to your imagination why they would be in that position.

[31:51] Thus, the plague of the people of Israel was stopped. [31:55] God’s [31:55] does not trifle with sin. [32:00] Why do you?

[32:04] The Lord was pleased by what Fanejas did. [32:08] How do I know that? [32:09] Because he stopped the plague. [32:12] What Fanejas did was good. [32:14] And so it’s important to understand that Fanejas is here, [32:17] and he is not what many of you might envision of a priest

[32:22] and all his priestly guard, his very soft hands, his quivering little voice.

[32:29] So Fanejas is a killer. [32:31] All right. [32:32] He can throw a spear with accuracy. [32:36] Two with one is a great deal every time. All right. [32:41] So Fanejas is not a figure that anyone wanted to trifle with. [32:45] And I think that’s why they sent him specifically.

[32:48] But the problem that many of us face in our culture [32:51] is that we want to worry about our intentions above everything else. [32:56] Friends know if you have sin in your life, [32:58] you do have to deal with the motivation for that sin. [33:02] But the reason you deal with the motivation is so that you can repent, [33:06] not so that you can feel better about your sin.

[33:09] It is never an adequate excuse. [33:13] You deal with the disobedience, regardless of the reasons. [33:19] Has been said many times, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. [33:25] Also, keep in mind, this is why leaders exist. [33:28] Even if the intentions of these tribes were good and what they did, [33:32] they needed the correction of their leaders to both inform and humble them to learn.

[33:39] So often in our belligerence, the wisdom of those that know better [33:43] is ignored to our ruin. [33:47] When you begin to defend yourself by saying foolish things like, [33:51] well, they don’t understand me. [33:53] Well, they don’t know why I did what I did. [33:58] Certainly, they may not may not know why,

[34:00] but the why is never what’s going to kill you. [34:03] It’s the what? [34:05] Sometimes you need to humble yourself to listen to people [34:08] who’ve been down the road a little further, who might have a little more wisdom [34:11] than you and all of your godness may have. [34:16] Friends, God gives us the wisdom of leaders to learn a better way.

[34:22] Stop assuming you know more than leaders. [34:27] I’ve been wrong enough in my life and had it pointed out by enough leaders [34:32] to know that is just simply not true. [34:35] You need the wisdom of leaders in your life [34:38] because that is what leads to repentance, and that’s what leads us to number three. [34:43] God desires unity around his commands.

[34:47] God desires unity around his commands. [34:51] Look at the way the text continues in verse 21. [34:55] Then the people of Rubin, the people of Gad, the half tribe of Manasseh said [34:58] in answer to the heads of the families of Israel, the mighty one, God, the Lord, [35:01] the mighty one, God, the Lord, he knows and let Israel itself know [35:05] if it was in rebellion or in breach of faith against the Lord.

[35:08] Do not spare us today for building an altar to turn away from content [35:12] from excuse me, from following the Lord. [35:14] Or if we did so to offer burnt offerings or grain offerings or peace offerings on it. [35:20] May the Lord himself take vengeance. [35:22] No, but we did it from fear that in time to come, [35:26] your children might say to our children, what have you to do with the Lord,

[35:29] the God of Israel, for the Lord has made the Jordan a boundary between you. [35:34] Excuse me, us and you, you people of Rubin and people of Gad. [35:37] You have no portion in the Lord. [35:39] So your children might make our children cease to worship the Lord. [35:43] Therefore, we said, let us now build an altar, not for burnt offering, nor for sacrifice, [35:49] but to be a witness between us and you and between our generations after us

[35:53] that we do perform the service of the Lord in his presence [35:57] with our burnt offerings and sacrifices and peace offerings. [36:00] So your children will not say to our children in time to come, [36:04] you have no portion in the Lord.

[36:09] And what then happens [36:11] is they defend themselves and say, [36:14] well, we weren’t building it so that we can offer sacrifices on it. [36:18] It’s pretty weak.

[36:21] If you build a grill, you tend to want to make burgers.

[36:25] But the nation looks and they come up with this contrived reasoning [36:30] where they say, we weren’t building it to make sacrifices [36:34] because we know that sacrifices can only be made in the presence of the Lord [36:37] in the tabernacle. [36:38] We were actually doing it so that in generations to come, [36:43] our nation, our tribes rather won’t forget who they are.

[36:46] And your tribes will have a monument by which they can look to [36:50] and not exclude our children from worship [36:53] based on geography that we’re on the other side of the Jordan River. [36:59] And this is where we begin to complicate things over and over, [37:03] because the simplest answer to this would have been for these two [37:06] and a half tribes to actually settle in the promised land.

[37:11] And so you see that once you begin to compromise one thing, what happens? [37:18] You begin to make decisions that lead to compromise here, [37:21] that lead to compromise there, that lead to more and more compromise. [37:24] And before you know it, you’re accusing people that come to you and say, hey, [37:28] I think what you’re doing is not a good thing. [37:30] And you’re like, oh, yeah, well, my children.

[37:33] Like, what? [37:34] They didn’t even bring up your kids.

[37:38] If an AHA looks to them and says, all right,

[37:42] if you guys aren’t going to make sacrifices on there, there will be no war. [37:48] But note that the unity [37:51] that the nation experienced after this day for a period was built [37:56] on this nation continuing in obedience.

[38:01] The problem that we have in our culture and even in the church today [38:05] is that we believe that the first half of my third point is true. [38:10] God desires unity. [38:13] And so we will use that fact [38:16] as an excuse to look at people in a soft handed way and say, [38:23] just be united with me, don’t be so judgmental.

[38:29] The second half of the command is what brings unity. [38:34] God doesn’t just desire unity, God desires a specific kind of unity. [38:38] And the unity that God desires of his people is a unity around the truth of his word.

[38:44] God isn’t looking for any old unity that we’re going to throw down the pipe. [38:48] God is looking for a unity around his commands, [38:52] because it begins with the very fact that there is only one God [38:56] that gives the commands. [38:58] The whole nation of Israel was built around one principle [39:01] that everything else emerged from Deuteronomy six for hero Israel.

[39:06] The Lord, our God, the Lord is one. [39:09] There’s only one God. [39:12] Therefore, anything that would lead us stray [39:14] from that one God must be rejected, even if it threatens unity, [39:21] because without the truth of God, unity is sinful. [39:26] Problem so many of you had is you’re trying to experience

[39:30] unity with sinful people. [39:34] And you can’t do it. [39:37] It will never work.

[39:40] Unity only exists within the truth of the gospel [39:44] of Jesus Christ, because God has spoken. [39:49] Therefore, his people must go the direction of his voice.

[39:53] As I said, unity can very quickly become an idol that excuses sin. [39:57] And it was not the other nine and a half tribes [40:01] that threatened the unity of Israel. [40:04] It was the two and a half tribes that made a foolish decision [40:08] without consulting the priesthood about it. [40:13] The nine and a half tribes were the ones that were seeking true unity.

[40:17] Sin is always what brings disunity. [40:20] It’s never seeking righteousness that causes disunity. [40:24] And when you think in your life, when your sin is exposed [40:27] or when someone comes to you and confronts you with your sin [40:30] and you look at them and say, I just want unity, don’t be so judgmental. [40:34] You’re the one promoting disunity by not dealing with your sin.

[40:39] As Joshua 22, 31 states today, we know that the Lord is in our midst [40:44] because you have not committed this breach of faith against the Lord. [40:50] If it is God who brings unity, [40:52] then in this text, the statement is made when you obey God. [40:59] That is the only source of real unity, [41:02] because it is God that is the first offended at sin.

[41:06] And it is only through purging sin that unity can be formed [41:10] under the lordship of God. [41:12] This is the same message from Philippians one twenty seven. [41:16] The apostle Paul writes, he says, only let your manner of life [41:19] be worthy of the gospel of Christ. [41:21] So whether I come and see you or am absent,

[41:25] I may hear you, excuse me, hear of you that you are standing firm [41:29] in one spirit with one mind, striving side by side for faith of the gospel. [41:35] Before Paul ever mentions unity, he states that the foundation [41:40] of it is a life worthy of the gospel of Christ. [41:45] He’s talking about the obedience that you must have to the commands of God. [41:49] Friends, you don’t need unity in the gospel.

[41:53] Requires two things that this passage shows us. [41:57] First, it requires the truth of the gospel [42:00] that we find in God’s word. [42:02] If you promote lies or error, [42:05] then you are bringing disunity, not the ones that expose lies, [42:10] the ones that expose lies and seek sound doctrine

[42:13] are the ones that are forming real unity. [42:15] But secondly, it requires obedience to God’s commands. [42:19] I will tell you, some of you [42:24] are giving in to sin. [42:26] Some of you are living unrighteous lives. [42:29] There is wickedness being covered in your life

[42:32] and you are angry at everyone else because you don’t feel united with them.

[42:40] Friends, I will tell you, the best decision that you can make today [42:45] is repent of your sin, trust the gospel [42:48] and go to those people and seek real unity through repentance. [42:52] Not theirs, yours. [42:53] They’re not the ones being judgmental. You are. [42:57] Judge with righteous judgment is what God said.

[43:01] This is how you stand firm in one spirit, in one mind. [43:05] It’s always about Jesus. [43:07] It’s about his truth. [43:09] It’s about his lordship. [43:10] That is how we flourish. [43:12] And that is how we are united in reaching the world with the gospel.

[43:18] A few application points this morning. [43:21] First, seek the reward through faithful obedience. [43:24] If you want the reward of God, faithful obedience is the path. [43:28] Turn from your sin, whatever it is, whatever it is. [43:31] God knows what it is. [43:33] Turn from it today.

[43:35] What are you waiting for? [43:37] Secondly, build a life on obedience and your intentions will follow. [43:43] Some of you are lorded over by your intentions [43:46] and you think you can only give your life, get your life right when you feel like it.

[43:53] Start obeying and your heart’s going to get there eventually. [43:56] That’s the way it works out. [43:58] Thirdly, humble yourself to be correctable when you’re proven wrong.

[44:04] Takes great humility, and it’s only the gospel that humbles you through faith [44:07] that you’re going to have that type of humility. [44:09] But when you’re proven wrong,

[44:13] throw your defenses down, it’s over. [44:15] Be vulnerable enough to admit it. [44:18] Be vulnerable enough in the gospel to repent. [44:22] And that is where you’ll find forgiveness. [44:24] And that is where you’ll find the life that God has waiting for you. [44:27] Fourthly, unite around the gospel above all.

[44:30] There’s many different types of unity you can find. [44:33] There’s only one that’s worth anything. [44:36] And that’s unity around the gospel of Jesus Christ.