“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?” Joshua 22: 16

I love the book of Joshua! By the time we get to the end of the book, Israel has endured through seven years of battle, and they’ve gained control of Canaan – the Promised Land – which was then divided and allotted to each of the tribes. Joshua dismissed the army, because now it was each tribe’s responsibility to clear out the remaining enemies from their own areas.

The Reubenites, Gadites, and the half-tribe of Manasseh had asked before the conquest had even begun that they be given land on the east side of the Jordan River. The Lord, through Moses, granted their request, on the condition that the fighting men help the rest of their brothers (tribes) subdue the land on the west side. Having fulfilled their obligations, these 2 ½ tribes were released to return to the women and children on their allotment east of the Jordan.

When they got there, they built “an imposing altar there by the Jordan” (22.10). When the rest of the Isrealites found out, they were beside themselves and gathered to go to war against them! They couldn’t believe how quickly and willingly their own brothers would go in to rebellion against the Lord. As it turns out, it was all a misunderstanding. The Reubenites, Gadites, and half-tribe of Manasseh built an altar “not for burnt offerings or sacrifices…(but) to be a witness between us and you and the generations that follow, that we will worship the Lord at his sanctuary with our burnt offerings, sacrifices, and fellowship offerings. Then in the future your descendants will not be able to say to ours, ‘You have no share in the Lord’” (22:26,27). They built it, not in rebellion, but to serve as a witness for all the tribes, no matter what side of the Jordan they were on, that they were united in the Lord!

So what is my point?! I love how incredibly bold and tenacious the remaining 9 ½ tribes were at holding their brothers and sisters accountable!! Granted, they jumped to some wrong conclusions at first, but, nonetheless, they were rightfully concerned! And they wanted to make sure that their brothers were not falling in to sin.

This is another one of those topics that we could spend lots of blogs on. Bottom line – biblically, we are called and have a responsibility to hold accountable our brothers and sisters in Christ. We are to do it in love, always with their best and God’s glory in mind. We’ve got to be willing to do and say hard things to one another, out of love for one another and a desire to see each person grow in maturity and Christ-likeness. Do you have someone in your life that cares enough about you to confront you with your sin, in order to help you live your life in complete surrender and obedience to the Lord? Do you love your brothers and sisters enough to do that for them?