Conflict and Joshua 22

Three tribes of Israel, Ruben, Gad and the 1/2 tribe of Manasseh, asked Moses about settling on the east side of the Jordan.  In  Joshua 22:9, this request was acknowledged  "according to the word of the Lord by the hand of Moses". These  tribes then built an altar that caused all sorts of angst with the other tribes. The other tribes thought of this as a turning away and that, in essence, they were starting a new denomination. It took a little conversation and practical reasoning to avert a crisis.

Living in a day and time that has something like 24,000 different religious bodies, this type of argument is ever with us and sometimes it can be quite difficult to sort out. It was determined in Joshua 22, that all were worshipping the same God and that the altar the 2 1/2 tribes built would serve as a memorial to that commitment. Phineas got involved along with the princes of the tribes. It was settled peaceably. There were other times in the history of their trek to the promised land when some of them started worshipping other gods and it was not so easy. Phineas was also in on dealing with the sin of Peor in Number 25. The results were more severe on that occasion.

So how does one navigate in the world today with different doctrines and traditions? Nothing is black and white. We all can be cajoled into going along with stuff that goes against what we believe in for "love's" sake, but  honestly, "love" can also be standing up for what is right. That kind of "love" is not legalism. There is a big difference. It takes patience, peace, love and humility to recognize the plain path. To maintain a "righteous" attitude is to go to God with whatever is set in front of you that is disconcerting and allow God to work. Job was a great example of this. He had some pretty nasty judgment thrown out at him from 4 people, but he held out for God's answer. That is where peace comes from! That is where peace comes in, settles the heart and brings freedom from fear!