Insightful Musings on the Scriptures
by
Raymond P. Sparre
Northwest University class of '67
Greetings again, dear ones.
It’s kind of misting out there…not really raining, and not really dry.
I already had a problem with this dog, Bimbo, this morning. Once again he ran off to the neighbors to raid their cat’s food. And once on that head-strong course, it doesn’t matter what his master says, it doesn’t matter that there will be certain consequences…the only thing that matters is what he wants right then. When he finally returned to our property, he refused to come to me, though he heard my calls and clearly knew what I wanted. Knowing he was in the wrong he did not want to come near me…but fled to his “city of refuge” (his dog house). In other words, he’s just like people in relation to God.
I hope you will learn to come when the Master calls…learn to sit, stay, speak, etc. I may be getting carried away.
Have a nice day. Love, Dad/Ray.
The same prescription for health and success keeps surfacing—a HEART AFTER GOD. As was the case with Israel, it’s the core operating system that makes all the software and hardware of life work properly. Joshua is passionate about promoting this passion. In this case, he is challenging the warriors of Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh whom he was now releasing to return to their land possessions on the other side of the Jordan.
Joshua, and those in Israel who were paying attention, have learned a few things and understood that it was one thing to receive the good promises of the LORD, but quite another to maintain them. They understood that they were all walking a fine line between the national blessing of the LORD and national disaster. The attitude of the leaders could have been similar to the proverbial quip that says, “No chain is stronger than its weakest link.” So violations of even individual members had the scary potential of affecting the whole community. The sin of Achan was still fresh in their minds (22:20).
Therefore, when the returning Reubenite, Gadite, and Manassite soldiers took time to build “an imposing altar there by the Jordan” (22:10) and the rest of Israel heard about it, they jumped to conclusions and interpreted that project as a rebellious act of independence against the LORD—the consequences of which could harm the rest of the nation. It became a big deal. So “the whole assembly of Israel gathered at Shiloh to go to war against them” (22:12). After so much international war, they now prepared for civil war to purge out the presumed threatening corruption.
Before engaging in battle, they did the right thing by sending a delegation to confront the leaders of Reuben, Gad, and Manasseh and get the story straight. Whew! That was close! That meeting afforded the opportunity to “speak the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15) and avoid a major crisis. Suddenly the very act that triggered initial alarm became a point of praise (22:30, 33) because they came to understand the heart-level motivations behind the project.
Are there some important lessons here for us today?