Tabor Baptist Church

Introduction

• Unity is absolutely fundamental
• One of the most important things as a believer is to be in fellowship with other Christians
• A breach in unity is very painful
• Example of the Gideon meal
• The Book of Joshua reminds us of a people who are united
• The children of Reuben, Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh fought with the children of Israel
• Joshua blessed these 2½ tribes
• It is at this point that disunity came
• cf 21:45
• All that God had said would come to pass, came to pass
• Not one promise that God gave, failed
• It is at this point that difficulty arises
• v8 - They returned with riches, why should they be unhappy?
• They built an impressive altar that the other 9½ tribes didn't understand
• The other 9½ tribes almost went to war with the 2½ tribes
• They felt this was rebellion - building another altar
• Overview:
• The Threat from within
• Two points of view
• The Healing of the breach

The Threat from Within

• The threat didn't come from an alien power
• We often think the Church is a haven and oasis
• We often think that the enemy is only outside
• The devil is subtle
• He gets into the mind of believers (e.g. Peter)
• Sometimes Christians can be used for evil
• The devil can use rumours and reports (v11)
• The people did not investigate the rumour
• They did not understand why they had built the altar
• "A house divided against itself cannot stand"
• "We must endeavour to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bonds of peace"
• This passage is for our warning
• To be forewarned is to be forearmed
• This passage is for our encouragement
• We shall see how unity was restored
• Example of Nehemiah, Pentecost, the early church, the Hellenist widows
• The New Testament speaks about the need to be in unity
• Examples from Paul
• Strive to be like-minded, not selfish ambition
• Tabor displays unity but may love increase in our hearts
• The devil seeks to disturb the unity of the church

Two Points of View

• We are not here to establish who was at fault
• We are to learn lessons of who acted honourably
• We are to learn from their problems
• Example of two different sermons (each saying the other tribe was at fault)
• Good and bad points of both sides

The 2½ Tribes

• They appear to have a godly concern for their offspring (v24)
• They wanted to be one in God
• They wanted to go to Shiloh to sacrifice
• Their motives were right
• They built it through fear that they would be forgotten by the 9½ tribes
• They feared the 9½ tribes wouldn't treat them as brethren
• It was built as a witness, not for sacrifice (v26-27)
• Their allocation of land on the east of the Jordan was at the request of the 2½ tribes
• It was an "impressive altar" (v10)
• They did not consult Joshua
• It gave the appearance that they would sacrifice on it
• They built the altar for a good reason
• They wanted to remain unified
• Example of AECW prayer meetings
• We should seek to foster the unity we have

The 9½ Tribes

• They were taking God's word very seriously
• Deut 12:5-6, 8, 13-14
• This place of sacrifice had been set up in Shiloh
• They sent a delegation of 10 men and Phinehas to speak on their behalf
• To rebel against the Lord is a very serious thing
• The sin of Peor (v17)
• The sin of Achan (v20)
• Their conclusion was wrong but they had great zeal for the Lord
• They recognised that sin can affect others
• They were far to quick to judge
• Have we acted in the same manner?

Who was at fault? - They both were

The Healing of the Breach

• They come with strong words but offer an olive branch (v19)
• What is tremendous is the response of the 2½ tribes
• Explanation
• v22
• Example of the pastor falsely accused
• The 2½ tribes explain things in detail (v26-27)
• Phinehas believes them (v30)
• The breach is healed
• Many lessons to learn:
• God hates a false witness and one who sows discord
• Disunity is a very serious thing amongst God's people
• Acts 2:1
• Celebrating the Lord's supper is a sign of our unity