Joshua 22:30

Joshua 22:30 says, And when Phinehas the priest, and the princes of the congregation and heads of the thousands of Israel which were with him, heard the words that the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the children of Manasseh spake, it pleased them.  Phinehas and a few of the heads of the tribes had come ready to pronounce the doom of these two and a  half tribes because they thought that they were being disobedient to God.  When they herd the explanation of the tribe of  Reuben, Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh, they were pleased.  We as followers of Christ cannot simply go ready to condemn others, especially fellow believers, because of what we think they are doing, but we must instead go under the guidance of God and get the facts about what they are doing.  Verse thirty-one declares, And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest said unto the children of Reuben, and to the children of Gad, and to the children of Manasseh, This day we perceive that the LORD is among us, because ye have not committed this trespass against the LORD: now ye have delivered the children of Israel out of the hand of the LORD.  Phinehas, again identified as the son of Eleazar the priest, was the spokesman.  He said that the rest of the nation now perceived that the LORD had not left them because of the actions of these two and a half tribes.  We should never assume that God is going to leave us because of the worship practices of others, but I do believe that we should always question practices that may seem to be inconsistent with God's word, not to condemn others but to at least attempt to make them aware of what we believe to be contrary to God's word.  Some people who profess to follow and worship God and pronounce themselves to be a part of His people include beliefs and practices in their worship service and even daily life that are not in accordance with the Bible.  Some even attempt to rewrite the Bible, and we cannot accept this.  Verse thirty-two adds, And Phinehas the son of Eleazar the priest, and the princes, returned from the children of Reuben, and from the children of Gad, out of the land of Gilead, unto the land of Canaan, to the children of Israel, and brought them word again.  Phinehas and the others went back home.  When we are certain that other believers are living in accordance to the word of God and under His leadership, we need to simply leave them to their worship and know that they are a part of God's people.  Verse thirty-three continues, And the thing pleased the children of Israel; and the children of Israel blessed God, and did not intend to go up against them in battle, to destroy the land wherein the children of Reuben and Gad dwelt.  The rest of the people of Israel were pleased with the report and decided that they did not have to go to war with the tribe of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh.  It is never a good thing for those who call themselves Christians to go to war with each other.  Of course, I do believe that we have a responsibility to make sure that what we are doing in the name of God is in accordance with the Bible, and we should question any practice that does not seem to be.  This should all be done under the leadership of the Holy Spirit.  Verse thirty-four concludes, And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad called the altar Ed: for it shall be a witness between us that the LORD is God.  The people of Reuben and Gad proclaimed the altar to be a witness between the LORD and them.  Whatever we do in worship of God today as Christians should be done as a witness between God and us.  We may not all worship the same way, but we all worship the same God, the only true and living God, if we are followers of Christ.