July 10, 2025
At long last, it’s about to happen. For forty years the Israelites have faced the wilderness together. They have worshipped together, fought their enemies together, suffered from lack of water together, eaten manna together and experienced God’s love together. Though they are technically twelve separate tribes, they have come together and are functioning as a team. The wilderness experience has turned the twelve tribes into a single nation.
But just as they are about to cross from the East bank of the Jordan river to the West bank, just as they are about to begin taking possession of their Promised Land, they seem to be falling apart. Two tribes, the Reubenites and the Gadites, don’t want to cross over. They are herdsmen (probably sheep) and have decided that the land on the East bank is better for their animals. They want to stay put. They don’t want to take up arms and face their common enemies on the western side of the Jordan. The grand coalition is in danger of falling apart.
Have you seen that happen, maybe in a church or two? ‘I don’t have children, I really don’t care what happens in the nursery.’ ‘I don’t enjoy church music. The choir doesn’t mean that much to me.’ ‘Ministry should start close to home. I’m not going to give to foreign missions.’ ‘Adult Bible study is well and good for those who want it. An hour of God a week is all I want.’ And there’s my favorite, ‘I don’t pay any attention to pledge campaigns. I give just enough to support the ministries I care about and nothing more.’
These are all signs of a church in distress. They are not united. They are not a team. No one is willing to put the interests of the church as a whole above their own.
How far would a football team go if the offense never spoke to the defense? What would an orchestra sound like if the violins played whatever they wanted, without listening to the other instruments around them? Or a choir if the soloists sang whenever they felt like it?
Churches are not made up of individual, special interests. Not everyone will appreciate the choir every week. Not everyone will have children in the nursery. Not everyone will have the time, or inclination, to study the Bible during the week. But we as individuals still need to support the interests of others if we are going to be a healthy, thriving church.
I think the Israelites worked it out rather well. The Reubenites and the Gadites settled their women and children in towns on the East bank of the Jordan where they could graze their livestock. Then, the warriors took up arms and crossed the Jordan river with the rest of the nation. Just because they were settled did not mean they could ignore the needs of their fellow countrymen. They got up and did what they needed to do for the entire nation to be successful, not just their two tribes.
May we all have this same attitude towards our church’s ministries. Even if they’re not our favorites, let’s support them anyway. The health and ministry of the entire church depends on it.
May God’s peace be with us all,
Pastor Ken.
