Sullivan church of Christ – Sullivan, MO
Date: May 28, 2006
“Shall Your Brethren Go To War, and Shall Ye Sit Here?”
Ben Justice
God promised to give to the children of Israel the land of Canaan — a land
flowing with milk and honey. This promise was first given to Abraham (Gen. 12:1-
3), then to Isaac (Gen. 26:3-5), then to Jacob (Gen. 28:13-15).
After the children of Israel were delivered from out of the oppressive hand of
Pharaoh, the King of Egypt, they made their journey to the promised land. As
they arrived on the east side of Jordan, they could see the land of Canaan. The
Israelites knew that they would have to wage war against the evil inhabitants of
the land. However, God promised to be with them. But, the tribes of Reuben
and Gad had other plans. Listen to these verses as recorded in Num. 32:1-5
Now the children of Reuben and the children of Gad had a very great multitude of
cattle: and when they saw the land of Jazer, and the land of Gilead, that, behold, the
place was a place for cattle; (2) The children of Gad and the children of Reuben came
and spake unto Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and unto the princes of the
congregation, saying, (3) Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, and Heshbon, and
Elealeh, and Shebam, and Nebo, and Beon, (4) Even the country which the Lord smote
before the congregation of Israel, is a land of cattle, and thy servants have cattle: (5)
Wherefore, said they, if we have found grace in thy sight, let this land be given unto
thy servants for a possession, and bring us not over Jordan.
As the above verses reveal, the tribes of Reuben and Gad were content to stay
right where they were. They saw that the land was good for their cattle. So, they
made a request to Moses and to Eleazar the priest to be allowed to stay on the
east side of the Jordan River. Here is how Moses responded in v. 6 — “And
Moses said unto the children of Gad and to the children of Reuben, Shall your brethren
go to war, and shall ye sit here?” What a stinging rebuke to these tribes! They
were going to let their brethren fight, but they were going to stay behind and
settle down on the east side of Jordan. As the subsequent verses reveal, Moses
let them know that this was a discouragement to the children of Israel. Moses
then went back in their history just a bit and gave them the example of what
their fathers did when sent to spy out the land. Only Caleb and Joshua “wholly
followed the Lord” (v. 12). The rest “discouraged the heart of the children of
Israel” (v. 9). Moses let the tribes of Reuben and Gad know that they were guilty
of the same thing.
The tribes of Reuben and Gad came to their senses, for they explained to Moses
that they would go and fight along side their brethren and that after the battle is
finished they would return back to the east side of the Jordan river. In v. 20-24,
Moses told them that if they would go and fight with their brethren, until the
Lord had driven out the enemies from the land, that they could return and
possess the land they wanted. The children of Reuben and Gad agreed (v. 25).
The question, “Shall your brethren go to war, and shall ye sit here?” is a
penetrating question. It has relevant application to any day and age when the
Lord’s people are called upon to fight for the Lord. The NT informs us that we
are soldiers of Jesus Christ fighting in a spiritual battle (Eph. 6:11-18; 2 Cor. 10:
3-6; 2 Tim. 2:3-4). How is it that some brethren believe that they can just sit on
the sidelines while watching their brethren waging the war? Why is it that these
brethren get away with being referred to as sound? In the midst of digression,
we have brethren like the tribes of Reuben and Gad. Thankfully, they came to
their senses, but we have some brethren today saying, “I am not going to get
involved.” Brethren, this is not an option if you are in the army of Jesus Christ.
The army of the Lord is not for pacifists, but for those who are willing to pick up
the sword of the Spirit and use it. Just as it was a great discouragement to the
children of Israel when the tribes of Reuben and Gad didn’t want to be in the
fight with their brethren, it is likewise a great discouragement to spiritual Israel
when brethren who claim to be sound in the faith won’t get in the fight for right.
There are brethren who don’t agree with Dave Miller, MSOP, GBN, etc., but that
is as far as they will go. They remain absolutely silent because they have lock-
jaw. Silence in these trying times is sinful. The Bible commands us to “expose
the unfruitful works of darkness” (Eph. 5:11). How can some brethren just sit
idly by while the rest wage the war and they receive the benefits of such, even
though they haven’t lifted a finger for the cause of truth? We wonder why some
brethren are all of sudden silent when it comes to these salvation issues!? Too
many are like the politician who puts his finger in the air to see which way the
wind is blowing before saying or doing anything. I would really hate to be in the
shoes of some of my brethren come the day of judgment. Will the Lord say to us
as Moses said to the tribes of Reuben and Gad, with the exception of it being in
past tense, “Why did your brethren go to war, and you stayed seated?” There are
many influential brethren in the church who could possibly do great good if they
would simply stand up and be counted. They could very well help turn some back
to the truth of God’s word. Brethren, these are eternal matters. It is a crying
shame when brethren treat these things as optional and of no consequence. I’m
sorry, but this is not what my Bible teaches. The Bible is clear that those who
don’t abide in the doctrine of Christ have not God. The Bible is clear that we are
not to fellowship such ones (2 John 9-11). When brethren teach things not
authorized by the Christ (Col. 3:17), then it is not of the doctrine of Christ.
Therefore, we have no choice but to withdraw fellowship, if repentance is not
forthcoming. But, some brethren see no evil and hear no evil. The errors of
Miller and all those associated with him are not matters of opinion. They are
doctrinal issues. What is sad, though, is when brethren will in fact acknowledge
that they are doctrinal issues and will acknowledge that they are teaching error,
but won’t ever say a word about it. “Shall your brethren go to war, and shall
ye sit here?”