Crossing the Jordan

Lesson Connection

Pop quiz! How many times in Scripture did God part a body of water?!

TWICE! Most people are aware of the Red Sea parting, but that miracle happened again! And some of the people who crossed over were the same who crossed the first time!

Israelites Prepared to Enter the Promised Land

The 12 Spies

You may remember the 12 spies who were sent to spy out the Promised Land.

Only 2 of them came back with anything good to say. They believed in the promises of God, no matter what they were seeing. But that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t have to get through some obstacles on the way…

The End of Wandering in the Wilderness

So, after that happened, there were 40 years of wandering in the wilderness. They had been right at the door, but they had to wait 40 years.

Why would God allow that? Well, this was not His plan when He brought them out of Egypt. This was a result of disobedience from the last generation.

Now, here they were once more: on the doorstep of the Promised Land.

Joshua (he was one of those two spies who had given a good report) was now the leader of Israel. He remembered how bad the 40 year punishment had been. He didn’t want to see this group make the same mistake.

So, he called Israel to consecrate themselves:

Joshua 3:5 KJV 1900

5 And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for to morrow the Lord will do wonders among you.

The people responded to what Joshua asked. And then, because of their obedience, God moved…

Joshua 3:6–7 KJV 1900

6 And Joshua spake unto the priests, saying, Take up the ark of the covenant, and pass over before the people. And they took up the ark of the covenant, and went before the people. 7 And the Lord said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with thee.

That last part is important. God was elevating Joshua to be the new Moses.

God showed that He was with Joshua and the Israelites:

Through Joshua, God promised the Israelites would be victorious. They wouldn’t have to battle alone. The presence of God would be with them.

Joshua promised them that they would see the Lord do wonders - and that is exactly what they saw Him do!

A Major Shift

So what we’re seeing here is a major shift from they way that the people used to act and the way they used to go.

Have you ever followed someone who was going in the wrong direction?

Maybe you were on the first day of school, and another student said she knew the way to your next class. But you ended up in the wrong building, and one of the faculty members had to help and point you in the right direction.

We don’t always know the direction we need to be heading, but it helps to be following someone who knows the way!

So in all if Israel’s journey, many times they followed the wrong direction.

They rebelled against Moses.

They whined and complained about the way God provided for them. (Sort of like someone handing you a $100 bill and then you complaining about the way they folded it)

They would even beg to be taken back to slavery in Egypt.

Honestly, they would always be looking for an easier way, turning away from what Moses and God wanted them to do. And it always left them going in the wrong direction altogether.

Galatians 5:16 KJV 1900

16 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

What this scripture is saying is, if we want to live victoriously, we have to follow the leading of the Spirit.

There are times when, just like them, our flesh (that’s our selfish human will) tempts us to go in the wrong direction. And so sometimes, we have to say “no” to our own desires so we can say “yes” to God.

When we follow our own way, we are doing it in just our power. But when we follow the leading of the Holy Ghost, we’re walking in THAT power and THAT authority. And we’ll see God work in miraculous ways! We’ll see Him do things only He can do, like He did with the Israelites.

{EXAMPLES?}

The Israelites Crossed the Jordan River

New Body of Water, Same God

When the people first left Egypt, they arrived at the shores of the Red Sea. Pharaoh’s army was right behind them, and they were terrified.

But God held that army back, and He did a miracle when Moses stretched the rod out over the sea.

Now, decades later, Israel was standing in front of another large body of water. This was the Jordan River. And it was standing between them and the Promised Land. There were many people standing there that day who hadn’t been born yet when the Red Sea was parted back then.

Joshua declared that just as the waters of the Red Sea had parted, the Jordan River would part as well!

Joshua 3:9–13 KJV 1900

9 And Joshua said unto the children of Israel, Come hither, and hear the words of the Lord your God. 10 And Joshua said, Hereby ye shall know that the living God is among you, and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Hivites, and the Perizzites, and the Girgashites, and the Amorites, and the Jebusites. 11 Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth over before you into Jordan. 12 Now therefore take you twelve men out of the tribes of Israel, out of every tribe a man. 13 And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests that bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of Jordan, that the waters of Jordan shall be cut off from the waters that come down from above; and they shall stand upon an heap.

A Miracle Performed Differently

And the miracle happened differently than the Red Sea parting:

When Israel had stood before the Red Sea, one man - Moses - lifted his rod, and the waters parted.

This time, at the Jordan River, when a group of men - the priests - would walk out into the water, the water would part.

Before, God had worked through the faith of one man. This time, God would move through the faith of the entire priesthood.

In fact, God required the priesthood to act on their faith before the waters would part. By the power of the Spirit, the ministry would step into the Jordan River and God’s people would follow.

God has placed ministers in our lives, and He has given them a vision for what He wants to accomplish in our lives. Many times, the ministry will step out in faith, even when there is no direct evidence yet of a miracle. But when they do that, it is in response to the Spirit.

Calling an evangelist, in faith that he is the one God wants to use to speak to us.

Helping Bro. Charles Edwards out of his wheelchair to see if the miracle had happened yet.

These are steps of faith!

And when we follow the ministry’s lead, we can be blessed!

Joshua 3:14–17 KJV 1900

14 And it came to pass, when the people removed from their tents, to pass over Jordan, and the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people; 15 And as they that bare the ark were come unto Jordan, and the feet of the priests that bare the ark were dipped in the brim of the water, (for Jordan overfloweth all his banks all the time of harvest,) 16 That the waters which came down from above stood and rose up upon an heap very far from the city Adam, that is beside Zaretan: and those that came down toward the sea of the plain, even the salt sea, failed, and were cut off: and the people passed over right against Jericho. 17 And the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of Jordan, and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground, until all the people were passed clean over Jordan.

He’ll Remove Our Obstacles

God parted the waters of the Jordan River. It was an impossible obstacle for Israel, but God made a way where there was no way!

So we have to ask ourselves: Is there an obstacle in our life that is overwhelming us?

A family problem.

Something we’re struggling with in school.

An issue we can’t seem to defeat.

Whatever situation we may be facing, we serve a God who is able to remove the obstacles, and He desires to do so.

One of the reasons God fills us with His Spirit is so He can lead us to the blessings He has designed for us. He doesn’t want us stuck wrestling with our own obstacles to growing spiritually. He wants us to trust Him to remove them.

BUT… if we don’t bring things to Him, He can’t help us.

Notice the way God led Israel:

First, He spoke to His leader, Joshua.

Next, He spoke through Joshua to the priesthood (the ministry).

And last, the Israelites followed the example of the priesthood to enter the Promised Land.

When we think of the phrase “being led of the Holy Ghost,” we often think of prayer. While that’s an important part of being led in the Spirit, we also have to recognize that God often leads us through spiritual leaders He has placed in our lives.

The preaching, teaching, guidance, and counsel of our pastor and other ministers in our church are designed to help us follow the Holy Ghost.

We have to step out in faith and trust that the Spirit is leading us and will make a way for us. That’s whether we’re hearing a direct word from God in prayer or He moves on us through His ministers.

Faith is an action! And our obedience to the Word, the Spirit, and spiritual leadership will show to God our desire to live in a way that He can bless!

Conclusion