Standing on the Promises

Introduction

This month we are reading the book of Joshua and so tonight I want to share a short devotion from the book. Tonight, I’ll be talking about promises from God. Let’s go to Joshua 3. We’re going to read the entire book and then part of Joshua 4.

Joshua 3:1–17

1 Then Joshua rose early in the morning; and they set out from Acacia Grove and came to the Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they crossed over. 2 So it was, after three days, that the officers went through the camp; 3 and they commanded the people, saying, “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God, and the priests, the Levites, bearing it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. 4 Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure. Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed this way before.” 5 And Joshua said to the people, “Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” 6 Then Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, “Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over before the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people. 7 And the Lord said to Joshua, “This day I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. 8 You shall command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, saying, ‘When you have come to the edge of the water of the Jordan, you shall stand in the Jordan.’ ” 9 So Joshua said to the children of Israel, “Come here, and hear the words of the Lord your God.” 10 And Joshua said, “By this you 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 is crossing over before you into the Jordan. 12 Now therefore, take for yourselves twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one man from every tribe. 13 And it shall come to pass, as soon as the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, that the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off, the waters that come down from upstream, and they shall stand as a heap.” 14 So it was, when the people set out from their camp to cross over the Jordan, with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, 15 and as those who bore the ark came to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests who bore the ark dipped in the edge of the water (for the Jordan overflows all its banks during the whole time of harvest), 16 that the waters which came down from upstream stood still, and rose in a heap very far away at Adam, the city that is beside Zaretan. So the waters that went down into the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, failed, and were cut off; and the people crossed over opposite Jericho. 17 Then the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan; and all Israel crossed over on dry ground, until all the people had crossed completely over the Jordan.

Joshua 4:1–9

1 And it came to pass, when all the people had completely crossed over the Jordan, that the Lord spoke to Joshua, saying: 2 “Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from every tribe, 3 and command them, saying, ‘Take for yourselves twelve stones from here, out of the midst of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet stood firm. You shall carry them over with you and leave them in the lodging place where you lodge tonight.’ ” 4 Then Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the children of Israel, one man from every tribe; 5 and Joshua said to them: “Cross over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and each one of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, 6 that this may be a sign among you when your children ask in time to come, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ 7 Then you shall answer them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it crossed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. And these stones shall be for a memorial to the children of Israel forever.” 8 And the children of Israel did so, just as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones from the midst of the Jordan, as the Lord had spoken to Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them to the place where they lodged, and laid them down there. 9 Then Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests who bore the ark of the covenant stood; and they are there to this day.

Explore

So, let’s back up super quickly. In Genesis, God calls a guy named Abraham out of his home town and moves him to a wilderness and says he will give him the land and him descendants will be innumerable.

Genesis 12:1–3 (NKJV)

"Now the Lord had said to Abram: ‘Get out of your country, from your family and from your father’s house, to a land that I will show you. I will make you a great nation; I will bless you and make your name great; and you shall be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and I will curse him who curses you; and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.’”

This is the first mention of a promised land. Let’s jump to Genesis 15 where God promises more:

Genesis 15:13–16 (CSB)

"Then He said to Abram: ‘Know certainly that your descendants will be strangers in a land that is not theirs, and will serve them, and they will afflict them four hundred years. And also the nation whom they serve I will judge; afterward they shall come out with great possessions. Now as for you, you shall go to your fathers in peace; you shall be buried at a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall return here, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet complete.’”

Let’s jump to Exodus 3:

Exodus 3:6–10 (CSB)

"Moreover He said, ‘I am the God of your father—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’ And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look upon God. And the Lord said: ‘I have surely seen the oppression of My people who are in Egypt, and have heard their cry because of their taskmasters, for I know their sorrows. So I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up from that land to a good and large land, to a land flowing with milk and honey, to the place of the Canaanites and the Hittites and the Amorites and the Perizzites and the Hivites and the Jebusites. Now therefore, behold, the cry of the children of Israel has come to Me, and I have also seen the oppression with which the Egyptians oppress them. Come now, therefore, and I will send you to Pharaoh that you may bring My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt.’”

Two things are important here: we are seeing a portion of God’s promise to Abraham taking place. But we’re also getting a new update to the promise. The territory of the Canaanites, Hethites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites.

This brings us full circle to Joshua 3. Moses has died. Most of the Israelites died in the wilderness. Anyone under 20 + Joshua and Caleb are the only ones that remember the waters of the red sea. But here they are, standing at the banks of the Jordan river about to enter the Promised Land for the first time. And they’ve all heard the stories or experienced the Red Sea. They are literally about to stand on the promises of God.

Last time, Moses took his rod and held it up and the waters moved back. This time, the priests walk into the water with the ark of the covenant. But do you know what’s in the ark of the covenant? Aaron’s rod. The one that budded, the one used for miracles in Egypt. There is still a rod being lifted over the water and this was probably not lost on the people.

This is a call back to the promise of God to Abraham and Moses, that he would bring them into this Promised Land. They are looking back at the promise of the Red Sea and believing God to act again, but it’s different this time. Moses didn’t get wet. The Israelite priests had to walk into the water.

But then God commanded them to do something more. Each tribe took a stone, to represent each of them. They took the stone from the dry floor of the Jordan and sat them down on the shore on the other side. This was to be a remembrance for future generations.

Conclusion

Here’s what I want to remind us of tonight. God has promises that he has given us in scripture.

Don’t believe? Here’s a few that we can all claim:

Romans 10:9 (NKJV) – "That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved."

Hebrews 13:5 (NKJV) – “For He Himself has said, ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you.’”

Isaiah 40:31 (NKJV) – "But those who wait on the Lord shall renew their strength; They shall mount up with wings like eagles, They shall run and not be weary, They shall walk and not faint."

Philippians 4:19 (NKJV) – "And my God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus."

John 14:27 (NKJV) – "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid."

Romans 8:28 (NKJV) – "And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose."

1 John 5:14 (NKJV) – "Now this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us."

James 1:5 (NKJV) – "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be given to him."

Romans 8:38-39 (NKJV) – "For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

John 10:28 (NKJV) – "And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand."

And maybe God has given you a promise directly. There are things that God will do to remind us of these promises but a healing you had once before won’t look the same next time. Last time, it was a lifted rod - but are you to good to get your feet wet to see the miracle come to pass?

And maybe you’re going through a promise being answered right now. I want to invite you to write it down. Set up a memorial. Grab a stone and tell your children. Let your future generations know.