Crossing theJordan

The Israelites had been wandering in the wilderness For 40 years, and now the time had come for them to enter the land that God had promised. Moses had died and God had chosen a new leader for His people- Joshua

Joshua 1:1–9 ESV

After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may have good success wherever you go. This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success. Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”

God told Joshua to be “Strong and courageous.” Why could Joshua be strong and courageous?

It wasn’t by his own strength that the people were going to take the promise land

God promised this land and was faithful to His word, therefore Joshua only needed to obey God and God would do the great work for the people- such as parting the Jordan for them to cross

God was with Him. “The Lord your God is with you where ever you go

Now here in our story the only thing standing in the way of Israel and the promise land was a raging, flooding River called the Jordan River.

Israel could never get around or through this river on their own. They needed to trust and rely on God.

Joshua 3:7–17 ESV

The Lord said to Joshua, “Today 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. And as for you, command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’ ” And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” And Joshua said, “Here is how you shall know that the living God is among you and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites. Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is passing over before you into the Jordan. Now therefore take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, from each tribe a man. And when the soles of the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off from flowing, and the waters coming down from above shall stand in one heap.” So when the people set out from their tents to pass over the Jordan with the priests bearing the ark of the covenant before the people, and as soon as those bearing the ark had come as far as the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the brink of the water (now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest), the waters coming down from above stood and rose up in a heap very far away, at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan, and those flowing down toward the Sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, were completely cut off. And the people passed over opposite Jericho. Now the priests bearing the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firmly on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, and all Israel was passing over on dry ground until all the nation finished passing over the Jordan.

god made a promise to Joshua that God would be with Him and where place the sole of His feet touched God would give it to Him- Josh 1:3- Here The sole of there feet touched the dry God- God was with them and they trusted Him.

God continues and tells Joshua to tells the people “to take 12 stones from the middle of the River. Put them down where they spend the night tonight.”

What was the purpose of these stones? God wanted the stones to be a memorial. In the future, people could tell their children that God was faithful to His people and stopped the waters of the Jordan, and everyone could know that God is mighty and faithful.

I Israelites did exactly what God told them to do. The priests with the ark crossed the river, and the when the soles of their feet hit the dry ground that waters began again. Now God’s people where in the promise land.

Christ Connection: God went ahead of Joshua and the Israelites into the promised land. He showed His power to them so they would trust in Him. When Jesus came to earth, He showed His power so people would trust in Him and be saved from sin.

Just as it was impossible for the Israelites to cross into the promise land without God’s help, the same goes for use. We cannot find salvation or forgiveness from our sins without God acting on our behalf. God sent Jesus for this very reason.

The bible paints a picture of death when their is sin

Ephesians 2:1–8 ESV

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind. But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved— and raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,

sin always leads to death- but God’s mercy and His faithfulness always leads to life, and God is always faithful to His promises. Our part is to be Strong in our faith in God, and courageous in our actions as obedient to God. We need to remember Who God is and How He has saved us, and shown His great love for us.