Can I pray for you in any way? Send any prayer requests to faithhopegodlove@aol.com In Christ, Mark
The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.
Joshua said to the priests, "Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people." So they took it up and went ahead of them.
And the Lord said to Joshua, "Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: 'When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river.' "
Joshua said to the Israelites, "Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God. This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites. See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord - the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap."
So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.
Joshua 3:6-17
This ends this reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.
Remember when Moses was leading Israel from Egypt into the desert wilderness and away from Pharoah? If you do, then you’ll recall that something miraculous happened at the Red Sea. God parted the sea so Israel could pass through and then crashed the sea back down on Pharoah and his men as they tried to pursue (Exodus 14).
Fast forward ahead now to a completely new generation of Israelites. They had heard about the Red Sea miracle but none of them had actually witnessed it themselves. In today’s passage, we see where God repeats the miracle for this generation but not at the Red Sea but the Jordan River.
As we read our scripture passage, we see where Joshua tells his priests to "Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people." The priests do what he says.
Meanwhile, the Lord comes to Joshua and says to him, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: 'When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river.' " So Joshua obeys God’s command and tells the Israelites:
“Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God. This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites. See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord - the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap."
Scripture tells us that the Jordan River was at flood stage all during harvest, too dangerous to cross conventionally. Time for God’s miracle. For “as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, the water from upstream stopped flowing” and “piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan”. Meanwhile, “the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea) was completely cut off”. In other words, the Jordan River was parted and “the people crossed over opposite Jericho” on dry ground where there was once a river. The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord “stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan” until “all Israel passed by” and “completed the crossing…”
Imagine that you were there at the Jordan with the people of Israel. What would you be feeling as you watched the water rise up on either side, leaving a dry pathway for you to cross over? How do you think Joshua felt as God delivered the miracle He promised? Would you feel that this was a sign that the living God was indeed with you? I know I would.
And the good news for us today is that the living God is still with us, every second of every minute of every hour of every day…ever showing His presence through the miraculous work of His hands. Think about the little things we take for granted. The sun that provides us light and warmth. The night that brings us dark and coolness to rest…stars and planets to look up and marvel at. How about the air we breathe? The earth we walk upon? God made it all friends. Our living God made everything we need to survive and continues to sustain it every day. Just one touch of His powerful, healing hand brings healing from affliction that baffles science and worldly convention. Indeed, we serve a living God…a God who is ever with us, never leaving us nor forsaking us…a God who through all things are possible…a God who can makes the incredible commonplace.
Israel saw first hand how the living God was among them. Have you recognized Him living in and around you in your life? You only need to have a heart that seeks Him and you WILL find Him. Amen.
In Christ,
Mark
PS: Please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it.
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