Joshua 3:3-5 - … giving orders to the
people: “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your
God, and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from
your positions and follow it. Then you will know which
way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of
about two thousand cubits between you and the ark; do not go near it.” Joshua
told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will
do amazing things among you.”
Joshua had just taken over the responsibility of leading
this massive group of Israelites. He waited for God to speak with him…then set
straight out to the bank of the Jordan River.
Joshua made them stop and wait three days. These days were to be spent
consecrating themselves …so that they would be prepared to not just witness God’s
next great miracle among them.
God was going to dry the river bed for them to walk
across. It would be different this time….not
a wall of water on either side like the sea they crossed before. This time God planned on stopping the water
upstream…during its flood stage. The
Jordan at normal times would be about 180 feet wide ...with a current of about
4mph…but the Jordan at this time would have been double that…with a current of around
10 mph. It could have been 65 feet deep at some points.
As soon as the priest walked into the water at the edge of
the river…the water stopped flowing. The bed of that river dried up…and stayed
dry till the ark was completely through to the other side. The people all
crossed over on dry land…just as their ancestors had crossed the sea 40 years
earlier.
It’s a reminder of how important it is to stop before
venturing into any new territory. We need to make sure that God has given us
all the directions we need to be his best servant. We should take time to
identify and admit all our sins and weaknesses and clean up all the sin that might
be able to entangle us…keep us from staying focused on the task that God gave
us to do. Joshua called this process
consecration.
It is also a reminder to me to keep my faith ever
strong. Even though God has never asked
me to cross a 65 foot deep river…with no boat…or life jacket…..he has led me to
the edge of some pretty rough situations….with no clue how they would turn out.
If my faith is anchored in God….he can help me through any situation…even envisioning
what miracle he might do for me on the other side. Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment