The Conquest of Canaan and the Kingdom of God (3) Crossing the Jordan River (2)

​“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 (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.” (Jos 3:13-17)
 
We’ve been talking about the kingdom of God through the story of the Exodus. Last Sunday, we looked at the Israelites crossing the Jordan River and what that meant.
 
After God made Joshua the second leader of Israel, the first thing He commanded him to do was to cross the Jordan River. It was by crossing the Jordan River that the Israelites would enter the land of Canaan and establish the kingdom of God there. The Jordan River was not the finish line, but the starting line.
 
The Jordan River symbolizes a turning point for the Israelites as they ended their lives in the wilderness and began their new journey to build the kingdom of God in the world.
 
But they didn’t have to cross the Jordan River to enter Canaan. There were other routes. Tactically, it’s better to find alternative routes than cross a river, which wastes time and energy. And it was virtually impossible for all the Israelites to cross the river together.
 
Nevertheless, God had the Israelites cross the Jordan River because there was something they needed to experience before they entered the land of Canaan.
 
First, God wanted them to experience His great power of salvation. The Israelites crossing the Jordan were the second generation of the Exodus. They didn’t really understand the significance of crossing the Red Sea forty years earlier because they were either too young when it happened or they were born afterward.
 
So, God intentionally guided them to the east side of the Jordan River and had them cross when it was most flooded so that they could directly experience His great power of salvation and trust in Him more.
 
Second, we also talked about the spiritual significance of crossing the Jordan River. I said that crossing the Jordan was like a repeat of crossing the Red Sea. And according to the apostle Paul, crossing the Red Sea represented baptism. 
 
Baptism is one of the most important rituals in Christianity. It symbolizes a believer’s faith in and decision to be united with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. A believer’s immersion in water symbolizes the death and burial of Christ, and the believer coming out of the water symbolizes Christ being raised from the dead. So, baptism gives us a strong identity as Christians.
 
So, the Israelites crossing the Jordan River tells us the decision we need to make and the identity and mindset we must have in order to live as people of God's kingdom. Without making the decision to die with Christ to our past selves and sinful things and to live with Christ, we can’t participate in God's mission to build His kingdom in this world.
 
Then, these are the two things we need. We need to experience God’s presence, power, guidance, and providence more. In order for us to do so, we should invite God into every aspect of our lives and try to walk with Him in every step we take.
 
Second, we should deny ourselves and take up our crosses and die with Christ daily so that we may truly live with Him, doing what pleases God and glorifying Him. Then, we’ll be used as His vessels through which His kingdom is established on earth.
 
Crossing the Jordan River
Now, let’s continue to talk about crossing the Jordan River. There are some important things that we need to know about the river. It flows roughly north to south through the Sea of Galilee and on to the Dead Sea.
 
It originates in the 10,000-foot peaks of Mount Hermon. The peaks are always covered with snow, and the snow is piled high, especially during winter and spring. The snow starts to melt in the summer and forms a river, which flows down and forms Lake Galilee, and the river which flows from this lake to the Dead Sea is called the Jordan River.
 
So, sometimes there is a lot of water, and sometimes there isn’t. The Jordan River floods the most during fall because the snow on Mount Hermon starts to melt in the summer and continues into fall. So, during harvest time, the water level is at its highest.
 
Then, when do you think would be the best time to cross it? Springtime might be the best option because the weather is warmer, and there isn’t a lot of water in the river. When would be the worst time? It’s fall, because that’s when the melting snow causes the Jordan to rise the most.
 
Then, when did the Israelites cross the Jordan River? Joshua 3:15 says, “Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest” (Jos 3:15).
 
The Israelites crossed the Jordan River during harvest when it was most flooded. The speed of the water was the fastest during that time. In other words, God made them cross the river when it was hardest for them to do so. So, why did God command them to cross the river during harvest time?
 
If they had crossed the river when they could do so in their own strength, it would have been difficult for them to experience the power of God. But because God had miraculously enabled them to cross the river in a way that they couldn’t do on their own, they couldn’t deny that God had done it, and as a result, they were able to experience God's great saving power for them.
 
God said to Joshua, “See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you… 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” (Jos 3:11, 13).
 
Here, the ark of the covenant of the Lord symbolizes God’s presence. In this passage, we see the three important elements we need to have in order to live as people of the kingdom of God—God’s presence, His word, and His promise.
 
The command to set foot in the Jordan was given with the promise that God would cut off the waters. And, God’s presence would go ahead of them and be with them until the Israelites finished crossing the Jordan.
 
 
But still, it must have been very challenging to obey God’s command. The Jordan River was the most flooded at that time. It must have required great courage to set foot into the river as it flowed very fast.
 
But, the priests bravely set foot in the river, and just as God promised, the river stopped flowing and the water piled up before it reached them. The Israelites crossed on dry land on foot, and the Ark of the Covenant remained there until they had finished crossing the river.
 
Joshua 3:15-17 says,
“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 (that is, the Dead Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. The priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stopped in the middle of the Jordan and stood on dry ground, while all Israel passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.” (Jos 3:15-17)
 
That’s how the Israelites crossed the Jordan River. They crossed the river when it was the most impossible to do so. But they had to obey first. They didn’t set foot in the river after the water stopped. It was after their feet touched the edge of the river that the waters cut off. In other words, God’s power worked through their obedience to His word.
 
This teaches us an important lesson. Sometimes, God guides us by first showing us the way, like when He divided the Red Sea so the Israelites could cross. But, at other times, God waits for our response to His word before He shows Himself to us.
 
If the priests hadn’t set their feet in the river because they didn’t trust in the Lord and were afraid of the deep, fast-flowing water, it wouldn’t have stopped. If they hadn’t responded to God’s word with obedience, they wouldn’t have experienced God’s amazing power.
 
In the same way, God sometimes waits for us to take the first bold step, trusting in Him even when the reality before us seems hard. When we choose to obey God's word, even when it seems impossible, then we can truly experience His presence with us, going before us, guiding us, protecting us, and doing great things for us that we can't do on our own.
 
That’s what we also need to experience to be strong and courageous people of the kingdom of God. We need to experience God's living presence and His power.
 
We can get knowledge of God from the Bible. We know from the Scriptures that God is our Shepherd, a light for our path, our Provider, and our Protector. But that knowledge is not really ours until we actually experience it in our lives.
 
A Bible scholar could describe God as a Shepherd in many ways. He could explain the role of shepherds in biblical times and the meaning of the original word for shepherd. But unless he has experienced God's shepherding in his own life, his words will not be very convincing.
 
On the other hand, let’s say there is an old Christian who doesn't have much of a theological background. She doesn’t have the knowledge of the Bible that the scholar does. But, throughout her difficult life, she has experienced God as her Shepherd who has always been with her, protecting her with His rod and staff as she walked through the darkest valley.
 
When these two people talk about God's shepherding, who do you think will sound more convincing? I think it's the latter.
 
That’s because the God we believe in is not a God confined to a text, nor is He a God who only existed in the past. He is the God who is alive even today, working faithfully in the lives of His people as He did in the Bible. We can meet and experience God today. When our knowledge of God is combined with our experience of Him, it becomes our faith and testimony that nothing can shake.
 
I think that’s the reason God sometimes puts us in difficult situations. When everything is peaceful and we have no worries, we don’t feel our need for God and we rely less on His shepherding, and in turn experience less of His presence.
 
But when we find ourselves in difficult circumstances, when we encounter situations that we cannot solve through our own strength and power, we will become more dependent on God. We will seek and rely on Him, and we will experience His power at work in our lives. That’s how we grow in our faith and knowledge of God.
 
God is pleased when we consistently seek Him, even in the situations where He seems least present. God wants us to call on His name as we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, and when we do, He is pleased and He answers us.
 
Psalm 66:8-12 says, “Praise our God, all peoples, let the sound of his praise be heard; he has preserved our lives and kept our feet from slipping. For you, God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let people ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance.” (Ps 66:8-12)
 
God refines us like silver. Do you know how silver is smelted? First, the ore that contains silver is mined. But the ore doesn't just contain silver, it also contains impurities, like lead and zinc. And, of course, the more impurities there are, the lower the quality of the silver.
 
Silver has a higher melting temperature than other metals, so when you heat silver ore over a hot fire, the other metals melt away first. So you remove some impurities from the silver ore, and then when the silver starts to melt, you sprinkle it with water.
 
Then you heat it again to melt any impurities that still remain. If you keep repeating this process of heating with fire and cooling with water, you'll end up with pure silver, free of impurities.
 
The psalmist compares this process of refining silver to God's refining of us. Just as silver becomes pure as it passes through water and fire, so God puts us through the same process to mold us into the image that He wants us to be.
 
Sometimes God allows us to go through times when we don't feel His presence in our lives, and He allows us to go through times of hardship and difficulty. He allows us to go through times where we feel like we're caught in a net, where we're carrying difficult burdens, where we're being ridiculed by people.
 
But remember, those are actually times of grace. They are times of growth. When we go through these ups and downs, the impurities in our lives—anxiety, doubt, pride, and more—will be removed. Through this process, we will be purified and restored to the true image of God that God wants us to have.
 
So, are you in a season right now that feels like you're going through fire and water? If so, I want you to remember: God's plan is not to leave us in the midst of difficulties, but to temper us through them, and then pull us out and bring us to a place of abundance. The valley of the shadow of death is not our end point; it is merely a place we must pass through in order to reach the green pasture.
 
And most importantly, God is always with us in those valleys, protecting, sustaining, and guiding us, even if we don't feel it directly.
 
This is why we must still seek, find, and praise God even when we feel like we’re walking through the darkest valley. No matter what situation we are in, and no matter how we feel, God is always good and faithful, and His plans for us are always for prosperity, not disaster.
 
Our faith will continue to go up and down, but these ups and downs will be different from the past. Today's low will be different from the lows of the past. The problems that have caused us to fall into the valley in the past will no longer shake us.
 
On the contrary, we will enjoy God's presence on a deeper, more personal level than we have ever experienced before. In this way, through the ups and downs of faith, we will grow closer to God, who does not change and who is only good.
 
This process won't be smooth or easy, and we may become frustrated and discouraged by trials and difficulties, but remember—God is always with us. God is still holding us up so that when we falter, we don't fall completely. He answers us when we call, and He works all things together for good to conform us to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ.
 
So, don’t be afraid, but rather be strong and courageous. Don’t hesitate to set your foot in the rushing river in front of you, because God is with you in the midst of it.
 
What God wants to see is our obedience. He waits for us to bravely set our foot in the river that’s in front of us first, even though the reality ahead scares us. If we decide to obey God’s word even when it seems impossible, then and not until then, can we experience Him going ahead of us, guiding us, and doing great things that we can’t do ourselves.
 
Even though I’m very grateful that God has given me the chance to study and work in the States, there have been times that it was hard for me to be here. Although I’m certain that God has led me here for a special purpose, sometimes I lose confidence when I look at the reality ahead of me and only think about what I have and what I can do.
 
However, I can keep following God’s will and move forward because I trust God’s promise and I know that He is always bigger than the difficult situations surrounding me. Nothing is impossible with Him.
 
Even though the rushing river in front of me makes me afraid, I can set my foot in it by faith because I’ve already experienced God’s amazing protection and guidance, which were given to me in ways that I couldn’t even imagine. God has taught me how to walk by faith, not by sight, and to rely on Him more than anything.
 
Now, I trust in the Lord who prepares my way, guides me, cares and provides for me, and fills me with all good things. The only reason I can be strong and courageous and overcome the difficult situations ahead of me is that I know that God is my shepherd and He is always with me, even when I walk through the darkest valley.
 
That’s the God I want all of us here today to experience. He’s so good and faithful. He loves us and cares for us. He never lets us go, but holds us with His mighty hands and unconditional, unfailing love.
 
Now, the Jordan River is in front of each of us, and we should make the decision to set our foot in it.
 
The reality ahead of us may seem difficult, so sometimes it’s hard for us to move our feet. But, we should keep in mind that the Lord is also ahead of us and is with us, and that He will do amazing things through our obedience as He promised in the Bible. That’s the God I want us to know more deeply through our obedience to His word and experience of Him.
 
Now, let’s sing ‘Another in the Fire’ one more time before we wrap up with prayer.
 
[Prayer]
Heavenly Father, thank You for giving us this amazing opportunity to worship You and listen to Your word. Thank You for faithfully guiding us and preparing our way ahead of us. Please let us know that You are with us so that we can do great things beyond what we’re able to do on our own, and give us courage to actually jump into Your mission for the world.
 
Lord, we confess our sinful nature and weaknesses. We don’t have the power to overcome the things that make us afraid. We’re so afraid that we can’t even set our foot in the river. So, please let us know that You’re always with us and help us to be strong and courageous so that we can boldly go into the world with Your almighty power.
 
We thank You again for letting us take part in Your mission to build Your kingdom in the world.
 
We love You, Lord. In Jesus’ precious name we pray. Amen.
 
[Reflection Questions]
1) When was a time you were most desperate for God? What made you desperate? What did that experience teach you about God?
 
2) What is the Jordan River in your life? Why are you afraid to step into it? What do you need in order to overcome your fear and place your foot in the rushing river before you?