Day Twenty Six

Joshua 3:1-6

1.) Then Joshua rose early in the morning and they set out from Shittim. And they came to the Jordan, he and all the people of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over.

2.) At the end of three days the officers went through the camp

3.) and commanded the people, "As soon as you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place and follow it.

4.) Yet there shall be a distance between you and it, about 2,000 cubits in length. Do not come near it, in order that you may know the way you shall go, for you have not passed this way before."

5.) Then Joshua said to the people, "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you."

6.) And Joshua said to the priests, "Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on before the people." So they took up the ark of the covenant and went before the people.

         Moses has died. Joshua is in charge of the Hebrews as they prepare to cross over into the land that had been promised to them. Imagine the scene; four decades before, Moses had led the people out of Egypt. The adults in that group are all dead, except for Caleb and Joshua. Some of the Hebrews now would have been children then, but many more are the grandchildren of the original group. They had always known Moses. They had grown comfortable with Moses in charge. They had eaten manna for so long that they didn’t even see it as a daily miracle. They knew the story of crossing the sea, but it was history, not current events. Now, they prepare to go into a strange land. They will have to fight. They have as their leader this man Joshua. Is he good enough? Will they win? Will the Hebrew survivors of this invasion should they fail, become slaves? It is a lot to consider.

         The Lord gives Joshua specific instructions. The people break camp.  And then they are given their own instruction. In this passage we see three things.

         First, they are given just one job. Verse three; and commanded the people, "As soon as you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God being carried by the Levitical priests, then you shall set out from your place and follow it. That was it. Follow the ark. Obviously there were going to be many things to do once they entered into the land, but they are given the one job for now. If they had been told that in a short while they would defeat Jericho, a city believed to be unbeatable, questions would be asked, doubts would creep in. People are people. Often times a church will have a long term plan. It will cover everything and each step will be laid out. But when one of those plans goes awry it begins to seem hopeless. Confusion sets in. The Hebrews knew the big picture, but the details were not theirs or, for that matter, Joshua’s to know. They were simply told to follow the ark. For us as Christians, we are to take a step at a time.

         Second, they are told to stay where they can see the ark. Verse Four; Yet there shall be a distance between you and it, about 2,000 cubits in length. Do not come near it, in order that you may know the way you shall go, for you have not passed this way before." They were to move forward from a perspective where they could see the ark clearly. 2,000 cubits was 3,500 feet. Eleven football fields. Why? If they had crowded around it they would not have been able to see because of the crush of people. From a distance they would have seen clearly the way to go. For us now, we must never take our eyes off of the Lord. The tendency is to crowd around with our good intentions, our traditions and our comfort zones. When we lose sight of the Lord we fall back on our own experience. This is when we hear phrases like, “We have never done it that way” and “We cannot afford that” or “We don’t have the people.” But taking a step back, we can see where we need to go.

         Third, we must consecrate ourselves. Verse five; Then Joshua said to the people, "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you” The word ‘consecrate’ means to set yourselves or something aside for a specific work. Here, the people are told to consecrate their own selves. Joshua couldn’t consecrate them, even God wasn’t going to consecrate them. They had to reach in and consecrate their own, individual selves. They had to believe in the mission. Today, we often feel limited. What God wants is too much. That feeling is from Satan. When we are consecrated to do the Lord’s work, what can stop us?

         How does one consecrate oneself?  On October 5, 2025 I will be fifty years in the ministry. You don’t see that very often. It is being accomplished in these three things. First, I surrendered to serve Him. After that, I just followed. Had I known at the start some of the things that would need to be faced, I wouldn’t have done it. Second, I have always tried to stay where I can see the will of God and follow. I have certainly made missteps, but when I have it is because God’s will has gotten away from me. I have had to take a step back to see. Good and Godly works are not necessarily God’s will for an individual. Third, I remember consecrating myself to Him, although I wouldn’t have used that word at that time. It was more like, “God, Your will in Your way in Your time.”

         Someone will say, “But you are a preacher!” I was a Christian first. Then I was a follower. Then I believed in His power and grace.

         Our prayer today is simply to say ‘yes’ to the Lord.

         Consecrate yourself, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.