Jos-Lesson 4

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Joshua

September 21, 2015

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JOSHUA 3
LESSON #04
BE AN OVERCOMER BY THE PRESENCE OF GOD

• Memory verse: James 2:20
• There is one thing that we can say about God that runs through the entire Bible. It is that God has a plan and operates according to order. How many things are done in churches that do not follow this example that we find in scripture! Unfortunately too many things are out of order simply because:
• …we do not try to understand God’s plan, but instead we make up our own.
• …we let the tyranny of the urgent dictate our schedule, rather than systematically following God’s direction for nothing is “urgent” with God. Nothing catches God by surprise.
• …we do not trust our obedience to God’s sovereignty, His direction, or His timing.
• Read Joshua 3:1-17
• The Israelites camped on the East side of the Jordan River for 3 days.
• The number 3 in scripture is symbolic of the Holy Trinity.
• God moves when the Holy Trinity is in unity.
• Jesus Christ reaffirmed this principle in John 17.
• Read Joh 17:11
• How many times did Jesus say that He and the Father were “one”?
• He said it three times.
• Each time Jesus said this, He also prayed that his believers would have the same unity of the Holy Trinity in them.
• Read Psa 104:27-28
• The believer is told to “wait on God” to receive.
• That which is achieved through waiting on the Lord is a unity of spirit with the Holy Trinity.
• “Sanctify yourselves”

(5)

• The word “sanctify” means = to set apart for specific action.
• The people were to repent of sin because a Holy God demands holiness in His people in order to use them and bless them.
• Read Exo 19:10-11, 14-15
• The outward action of washing clothes is symbolic of an inward cleansing through repentance.
• Notice that the reason for sanctification was so that God would do miraculous things for them.
• When you are taking a big step of faith in some new direction in your life, it is beneficial to follow the pattern of scripture that we see here:
• =1= Set apart some time to be with God on a very personal level.
• =2= Repent of any sin that the Holy Spirit brings to mind.
• =3= Listen for God’s specific direction.
• =4= Determine to be obedient.
• The Israelites receive instruction as to when to begin the march across the Jordan River.
• They must follow in a prescribed order and at a specific distance from the Ark of the Covenant.
• The Israelites are instructed to follow after the Ark. Why?
• The believer in Jesus Christ is told to follow after Christ. (Mat 16:4)
• The Ark of the Covenant represented the presence of God. Therefore, the Israelites must follow God to gain the promise of victory.
• It is when we go before God, like Abraham obtaining the promise of a son through Hagar, that we get things out of order and reap the consequences of confusion and conflict.
• The Israelites must follow at a distance of 2000 cubits which is 3,000 feet, more than ½ mile, in order to preserve the holiness of God.
• “…ye have not passed this way heretofore.”

(4)

• The people of God had never travelled into the Promised Land with the symbol of God’s presence and full trust in Him.
• In Abraham’s day, they had faith in God but they did not have the symbol of God’s presence.
• God’s special promise to Joshua and what it means:
• This is more than just God’s promise to be with Joshua.
• Notice that God reminds Joshua of how His presence was with Moses. This should make Joshua think about the magnificent parting of the Red Sea.
• Therefore, this is a promise of God’s presence manifested in the miraculous Power of God.
• This power will be manifested to Joshua in the same way it was manifested to Moses, in the parting of water.
• When God reminds us that his presence is with us, in the same way that He was with the saints of the Old Testament, it should stir our faith to believe that God will do the same miraculous things He did in the Old Testament.
• Overcoming the first obstacle:
• Before the Israelites could claim the Promised Land, they had to overcome certain specific obstacles. The first obstacle of defeat was fear of the impossible:
• The Israelites must cross the Jordan River. This particular river is not all that impressive. At some places it is narrow and not very deep. However, at this particular point in time, it was a raging river at flood stage.
• The fear of the impossible could have stopped them right there in the same way that the Red Sea presented the previous generation with the same fear of the impossible.
• The key to defeat the fear of the impossible is a step of faith.
• Moses facing the Red Sea had to trust God, raise his staff and march forward, stepping into the water. (Exo 14)
• By taking a step of obedient faith, God intervened and parted the Red Sea.
• Facing the raging Jordan River, the priests must use their faith and step into the flood waters.
• God honored their step of faith and dried the river so the people could cross on dry ground.
• Why were the priests to stand still in the middle of the Jordan River?
• The symbolic action of faith:
• The priests were the first to enter the Jordan River.
• They held the Ark of the Covenant on their shoulders in the middle of the river while the people passed by them.
• Then the priests were the last to come out of the Jordan River after all the people had crossed.
• The Ark represented the presence of the Holy Trinity.
• Read Rev 1:8
• Jesus Christ is the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
• Jesus goes first before us leading the way. Then He comes after us to protect us in the same way that He did with the crossing of the Red Sea, and in the crossing of the Jordan River.
• Read Exo 14:19
• The physical manifestation of a step of faith:
• The Jordan River was deeper than usual. (15) It was at flood stage.
• This was a test of faith for the priests carrying the Ark, for they had to put their feet into the water before God repeated the miracle of the parting of the Red Sea.
• Read Exo 15:8
• Read Jos 3:16
• Notice that God fulfilled His promise to Joshua in exactly the same way that His presence would be with Joshua as it was with Moses.
• The military gesture of victorious faith:
• God wants the believer in Jesus Christ to be an over comer. The words “over comer” mean to walk over the circumstances.
• Humanly speaking we often walk under the circumstances.
• God told Joshua to put his feet on the land. They had to walk over it. ( Jos 1:3 3:13)
• You cannot be an over comer and sit still in your faith.
• You cannot be an over comer unless you take steps of faith to believe God for greater victories.
• The symbol of a military victory was to put your foot on the neck of the enemy leader. (Jos 10:24)
• Application:
• The Israelites had the Ark of the Covenant as a symbol of the presence of God.
• They could see the smoke over the Holy of Holies in the light of day.
• They could see the fire over the Holy of Holies in the darkness of night.
• As believers in Jesus Christ, we do not have a physical manifestation or visual symbol of God’s presence.
• In reality we have a greater advantage than the Israelites.
• We have the presence of the Holy Spirit living inside the believer. And, of course, where the Spirit is, there is the Holy Trinity.
• Read Joh 14:12-17
• Read Joh 17:22
• What should you do when you suddenly feel all alone?
• The Israelites walked by sight.
• The believer in Jesus Christ is to walk by faith.
• Therefore, when we feel alone, we need to feed our faith. Faith comes by the Word of God. (Rom 10:17)
• Find scriptures that reassure you of God’s constant presence.

HOMEWORK
JOSHUA 4
This is a self-study. Please do not send the homework answers to the teacher forcorrection.

• Application of Joshua 3
• As you go through this week, think about what you would do if Jesus was you in every situation you encounter. What would He do in your shoes? Write down any experiences.

• Preparation for Joshua 4
• Read Joshua 4:1-24
• Where did they put the two piles of stones?

• What was the purpose of the two piles of stones?

• Read 2 Timothy 3:16
• What do you think is the significance of these stones for us today?

• Memory verse: Joshua 4:24