You Who Carried the Ark of the Covenant, Go Forward Boldly!
Joshua 3
“Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites. Be strong and courageous. Do not be terrified; do not be discouraged, for the LORD your God will be with you wherever you go.” Joshua 1
In obedience to God’s will, Joshua took over the mission of Moses, and was about to cross the Jordan, leading the people of Israel. In order to enter the promised land of Canaan, they had to cross the Jordan River. However, since it was the harvest season—the rainy season, the Jordan was at flood stage.
“All people shall follow the priests, and the priests shall take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people. When you reach the edge of the Jordan’s waters, go and stand in the river. See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. God will do amazing things among you.”
As Joshua had ordered, the priests who carried the ark of the covenant stepped into the Jordan River first. As soon as they reached the Jordan, their feet touched the water’s edge and 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. Then the bottom of the river was finally exposed.
The priests who carried the ark of the covenant stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, while all Israel walked through the Jordan on dry ground. By this, all the people at the borders of Canaan came to know the power of God, and the kings of the Amorites and Canaanites no longer had the courage to face the Israelites; their hearts melted in fear (Jos 5:1).
Who wouldn’t be afraid in a situation where there was an overflowing river in front of them? However, would the amazing work of God have been able to occur if the priests had hesitated to step into the Jordan because of fear or if they had just waited for God to divide the river? Now we are at the borders of the heavenly Canaan. Even though there are many difficulties before us, we must not hesitate to take steps to preach the gospel. With our Heavenly Mother who is the reality of the ark of the covenant in our hearts, let us go forward boldly. Then the way to God’s unimaginable blessings will be opened for us.
