Joshua 4:10-24

Joshua and the people of Israel had really clear directions about what to do as they entered the land of Canaan.  This part of the account is striking in the way it shows the nation actually doing what God asks of them.  This passage invites us to think about our own lives and how we listen (or don't) to God's leading.  

How do we know if we're doing something that's just our big idea or if it's actually in step with God's plan for us?

Transcript

Tempo: 120.0

SPEAKER_00 0:22

Today is going to be a good day. And the goodness of today may have nothing to do with the passage we're looking at. It is Good Friday, and because of the event, we just it's important for us to recognize that we are people of the resurrection, that we are people who are recipients, right? We're beneficiaries of the ultimate sacrifice that God made on our behalf. And while today is the day that we we mark the crucifixion itself, it's it's filled with this anticipation, with this hope of the resurrection. And because of that, it's just going to be a really, really good day. Welcome. Thanks for being with us. Our our meditation today is not focused on the story of the cross. We're continuing in Joshua, just continuing on our pace. But I would encourage you to take time today and to perhaps read the passion story, the story of Jesus giving up his life for us or attend a service, whatever happens for you in that context, I think that's time well spent. Hey, I've got a question for you. How do you know if it's God's work or yours? How do I know if this is God's thing, the thing that I'm trying to do, the thing that I'm hopeful about? This big idea. How do I know if it's God's or if it's mine? And how do we discern the difference there? And kind of a little bit, why does it matter? Let's go ahead and take some time to prepare our hearts. We're going to be in Joshua chapter four, verses ten through twenty four. If you have a copy of God's word, go ahead and open it up and we'll jump into it there together. But before we do that, let's go ahead and pray together. Jesus, thank you for today. Thank you that we get to remember you on this Friday in particular, this good Friday, this Friday of remembrance of your life offering for us. God thank you that it doesn't end here at the cross, but that we have this resurrection hope. God would you be with us now? Help us to know you better. We love you. Amen. Alright. Joshua four verses ten through twenty four. Now the priests who carried the ark remained standing in the middle of the Jordan until everything the Lord had commanded Joshua was done by the people, just as Moses had directed Joshua. The people hurried over, and as soon as all of them had crossed, the Ark of the Lord and the priests came to the other side while the people watched. The men of Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh crossed over, ready for battle in front of the Israelites as Moses had directed them. About forty thousand armed for battle crossed over before the Lord to the plains of Jericho for war. That day the Lord exalted Joshua in the sight of all Israel, and they stood in awe of him all the days of his life just as they had stood in awe of Moses. Then the Lord said to Joshua, Command the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant law to come up out of the Jordan. So Joshua commanded the priests, come up out of the Jordan, and the priests came up out of the river carrying the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord. No sooner had they set their feet on the dry ground than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and ran at flood stage as before. On the tenth day of the first month the people went up from the Jordan and camped at Gilgal, on the eastern border of Jericho. And Joshua set up at Gilgal the twelve stones they had taken out of the Jordan. He said to the Israelites, In the future, when your descendants ask their parents, what do these stones mean? Tell them, Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground. For the Lord your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The Lord your God did to the Jordan what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we crossed over. He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful, and so that you might always fear the Lord your God. Go ahead and take a moment to just listen to the Lord, pause the video or the podcast, whatever is helpful for you, and then we'll continue on together. Let's take a few moments here to make some observations of this part of the account, this part of the story. And obviously, this is a continuation of what we looked at last week. They're still crossing crossing the Jordan, but I I see some things in here that are helpful to us, things that might be a little bit fresh from what we had looked at before. So the first thing I felt that was important to highlight was that Israel in general, right, like we see the whole nation operating in cooperation and obedience to God's instructions. And that's kind of a unique thing. We see Joshua, he's he's faithful in leading. The things that God told him to tell to others, he he does those things and he leads his people well. The priests, they do their part. They do wait in the middle of the riverbed until everyone's passed through. The men that were selected from each tribe to gather their respective stones, that was to help them remember. You you heard that read for you. They they do that, they do that thing. And by the way, that whole idea of remembrance isn't something I'm gonna unpack in this episode, but last week I did talk about it a fair bit. So if you want to go back to Joshua 4, verses 1 through 9 from last Friday, go ahead and do that. Then lastly, the tribes that would end up settling east of the Jordan, those tribes came in and they did their part as well. So Reuben, Gad, and the half tribe of Manasseh, their land allotment when everything would be done would be on the other side of the river, but they cross over with the nation and are ready to participate in what's about to happen. The second thing is that once again, the miraculous nature of this event is emphasized. It says, No sooner had they set their feet on the dry ground than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place and ran at flood stage as before. That's in verse 18. And it's just emphasizing again this idea that the thing that's taking place is miraculous, that that it was at flood stage beforehand, and it makes note of that previously, and then again here as after they've crossed over, that it doesn't just come back in a trickle kind of a way, right? That we're not supposed to read this, I think. We're not supposed to read this as something that could be easily explained by natural phenomenon. There is this sense of the waters were full, and then they stopped, and then the nation passed through, and then they were released again, and they were released in in fullness. And kind of as a result of this miracle, Joshua is elevated in the view of the people just like Moses had been beforehand. Up to this point, when you read the different things that have taken place in the earlier chapters of Joshua, we do see that the people view Joshua as their leader. They they got that part. They know that he's God's guy, they've got that part, right? He didn't just, you know, overthrow everybody else. You know, he was selected by God, they and they seem good about that, happy about that. But up until now, it's really just been an exchange of words. Now, now they've witnessed, they've experienced, they've themselves have walked through, right, the riverbed of the Jordan on dry ground, and they have reason beyond those words to trust that the Lord was with Joshua, that he's not just a good leader, he's God's leader, and they can trust him because of those reasons. Let's move into some reflection. And admittedly, I'm reflecting on this in a Tim way. I'm I'm thinking about this in the context of my own life, and my my hope is that it's also helpful to you. And so I wanted to come back to that first question. How do I know if this is God's work or mine? How do we know the difference? And then I'll add a little bit more to that. How do we understand the balance between God's leading and inspiration and our obedience? Where does our part start and stop? And where does God's part move in? And some of us would say, well, it's all God all the time. And well, yeah, it is kind of, but we still have agency. We still have the ability to to respond or reject those kinds of things. And so we we find ourselves wanting to do the right thing. And sometimes it can be difficult to sort it all out, uh, especially because we don't necessarily always see the same kind of clarity that we see in in this account, where it just feels sort of straightforward, like God says it, and then the people do it and they they carry on. Well, it doesn't always happen like that uh for us here today. So let me offer some of what has helped me in the past, and and these are kind of standard answers, but they've they've worked for me. How do I discern? How do I know? All right, well, the first thing is pray and and just really devote that time to listen to God, to seek him out. And my belief is that prayer is is making that honest petition, but also carving out time to listen, to really slow ourselves down and receive whatever it is that God has for us, and to pay attention to that. And it's it's important to do. I've found for me personally that writing it down is a way of slowing down my mind. There's just something about that physical act that helps me out, it it may help you as well. Prayer and then fasting is kind of a next level step there where we where we eliminate something from our lives. Typically it's food, but we eliminate that food in order that that we can just devote ourselves to seeking God. Secondly, seek wise counsel, they may or may not be older than you. They may or may not have walked with Jesus as long as you have. But if you know that these people in your life love Jesus and there's a track record there of them being obedient and being filled with the Spirit, and people who are are known to operate in wisdom, seek them out and and and see what it is that God might be speaking to you through them. And then finally, consult scripture. I wouldn't make a podcast called Meet Me in the Word if I didn't think Scripture was important. So consult scripture. Again, all of these are legitimate, and and yet, you know, they don't feel the same. I I'm in my own season of transition. I'm on my own season of of discovery and figuring out what God has next for me. And I want you to know that I have not had a Jordan River experience. And that's okay. It's okay that that kind of event hasn't happened in my life because I'm trusting that God will continue to lead me. I have peace about my my decision to transition out of pastoral ministry, something I've been doing for 24 years. I have peace about that, and I have peace about doing this. And beyond that, it's kind of like, okay, God, what do you have next? And just leaning into that and trusting it. A second bit that I think might be helpful for for all of us is to just stop and ask ourselves, have I done the last thing that God asked me to do? Like when we're trying to discern and determine what the next step is, when it doesn't feel so clearly laid out as it did for Joshua and the people of Israel, how do I know, right? Well, did I do the last thing that I know that God wanted me to do? Or perhaps it's did I stop doing the last thing I know he wanted me to stop doing? Right? Have I have I been obedient? Or am I just looking for God's direction without my obedience? That's kind of a tough place to live. And then finally, have I expressed gratitude for God's provisions up to this point? You know, I don't think it's one of those deals where if you don't say thank you, you're not gonna get God's best. Like, no, I I'm not there. But saying thank you and meaning it, having that expression of gratitude for all that God has provided, for the way that He has led, for the things that He's done in your life, expressing that is gonna turn into praise and into worship. And your connection with God, your relationship is gonna, that's all gonna get closer and tighter and fuller. And we want that, right? It's gonna be so much better for us as we move forward with all of that. Gang, it's Friday, and it's good Friday. And you know what? Fridays are just good in general. And so, with all of that, my prayer for us is that we would continue to live as people of the resurrection. My prayer is that you have a wonderful weekend, that the resurrection story is powerful in your life. Let me pray for us. Jesus, thank you for all that you are and all that you've done. Thank you that you still lead us. Help us to listen to you well. Amen.