Skip to main content

Joshua 3:1 - The ultimate "We have done it that way before" - Day 182

Dear pilgrims in a barren land,

Finally got this devotional done.  The nice thing about electronic is they are easy to edit.  The bad thing is that they are easily deleted.  Had to type this a couple of times.

One of the things Jonathan emphasized this week is that the Bible is not about us.  We are prone to ask "Where am I in this story?"  I have heard Sinclair Ferguson say "You aren't in this story".  The first thing we need to do is see Jesus and how he is better than the people in the story.

Blessings,

Jeff

"Do not come near (the ark), in order that you may know the way you shall go, for you have not passed this way before.”  Obviously, no one had been over the Jordan and into Canaan.  However, those who were under 20 at the time of Red Sea crossing had experienced going through the water.  What was different this time?

Moses was no longer with them.  He had used his staff as the instrument of parting the Red Sea,  Now it was the ark of the covenant carried by Levites.

They were escaping from Egypt at the Red Sea.  Now they were going into the Promised Land to conquer.

The ark had been in the middle of the order of march while they were in the wilderness.  6 tribes were in front and 6 tribes were behind.  Now the ark is to lead the way.

The Levitical priesthood did not exist at the Red Sea.

How does this episode point to Jesus?  

The better Joshua - 

Joshua was a skilled physical warrior who knew ultimate victory was due to presence of God.  Jesus never picked up a sword or led an army into battle.  

Joshua defeated the various Canaanite peoples.  Jesus defeated Satan, death and sin.

The better ark and mercy seat

The mercy seat was where God was present in cloud and fire.  The Son took on flesh and dwelt among us.  The fullness of deity dwelt in the human nature of Jesus.

Israel was prohibited from getting too close to the ark.  Jesus comes near and dwells in us by the Holy Spirit.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

2 Chronicles 33:7-9 Thoughts on Davidic covenant - Day 362

Good morning faithful readers, The finish line is in sight!!!  One of the themes of scripture is that God is a covenant keeping God.  There are many between God and man. Adam, Noah, David are examples.  Covenants are more than promises.  They are made between a superior and inferior with conditions for each side and blessing and penalties based on keeping the conditions.  These are covenants of works which fallen man was unable to keep.  Thanks be to God that the Father made a covenant of grace with Christ, the second Adam, which he fully kept. Blessings, Jeff The promise in v8 was made to David when he had planned to build the temple and God promised to build him a house forever. (2 Sam 7:10).  Seems like there are only two possibilities about Manasseh's disobedience.  Either he knew of this covenant that God had made with his 13th great grandfather and chose to disregard it, or he didn't know of it and was unaware of the penalty.  Let's con...
Post a Comment
Read more

2 Chronicles 30:16-20 Hearts set to seek the Lord - Day 359

Good morning fellow members of the household of God, After writing the devotional, I am thinking about the Passover as a household event.  In ancient Israel, the physical household of man was covered by the blood of the lamb.  Now, it is the spiritual household of God that is covered by the blood of the Lamb. Blessings, Jeff The account of the greatest celebration of Passover since time of Solomon (v 26).   Observations: One of the things that made this one great is participation of some of the tribes from the northern kingdom.  Israel was a united kingdom and Solomon and now toward the end of the northern kingdom, there is at least a semblance of being united. God allows some exemptions: Who offers the sacrifice:  The original Passover was a family by family sacrifice of a lamb.  However in  Deuteronomy 16:5-6 this changed to a centralized location once they entered the promised land.  (You may not offer the Passover sacrifice within any of ...
Post a Comment
Read more

2 Chronicles 35:23-26 Lament for the last good king - Day 364

Good morning fellow exiles and pilgrims, One more day of devotions.  We are indeed exiles and pilgrims in this world as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen.  The 20th anniversary of 9/11 attacks can serve as a reminder that this world is not our home. Blessings, Jeff The lamentations for Josiah written by Jeremiah.  However, the book of Lamentations does not include any reference to Josiah as they are focused on the fall of Jerusalem.  While these lost lamentations were "made the rule" there are only 4 more kings and none of them were good like Josiah and none died in Jerusalem.  The phrase "to this day" generally refers to the time of the author (post exile).  Taken together, it may be that these laments were for the last good king and during the exile the people were longing for the next good king. Zerubbabel in a way was the next good king as temple and Jerusalem were rebuilt. But Jesus truly was the next king and He...
Post a Comment
Read more