Joshua Crosses Jordan

Joshua 3:1-17

In Joshua chapter 3 the children of Israel are instructed by God on how to cross the river Jordan. The river is flooding at this time and is out of its banks. Therefore for Israel to cross into the Promised Land they would have to trust God and use faith to overcome the dangerous task of crossing Jordan. In this lesson we will compare the crossing of Jordan to the crossing of the Red Sea and show how faith is key for us today.

The crossing of Jordan is similar but different to the crossing of the Red Sea but different. The crossing of the Red Sea is going to be a type of Salvation and the crossing of Jordan will be a type of living by faith after we are saved.

Crossing the Red Sea, a type of Salvation (Exodus 14:13-31)

1)  Israel had to cross the Red Sea to save their lives (Exodus 14:13)

• They were running from an evil king, Pharaoh.
• In Salvation Satan is trying to do everything he can to keep us from getting saved.

2)  God fought for the children of Israel at the Red Sea (Exodus 14:14, 24-30)

• Jesus fought the great battle for our Salvation and won the victory (Colossians 1:14,15)

3)  God parted the Red Sea before the children of Israel entered into it (Exodus 14:21-22)

• In Salvation God does the saving we just do the asking (Romans 10:9-13)

Crossing Jordan, a type of living by faith after Salvation (Joshua 3:1-17)

1)  Israel is not running from a wicked King (Joshua 3:1-17)

• Israel is not crossing Jordan to save their lives but in order to inherit the land that God has given them they must cross Jordan.
• After Salvation there are many blessing that God may want to give us but sometimes we must cross some dangerous water to achieve them.

2)  The priest had to go into the water before the waters were stopped (Joshua 3:13-17)

• This required getting their feet wet. This is walking by faith (2 Corinthians 5:17)

In Salvation we are saved by faith (Ephesians 2:8-9) and as a result we live by faith (Galatians 3:11). But for our faith to grow and accomplish the things that God wants us to we must exercise our faith and this will require getting our feet wet sometimes.

Joshua Crosses Jordan : Handout

Joshua 3:1-17

1)  Why is crossing Jordan a difficult task in the passage before us?

2)  How is Crossing the Red Sea a type of Salvation?

3)  How is Crossing Jordan a type of living by faith after Salvation?

4)  How can we apply this to us today?