Joshua 4:23-24 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 had crossed over. He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the LORD is powerful and so that you might always fear the LORD your God.”
The Parting of the Red Sea- The center miracle of the Old Testament
The Resurrection of Jesus Christ- The center miracle of the New Testament
Crossing the Jordan was going to bring them into a whole new life for the young nation. Crossing the Jordan would bring them into the Promised Land.
They would continue to need to listen to God's Word. God was speaking and is speaking all the time!
Crossing the Jordan this Word was given...
1. You Have Never Been This Way Before. 3.4
The Land. This was new to all of them save Joshua and Caleb. Other than these two not one of them had set foot in the Promised Land. This was new territory for this young nation.
The Battles.They were now a nation a war. A War is made up of many battles. The Battle of Jericho would be the definitive one. It would be the one they could look back on and gain encouragement from as they faced new battles.
We are in a spiritual battle today. We do not wrestle against flesh and blood but against principalities and powers of spiritual darkness in the heavenly realms.
There are things which we mentioned last week are new for us. Some of these challenges come in the form of spiritual battles.
Paul closed his letters to Timothy with the words, "I have fought a good fight..."
II Timothy 4.7 Paul spoke in these military terms a number of times.
II Timothy 2:3 "Join with me in suffering, like a good soldier of Christ Jesus."
In our battles, God is at work. He gives us the victory.
Sovereignly, by His power, God has brought to where we are now.
There was a new level of the need of trusting God in this place
Not just following the Pillar of Cloud but engaging in battles, warfare, fighting
The new year, 2015, is a like the Promised Land. We have never been this way before.
There are spiritual battles we are fighting.
There are new challenges coming to us.
There are victories we can look back on.
There is the LORD before us.
We need to look back at His Provisions and His Power and His Promised fulfilled in the past to help us grow in our faith today.
2. This Year, This Very Week He is Stretching Us.
Leaving for Haiti. You all praying here. Bible Studies will not meet this week of or next. Please in that time we would be together for them, pray for us, for the work down there.
We will come back and all celebrate together on Sunday, February 1st. It will be a Super Sunday! We will worship, take the LORD's Supper together and share about the trip to Haiti while also drawing strength from the Word of God to prepare for the rest of this year, 2015.
There are good things in the making.
*Families are beginning to call Good Shepherd Nursery School about this fall, to enroll their child.
*Kevin's Fledgling Young Adult Bible Study is going.
*God is speaking to a number of us about personal evangelism.
*More improvements will be made to the building because of your giving.
*Bridges are being built to the community like never before.
Gifts for Haiti, half outside of our church!
It is not too early to pray for God to use Holy Week to draw people to Himself.
Let's claim the verse in John 12:32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to Myself.”
He is drawing people today.
Last year our Sunday Morning Message went to places like Saudi Arabia, Singapore, France, Poland, India, Germany, The Philippines, Russia, Ghana, Italy, Nigeria, United Arab Emirates, China, The Netherlands, Malaysia, Spain, Ghana, Kenya, England, South Africa, Israel...
Where will God's Word, from this little church here, go this year?
We look ahead with faith, We look back with Thanksgiving1
Therefore
3. Revisit Memorials 4.4-7
Why I journal!
Go back over your life. Take a walk down your Memory Lane.
Recount the times God came through for you.
Number Your Days. He has been with you all the way!
All the way my Savior has led me.
Has the LORD failed you? Never!
I've been walking with the LORD for over 50 years now, over 30 have been right here as Pastor. It has always been a journey filled with challenge and victory.
Joshua 4:21-24 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 had 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.”
Leave some monuments!
4.Watch Him Work as You Step Out in Faith
Joshua 3:5 Joshua told the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you.”
Whether it is to witness or do something for Him and His Kingdom
You realize it is He working through you.
Psalm 139:16 All the days ordained for me were written in Your book before one of them came to be.
Ephesians 2:10 For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.
See His power!
He is doing a work in your days. If He told you what was in store you would not believe it.
What is God asking you to do today? What step of faith is He speaking to you about? Where is He asking you to go where you have never been before?
We never know what God may do through our lives.
Surrender to His Sovereignty and watch Him work in your life!
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