Readings:
Joshua 3-4
Psalm 90

Joshua gathers the people and announces the plan. They’re going to walk across the dry riverbed of the Jordan, just like they did with the Red Sea. In some ways I find the parting of a moving body of water, even though it’s much smaller than the Red Sea, to be even more impressive. The reason being that the moving water would begin to pile up and grow higher and higher, especially considering this is a couple million people crossing over so it’s not a quick process. The Levites are probably standing there with the The Ark of The Covenant for the entire day, and yet the water doesn’t build up into a massive wall hundreds of feet high.

That this miraculous crossing is almost the same as the Red Sea crossing is an intentional sign by God that Joshua is the chosen successor to Moses.

They take twelve stones and set up a memorial so that the people will always remember this event. Remembrance is a very important theme in the Bible, and especially in the Old Testament. The people back then, and us today, can forget the great things that God has done for us. Humans can be very ungrateful and forgetful beings, always asking “what have you done for me lately” and this is why we have crucifixes in our churches. That if we ever need reminding of the things God has done for us, we have the ultimate memorial and reminder in seeing his Son hanging in excruciating pain.

And it was all for us.

Tomorrow’s Readings:
Joshua 5
Psalm 91
Luke 11:14-54