Joshua
5 - Chapter 4
In this fourth chapter of Joshua we enter upon a crucial phase in the history of the Israelites. We travel with them as, for the first time, they set foot on the soil of the Promised Land. The wilderness is behind them and they now enter upon what God promised them so long before.
At God's instruction, two important memorials are set up. One was a heap of twelve stones set up at Gilgal, the place where they first camped in Canaan. The other was a similar memorial placed in the River Jordan at the place where the priests stood while the people passed over. These were stones of considerable size for we read in Joshua 4 verse 5 that men carried them on their shoulders to pile them up at Gilgal. Gilgal was about seven and a half kilometres west of the Jordan and about two kilometres from Jericho. It was plainly intended that these memorials were meant to be an enduring reminder to all who passed that way, or gathered there in national assembly. From verse 9 we learn that this river bed memorial was intended to be permanent.
This great event elevated Joshua in the eyes of the people, for God was plainly marking him out as the worthy successor of Moses. As he passed on God's commands to the priests and as they stepped on dry land, the waters returned and the Jordan was again in full flood. The story of this miraculous crossing was to be told and retold down the ages to speak of the mighty, delivering hand of God. That is a summary of what we find in Joshua chapter 4.
Now we need to look into it more closely and draw out some practical lessons from its events. These lessons will revolve around the idea of two memorials and the leading question to be asked by successive generations of children: "What do these stones mean to you?" It is the same today with a war memorial or a gravestone when a child asks its parents what it all means.
The first thing we discover is that in both instances, twelve stones were used. One man from each of the tribes was to take a stone and build up the memorial pile. This was to remind them in future days that they had come through the River Jordan as a united people. As a complete nation they had been brought into the land to dispossess the evil nations who lived there. It is true that two and a half tribes decided to stay on the eastern side of the river, but that did not alter their identity. They were still part of the nation and their tribes were represented in those memorials.
Just as all Israel came to the river bank and passed over and climbed up the other side, so all God's people have passed from death to life because of what the Lord Jesus has done for them. All of God's children have been taken from the kingdom of Satan and brought into the kingdom of God's dear Son. You'll find that in the letter to the Colossians chapter 1 verse 13. Every true believer now stands in the "Promised Land" of resurrection life, the new life in Christ, by the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit. That is why every fellow believer should be precious to you. We are in the highest sense one nation under God. Are you part of it?
When the Lord Jesus died thewhole of His church was identified with Him in his death, resurrection and ascension. Every believer died with Him. Paul says in Galatians 2 verse 20, "I am crucified with Christ." Every believer was raised with Christ and God now sees us, without exception, seated with Christ in the heavenly realm. You will find this in Ephesians 2 verses 5 and 6. So, God's people, His nation, is entire, it is complete in Christ.
It is not without significance that in Revelation chapter 21 we read of the Heavenly City, the new Jerusalem, having twelve gates with the names of the twelve tribes of Israel. Besides that, the city has the names of the twelve apostles on its twelve foundations. The number twelve is associated with Israel and the church, the people of God.
If you are a true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, then you belong to God's people. You have crossed the river and you are on resurrection ground now. Your new life in Christ means that for you eternity has begun. You already have the first taste of Heaven. You have begun to take possession of your heritage. The enemies are there, but God is driving them back. All things are yours in Christ and your life is hidden with Christ in God." (Colossians 3 verse 3) All this is implicit in the twelve stones that made up the memorial pile.
The second great lesson to be discovered from Joshua chapter 4 is the very principle of keeping a memorial. In verse 7, Joshua told the people to answer their children plainly when they asked the meaning of the stones. They were to instruct them concerning the great deliverance when God stopped the flood waters of Jordan before the Ark of the Covenant. They were to look back upon that astonishing event and bring home the wonder of it to the next generation. The place might be forgotten in the passage of time, but with the stones at Gilgal and in the river bed the memory would be jogged time and again as the people passed by. The stones were a lasting memorial and were an aid to faith.
We, too, need memorials and the Lord has given to us means by which we can be reminded of all that He has done for us. To the Jewish people He gave the various memorial feasts the most important of which was the Passover reminding them of their deliverance from Egypt. Two memorials have been given to His church by the Lord. The first we call "The Lord's Supper" or "The Breaking of Bread" or "The Communion". The second is Believers Baptism. Each time we partake of the bread and wine we do so in remembrance of the Lord Jesus and His death for us on the cross. This is what He has commanded us to do. Each time we see a believer baptised it is a reminder that we have been crucified with Christ, have been buried with Him, and have been raised up to new life by the power of the Holy Spirit.
These memorials bring home to us as believers that we should no longer live for ourselves but for Him Who died for us and rose again. In the eyes of God we have been crucified to the world and the world to us. In other words, as far as this world is concerned we are dead and we should no longer live for it, or for our own interests. We have been bought with a price, a costly sacrifice, and we are no longer our own.
Are you reminded of these things when you attend a service of Believer's Baptism or The Lord's Supper? If you are a true believer in Christ you certainly will! If such things do not move you or stir any memories, is it because you are a stranger to all that they signify? Memorials are so important in arousing our memories of the mighty acts of God on our behalf. (See verse 24)
Another lesson from this chapter is that memorials should lead to a response in us as we consider all that God has so gloriously done for us. In Joshua 4 verse 23 Joshua links the crossing of the Jordan with the passage through the Red Sea some forty years earlier. That powerful display in rescuing the Israelites when they were trapped on the sea shore was to deliver them from captivity and cruel slavery. This holding back of the Jordan was to bring the people to what had been promised them - the land of Canaan. In between were so many glorious instances of God's provision and protection as they journeyed through the wilderness. It was all the story of God's merciful dealings with His covenant people.
Ultimately these events were to be remembered and praised so that all people might know just how mighty the Lord is. He is the unchanging God, and this wonderful damming of the River Jordan for the people of Israel is a reminder to you now, wherever you are listening, that He is a mighty God. There is none like Him in heaven or on earth. Humble yourself under His mighty hand, for He is merciful to all who call on Him for salvation.
We discover a further response here in verse 24. It is "that you might fear the Lord your God for ever." Remember, this was spoken to Israel, God's people. All around us we see corruption, violence, immorality, unfaithfulness, lying, cheating, disrespect, dishonesty, cruelty and greed. We see godlessness on every hand. We long to see all these things checked, for people to fear God and His laws and for a respect for Christian standards. Truly, we can say, "There is no fear of God before their eyes."
For people to turn to God and to fear Him we need a strong, compelling and effective Christian witness that is maintained in every walk of life. We need a consistent, spiritual impact from a prayerful, Bible-believing and God-fearing church. Sadly, the world looks down on the visible church because so often so-called Christian leaders speak with no authority or conviction. They make clear what they do not believe in the Bible rather than proclaiming boldly the gospel of Christ. They condone or ignore behaviour that the Bible clearly condemns. Sadly, too, there are many Christians who are self-interested, asking "What's in it for me?" Rather than saying like Paul, "Lord, what do you want me to do?" There are those who want to be entertained or excited rather than meeting for prayer or getting down to earnest study of the Bible.
The root of the problem is that such people are not fearing the Lord, they are not holding Him in true reverence, they are not living in obedience to His commands. We used to hear in the past of men and women who were known as "God-fearing". They were known for their consistent daily walk in Christian standards and practice. They were prayerful in the home. They were honest and upright. They were regularly found in the house of God. They truly feared the Lord.
Proverbs 1 verse 7 says that "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge". Have you made that beginning yet? In all that we have discovered from Joshua chapter 4, may it lead you above all else to "Fear the Lord forever".