Joshua 2:9 And
she said unto the men, I know that the LORD hath given you the land,
and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of
the land faint because of you. 10 For we have heard how the LORD dried
up the water of the Red sea for you, when ye came out of Egypt; and
what ye did unto the two kings of the Amorites, that were on the other
side Jordan,
Joshua 3:1 And Joshua rose early in the morning; and they removed from
Shittim, and came to Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and
lodged there before they passed over. 2 And it came to pass after three
days, that the officers went through the host; 3 And they commanded the
people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your
God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from
your place, and go after it.
7 And the LORD said unto Joshua, This day will I begin to magnify thee
in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with
Moses, so I will be with thee. 8 And thou shalt command the priests
that bear the ark of the covenant, saying, When ye are come to the
brink of the water of Jordan, ye shall stand still in Jordan.
Israel would enter the promised land by crossing Jordan River.
- Canaan was the Promised land.
- God said He'd make them a KINGDOM OF PRIESTS.
Exodus 19:6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an
holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the
children of Israel.
We are KINGS AND PRIESTS.
The land of Canaan was walked upon by Abraham centuries before when God
told him the land where he stands is his and all that he can see afar
off.
- But FAMINE brought people out of the LAND and into
bondage in EGYPT.
- Just like today.
- The early church had power and glory.
- BUT and faith took people into BONDAGE, and they
lost that glory.
Also, like Abraham was in the land and lost it, ADAM was in the Garden
and lost it as well.
- God is RESTORING US TO THAT LAND!
But Jordan was a barrier to this land.
- In fact, Jordan was flooding.
Joshua 3:15 And as they that bare the ark were come unto Jordan, and
the feet of the priests that bare the ark were dipped in the brim of
the water, (for Jordan overfloweth all his banks all the time of
harvest,)
Isaiah 59:So shall they fear the name of the LORD from the west, and
his glory from the rising of the sun. When the enemy
shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD shall lift up a
standard against him. 20 And the Redeemer shall come to Zion,
and unto them that turn from transgression in Jacob, saith the LORD. 21
As for me, this is my covenant with them, saith the LORD; My spirit
that is upon thee, and my words which I have put in thy mouth, shall
not depart out of thy mouth, nor out of the mouth of thy seed, nor out
of the mouth of thy seed's seed, saith the LORD, from henceforth and
for ever.
It was like the
ARK was the standard lifted up against the flood of the enemy.
In order to breach this barrier, God directed Joshua to have the
priests UPHOLD the Ark of the covenant.
- And they were told to STAND STILL.
Exodus 14:13 And Moses said unto the people, Fear ye not, stand still,
and see the salvation of the LORD, which he will shew to you to day:
for the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no
more for ever. 14 The LORD shall fight for you, and ye shall hold your
peace.
Both at the Red Sea and Jordan an ACT OF FAITH was required in STANDING
STILL.
- It's like waiting on the Lord to mount up with
wings of eagles.
- After we stand still and wait, look what the Lord
says:
Exodus 19:4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare
you on eagles' wings, and brought you unto myself.
If we can use our faith and trust in p.l by STANDING STILL and WAITING,
we will mount up with wings of eagles.
- Eagles are the KINGS OF THE FOWL.
- Wings of Kings!
As Moses used the rod to open punk Red Sea, which rod turned into a
serpent and back into a rod when he grasped the tail of the snake,
Joshua had the priests lift up the ark of the covenant that was used in
ATONEMENT every year.
The ATONEMENT was bringing GOD and ourselves together and AT ONE.
- Our sins that separated us are atoned for, or
removed, and what separated us no longer separates us from God and GOD
IS WITH US!
- That blood was taken from the altar of sacrifice
in the temple to the Ark's MERCY SEAT.
- Now, the ark represents the throne of God.
Hebrews 4:16 Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace,
that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
God's throne is a place of MERCY.
- God sat on the throne with SERAPHIMS over his head
like the cherubims were over the mercy seat of the Ark.
And not only is the Lord Jesus Christ's death our ATONEMENT, and He was
the sacrifice whose blood removes our sins so we are one with God
again, but JESUS WENT to the throne, and we are said to be seated
together with Him on that throne.
The blood that was shed on the altar, is sprinkled on that which
represents the throne.
- Our deaths with Christ caused us to be able to say
we died on the altar of the cross with Jesus as well as having been
seated on the throne with Jesus.
- So the message we see in upholding the Ark in
order to open the Jordan is that we need a REVELATION of the CONCEPT
that our deaths with Christ caused us to be seated with Him on His
throne.
- And that will cause us to have a confidence to be
able to believe God for great things.
- Once we have grasped the concept of being seated
with Christ on the throne, it is then easy to believe that we have
power and can command the enemy to leave our promised lands!
God told Joshua that the day the ark would be lifted up in Jordan
and the waters opened would be the day HE MAGNIFIED JOSHUA in the SIGHT
OF THE PEOPLE.
- EYES and SIGHT represent understanding in the
Bible.
- When we UPLIFT the TRUTH of our deaths and seating
with Christ on the throne as the REASON FOR CROSSING THE BARRIER that
keeps us out of the Kingdom land of Canaan, WE WILL SUCCEED.
- JESUS IS MAGNIFIED!
- JESUS is actually the Greek version of the name
JOSHUA!
- Do not uphold all your good works.
- That only UPLIFTS SELF, anyway.
- Do not uphold all your self confidence.
- UPHOLD the fact that you died with Jesus and are
seated with Him on his throne.
- When JESUS is magnified in your understanding to
have caused us to die and be seated with HIM, then you will have the
faith you need to tear down enemy kingdoms!
- AND YOU WILL OPEN THE BARRIER!
You will enter KINGDOM LIVING like Israel entered Canaan and cast out
the enemies that occupied their God-given land.
WHATEVER WE UPHOLD is what we depend upon.
- To UPHOLD the ark is a message
of UPHOLDING our FAITH that we died with Jesus and are so ATONED for
and AT ONE with God that we know we are seated with Him on his throne,
and have KINGDOM THRONE POWER against the enemy.
But you have to grasp and truly get what it means to say you are seated
with Him in heavenly places.
- As long as that is just a
thought, and nothing more, and not a reality that hits you like a
thunderbolt, you will not have the faith.
- You did not get the revelation.
Something else goes along with this revelation of your death with
Christ.
- It's THAT SELF is OUT OF THE WAY BECAUSE YOU DIED
WITH HIM.
- When you try YOUR best and YOUR human ideas are
what you depend upon, you are not upholding your death and co-seating
with Christ!
- So true upholding of the Ark represents YOU WILL
NOT EVEN THINK OF DOING WHAT YOU THINK YOU SHOULD DO.
- After all, you died with Jesus with all your inept
human abilities.
- That is why we died with Him.
- All our goodness' could not cut it so we
simply had to die and bury it all with us.
- NOW WE DEPEND ON HIS EMPOWERMENT.
When Paul taught about being dead with Christ in Romans 6, he explained
that this is meant to be followed by a life that IS SPIRIT LED.
- Not a life of trying your best.
- You rely on the SPIRIT just like Jesus resurrected
and it was SPIRIT LIFE that caused Him to walk and talk.
Believers who do not trust the Spirit of God to conquer things they
know their flesh cannot conquer, never upheld the Ark, spiritually.
- They continue to FEAR.
- Last week we preached about fear of death versus
the cross' victory over Death.
- It applies here, too.
- The cross was the bloodshedding of Jesus when He
became the atonement that the blood sprinkled on the Ark represented.
- It ALONE gives victory.
God gave Adam dominion over earth.
- Adam lost it due to his sin and he was thrown out
of the KINGDOM because of it.
- So Jesus restores us into the Kingdom by the
cross, and we have dominion again.
- WE UPHOLD faith in all of that as represented by
upholding the Ark.
Your FAITH rips open the barrier!
YOUR FAITH gives you incredible confidence.
JESUS IS MAGNIFIED IN OUR SIGHT!
It's like CROSSING JORDAN AND ELISHA SEEING Elijah ASCEND.
- Elijah said IF YOU SEE ME ASCEND YOU SHALL HAVE A
DOUBLE PORTION.
- SEEING means UNDERSTANDING in the Bible.
- IF YOU UNDERSTAND WHEN I ASCEND...
- Jesus wants us to UNDERSTAND ...
Eph. 1:17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory,
may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge
of him: 18 The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye
may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the
glory of his inheritance in the saints, 19 And what is the exceeding
greatness of his power to us-ward who believe, according to the working
of his mighty power, 20 Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him
from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places,
Because Jesus ascended and is seated THERE IS POWER TO USWARD!
SEEING IS UNDERSTANDING.
- If we can UNDERSTAND that the same degree of Power
of God that raised Him and seated Him is TOWARDS US, WE HAVE FAITH FOR
ANYTHING!
Canaan's kings were scared when they hear Israel crossed Jordan.
- We are sac ring demonic kings and princes when we
uphold this faith and crossover!
Notice that Moses led Israel up to the barrier of Canaan, and then
Joshua took them the rest of the way on in.
- And Joshua caused a BARRIER TO RIP that they might
enter.
2 Cor 3:14 But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth
the same vail untaken away in the reading of the old testament; which
vail is done away in Christ. 15 But even unto this day, when Moses is
read, the vail is upon their heart. 16 Nevertheless when it shall turn
to the Lord, the vail shall be taken away.
WHEN MOSES IS READ THE VEIL REMAINS
- WHEN HEART TURNS TO JESUS AND WE READ NEW
TESTAMENT OF JESUS, THE VEIL IS REMOVED.
- JOSHUA is the name JESUS in Hebrew.
He passed his mantle on to us!
- When Jesus said THESE THINGS SHALL YE DO AND
GREATER, it's like Elisha getting a double portion.
- The passing of the mantle is like the passing of
the torch!
- WE CONTINUE HIS MINISTRY.
Hebrews 9:8 The Holy Ghost this signifying, that the way into the
holiest of all was not yet made manifest, while as the first tabernacle
was yet standing:
The TABERNACLE OF MOSES had an outer court and holy place and most holy
place covered with a veil.
- The great KINGDOM leader David had a Tabernacle
with NO VEIL, NO OUTER COURT AND NO HOLY PLACE.
- Just a HOLIEST OF HOLIES.
- It's like David got rid of the outer court and
holy place of Moses' Tabernacle, along with the VEIL.
- And all David had was a Holiest of holies with no
veil and with the Ark inside open to them all.
- It's like removing the veil when you stop reading
MOSES, when you remove the tabernacle of MOSES and wind up with DAVID'S
TABERNACLE.
- YOU ENTER KINGDOM!
The only sacrifice we bring now is sacrifice of PRAISE!
We are restored to the GARDEN KINGDOM on earth!
- If you can grasp this truth and get faith and
UPHOLD IT as your basis for entering the Land, YOU CAN PASSOVER!
It takes FAITH IN THE POWER OF GOD and not your human power.
- Your human power will doubt and fail you.
- Scare you from even attempting to enter.
- Like Israel looking at the giants and then their
own weakness.
- But we uphold FAITH in the atonement and
confidence in THE POWER OF GOD WITH US.
We have not walked in newness of life if we are buried into His death
and continue to live by fleshly means and fleshly confidence.
- When we never take a step of faith by walking
headlong into a situation where our fleshly abilities cannot cut it,
and we know it, and we instead trust only in God, we are not walking in
newness of life.
Romans 6:4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that
like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father,
even so we also should walk in newness of life.
Romans 7:6 But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead
wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and
not in the oldness of the letter.
2 Cor 3:6 Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament;
not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the
spirit giveth life.