Impact - Day 19

Day 19 – Purify Yourselves

Joshua 3:1-5  Early the next morning Joshua and all the Israelites left Acacia Grove and arrived at the banks of the Jordan River, where they camped before crossing. Three days later the Israelite officers went through the camp, giving these instructions to the people: “When you see the Levitical priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant of the LORD your God, move out from your positions and follow them. Since you have never traveled this way before, they will guide you. Stay about half a mile behind them, keeping a clear distance between you and the Ark. Make sure you don’t come any closer.”

Then Joshua told the people, “Purify yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do great wonders among you.”

It is now just one day before the long-anticipated crossing. As many as two million people have readied their provisions and prepared for the trip. But, for several reasons, it still seems impossible. The anticipation and pent-up longing have built for forty years. Their respected leader has died. They are blocked by a two-mile-wide river overflowing its banks during flood stage (Joshua 3:15), and, should anyone successfully swim across, they would be met by the hostile warriors of Jericho as they emerged soggy and exhausted. How can this work?

Have you ever noticed how easy it is to paint a bleak picture of tomorrow? The bills won’t be paid, or the job can’t be done. There are unfixable relationships and depression we can’t see through. Our hopes seem impossible. But there can be immeasurable power in changing one single detail in the story of our lives. And that is about to happen to this vast swarm of Hebrews. 

Two final points of preparation emerge from our passage. The first is the challenge of keeping your eyes on the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant and following them wherever they go (a half mile behind). This Ark encapsulates the presence of God, both symbolic and literal. Usually, this tabernacle furniture sits secluded behind the fabric walls of the most holy place where God’s presence rested upon it as a glowing fire beyond the gawking eyes of the masses. Its rare appearance makes it easy to ask the crowd to keep their eyes on the Ark and follow the priests as it emerges into the sunlight. But don’t miss the point. The movement of God’s people must always be characterized by keeping our eyes on Jesus, letting Him lead, and following wherever He goes. This is an act of patience and submission. We move as He moves. We go where He goes. We must always submit our strategies, programs and plans to the movement of the Holy Spirit.

The final point of preparation? “Purify yourselves.”  This command carries an uncomfortable tone. It suggests that the Hebrews are dirty and need to be cleaned. They are in the wrong and require forgiveness. I’m not sure how we became this way, but you can start a fight with these words today. However, we must consider this challenge as we scan the horizon of our hopes for our church and communities. As we peer across the surging river that blocks our progress into the places God intends us to go, we must pause, confess our sins and shortcomings, and lay claim to the gift of forgiveness. This changes everything, even if by one tiny detail. For God is up to something special. He has a gift to uncover in the next few footsteps.

Tomorrow is going to be different.

1. Do you consider yourself to be an optimist or a pessimist? Are there areas of your life where this isn’t true?
2. What is something that is blocking the way to your hopes or dreams? How long has this been so? What do you want to say to Jesus about this?
3. Is there something you should confess to Jesus and ask Him for forgiveness? How would it feel to be clean and free from this burden?