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Previously, we saw that God gave Moses and Aaron each a staff for the mission to free His people from bondage and lead them to the land He promised on oath to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. In the process of planning the mission, God made certain that the three Godheads of the Holy Trinity were used to create the nation of Israel and successfully lead His people to the Promised Land which depicts His kingdom. Because this mission was designed by God to show us what was to come and to reveal his future plans for the world during which the three Godheads will play unique roles but still held together with Jesus Christ, God decide to put some very surprising demarcations in the process. From Egypt to Gilgal, two Godheads were used so far:
God himself did some of the miracles in Egypt.
Moses and Aaron were used as Godhead number two who is Jesus Christ
Godhead number three who is the Holy Spirit was not used yet.
When Moses and Aaron died, whoever God was going to appoint to complete the mission from that point forward will be assigned with the supernatural powers of Godhead number three. Since Jesus will come to die on the cross for our sins, Moses and Aaron were each given a staff to represent his death on the cross for the sins of the world; but because the Holy Spirit will not come to die on the cross, it explains why when God appointed Joshua to complete the mission, there was no reason for Joshua to have a staff. Previously we also saw that only one Godhead is allowed to dwell on earth at any given period of time. Before Jesus came to us, God communicated directly with man through His angels like we saw when He spoke to Moses and the Virgin Mary the mother of Jesus Christ. When Jesus came, the angels were pulled back and he communicated directly with man. But when Jesus died and went back to heaven, he sent the Holy Spirit who now dwells with us. When it was almost time for Jesus to be crucified, he described the Holy Spirit as the Advocate and he said to his disciples “Unless I go away, the Advocate will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you.” John 16:17.
Because Moses and Aaron through the staff both represented the second Godhead who is Jesus Christ, when they broke faith with God, they had to die for the Holy Spirit to come who in this case is Joshua. With Joshua, instead of giving him a staff, God gave him the powers of the Holy Spirit as an indication of what will follow after the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. It explains why Joshua’s first assignment was to cross the Jordan River where Jesus will be baptized when he comes in full flesh and where the Holy Spirit will descend upon Jesus Christ during his baptism by John the Baptist.
When Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist, the Bible teaches that heaven was opened. Because of God’s holy nature and the fact that the Ark of God represents Jesus Christ through the Holy Spirit, God asked seven priests to carry trumpets of rams’ horns when they marched round the city of Jericho. God also asked the priests carrying the Ark to go inside the Jordan because of His divine plan for the future when His son finally comes. Since Joshua represents the Holy Spirit, his first mission was to cross the Jordan River because this is the first place the Holy Spirit will visit on earth when Jesus is baptized by John the Baptist.
Holy Spirit = 7
Jesus Christ = 7
“Tell the priests who carry the Ark of the Covenant: ‘When you reach the edge of the Jordan’s waters, go and stand in the river.’” Joshua 3:8. Looking at this command from God, He wanted to make sure that the priests do it right by not standing on the edge of the river because when His son comes and it’s time for him to be baptized by John the Baptist, Jesus will be standing on that same spot inside the river.
“As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and lighting on him. And a voice from heaven said, ‘This is my son whom I love; with him I am well pleased.’” Matthew 3:16. When the Israelites were camped at Gilgal to celebrate the Passover, they could see Jericho but could not enter the city because they still had to cross the Jordan. “On the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, while camped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho, the Israelites celebrated the Passover.” Joshua 5:10. Everything we need to know regarding what God expects from us in our journey into His kingdom was displayed to us through the journey of the Israelites from bondage in Egypt.
In the early part of his mission, Jesus tried to set the record straight on what it takes to enter the kingdom of God when Nicodemus came to him to find out the truth. “In reply Jesus declared, ‘I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.’” John 3:3. “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.” John 3:5. We should keep in mind that all the Israelites were baptized with water as they crossed the Red Sea when they left Egypt which represents the world. We know that after their baptism, they never stopped grumbling against Moses and God and they showed a complete lack of faith in God on many occasions to the point where they decided to make their own God – the Golden Calf. God made certain that all the Israelites that were not spiritually qualified to enter the Promised Land which represents His kingdom, all died during the journey. This is a clear testimony that confessing Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior plus your baptism with water is not enough to grant you entry into God’s Paradise in Heaven. You must also be baptized with the Holy Spirit.
The only Israelites who successfully entered the Promised Land were those who crossed the Jordan because that was their baptism with the Holy Spirit. This is what Jesus was trying to teach Nicodemus. Being born with the Holy Spirit is a surrender of principle where you allow Him to take absolute control of your life as you struggle to pull away from all the cravings of this sinful world. This is where the rubber meets the road. A lot of people think that all it takes to become saved and eventually go to Paradise is that you publicly confess Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, get baptized with water and just keep living the same lifestyle you’ve been used to.
For your information, make no mistake about it; you will not cross the Jordan if you do not repent. Going to church every Sunday is not going to cut it, donating large sums of money to the church is not going to cut it, charity work is not going to cut it, and neither will your spiritual title. Nothing can save you until you give your heart completely to Jesus who will then hand you over to the Holy Spirit for supernatural cleansing. Without the rubber stamp of the Holy Spirit authorized by Jesus Christ, you are not going to enter the kingdom of God. Jesus Christ is not a beggar and God is not money-hungry. God is only hungry for a contrite heart. Wake up while you have time because this is serious business. Today may be your last day on earth.
God bless you; Jesus loves you! #Joshua #JoshuaAndMoses #GodandJoshua
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