DCLM Search the Scriptures 20th April 2025 || Adult STS
TOPIC: PREPARATION FOR THE CONQUEST OF CANAAN
MEMORY VERSE: “And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for to morrow the LORD will do wonders among you” (Joshua 3:5).
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TEXT: Joshua 2-5
DCLM Search the Scriptures 20th April 2025 || Adult STS OUTLINE:
Joshua received the mantle of leadership after the death of Moses, the servant of God.
The Lord told him to prepare the children of Israel to pass over Jordan to conquer and possess the land of Canaan.
In response, he promptly charged and mobilised the people through the officers to “Prepare… to go in to possess the land, which the LORD… giveth you to possess it” (Joshua 1:11). He went further to draw strategies preparatory to their onslaught on the first city beyond River Jordan, called Jericho.
There were four dimensions to Joshua’s preparation for the great task of conquering the land of Canaan.
The first step was the clandestine espionage of the two spies to gather intelligence report regarding the land (Joshua 2); the second was the preparation of the troops, mentally and militarily; third, mobilisation of the Reubenites, Gadites and the half tribe of Manasseh for movement across Jordan in consonance with their earlier agreement with Moses (Joshua 1:12-18).
The fourth aspect was their spiritual preparation for the possession and occupation of the land, which entailed rededication and circumcision of their foreskin (Joshua 3:1-5; 5:1-9).
One thing is very evident and instructive: like Moses, Joshua did as the Lord commanded him, promptly. Consequently, Israel obeyed him too (Joshua 1:16-18).
MISSION AND DIVINE PROTECTION OF THE SPIES
(Joshua 2:1-24; 6:22-24; Numbers 13:1-21; 2 Samuel 23:16,17; Jeremiah 36:19-26; Proverbs 18:10; Exodus 12:13; 1 Peter 3:13)
In preparation to cross Jordan and lay siege against the inhabitants of Canaan, Joshua sent two men to spy out the city of Jericho.
He was by no means new in the act of espionage as he was one of the twelve spies earlier sent by Moses to spy the land (Numbers 13).
So, he understood the benefits of knowing the strengths and weaknesses of the enemy (Luke 14:31).
We learn from Joshua’s action that Christian leaders need to understand the condition of the places where they intend to launch out major spiritual programmes like church-planting or crusades.
Two, his action teaches us that faith in God’s promise and power should not make us to abandon necessary information, diligence and responsibility. Joshua was sure of God’s presence and power, yet he sent men to preview the land.
Three, the prompt response of the spies to this hazardous assignment calls to question the commitment and submission of many believers who easily shy away from spiritual assignments. The two spies put their lives at risk like David’s mighty men (2 Samuel 23:16,17).
Four, those at the centre of God’s will should be assured of divine guidance and preservation (Proverbs 3:6).
The Lord protected and preserved the spies through Rahab, a woman that was notorious for her lewd life – a seemingly irrelevant person in a holy mission – just like He hid Jeremiah and Baruch from the swords of the king of Judah (Jeremiah 36:19-26).
The Lord can use any instrument to ensure the safety of His people, especially when they are on assignment for Him or at the centre of His will.
“And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?” (1 Peter 3:13).
Rahab, with a pagan background had heard about the wonders of the God of Israel.
Her encounter with the spies afforded her the privilege to be associated with this God and she quickly gave up the worship of the gods of Canaan.
Her redemption shows that even while God is in the process of executing judgment, any person who sincerely repents, “…feareth him, and worketh righteousness, is accepted with him” (Acts 10:35).
Rahab’s faith was mainly a result of the testimonies of the wonders of the God of Israel which was a common knowledge in Jericho (Joshua 2:10).
But she was informed that her eventual salvation depended on fulfilling the tenets of the accord of not divulging their mission to anyone and remaining with all her relations within the house with the scarlet thread tied to the window.
This condition for her salvation is in tandem with Paul’s admonition to his co-travellers to Rome: “Paul said to the centurion and to the soldiers, Except these abide in the ship, ye cannot be saved” (Acts 27:31).
Our salvation too is not unconditional; we must remain in the ark of salvation to guarantee our final salvation. There is no such thing as eternal security.
MOVEMENT FROM SHITTIM AND THE CALL TO SANCTIFICATION
(Joshua 3:1-17; Deuteronomy 32:12; Psalm 78:52-54; Leviticus 11:44; 20:7,8; Numbers 11:18; John 10:1-5,27,28; 17:17-21)
Consequent upon the return and faith-inspiring report of the men who had gone to spy Jericho, the children of Israel moved from Shittim to the west-side of Jordan and pitched their tents there, preparatory to crossing over River Jordan.
However, concrete instructions were needful for a successful cross-over and pilgrimage.
The officers told the people to follow the Ark with reverence by maintaining some distance, since it represented God’s presence among them (Joshua 3:2-4).
The essence of the Ark moving ahead was “that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore” (Joshua 3:4).
As believers, we need divine guidance and godly leadership to make a successful pilgrimage to heaven (Proverbs 24:6).
Before the children of Israel launched out against the enemies, Joshua called them to sanctify themselves.
“And Joshua said unto the people, Sanctify yourselves: for tomorrow the LORD will do wonders among you” (Joshua 3:5).
The call to sanctify themselves was both a call to separation as well as to purification.
We learn from this and the eventual miracle at Jordan that: one, separation from sin and all forms of defilements is a condition that must be fulfilled before God grants expected and promised miracles.
Two, sanctification experience is required to enjoy divine guidance in our lives.
Three, a response to the call to salvation and separation from the world precede this divine heart operation called sanctification.
“Sanctify yourselves therefore, and be ye holy: for I am the LORD your God. And ye shall keep my statutes, and do them: I am the LORD which sanctify you” (Leviticus 20:7,8).
Just as Joshua directed all Israel to sanctify themselves, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ also prayed for the sanctification of believers (John 17:17- 21).
Four, sanctification is an imperative if we must enter the heavenly city.
MIRACLE OF CROSSING JORDAN AND CIRCUMCISION OF THE ISRAELITES
(Joshua 4:1- 24; 5:1-15; Exodus 15:14,15; Joshua 2:9-11; Hebrews 12:14; 1 Thessalonians 5:23,24)
The miraculous crossing of River Jordan was a repeat of the miracle at the Red Sea where the children of Israel were hedged in by a menacing army of Egypt and a deep sea.
It took a spectacular divine intervention for them to cross over on dry land and escape.
Likewise, Jordan River was at its highest when the children of Israel arrived its banks (Joshua 3:15).
But the God of all wonders separated the waters as soon as the priests’ feet touched its banks.
“And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over Jordan, that the LORD spake unto Joshua, saying, Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man” (Joshua 4:1,2).
DCLM Search the Scriptures 20th April 2025 || Adult STS
This miracle was worth a memorial for succeeding generations.
“That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean ye by these stones? Then ye shall answer them… For the LORD your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over” (Joshua 4:6,7,23).
God’s people must develop the habit of rehearsing His wonders among them to their children and the younger generations to keep the knowledge of His presence alive in the church (Psalm 78:4-6).
God fulfilled His promise to Joshua that He would be with him as He was with Moses (Joshua 1:5) by causing River Jordan to part in two so that the people could cross over on dry ground just as He did with the Red Sea.
And like Moses, Joshua returned all the praise to God.
News of the miraculous crossing of River Jordan spread across the regions with a paralysing effect on the kings of the Amorites on the western side of Jordan and the Canaanites.
“And it came to pass, when all the kings of the Amorites, which were on the side of Jordan westward, and all the kings of the Canaanites, which were by the sea, heard that the LORD had dried up the waters of Jordan from before the children of Israel… that their heart melted, neither was there spirit in them any more…” (Joshua 5:1).
Like earlier divine interventions, it sent chills of fear on the people of Jericho such that they lost the courage to fight the advancing army of Israel (Joshua 2:10,11). DCLM Search the Scriptures 20th April 2025 || Adult STS
On the part of the Israelites, the miracle at River Jordan gave them assurance of God’s continued presence and protection, and strengthened their hearts as they embarked on the conquest of the land.
Miracles and testimonies have ways of encouraging our faith and obedience to God.
“At that time the LORD said unto Joshua, Make thee sharp knives, and circumcise again the children of Israel the second time” (Joshua 5:2).
Israel at this point camped in the heart of the enemy territory.
To circumcise at this juncture will temporarily disable every male in their midst and render them unfit to fight.
It took great faith and confidence in the Lord for them to submit to the rite of circumcision. They had to be willing to trust the Lord to protect them until they were healed.
The command to circumcise was not without a cause.
Israel’s covenant of circumcision was connected to their possession of the Promised Land (Genesis 17:10-14).
It was therefore, important that those who had not been circumcised, that is, all those born in the wilderness after their departure from Egypt must do so before they entered the land (Joshua 5:5).
Again, the absence of circumcision to the Israelites is symbolic of gross impurity.
This might account for why it was not possible for them to observe the Passover in the wilderness.
The circumcision rolled away the reproach of their slavery in Egypt (Joshua 5:9).
This circumcision was needful to distinguish them from the Canaanites, into whose land they had come, and to ratify their covenant with God.
The ratification of the covenant assured them that God would now fulfil His promise to give them the land of Canaan.
The circumcision has important spiritual significance for New Testament believers; it is synonymous with Christian perfection.
It is the second work of grace which every believer needs as a condition for entering the glory land (Hebrews 12:14).
Our Lord Jesus Christ paid the price for our sanctification, perfection or holiness.
The conditions for heart circumcision include a living testimony of salvation, entire consecration, spiritual thirst and prayer of faith. DCLM Search the Scriptures 20th April 2025 || Adult STS
After the circumcision, the children of Israel were ready to observe the Passover.
“And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho” (Joshua 5:10).
While they were yet in the wilderness, they could not celebrate the passover with their mark of gross impurity.
The passover was a memorial of God’s redemption of Israel from bondage in Egypt.
It was symbolic of His deliverance from the tyranny of sin (Exodus 12:43-51).
Just like Israel kept the passover, believers should constantly remind themselves of God’s graciousness and mercifulness in delivering them from the power of sin and making them new creatures in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).
“And the manna ceased on the morrow after they had eaten of the old corn of the land; neither had the children of Israel manna any more; but they did eat of the fruit of the land of Canaan that year” (Joshua 5:12).
The provision of manna ceased the moment they started eating the old corn of the land (Joshua 5:11,12).
We learn here that we should not wait for supernatural provisions when we have the ability to provide for ourselves; and that God expects us to work with our hands for our necessary provisions (2 Thessalonians 3:10).
The appearance of the Captain of the Lord’s host to Joshua – a type of the Lord Jesus Christ – was to reassure him of God’s presence and to instruct him on the prospects of the battle ahead.
Joshua enjoyed divine presence and assurance throughout his life. Likewise, if we remain at the centre of God’s will and do His bidding always, He will never leave or forsake us (Hebrews 13:5).
Questions for review:
1. What can believers learn from Joshua’s prompt response and preparation for the conquest of Canaan?
2. Explain the reason for sending spies to Canaan.
3. What is the significance of the Ark moving ahead of the Israelites?
4. Why was it needful for Israel to circumcise their males?
5. Explain the covenant of circumcision between God and Israel and the heart circumcision of believers.
6. What do we learn from the stoppage of the supply of manna as soon as Israel began to eat the old corn?
7. Why did an Angel appear to Joshua and Who is He?
DCLM Search the Scriptures 20th April 2025 || Adult STS
