Joshua A Type of Christ
Text: Josh. 1:7 Only be thou strong and very
courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law, which
Moses my servant commanded thee: turn not from it to the right hand or to the
left, that thou mayest prosper withersoever thou goest.
Introduction
As we open the book of Joshua, there is a transition taking
place in the leadership. Moses has come
to the end of his life. For forty years
he led the Israelites. He has gone up
the mountain never to come down again.
It is difficult to imagine that the death of one who had been such a
religious leader, such a wise lawgiver, and above all such a patient and humble
leader, but as long as Moses lived, they could not enter the Promised Land.
While he lived, the Israelites were just a river crossing from the Promise
Land. They must remain on the wilderness side of Jordan. Moses might bring the people to its edge of
Jordon, he might see the Promise Land, but he would not cross Jordan or to
bring the people over into the inheritance which God had promised them.
Much as they had
reason to love him and as long and sincere as was their mourning for him, they
must have felt that his life hindered them from entering into possession of the
land of blessing. When an announcement of his death along with the commission of
Joshua to go over Jordan it must have moved the people to exchange the spirit
of heaviness for the garments of praise and assured them that the last obstacle
was removed Moses was dead. Of all the times to die, why now?
Why after renouncing
the pleasures and riches of Egypt after forty years training in the desert of
Midian, and after forty weary years of the wilderness journey its murmuring and
complaining people, the threats on his life, the challenges to his leadership,
all his hopes and fears was this man not permitted to reap the fruit of his
sacrifice?
Why then must he die before entering the Promise Land? Did
his LORD not love him? We cannot doubt
that He loved him. Moses talked with
God. It was said that the LORD spake unto
Moses face to face as a man speaketh unto his friend. God paid him such
honor, which he alone of all that ever died was buried by none other than the
hand of God. The LORD loved Moses. It
was Moses who stood with the LORD on the Mount of Transfiguration there to speak
with Him and Elijah.
These things happened as examples of types, and they are
written for our admonition. God used the
men of old who were types living parables by which God has shown the truths
that He desired to teach us.
So, what is this different truth concealed in the mysterious
death of Moses? Moses was the representative of the LAW. The law was given by Moses.
When our LORD was transfigured there appeared with Him the
two men who represented two divisions of time that were passing away to leave
behind the glory of the gospel of Christ.
These two men, Moses and Elijah, served the Law and the Prophets. Moses,
my servant, dead arises, therefore, go
over this Jordan.
Here is the experience
God wants us to understand.
First, that one violation of the law eliminates one from the
Promised Land. Secondly, it is not by
Moses or the law but by Joshua that one enters the Promise Land. The transition is about to take place. The Law would pass, and Grace would come.
The faithfulness of Moses cannot be questioned. Moses was
above all men faithful to God. Even God
Himself said of him He is faithful in all Mine house. There was no one in his generation who held
more constant communion with God. No one
who obeyed God more literally. No one
who walked with Him more intimately. No one
in keeping the commandments could be entitled to the blessing or could produce
a more accurate title than Moses. But he
had ONE problem, he disobeyed the LORD.
Whosoever shall keep
the whole law and yet offend in one point is guilty of all that is he is a
transgressor of the law.( James 2:10)
As we learned in the study of the Law series, Moses disobeyed
the LORD when he struck the rock rather than speaking to it. It was from his lack of faith that he would
not be granted the privilege to enter the Promise Land.
The question was asked, Who
shall ascend into the hill of the Lord and who shall stand in His holy place? The answer is, He that hath clean hands and a pure heart who hath not lifted up his
soul unto vanity nor sworn deceitfully.
If you are going to keep the Law, you must keep it to the
smallest jot and tittle.
In the story of the Rich Young Ruler, a young man came to
Jesus and asked how he might have eternal life.
Jesus quoted the commandments to him.
He said that from his youth he had been keeping the commandments. Jesus then said, One thing thou lackest. The one thing that he was lacking made him
fall short of the keeping the whole law.
This made him a transgressor of the Law and guilty of breaking the Law.
There are people seeking a means whereby they can earn a
specific measure of holiness. They are
trying to find righteousness by the works of the Law. They are endeavoring to obtain pardon by
mixing the Law with Christ. They do not understand the Gospel.
Paul explains in the tenth chapter of Romans how these people
think. Paul says I want my people to be
saved. They are trying hard to follow
God in their way, but they don't know the right direction. They are trying to make themselves right, but
they won't accept God's way of making people right. They cannot accept the fact that Christ ended
the Law.
They do not believe that My servant Moses is dead. They do not see the meaning of the words
Moses is DEAD. They continue to bring
Moses to life again and hope by his help to be delivered from judgment and
enjoy the Promised Land. Moses must die, or rather you must die to Moses or the
law before you can live unto God. The connection with the law must be broken by
death before Joshua (Jesus) can lead you to the inheritance. That it is only
death that separates that relationship this is made clear from the apostle's
writing in Roman 5:1, Know ye not,
brethren, (for I speak to them that know the law,) how that the law hath
dominion over a man as long as he liveth?
He goes on to say 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. Romans
7:6
By this, we can see that under Moses (Law) the Israelites
could not enter the Promise Land. It was
only with Joshua (Grace) they could inherit the land. Anyone who enters the land
of blessing must obtain that entrance not by the Law, but by Grace of Jesus
Christ.
To enter the land, they were faced with a barrier, the river
Jordan. They would need to pass over
Jordan by faith which was the same faith that necessary to cross the Red Sea.
The same faith that brings the joy of sins forgiven is the same faith needed for
full surrender to the LORD.
The Ark of the Covenant, carried by the priest would step
into the water first. The ministers of
God must believe that they can be free from the wanderings in the Wilderness of
Sin. They must understand that Moses is
dead, and Grace is alive.
The water of Jordan stopped flowing, and the priests that carried
the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of
Jordan and all the Israelites passed over on dry ground until all the people were passed clean over Jordan Josh. 3:17
How does this crossing the Jordan typify the second work of
Grace? The waters of Jordan were to be
divided and rendered harmless for the people, by the presence of the Ark. The Ark was the symbol of God's presence
among the people it was at the Mercy Seat the golden covering of that Ark where
the cherubim stretched forth their wings that God's presence was especially
manifested there with the Shekinah or divine glory. It was then the presence of
this Ark on the priest's shoulders in the
midst of Jordan that rolled back its overflowing tide and made the depths a
way for the ransomed of the Lord to pass over.
The Hebrew writer explains why it is essential to move on in
our Christian experience. In the sixth chapter of Hebrew, we see that we should
be finished with the introductory lessons about Christ. We need a new life by turning away from the
evil that we did in the past by having faith in God. We were taught about baptisms, laying on of
hands, the resurrection of the dead, and the final judgment. Now it is time to move forward.
While wandering in the Wilderness of Sin, we learned the
lessons of repentance, forgiveness, conviction, holiness, and righteousness
along with service to God. Now it is
time to put to practice the things we have learned. These lessons are now applied when we cross
over to the Promise Land.
But wait, there are those who have learned the truth and have
received the gift of God and shared in the Holy Spirit. They were blessed and saw the power of
God. But they left it all behind. Some return to the Wilderness of Sin, because
that cannot believe Moses is dead. Some
return to Egypt because they fear the giants in the land and want the old life
of bondage.
When Moses returned to Egypt, he was eighty years old. Joshua was forty years old when they left
Egypt. He became the right hand of
Moses during the forty years of wandering in the Wilderness of Sin. He would become the successor of Moses and
would lead the Israelites into the Promise Land.
Joshua spent forty years in Egypt. He was present with of the rest of his nation
in their sorrows; he was one with them in their afflictions; Joshua shared
their labors in the brick-kilns of Egypt; in all their afflictions he was
afflicted.
The study of Joshua would be incomplete without looking at
the character of his life and his work. The Scriptures suggests that as the
successor of Moses he was a type of our Lord and Savior, and the more we
reflect upon the subject, the more striking this feature of his career appear.
First, let us look at his name. The original name of the -leader of the hosts
of Israel, Hoshea, Salvation, was changed, to Jehoshua, or Joshua, '' God's
Salvation," or "Jehovah the Savior'''' (Num. 13: 16, 14: 6, 30). In
the Greek translation of the Bible, Joshua is always rendered by the word
meaning Jesus, as its use in the New Testament.
Joshua was only human, but by the power of the LORD empowered
the Israelites to defeat the nations of Canaan, and kept them from the
countless dangers they faced. Joshua saved Israel, not by his power, but by
trusting the LORD; he helped save his people; whereas Jesus Himself by His
power, the power of God, shall save whosoever will. We may understand the
interpretation of His Name to be God the Savior.
Joshua completed the work of Moses. Moses led Israel out of
the bondage of Egypt, but left them in the Wilderness of Sin. Just as Jesus
fulfilled the Law and completed the works of the Law. The Law was given by
Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ, and by him, all that believe
are Justified from all things, from which they could not be justified by the
Law of Moses. Acts 13:39
Joshua was the great Antitype who begins his service at the
banks of Jordan. His feet are dipped in the selfsame rushing stream in which
Jesus was baptized. When Jesus came up
from the water, the Spirit descends upon Him, and the Voice is heard, "Thou art My beloved Son, in Thee I am
well-pleased."
At the Jordan River,
Joshua said that twelve stones should be taken by twelve men chosen out of the
people, to be a witness to the nation of their deliverance. So, after His
baptism in Jordan, the second Joshua (Jesus) began to choose twelve Apostles,
those foundation-stones in the Kingdom of God, whose names are on the twelve
foundations of the wall of the holy city, the new Jerusalem.
Joshua led the people across the Jordan, and renewed the
Covenant of Circumcision, and conquered for them their foes, Joshua assigns to them their inheritance but
directs that they must fight for their possessions against the remnants of
their enemies if they would maintain their conquest.
Jesus brings us into the Promise Land and renews the Covenant
of Circumcision, not of the flesh but the heart. But he
is a Jew, who is one inwardly; and circumcision is that of the heart, in the
spirit, and not in the letter; whose praise is not of men, but of God. Rom.2:29
Jesus brings His people into the spiritual Canaan of His
Church, calls upon them to fight. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood,
but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness
of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Eph. 6:12
Before Joshua dies, he called all the tribes of Israel to
meet together at Shechem. These were the older leaders, heads of the families,
judges, and the officers of Israel. These men stood before God. He reminds them
of how God called Abraham out of the land on the other side of the River. How
God sent Moses and Aaron to Egypt. How
the ten plagues came upon Egypt. How they
wandered in the wilderness and how the armies of the Amorites were
defeated. He reminded them how God
brought them across the Jordan river and conquered the city of Jericho. He told them it was God who helped them
defeat the enemies of Israel.
Joshua told them to throw away the false gods that their
ancestors worshiped and serve only the Lord.
He gave them a choice who they would serve. Serve the gods their ancestors worshiped or
serve the Lord. The people answered, "We all see that we have chosen to
serve the Lord."
Joshua in the 24th chapter told them to throw away the false
gods that you have among you. Love the Lord, the God of Israel, with all your
heart. The people agreed, and Joshua
found a large stone to be the proof of this agreement. He put the stone under the oak tree near the
Tabernacle. The stone was to be a reminder of the covenant made with the LORD and
the people.
Jesus Christ has called each of us to hear what he has done
for us; By His Holy Spirit, He has
revealed what God has done, how we have been blessed, protected and secured by
the Hand of God. He reminds us of the
times we wandered in sin and how He defeated the enemies of our soul and
brought us into the Land of Promise.
Jesus Christ has been the Captain of our Salvation, and He has made a
covenant with us never to leave us nor forsake us.
Conclusion
We do not need to continue in sin. The Captain of our Salvation has defeated the
enemy of our soul. As John tells us, See,
what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God;
and so, we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not
know him. Beloved, we are God's children now; it does not yet appear what we
shall be, but we know that when he appears,
we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. And everyone who thus
hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.
Everyone who commits
sin is guilty of lawlessness; sin is lawlessness. You know that he appeared to
take away sins, and in him, there is no
sin. No one who abides in him sins; no one who sins has either seen him or
known him. Little children, let no one deceive you. He who does right is
righteous, as he is righteous. He who commits sin is of the devil; for the
devil has sinned from the beginning. The reason the Son of God appeared was to
destroy the works of the devil. No one born of God commits sin; for God's
nature abides in him, and he cannot sin because he is born of God. By this it
may be seen who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil:
whoever does not do right is not of God, nor he who does not love his brother. 1 John 3
If you have not accepted Jesus Christ as your Savior, TODAY
is the day, NOW is the accepted time.
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