24. Joshua 3:1-4:24 Cross the Jordan

So the people of Israel finally cross over the Jordan and begin their descent into the promised land. Joshua does exactly as the Lord has instructed him and the priests walk ahead with the ark of the covenant. As the priests step into the water, a great miracle takes place and the waters heap into a pile so they may walk across on dry land as they did many years before in the Red Sea. Twelve men are chosen, one from each of the tribes of Israel and they each choose a rock from the bed of the river to set up a memorial to remember what the Lord did there that day.

All the people of Israel now revered Joshua, just as they did Moses, because surely he was God's chosen leader. This was quite a miracle, as this was during the time of harvest when all the banks of the Jordan were overflowed with water. And they set up the twelve stones at Gilgal so that they could teach their children, for generations to come, that the Lord was with them and that all the people of the earth would know that the hand of God was MIGHTY, so that they would fear the Lord forever.

What things has God done in your life to prove His might and power? Are you sharing what God has done for you? When we are in the midst of trial, it is so important to remember the faithfulness of our great God. What He has done once, He can surely do again! What He has done for one, He can surely do for YOU!

23. Joshua 1:1-18 Joshua

Joshua had just succeeded Moses in the leadership of the nation of Israel. Moses had led the nation for forty years and had the benefit that all the wisdom and culture of Egypt and the king's house could provide. Moses was a seasoned, multi-talented man who walked closely with God. Joshua was his faithful attendant and he was assuming an awesome responsibility in taking command of two and a half million people. If anyone needed a formula for success, Joshua did. 


The Lord speaks directly to Joshua, which must have given him great comfort and assurance. He told him that as He had been with Moses, so would He be with him! He also gave Joshua the key to success in life...meditating on God's word! Meditating on the Word, day AND night and is promised 1. prosperity and 2. good success in the God-given task that lies ahead.


We can have that same assurance and success in our lives by simply following the principles God set in His word for Joshua. He commanded him to, 'Be strong and courageous!'. It was not a suggestion, but a command! The things we are called to do may seem daunting in the natural. But we can have assurance that God is with us, He will NEVER fail us or forsake us. He commands us, too, to be strong and full of courage. As we keep our eyes ever-fixed on His unchanging Word, we, too, will have GREAT SUCCESS!

22. Exodus 32:1-34:35 The Golden Calf

The Israelites became so impatient waiting for Moses to come down from the mountain that they said to Aaron, "Come, make us a god who will go before us; as for this Moses, the man who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him." So Aaron took all their gold jewelry and formed it into the image of a calf and said, "This is your god, O Israel, who brought you up from the land of Egypt."


How quickly people will turn aside to falseness without a strong leader. The Lord told Moses what the people had done and to go down to them at once. That His anger burned against them and He sought to destroy them because of their obstinacy. God told Moses that He would make a great nation from him.


But Moses knew that God was a covenant God and he reminded Him of the covenant He swore to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. That He promised to multiple their descendants like the stars of the heavens and give them a great land. He entreated the Lord to forgive the people of their sins. Moses even says he will sacrifice his own name in the Lord's book. Through much toil with the Lord, He showed Moses the way and showed him His glory. He renewed His covenant with His people. Praise God, He is a covenant-keeping God!

21. Exodus 19:1-20:21 The Ten Commandments

The Ten Commandments were laws given by God as guidelines for daily living. Although God gave the commandments to His people through Moses at Mount Sinai more than three thousand years ago, they are still relevant today. 


About three thousand years after God gave these commandments, Jesus upheld them. He actually placed these laws on a higher plane, demanding that the spirit, as well as the legal aspects, of the laws be observed. He placed His stamp of approval on the commandments by declaring, "Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish, but to fulfill." (Mt. 5:17)


And as we know all of the commandments can now be summed up into obeying the two that Jesus told us in Matt. 22:37 "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and foremost commandment. The second is like it, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' On these two commandments depend the WHOLE LAW and the Prophets."

20. Exodus 13:17-14:31 Crossing the Red Sea

As the Israelites flee Egypt, the Lord went before them  with a pillar of cloud by day to shield them from the hot desert sun and a pillar of fire by night to light the way for their constant travel. Pharaoh hardens his heart once more and sends his entire Egyptian army after the Israelites. Seeing that the Red Sea lies ahead and Pharaoh's chariots are closing the gap quickly from behind, the Israelites murmur against God. Did He really grant them their freedom only to see them die by the hands of Pharaoh's soldiers in the wilderness?
But Moses responds with a confession of faith! Not to fear, but to stand by and watch the salvation of the Lord which He will perform for them this day. That they will NEVER AGAIN see the Egyptians and that the Lord Himself will fight for them.
As Moses stretched forth his hand and staff, by faith, the waters of the Red Sea piled upon themselves and a path of dry ground to cross over on appeared! After the stubborn Egyptians followed them into the path, once safe on the other side, God causes the waters to recede drowning the entire army. One of the most awesome miracles of all time occurred and surely one I'm going to ask the Lord to see a replay of on "movie- night" in heaven ;)
As amazing as the record of this wonder is, we need to be ever mindful that we serve that same AWESOME, MIGHTY God! He has not changed. The Bible says He is the same, yesterday, today and FOREVER, Amen! Moses said in verse 14:14, "The Lord will fight for you while you keep silent." Let's not forget that advice and apply it to our circumstance today. It is sometimes difficult to 'keep silent', but there is great benefit in that. When the symptoms in our bodies or the balance in our bankbook want to make us shout forth aggravation, disappointment and frustration, we need to stop, keep silent and in faith speak only words of victory, in line with God's promises to us. And watch Him fight on our behalf!

19. Exodus 12:1-42 Passover

The time of the tenth plague had come and God gave very specific instructions to His people so that they would be spared. In ALL of the plagues, the Israelites were protected, while the Egyptians and their property were destroyed. The Hebrews were delivered from the final plague when they marked their houses, at God's command, by sprinkling the blood of a lamb over their doorposts. The death angel "passed over" the Hebrew houses.
This deliverance became one of the most memorable occasions in Hebrew history. The Passover is celebrated even today to commemorate their deliverance. And in this passage, we got a glimpse into the future plan of redemption for all of us, through the spotless Lamb, Jesus!
There is an amazing realization in the account of the Passover and the exodus of the Israelites; that God fulfilled every promise He had made to Moses. (Ex.3:21) That when they went, they would not go empty-handed, but that they would PLUNDER the Egyptians. They had favor in their sight and left a very rich people, carrying articles of silver and gold and the very clothing of the Egyptians. God is so incredible that He also healed EVERY SINGLE SICKNESS of the entire Hebrew nation, because it says that not ONE of them, young or old, was weak or sickly among them! They went forth on their journey in freedom and rejoicing!

18. Exodus 6:28-11:10 The Ten Plagues

Moses felt inadequate to speak before the Hebrew people and to go before Pharaoh to demand the freedom of his people. I'm sure we've all felt incapable of carrying out all that the Lord has led us to do. Praise God, He knows us better than we know ourselves and never leaves us unequipped. :) He sent Moses' brother, Aaron, to help him with this assignment. He prophesied to Moses that through him, He would perform great miracles which would be a sign to both the Hebrew people and the Egyptians.
Pharaoh, the ruler of Egypt, refused to release the Hebrew people from slavery and allow them to leave his country. So the Lord sent ten plagues upon the Egyptians to break Pharaoh's stubborn will and demonstrate His power and superiority over the pagan gods of the Egyptians.
Through each plague, Pharaoh continued to harden his heart and through such, his people and his lands were slowly being destroyed.