The Lord Will Do Wonders Among You

"And Joshua said to the people, 'Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.'"
(Joshua 3:5)

Sanctify yourself! Set yourself apart - devote yourself to the purpose of loving God with deep dedication.

Let's put this into perspective. Moses had died and now Joshua is leading the Israelites into the Promised Land. In Joshua 1:11, Joshua told the people to "prepare provisions for yourselves, for within three days you will cross over this Jordan, to go in to possess the land which the Lord your God is giving you to possess."

And now, Joshua is telling them to sanctify themselves - to free themselves from sin and devote themselves to God because "tomorrow" - on the third day - the Lord will do wonders among them.

Do you see the correlation to us in this Scripture? Joshua is a type of Christ leading God's people to the Promised Land. They are preparing to miraculously cross over the Jordan River on the third day of encampment. The Lord, once again, is making a way for His children where there seems to be no way.

Wow! Isn't that amazing? Even in the book of Joshua we can find the Lord's plan of salvation and deliverance!

Do you want to see more?

The Hebrew word for "wonders" is pala` (pah-lah), meaning miracle, marvel, supernatural deed. It is something beyond the human ability to achieve. One of the names for Jesus is "Wonderful" (Isaiah 9:6) or pil'iy, which is a derivative of pala`.

Now, let's put it all together...

On the third day, Jesus rose from the grave - He conquered death. The Lord God did pala`for us - He miraculously made a way for us to cross over into everlasting life.

The children of Israel were told to sanctify themselves before they could cross the Jordan. We, too must sanctify ourselves - set ourselves apart and devote ourselves to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Even now, He is preparing to do wonders among those who love Him.

Set yourself apart and expect a miracle.

Father, I love Your Word so much. Its intricacies amaze me and thrill me! I love to see how Jesus fulfills. the Old Testament and I love to see how everything works hand in hand. It truly is a living book! Teach us why sanctification is so important to Your children. Either You are our One True God, or You are not. Either You are Holy, or You are not. Forgive us for not taking our discipleship seriously. In order to enjoy Your Presence, Your wonders, we must be set apart and devoted to You, and to You, alone. Father, I love You. Cleanse me, Lord.