New Year - New Direction!

A NEW YEAR – A NEW DIRECTION

Text: Joshua 3:1-5

INTRODUCTION

I have titled this message today: “A New Year – A New Direction”.

Please turn with me to Joshua, Chapter 3.

Let’s begin our reading together in verse 1:

1 And Joshua rose early in the morning; and they removed from Shittim, and came to Jordan, he and all the children of Israel, and lodged there before they passed over.

Now in the immediate context here – we find the Children of Israel…

On the very verge of entering into the Promised Land. Let’s now read Verses 2-4:

2 And it came to pass after three days, that the officers went through the host;

3 And they commanded the people, saying, When ye see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests the Levites bearing it, then ye shall remove from your place, and go after it.

4 Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure: come not near unto it, that ye may know the way by which ye must go: for ye have not passed this way heretofore.

Now take careful note with me...

Because clearly this is something entirely new for God’s people.

They hadn’t been here or done this before?

This was an entirely new path for them to walk...

And an entirely new direction God was calling them to launch out in.

Now – I find it incredibly fascinating, and by no mere chance,

That as we open the Word of God today - this was precisely where Israel was at.

Spiritually speaking, God was calling His people forward in their walk Him,

And it was a new road and new direction He was leading them in.

“They had not been this way before”... the Scriptures tell us,

And do you know something - neither have we!

As we stand now in great anticipation looking forward to the year 2022,

The simple reality is we don’t know what tomorrow will bring.

We don’t know what lays ahead...or what challenges we might face.

We don’t know where God will lead, or all that is in stall for us this year.

Just as it was for Israel – so too is it now for us...

Because “...we have not passed this way before”!

I wonder – does that scare you?...or does that excite you?

Because make no mistake – we are about to embark upon...

A New Year and a New Direction with our Lord today.

And our journey with Him begins with an unknown path.

AN UNKNOWN PATH

There all those many years ago...

Standing on the shores of the river Jordan,

Israel was facing “The great Unknown”.

Now there is absolutely no doubt that God had brought them to this place.

This was not a chance happening.

Remember the Children of Israel had previously been slaves in Egypt…

And when God heard their cries, He a sent Moses to deliver them.

It took the Lord’s limitless power, ten plagues and a number of miracles...

To humble Pharaoh – but eventually God’s people were released and set free.

At the end of it all, not only had God demonstrated His glorious power,

But He had faithfully delivered Israel from Egypt...

And led His people safely across the wilderness.

And this was no small feat.

The Lord guided His people by a pillar of cloud by day and pillar of fire by night.

He feed them with Mana from Heaven.

He even gave them the Tabernacle and the 10 Commandments

So that they could worship Him and so that His presence could dwell among them.

We all know the biblical stories right…

And now, after all of that - we find God’s people on the verge of a new beginning.

But as they stood on the boarders of the Promised Land…

They faced a life changing decision.

Do they go back the way they came?...

Do they keep walking those old same familiar roads?...

Or do they launch out ahead with the Lord in an entirely New Direction.

God had brought them to this place in their walk and relationship with Him...

Because He wanted to Bless them!

He already delivered them from slavery and oppression,

And He had provided for their every need in the wilderness...

But still there were more blessings for them to experience.

God had promised them peace and rest in the Land of Canaan,

But there was a journey they needed to undertake in order to get there.

A journey on an unknown path – which lead them in an entirely new direction.

And “...they had not passed that way before!”

A CRISIS OF BELIEF

Ironically, it was here on the edge of greatness with God,

And standing on the very verge of overwhelming blessing with the Lord