WALKING BY FAITH

Joshua 3

            When we face a difficult situation and find ourselves anxious about the unknown we need to remember that we didn’t come to that place by accident!  As the Israelites stood at the Jordan River they knew they had arrived there by God’s plan and purpose.  God had chosen the way for the Israelites from the day they walked out of Egypt!  He led them with a pillar of cloud and fire.  He brought them to the brink of the unknown and he had not allowed them to take any wrong turns.  When we face that threatening unknown we can find comfort in the fact that God’s providence has led us to that point!  We can be comforted in knowing that God’s perfect wisdom and timing are flawless.  Therefore, even though the way may be unknown to us it is not unknown to God!  Israel may not have been able to see how they were going to cross the river but in God’s eyes it had already taken place.  It was done! 

            I remember the feelings I had so many times as my late wife, Roz, was preparing for another brain surgery.  The doctors did their best to prepare us for what lay ahead but in all honesty, their efforts did little to give me any peace.  As the day of surgery arrived I would find myself struggling with all kinds of anxiety.  As I waited in the surgical waiting room I was exhausted by the stress.  After going through this several times I was finally struck by a realization.  God was in control of the entire situation!  He had brought us to this point in our lives.  He had planned everything that had taken place and he had planned the outcome of that particular surgery.  I didn’t know how things would come out but God did.  There was nothing for me to do but put my trust in him and let him carry me through!  So when we face the unknown we find comfort in the fact that it is not the unknown to God.  He knows and has planned the way through.  He knows the outcome. 

            Another comfort to us when we face the unknown is that Jesus has gone ahead of us.  Even though the way looks completely dark to us and the path through is unknown to us, Jesus, the light of the world, has already passed through it ahead of us.  He has already walked that path.  Even if we might be facing death we can find comfort in knowing that Jesus has been there as well.  We should not expect the future to be lit up brightly for us.  God never promised to reveal the future to us.  In fact, Paul told us, “We live by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).  If we had the future all lit up for us then we wouldn’t need to put our faith and trust in the Lord.  All the Israelites needed to know was that their next step was a step into the Jordan River.  All they needed to do was obey what God had told them to do and they didn’t need to know the future to do that!   

            Not only has Jesus walked through a life of faith on earth, we have the comfort of being able to see that many other Christians have also walked the walk of faith before us.  On that day the Hebrews faced a new situation.  But it wasn’t a completely unknown or unprecedented situation.  Their forefathers had been in a similar situation on the shores of the Red Sea with the Pharaoh’s army bearing down on them.  God had delivered them safely through that sea so there was some comfort to be taken from that.   

            Every generation has to face the unknown.  Every generation has to have its faith tested.  Every generation has to learn how to put their trust in God and walk by faith.  But God has graciously allowed us to see how those who have gone before have faced such situations.  The Israelites learned that God would do for them the same thing he did for their forefathers.   

            This is a real blessing from God!  God refreshes and renews his covenant with his people.  He puts each generation into situations where he is able to show his power and his grace.  So when we face suffering, grief, loneliness, and all kinds of other trials, we can know that others have faced the same things and God has brought them through.  That’s why more experienced believers are able to smile at us knowingly while we shudder and balk in the face of the unknown!  They’ve been there before and they know God will bring us through!