Water: it is one of the main boundaries in the world. Cities are divided by rivers, properties may be divided by a stream, and the continents are divided by an ocean. Sometimes, water separates us from things unexpectedly, like in the photo above when the walking path between two nearby towns flooded and became impassible by all practical means.
In the Old Testament, water was the separating factor between Israel and their escape from Egypt. Later on, it was the one thing between them and their impending conquest of Jericho. In both of these accounts, however, God used this great obstacle to remind the people of His power and protection.
In Exodus 13:15-18 we read, The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry to me? Tell the people of Israel to go forward. Lift up your staff, and stretch out your hand over the sea and divide it, that the people of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. And I will harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they shall go in after them, and I will get glory over Pharaoh and all his host, his chariots, and his horsemen. And the Egyptians shall know that I am the Lord, when I have gotten glory over Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”
Fast forward a number of years, and we see in Joshua 3:7-13 a similar event: The Lord said to Joshua, “Today I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, that they may know that, as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. And as for you, command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the brink of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’” And Joshua said to the people of Israel, “Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.” And Joshua said, “Here is how you shall know that the living God is among you and that he will without fail drive out from before you the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Hivites, the Perizzites, the Girgashites, the Amorites, and the Jebusites. Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is passing over before you into the Jordan. Now therefore take twelve men from the tribes of Israel, from each tribe a man. And when the soles of the feet of the priests bearing the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, shall rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan shall be cut off from flowing, and the waters coming down from above shall stand in one heap.”
The likeness of these two instances really struck me. God lead His people through many obstacles over time, but it was fascinating that of all things they would cross a body of water on dry ground twice. What are the odds? Well, humanly speaking, zero. Even with our modern technology, we still cannot instantly dry out a path through a river or sea. At best, it would be a muddy swamp that your feet would get stuck in. But God? He knows no limits. Perhaps, He gives us our most limiting obstacles to remind us that it is not we who have the ultimate power, but Him. He will give us what we need to overcome them in His timeframe and by His will.
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