Before the children of Israel crossed the Jordan River to possess their inheritance, the tribes of Reuben and Gad asked for permission to settle on the east side of the Jordan, in the great land known as Gilead, and take that for their possession.
These two tribes both had large flocks and herds and needed pasture land. Their request caused quite a rumble. Moses objected, saying, “If you take this land, the rest of the tribes will have to cross the Jordan and fight alone while you sit here possessing your inheritance. You can’t do that. We all have to fight!” He warned them not to discourage the sons of Israel from crossing over into the promised land:
“For if you turn away from following Him, He will once more abandon them in the wilderness; and you will destroy all these people.”
Then they came near to him and said, “We will build here sheepfolds for our livestock and cities for our little ones; but we ourselves will be armed ready to go before the sons of Israel, until we have brought them to their place, while our little ones live in the fortified cities because of the inhabitants of the land. We will not return to our homes until every one of the sons of Israel has possessed his inheritance.” Numbers 32:15–18.
God’s end-time move of restoration has a similar responsibility in Body ministry. It is not every man for himself. Those who have pressed in—the first vanguard to take the things that God has for them—must not stop short and only rejoice in what the Lord has given them, lest the rest of the people perish and another generation is lost, like the generation of Israelites that was lost in the wilderness. There will be no way for anything to develop, if you go your way and possess only what is yours.
The tribes of Reuben and Gad continued speaking to Moses: “For we will not have an inheritance with them on the other side of the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance has fallen to us on this side of Jordan toward the east.” So Moses said to them, “If you will do this, if you will arm yourselves before the Lord for the war, and all of you armed men cross over the Jordan before the Lord until He has driven His enemies out from before Him, and the land is subdued before the Lord, then afterward you shall return and be free of obligation toward the Lord and toward Israel, and this land shall be yours for a possession before the Lord. But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out.” Numbers 32:19–23.
The warning, “Be sure your sin will find you out,” is usually understood as referring to the sins of the flesh. But this was written about the tribes of Reuben and Gad, who would be sinning against the Lord if they did not stand behind their brethren until each one came into the inheritance that God had for him. This was a type of Body ministry even back in those days. Every person was not to rise up and get what they wanted from the Lord and consider that to be the end of it. They sinned against the Lord if they did not stand and help one another until everyone possessed the inheritance that God had for them.
We will not draw back to be just a few people who press in and say, “I just want my position,” being mindless of the rest. We will see that everyone receives his inheritance.
After Moses had died, God told Joshua, “Moses My servant is dead; now therefore arise, cross this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them, to the sons of Israel. Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses.” Then Joshua commanded the officers of the people, saying, “Pass through the midst of the camp and command the people, saying, ‘Prepare provisions for yourselves, for within three days you are to cross this Jordan, to go in to possess the land which the Lord your God is giving you, to possess it.’ ”
And to the Reubenites and to the Gadites and to the half-tribe of Manasseh, Joshua said, “Remember the word which Moses the servant of the Lord commanded you, saying, ‘The Lord your God gives you rest, and will give you this land.’ Your wives, your little ones, and your cattle shall remain in the land which Moses gave you beyond the Jordan, but you shall cross before your brothers in battle array, all your valiant warriors, and shall help them, until the Lord gives your brothers rest, as He gives you, and they also possess the land which the Lord your God is giving them. Then you shall return to your own land, and possess that which Moses the servant of the Lord gave you beyond the Jordan toward the sunrise.” Joshua 1:2–3, 10–15.
Put on battle array and go out to fight. No one goes back to his own possession until everyone is able to possess his inheritance in the Lord. There will be no rest. Even if you already have your inheritance, stay in the fight until your brother has his too. This is the spirit that ought to be found in Body ministry. It is not to be an individual struggle, but a collective standing together in the faith and a striving together in one spirit (Philippians 1:27).
And they answered Joshua, saying, “All that you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. Just as we obeyed Moses in all things, so we will obey you; only may the Lord your God be with you, as He was with Moses. Anyone who rebels against your command and does not obey your words in all that you command him, shall be put to death; only be strong and courageous.” Joshua 1:16–18.
The Reubenites and the Gadites were the first to cross over the Jordan. They had already battled and possessed their inheritance, and now they were to lead the battle for the rest to possess theirs. This was the mark of Body ministry, a picture of what we see in this move of God today. The people who know how to pray teach the rest to pray. Those who know how to prophesy are not content until everyone is prophesying and they themselves no longer have much of a chance to prophesy.
The children of Israel were going in to subdue thirty-two nations mightier than themselves. In the wilderness they had followed the cloud, but now it was going to be different; there was to be a more personal leadership. In various moves of God in the past, even in some of the more spiritual circles, there was such a strong moving of the Spirit in the services that one could see the people being drawn, just as Israel was drawn by a pillar of fire or a cloud.
In this move of restoration, we have come to the place that Israel came to when God told them to follow the ark of the covenant that the priests were carrying, and He would give the direction they were to go. They were to allow a certain distance between themselves and the ark and then follow it. The ark represented the presence of the Lord; and in this day, as then, the presence of the Lord is borne by human instrumentality. Not only will we find the Spirit moving, but we will find Him moving through divinely appointed channels telling us what to do. Some, like Reuben and Gad, will say, “Just give me a Word. Show me what to do. I am ready to do anything you say, to stand by and battle until everyone comes into the blessing.”
And they (the officers) commanded the people, saying, “When you see the ark of the covenant of the Lord your God with the Levitical priests carrying it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it.” Joshua 3:3. The people were told, “When you see the priests of God carrying the presence of the Lord into the miracle march, or at the crossing of Jordan, or into the thickest of the battle, then rise up from your places and go after it!”
Today, too, we will get the leading of the Lord and follow it. We will follow the ministries that God has raised up—those who carry the presence of the Lord into the Jordan that some have not been able to cross. Who are the Reubenites and the Gadites today? Those who have already possessed a portion and moved into great blessings from God. He will help them as they stand equipped for war and pass over before the presence of the Lord into the battle on behalf of the rest. The remainder of the people will follow; everyone will make a move forward. Let there not be one straggler or one who has failed to receive his portion.
Perhaps some young person is looking for God to help him through the last stage of withdrawal from drugs or a great defeat in his life. God will help everyone who has hung back, wondering if he will make it. Do not listen to the lie of Satan and let him work against you by making you feel defeated. If you are one who has blindly stumbled along without a real revelation from God about this walk in the Spirit, if you were somehow drawn into it but you do not really know where you stand, let the ministries help you. The ministries who have received a portion of their inheritance are equipped for war. They are carrying the presence of the Lord into the battle.
We position ourselves on the warring side of the Jordan—not on the wilderness side. On the wilderness side, the manna continued to fall until the day after they crossed the Jordan. Then they kept the Passover, and the day after the Passover the manna ceased, and they began to eat the produce of the land. They survived because they prevailed.
There is a time when God feeds His children like babes, raining the bread of heaven down upon them. There is also a time when they must work for the blessing, with violent prayer and ruthless faith. Be totally involved with the Body of Christ. Believe for your brother and your sister. Do not think in terms of defeat for anyone, but open your heart, determined to walk together through the present obstacle. Perhaps you hardly have your feet wet, and you need a real meeting with the Lord. Or you may feel as if God has given you enough so that you are ready to gird on the armor and go into battle for the rest of the people.
Then Joshua said to the people, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.” And Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, “Take up the ark of the covenant and cross over ahead of the people.” So they took up the ark of the covenant and went ahead of the people. And when those who carried the ark came into the Jordan, and the feet of the priests carrying the ark were dipped in the edge of the water (for the Jordan overflows all its banks all the days of harvest), that the waters which were flowing down from above stood and rose up in one heap, a great distance away at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan; and those which were flowing down toward the sea of the Arabah, the Salt Sea, were completely cut off.
In Palestine only about sixteen to twenty-two inches of rain fall during the year; but when it does fall, the Jordan overflows its banks. God could have chosen another time to lead the children of Israel into Canaan. Why did He have to make it practically impossible? Not only did they have to cross a river, but they had to cross it at a time when it was flooded. Sometimes when you start to serve the Lord, something comes up to make it almost impossible. You need a miracle to begin with, and God will give you that miracle. But then He has to give several miracles before you can even get to the miracle that you are believing for.
So the people crossed opposite Jericho. And the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan while all Israel crossed on dry ground, until all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan. Joshua 3:5–6, 15–17.
The priests stood there, literally commanding the presence of the Lord. The ark of the covenant represented the Shekinah glory or the presence of the Lord. It was called “the ark of His presence.” How do you suppose those priests felt while they were standing in the river bed, holding the ark and watching the water pile up? They were told to stand in the middle of the river bed until they were given a word of what to do. That water was piling up high! When everyone was across, were they to leave? No! They just stood there, waiting, and then Joshua came up with another idea. He said, “Now go down and get twelve large stones out of the river bed.” That would take a while.
Now the Lord said to Joshua, “Command the priests who carry the ark of the testimony that they come up from the Jordan.” So Joshua commanded the priests, saying, “Come up from the Jordan.” And it came about when the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord had come up from the middle of the Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up to the dry ground, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, and went over all its banks as before. Joshua 4:15–18.
When we feel frustration concerning certain problems, the answer comes when the ministries lead the way and carry the presence of the Lord into the battle. They are like arks of God in which the glory of the Lord has been deposited. As they discern what it is that hinders an individual from coming into a walk with the Lord, they will move the presence of the Lord right into the situation. We must be absolutely set on one course: to carry God into every situation. We will miss a great deal that God has for us unless we develop that aggressive initiative of faith, and we relentlessly and wholeheartedly pursue every Word that has come from God and every blessing that He has set before us. When anyone seems to bog down, then the others will come and help to make sure that no one loses out.
What happened after the children of Israel crossed Jordan? At that time the Lord said to Joshua, “Make for yourself flint knives and circumcise again the sons of Israel the second time.” For all the people who came out were circumcised, but all the people who were born in the wilderness along the way as they came out of Egypt had not been circumcised. Then the Lord said to Joshua, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” So the name of that place is called Gilgal (which means “rolling”) to this day. Joshua 5:2, 5, 9.
Note that they were circumcised on the battle side of the Jordan. They already had their inheritance. But before they entered into battle, they had to help those who had not been circumcised. Though they had been born in the wilderness along the way, the reproach of Egypt was upon them; they looked and smelled like slaves, not like God’s people. They had to have a circumcision of heart.
You do not have to be perfect before you get into the battle or start possessing the land of Canaan; but you do have to be ready to be obedient when God says, “Let’s roll off the reproach of Egypt.” There are two kinds of victories: possessing the good land that the Lord sets before us, and getting rid of the reproach of the old life. Everything of the old flesh has to go. There are two kinds of battles: the battle to appropriate, and the battle to eliminate every hindrance you have within yourself. This is no time for pride. This is no time for sensitivity. Away with it! You must come with an honest heart and lay everything out in the open. God honors that. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins.… 1 John 1:9.
You need not have anything defeating you. By a circumcision of heart, get rid of everything that you are battling down inside. Do not be concerned about projecting a favorable image before the brethren. If there is something phony about that image, do not hide it. Open up with it.
In spite of any problems we have, God will take us across the Jordan where we can start claiming our possessions. Then those who need God to cut away the things of the flesh must have a circumcision of heart. There are many blessings that God wants to give us, and we must be ready to receive them.