"The just shall live by faith". Romans 1:17 17For in the gospel a righteousness from God is revealed, a righteousness that is by faith from first to last, just as it is written: "The righteous will live by faith." (New International Version) "Whatsoever is not of faith is sin". Romans 14:23 23But the man who has doubts is condemned if he eats, because his eating is not from faith; and everything that does not come from faith is sin. (New International Version) "Why are ye fearful, O ye of little faith". Matthew 8:26 26He replied, "You of little faith, why are you so afraid?" Then he got up and rebuked the winds and the waves, and it was completely calm. (New International Version) What His word tells us is that He is the Lord and that He is greater than any problem we have ever or will ever face in life. His desire is that we simply learn to take Him at His Word and trust Him. We need to remember that what the Lord has promised to do, He will do. Romans 4:21 21Fully satisfied and assured that God was able and mighty to keep His word and to do what He had promised. (Amplified Bible) We need to expect a miracle! As I mentioned in the introduction, the children of Israel were facing a very large problem. Joshua 3:15,16 15Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, 16the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. (New International Version) The river was over 1 mile wide and there were 2 million people who had to cross, and yet the Lord wanted them to go over to the other side. They couldn't build a bridge; there wasn't enough time or materials. They couldn't transport everyone over in boats, there were no boats and they would have been sitting ducks for their enemies. There was only one way around their problem and that was through it. Have you ever sized up your situation and thought about how big your problem really was? Maybe you looked at it and concluded, "There is no way around, through, over or past this problem". I suppose we have all been like the 10 spies that returned from spying out the land of Canaan with Caleb and Joshua. We have sized up our problem and think that it is more than we can ever face. Numbers 13:31-33 31But the men who had gone up with him said, "We can't attack those people; they are stronger than we are." 32And they spread among the Israelites a bad report about the land they had explored. They said, "The land we explored devours those living in it. All the people we saw there are of great size. 33We saw the Nephilim there (the descendants of Anak come from the Nephilim). We seemed like grasshoppers in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them." (New International Version) Our problem is the same one we always have when we face a difficult situation and that is that we forget about God! Where we see only problems, God sees only solutions. Where we look at things and say, "There's no way!" God looks at the problem and says, "Follow me, I have a plan!" Because of their unbelief, the children of Israel were sentenced to wander in the wilderness for 40 years. In Joshua Chapter 3, those 40 years have now passed and the children of Israel are preparing to enter into Canaan Land. They are ready to enter and claim their inheritance in the land of promise. However, before they can enter Canaan, they first have to get past one final, major obstacle and that is the Jordan River. Normally, this wouldn't have presented a big problem, since the Jordan was only 100 feet wide at Gilgal where they crossed. However, God always does things in a way that no man can brag of having done them on their own. This crossing would be no different. God brought them to the Jordan River at the time of harvest. Joshua Chapter 3 Crossing the Jordan 1Early in the morning Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over. 2After three days the officers went throughout the camp, 3giving orders to the people: "When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests, who are Levites, carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it. 4Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before. But keep a distance of about a thousand yards between you and the ark; do not go near it." 5Joshua told the people, "Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the LORD will do amazing things among you." 6Joshua said to the priests, "Take up the ark of the covenant and pass on ahead of the people." So they took it up and went ahead of them. 7And the LORD said to Joshua, "Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel, so they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses. 8Tell the priests who carry the ark of the covenant: 'When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters, go and stand in the river.' " 9Joshua said to the Israelites, "Come here and listen to the words of the LORD your God. 10This is how you will know that the living God is among you and that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites and Jebusites. 11See, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you. 12Now then, choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. 13And as soon as the priests who carry the ark of the LORD -the Lord of all the earth—set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand up in a heap." 14So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan, the priests carrying the ark of the covenant went ahead of them. 15Now the Jordan is at flood stage all during harvest. Yet as soon as the priests who carried the ark reached the Jordan and their feet touched the water's edge, 16the water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (the Salt Sea) was completely cut off. So the people crossed over opposite Jericho. 17The 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 passed by until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.  (New International Version) People who have been there during the harvest time tell us that the Jordan swells to a width of over 1 mile! It was far wider than it normally would have been before Israel arrived. There was no way they could cross this river on their own! They needed supernatural help. We all have Jordans that we face from time to time in our own lives! When we look at the obstacles that stand between us and spiritual victory in our own "Canaan," we may feel that we will never be able to enter our land of promise and enjoy the abundant life that Jesus promised His followers. It is true that I do not know what kind of obstructions that you face in your life, but I do know a God who specializes in overcoming the circumstances that overwhelm people and a God who is leading His children to victory. I would like for us to look into this account of Israel as they got past their Jordan. As we do search out this circumstance, I would like to offer you some hope as well. You see, the things that worked for them over 3,000 years ago will still work for you and me today. Allow me to show you from chapters 3 and 4 of Joshua how to cross your Jordan. There are 3 steps that we must take to guarantee that we will be able to get past the obstacle that blocks our way. Let me share these steps with you now.