Christ In Joshua
Christ in Joshua
Bro Nicolas Tan | Joshua 1:1–7 | 7 June 2026
Joshua 1:1–7
"After the death of Moses the servant of the LORD, it came to pass that the LORD spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' assistant, saying: 'Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, to the land which I am giving to them—the children of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given you, as I said to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the River Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites, and to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun, shall be your territory. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life; as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you nor forsake you. Be strong and of good courage, for to this people you shall divide as an inheritance the land which I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.'"
The book of Joshua is a remarkable book in the Old Testament. At first glance it reads like history — the conquest of Canaan under Joshua's leadership, with all its battles and boundaries and tribal inheritances. But when we look closer, we discover something far greater. There is a profound revelation of Jesus Christ within these pages.
Joshua himself is pointing forward to something that is ultimately fulfilled in Jesus. From Genesis onward, the Old Testament is full of prophetic threads that are later gathered up and fulfilled in Christ, and the book of Joshua points so closely to Him that even the name itself tells the story.
The name Joshua in Hebrew is Yehoshua, which means "the LORD is salvation." In Greek that name comes through as Iēsous — Jesus. This is no coincidence. God was already revealing His redemptive plan for mankind, written into the very name of His chosen leader. From chapter one itself we see that Joshua was raised up to lead God's people into their earthly promised land — to bring Israel in to inherit what God had sworn to give them. In the same way, Jesus came so that we might inherit an eternal home.
Transition of Leadership : Moses to Joshua
The book opens with a transition of leadership. In the book of Exodus, Moses is known as the great law-giver and the faithful servant of God. Right up to his passing he was leading the people in the wilderness — a struggle so long and so painful that many of them would have thought the promised land was a hope they could never gain.
After Moses' passing the leadership shifted to Joshua. "Moses My servant is dead. Now therefore, arise, go over this Jordan" (Joshua 1:2). This transition is deeply symbolic.
Moses, the law-giver, represents the Law.
The Law is righteous and good — but the Law cannot save sinners.
It can reveal sin, expose sin, condemn sin; but it cannot remove sin.
In the same way, Moses could lead Israel out of Egypt, but in the end he could not bring them into the promised land. Knowledge of the Law can help us understand right and wrong, but somehow it cannot bring us into salvation.
Paul explains exactly this in the New Testament: "For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh" (Romans 8:3).
And the Hebrew writer says the same: "for the law made nothing perfect; on the other hand, there is the bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God" (Hebrews 7:19).
Just as Joshua succeeded Moses to lead the people into their inheritance, so grace succeeded the limitation of the Law. Through Jesus Christ believers receive what the Law could never provide — forgiveness, reconciliation, righteousness, and eternal life.
The Crossing of the Jordan River
In Joshua chapters 3 and 4 we come to a great mission: the crossing over the Jordan river. Israel stood on the eastern side facing the promised land, and the Jordan stretched before them as an almost impossible barrier. Then God gave the instructions. The ark of the covenant would go first.
"When you see the ark of the covenant of the LORD your God, and the priests, the Levites, bearing it, then you shall set out from your place and go after it. Yet there shall be a space between you and it, about two thousand cubits by measure. Do not come near it, that you may know the way by which you must go, for you have not passed this way before" (Joshua 3:3–4).
When the priests stepped into the water the river stopped, and Israel crossed on dry ground.
This is wonderfully symbolic. God is the one who must take priority. God enters before His people. And this points us straight to Jesus — before believers can enter, Christ must go before them. Just as the ark of the covenant went first, so Christ has gone before us.
The Jordan stands as the boundary of death; the ark represents God's presence; the crossing is the transition into the promise. There was no human way to cross that river. And there is no human way to enter the new life of inheritance either — we pass through only by the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Paul puts it like this: "Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life" (Romans 6:4).
And again: "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new" (2 Corinthians 5:17). The crossing of the Jordan was a historical miracle, but it foreshadows our union with Christ in His resurrection.
The Memorial Stones
After the crossing, Joshua set up memorial stones. "Then Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of the Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests who bore the ark of the covenant stood; and they are there to this day" (Joshua 4:9).
Memorial stones were not new in Israel's history — they were how the people of God remembered His acts. "Then the LORD appeared to Abram and said, 'To your descendants I will give this land.' And there he built an altar to the LORD, who had appeared to him" (Genesis 12:7). Isaac set up his own memorial; the Israelites remembered the Passover. Each marker told the next generation what God had done.
In the same way Jesus gave us a memorial. He instituted the Lord's Supper, and commanded His disciples to keep it. "And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, 'This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me'" (Luke 22:19).
The memorial stones of Joshua were not just an end in themselves — they pointed forward to a greater memorial. The greatest act of God's faithfulness is not the parting of the Jordan, but Jesus on the cross.
The city of Jericho
Next comes the conquest of Jericho. Jericho was a strong city. No normal soldier could simply walk through those walls. By every military standard, taking that city would require heavy artillery, sustained siege, the breaking of defenses, and the slaughter of soldiers. But here at Jericho there were no weapons drawn against the walls and no human strength was the secret.
Just marching around the city, the priests sounding trumpets, and the people shouting — and the walls came tumbling down. Logically, the strategy made no sense. But God's purpose was clear: the victory was God's, and it required faith. "For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God for pulling down strongholds" (2 Corinthians 10:4). "By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they were encircled for seven days" (Hebrews 11:30).
Jericho was taken not with strength but by faith. And the lesson reaches all the way to us. We tend to gain things by relying on human strength. But spiritual victory is exactly the opposite.
No matter how strong we are, we cannot conquer sin on our own.
No matter how much knowledge or willpower we accumulate, we still cannot conquer sin.
The only one who can conquer sin is Jesus Christ, and He is the only one who has accomplished it. Jesus was crucified — and at the cross He defeated death and the power of darkness. What happened at Jericho was physical, but it speaks directly to our salvation.
Commander of the Army
There is another moment in this story we must not miss. Joshua, near Jericho, met someone with a sword. He didn't know who this figure was. So he asked. "And it came to pass, when Joshua was by Jericho, that he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, a Man stood opposite him with His sword drawn in His hand. And Joshua went to Him and said to Him, 'Are You for us or for our adversaries?' So He said, 'No, but as Commander of the army of the LORD I have now come.' And Joshua fell on his face to the earth and worshiped. Then the Commander of the LORD's army said to Joshua, 'Take your sandal off your foot, for the place where you stand is holy.' And Joshua did so" (Joshua 5:13–15).
Joshua had to recognize who the true Commander was. This is the same holy ground language we hear at the burning bush: "Then He said, 'Do not draw near this place. Take your sandals off your feet, for the place where you stand is holy ground'" (Exodus 3:5).
And it is the same truth Moses had taught Israel: "The LORD your God, who goes before you, He will fight for you, according to all He did for you in Egypt before your eyes" (Deuteronomy 1:30).
The application strikes home for every one of us. We sometimes fall into the trap of thinking that God is simply here to help us with our struggles — that He's a partner in our personal plans. But God is not merely our helper. He is our Lord, the Commander of our lives.
When we make our plans we should not be asking God to support our plans; we should be surrendering our plans to His purpose. "For by Him all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible. All things were created through Him and for Him" (Colossians 1:16). "That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth" (Philippians 2:10).
The effects of Sin
After the victory at Jericho came another conquest, the city of Ai — and something unexpected happened: Israel suffered defeat (Joshua 7). Joshua had not seen it coming. They thought they could easily defeat Ai. The reason for the defeat was uncovered: one man, Achan, had taken forbidden plunder from Jericho. Because of his disobedience, the whole nation suffered.
This is a sober reminder. Sin does not affect only ourselves. It affects our families, our brothers and sisters, our church, and our community. Achan's actions brought judgment on the people of Israel.
But where Achan's sin brought defeat upon Israel, Christ's sacrifice brought victory for His people. Jesus bore the judgment in His own body. "For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him" (2 Corinthians 5:21).
One man's sin condemned a nation; one Man's righteousness has saved a multitude.
The Day The Sun Stood Still
Then comes one of the most extraordinary moments in the whole book — the day the sun stood still. Joshua prayed, and God answered in a way the world had never seen.
"Then Joshua spoke to the LORD in the day when the LORD delivered up the Amorites before the children of Israel, and he said in the sight of Israel: 'Sun, stand still over Gibeon; And Moon, in the Valley of Aijalon.' So the sun stood still, And the moon stopped, Till the people had revenge upon their enemies\u2026 So the sun stood still in the midst of heaven, and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day. And there has been no day like that, before it or after it, that the LORD heeded the voice of a man; for the LORD fought for Israel" (Joshua 10:12–14).
God controls time. He controls creation. He governs the cosmic order. And this same authority is the authority of Christ.
"Has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds" (Hebrews 1:2).
"And He is before all things, and in Him all things consist" (Colossians 1:17).
When Jesus walked the earth He showed the same divine authority: "Then He arose and rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, 'Peace, be still!' And the wind ceased and there was a great calm" (Mark 4:39). He calmed storms; He walked on water; He multiplied food; He raised the dead. Joshua's miracle of the sun points us straight to Jesus' authority over all creation.
Unfinished Conquest
But for all his greatness, Joshua's work was not the final work. Toward the end of the book Joshua speaks of an unfinished conquest (Joshua 23:1–13). There was still territory left to take. There were still enemies remaining in the land. Joshua led the people into a measure of rest — but it was not the final rest, and it could not be. The Hebrew writer says it plainly: "For if Joshua had given them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day" (Hebrews 4:8).
Joshua, who began the conquest, did not complete it.
Jesus completes salvation and secures eternal rest. From the cross He cried "It is finished!" (John 19:30).
Joshua was great — but he was not the final Saviour. What Joshua provided was temporary and incomplete. The greater rest is found only in Jesus Christ. And it is not just freedom from enemies; it is rest from condemnation, rest in the presence of God forever. Hear His own invitation: "Come to Me, all you who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matthew 11:28).
Reflect again on the contrast. Joshua's inheritance was earthly, physical, temporary. The inheritance Jesus gives is heavenly, eternal, forever. Peter describes it like this: "to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you" (1 Peter 1:4).
Conclusion
Let us draw it together. The book of Joshua points us, from beginning to end, to Jesus, the Son of God.
Joshua led God's people into the earthly promised land; Jesus leads believers into the kingdom of God.
Joshua conquered territories; Jesus defeated death and Satan.
Joshua secured a temporary rest; Jesus offers eternal life.
Joshua distributed an earthly inheritance; Jesus gives an everlasting inheritance.
This is not just a story of military conquest. It is a story of the faithfulness of God. Every promise given to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob found a measure of fulfilment in Joshua's day, but they were always pointing forward to a greater fulfilment.
"For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us" (2 Corinthians 1:20).
When we open the book of Joshua, we do not simply see a courageous leader. We see Jesus.
And so the question Joshua put to Israel at the end of his life comes home to each one of us: "Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD" (Joshua 24:15).
Will we follow God's eternal promise?
Will we choose the one whose work is finished, whose victory is sure, whose rest is everlasting, whose inheritance does not fade away?
Joshua's choice did not end on earth. Every promise of God is fulfilled and won in Jesus Christ — and the same call is laid before us today.
Choose Him. Follow Him. And one day, you also will enter that promised land that no Jordan can keep you from, where the true Joshua has already gone before you.
