Discipleship Devotional, April 12th, 2025
Your wives, your children and your livestock may stay in the land that Moses gave you east of the Jordan, but all your fighting men, ready for battle, must cross over ahead of your fellow Israelites. You are to help them until the Lord gives them rest, as he has done for you, and until they too have taken possession of the land the Lord your God is giving them. After that, you may go back and occupy your own land, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave you east of the Jordan toward the sunrise.
– Joshua 1:14-15 (NIV)
In today’s passage, we come across the story of Joshua and the children of Israel as they cross the Jordan River to enter the Promised Land. At this point, two and a half of the 12 tribes of Israel had already settled near the Jordan, while the other nine and a half were to cross the river and possess the land God had promised them.
A significant lesson of brotherhood emerges from this narrative. Joshua urged the men to unite with their fellow Israelites, cross the Jordan, and support them in their fight to possess the land. They were not to rest and enjoy their own land until all their brethren had also found rest. This displays a powerful sense of brotherhood and kinship among the tribes.
Through this unified effort, Joshua was able to conquer Jericho and the surrounding cities. No tribe rested until all the tribes had secured their rest. While women and children were allowed to rest, the men joined together to ensure the safety and peace of their people.
As believers, God desires us to embrace this same sense of kinship, where one person’s problem becomes a concern for all. We are called to bear each other’s burdens, fulfilling the law of Christ (Galatians 6:2)
Let brotherly love continue.
– Hebrews 13:1 (NKJV)
Prayer
Help me, Holy Spirit, to love my brothers and sisters as myself.
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