Mensa Otabil - Sanctify Yourself
- Watch
- Donate
Pretty soon we’ll be welcoming a brand new year, so we are preparing our hearts for that. We’re looking at how the children of Israel prepared to cross over into the promised land in Joshua chapter 3. We now look at verses 5 and 6, and Joshua said to the people, «Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.» Then Joshua spoke to the priests, saying, «Take up the Ark of the Covenant and cross over before the people.» So they took up the Ark of the Covenant and went before the people.
It’s just fascinating, as you read the scripture, to see the steps that are taken in preparation for a major event. This is a very epochal event for Israel; they’re crossing over from the wilderness after 40 years when they left Egypt to the land that God had promised to take them. So this is a very important step that they’re taking as they cross over. As the day for crossing the Jordan approached, the Lord gave special instruction to Israel, and He said to them, «Sanctify yourselves, for God will do wonders among you.»
Sanctify yourselves — why would God say that? Because although this is a physical event, the crossing of the Jordan is physical; they’re going to go over it. It’s also spiritual. God didn’t say, «Sharpen your swords,» nor did He say, «Lift up your shields,» which are important, but they’re getting into a battle or a situation that is spiritual. So the preparation has to be spiritual as well.
There’s a lesson we can learn here: that going into a new year is physical, but there is a spiritual dimension to what is happening. Why? Because we are entering the unknown. We are entering a new space of 365 days that we don’t know about, and God has to lead us. There are all kinds of levels of engagement; we will be facing spiritual warfare. We’re going to face battles, and we’re going to have to push back all kinds of negativity. We’re going to deal with all kinds of things that we don’t even have a clue about.
That is why God said to the children of Israel that the preparation you make for crossing over is spiritual. «Sanctify yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do wonders among you.» That’s a very powerful statement. God wants to do wonders for them. God is going to give them a miracle; God is going to open the Jordan. At that time, they didn’t know how it was going to happen, but God was going to do it, and He says the way you prepare yourself is you sanctify yourself.
So think about your life; take stock of your life. How’s your relationship with God? How are you living for God? Is there a sin in your life that you need to deal with? Is there some bad attitude that you need to address? Is there more time that you need to spend in the presence of the Lord? Sanctify yourself doesn’t necessarily mean that you have sinned. It simply means you’re setting yourself apart for God; you’re giving time to God; you’re spending more time with God.
I will encourage each one of you, as we prepare for the coming year, don’t wait until the New Year service on the 31st night to start praying. Start sanctifying yourself now. Start talking to the Lord, start praying, and start bringing your requests before the Lord. Make a mental focus on the Lord, and God says if you do that, then He will do wonders among you.
I believe that there will be signs and wonders for God’s people in the coming year. I believe that God will do a powerful work for you on 31st night as we cross over, but that will not end on 31st night; it will continue into the new year and throughout the rest of the year.
May the Lord do wonders with your life. May the Lord do powerful things in your life. May the Lord cause His goodness to go before you, and may everything that is an obstacle before you be opened for the glory of the Lord to be manifested in your life.
Let us pray. Say with me: Heavenly Father, I set myself apart for You as we approach the New Year. My hope is in You; my eyes are on You. You are my help. In Jesus' name, amen and amen.