约书亚三至四章说到以色列人过约但河。以色列人已预备好要进入美地，并取得这地为业；然而，在他们的旧人里，他们无法获得胜利。他们的旧人必须埋葬，使他们成为新人。这与神新约的经纶一致。
我们必须看见，我们天然的人，我们的旧人，是完全不合格为得着基督打属灵的仗。神的心意是要将我们联于基督，使我们与基督之间有生机的联结，使我们与基督成为一，并使祂的历史成为我们的历史。祂的历史就是我们的故事，我们的故事就是祂的历史。我们已经与祂联合，就得以经历祂所经过的。在与基督的联结里，祂的经历成了我们的经历。祂死在十字架上，我们也与祂同死。祂埋葬了，我们也与祂一同埋葬。祂从死里复活，我们也与祂一同复活。现在因着我们是在基督里的人，我们就不再是旧人，乃是新人了。
神的约柜和抬约柜的祭司领头进到约但河水中，并站定在水中。约柜是预表作三一神具体化身的基督。当神的约柜与以色列人一同前行时，就是三一神与他们同行，是三一神在领头，因此是三一神头一个踏入水中。但约柜是在抬约柜之祭司的肩头上，这指明抬约柜的祭司与三一神成为一个实体；二者乃是一个团体人。神在他们的行走里行走，他们在神的行走里行走。今天主恢复的开展，是借着基督与背负着祂的祭司一同行动的。我们和祂一同行走，如同一个团体人。
请享受生命诗歌486首 (点击诗歌名）
Crossing the River Jordan (1) — Jos. 3:14-17
Chapters three and four are on Israel’s crossing of the river Jordan. The people of Israel were ready to enter into the good land and to take it as their possession. However, in their old man they could not gain the victory. Their old man had to be buried so that they could become a new man. This corresponds to the New Testament economy of God.
We need to realize that our natural man, our old man, is altogether not qualified to fight the spiritual warfare for the gaining of Christ. God’s intention is to join us to Christ to have an organic union between us and Christ, making us one with Christ, that His history might become our history. His history is our story, and our story is His history. We have been identified with Christ to experience what He has gone through. In union with Christ, His experiences become ours. He died on the cross, and we died with Him. He was buried, and we were buried with Him. He was resurrected from the dead, and we were resurrected with Him. Now because we are persons in Christ, we are no longer the old man but the new man.
The ark of God with the bearing priests took the lead to go into the waters of the Jordan and stood still in the waters. The ark was a type of Christ as the embodiment of the Triune God. When the ark of God went with the children of Israel, the Triune God went with them, taking the lead and thus being the first to step into the water. Yet the ark was on the shoulders of the bearing priests. This indicates that the priests bearing the ark became one entity with the Triune God; they were one corporate person. God walked in their walking, and they walked in God’s walking. The spread of the Lord’s recovery today is through Christ’s move together with His bearing priests. We and He walk together as a corporate man.