As an indication of the Lord’s preparedness for Israel’s obedience, the water’s had already stopped flowing twenty miles upstream. Earthquakes in this region have produces landslides that block the Jordan River at this location. On December 8, 1267 it resulted in a blocked Jordan River for ten hours and on July 11, 1927 the earth quaked caused landslide blocked the Jordan for 21 days. (See more details here) Archaeologist Yohanan Aharoni confirms that earthquakes in this area are famous for having dammed the Jordan River. It should be noted that Elijah and Elisha also divide the waters of the Jordan at Jericho (Second Kings 17:3-5; Second Kings 2:13-15).

During the month of Nisan (March/April), the first month of the Jewish year, the rains have produced the flood season and the Jordan is flowing at full strength. So, at a time when the citizens of Jericho are least expecting the attack that they have been waiting for, it happens.

The Hebrew word ‘abar, “to cross over,” is used 21x in the verses that describe crossing the Jordan. This is a word that is never used to describe the parting of the Red Sea or the Israelites entering and walking through the Red Sea. ‘Abar is identifying a “crossing over” of a boundary line such as a wadi (valley, river) in Deuteronomy 2:13-14 or a nation’s border as in Deuteronomy 2:18. ‘Abar is also used to refer to entering a covenant in Deuteronomy 29:12. In Deuteronomy 26:13 and Joshua 7:11, 15 ‘abar refers to a transgression of a law. By crossing over the Jordan Israel had crossed over into the Promised Land, into Canaanite territory, and into a new phase of God’s plan for them as a nation. This ‘abar was monumental in Israel history.

“If you pray in a time of victory, you will never have to plead in a time of defeat.”
– Alan Redpath

In 1054 AD the church officially split into 2 identities: the East and the West.
Up until that time the universal church had maintained a single identity, though they had fought through major differences including:

• Date of Easter conflict,
  150 AD
• Iconoclastic (images) Controversy, 700 AD
• Eastern church eliminated or limited the power of monks
• Pope Nicholas interfered with an Eastern Church appointment, 850 AD
  
• Unleavened bread conflict, 1054 AD

Plus, many cultural differences developed over the first 1,000 years of church history:

• Eastern clergy married, Western clergy were celibate
• Eastern clergy wore beards, Western clergy shaved
  
• Eastern church used Greek, Western church used Latin
• There was the filoque theological issue from 867 AD where the Western Church added “and the Son” (filoque) to the doctrinal statement “Holy Spirit that proceeded from the father
  and the Son."

In 1054 Pope Leo IX sent Cardinal Humbert to end the dispute, but Michael Cerularius, the Patriarch of Constantinople, refused to meet with him. So, on July 16, 1054 Cardinal Humbert excommunicated the Eastern Church. But, Patriarch Michael Cerularius countered by anathematizing the Pope of Rome and anyone who followed him. Thus, the Eastern Greek Orthodox Church was the first church split from the Western Roman Catholic Church.