Joshua 4:4-8
4 So Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each tribe, 5 and said to them, “Go over before the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan. Each of you is to take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, 6 to serve as a sign among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 7 tell them that the flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD. When it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.” 8 So the Israelites did as Joshua commanded them. They took twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, as the LORD had told Joshua; and they carried them over with them to their camp, where they put them down. 9 Joshua set up the twelve stones that had been[a] in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. And they are there to this day.
Now the interesting thing to me about this is when they came to the Red Sea, Moses stretched forth his rod and the Red Sea was parted. They went through on dry land, but with the Jordan the Lord is now testing their faith and developing their faith. He let the priests get their feet wet. Walking right into the edge of the river, getting their feet in the water, stepping out now really in faith.
So this is very important for every one of us to really develop in that full relationship with God, it has to be that relationship of faith…FULL FAITH. God is bringing them/us into a new relationship of faith. Before they sought, before they stepped in, they saw the sea parted, but now God is letting them take one step further and saying, "Go ahead and step out in faith. Get your feet wet."
I really like the verses thru the Chapter about the stones. They were commanded to take these stones out of the bottom of the Jordan River, where the priests were standing holding the Ark of the Covenant. When they came up on the other side, they were to put these stones in a heap. And As God and Joshua had commanded. That this may be a sign among you that when your children (or the disciples we are to be growing as Christian men) ask their fathers (or friends) What’s the importance of these stones? You can tell them, that the waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord and these stones shall be a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever. And so the children of Israel did as Joshua commanded.
It is interesting to me that God desires that His power and His truth be carried to future generations via a pile of rocks. That we never forget what God has done for us. Again, this is our charge as Christian men to spread God’s word. I also thin about how many times rocks, stones, foundation or cornerstone terminology is used in the Bible to illustrate an event, a teaching, etc.?
That's a good point. God will never give us a challenge or a test too strong for our faith at the time. And through these continual challenges, if we accept to follow through with them, god will bless us with more and more faith. This is what needs to be done to continue to grow in the faith. We cannot grow dormant in our faith walks. Tying in the stones, I think that faith is that cornerstone, and that we need to let our faith be known to future generations, so that they can ask about it and be told. Faith is what a Christian is built upon, thus the stronger the faith, the stronger the Christian an more he can do for the kingdom.
ReplyDelete