Seeing God in the Stones

Introduction:

It is amazing how the mind works. The complexity of our brain astounds me. Our brains have the ability to store information, learn new information, send commands to every part of our body. We have around 86 Billion neurons in the our brain, all in use simultaneously. It is a single organ that controls the entire body.

Now one of the things that interest me most about the brain is it’s ability to interpret a sight, sound, or smell & trigger a memory. For instance, any time I am around a diesel engine and smell the odor which comes from the diesel burning it is a bit nostalgic for me. It takes back to a time and place when I was around 4 years old and I was traveling with my Dad while he was driving an 18 wheeler.

Every time I hear the song My Girl by the Temptations I think about dancing with Ryleigh when Chrystal & I got married. Odds are there are songs, sights, smells that trigger memories in your mind. Some good some bad. But God blesses us with the ability to keep this information tucked around the corners in our minds.

This morning we will continue our Journey with Joshua. We will be reading Chapter 4 in Joshua. We will read about the 12 stones that were taken from the Jordan.

Joshua 4:1–24 KJV 1900

1 And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over Jordan, that the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying, 2 Take you twelve men out of the people, out of every tribe a man, 3 And command ye them, saying, Take you hence out of the midst of Jordan, out of the place where the priests’ feet stood firm, twelve stones, and ye shall carry them over with you, and leave them in the lodging place, where ye shall lodge this night. 4 Then Joshua called the twelve men, whom he had prepared of the children of Israel, out of every tribe a man: 5 And Joshua said unto them, Pass over before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of Jordan, and take ye up every man of you a stone upon his shoulder, according unto the number of the tribes of the children of Israel: 6 That this may be a sign among you, that when your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean ye by these stones? 7 Then ye shall answer them, That the waters of Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord; when it passed over Jordan, the waters of Jordan were cut off: and these stones shall be for a memorial unto the children of Israel for ever. 8 And the children of Israel did so as Joshua commanded, and took up twelve stones out of the midst of Jordan, as the Lord spake unto Joshua, according to the number of the tribes of the children of Israel, and carried them over with them unto the place where they lodged, and laid them down there. 9 And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests which bare the ark of the covenant stood: and they are there unto this day. 10 For the priests which bare the ark stood in the midst of Jordan, until every thing was finished that the Lord commanded Joshua to speak unto the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua: and the people hasted and passed over. 11 And it came to pass, when all the people were clean passed over, that the ark of the Lord passed over, and the priests, in the presence of the people. 12 And the children of Reuben, and the children of Gad, and half the tribe of Manasseh, passed over armed before the children of Israel, as Moses spake unto them: 13 About forty thousand prepared for war passed over before the Lord unto battle, to the plains of Jericho. 14 On that day the Lord magnified Joshua in the sight of all Israel; and they feared him, as they feared Moses, all the days of his life. 15 And the Lord spake unto Joshua, saying, 16 Command the priests that bear the ark of the testimony, that they come up out of Jordan. 17 Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, Come ye up out of Jordan. 18 And it came to pass, when the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord were come up out of the midst of Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before. 19 And the people came up out of Jordan on the tenth day of the first month, and encamped in Gilgal, in the east border of Jericho. 20 And those twelve stones, which they took out of Jordan, did Joshua pitch in Gilgal. 21 And he spake unto the children of Israel, saying, When your children shall ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What mean these stones? 22 Then ye shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land. 23 For the Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over: 24 That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.

Let’s Pray

The Israelites set up a monument if you will, to memorialize the crossing of the Jordan. But if you just stop there at what those stones represent then you really are missing the point. Yes, this was a memorial of sorts to attest to the fact that the Children of Israel crossed the Jordan. However, when you look upon these stones you should see God. The title of the message this morning is, “Seeing God in the Stones”.

Now do I mean that they try to organize the stone to create an outline of what God looked like? No. And when I say Seeing God in the Stones I am not talking about the insanity of people allowing patterns in innate objects or what have you. In fact, some people are so obsessed with that kind of thing that when a 10 year old child toasted their sandwich back in 2004 they believed that there was a depiction of Jesus’ Mother Mary. The nonsense did not end there because someone paid $ 28,000 for that toasted bread. That is not they type of “seeing God” that I am talking about. I am talking about looking upon the stones and understanding what they signify.

God is Faithful

Joshua 4:9–10 KJV 1900

9 And Joshua set up twelve stones in the midst of Jordan, in the place where the feet of the priests which bare the ark of the covenant stood: and they are there unto this day. 10 For the priests which bare the ark stood in the midst of Jordan, until every thing was finished that the Lord commanded Joshua to speak unto the people, according to all that Moses commanded Joshua: and the people hasted and passed over.

The 1st thing the stones signify is that fact that God is Faithful. There are times when we are faithfully following the Lord. There are times when we are laboring for the Lord. There are times when lift up prayers & it seems as if they go unanswered. There are times when we toil away and it seems as if there is nothing good which comes from it. There are instances when it seems that we start a new thing & it starts out so well but then we enter tumultuous times. If you are Following Jesus & serving Him then you will know what I am talking about. There are times when we step out on faith then we become worried.

Of all those people who stepped on that river bed as God held back those flooding waters there had to be at least 1 that was still a bit timid to walk across. And once they started walking beside that wall of water they had to think what if this water breaks loose. Even our text said they hurried across. But guess what the water did not rush back down while they were crossing - AMEN. Why didn’t it? It was not solely rested upon the faith of those crossing the Jordan because after all they had to exercise faith to get in there any way. This supernatural even rested upon God’s Faithfulness.

Let me give you an example that hits a little closer to home for all of us. Since its founding in 1982 Grace Free Will Baptist Church has had seasons when things were great but also when things were tough. We have seen people fall short, make mistakes, people leave, new people come in, but you know what - Grace is still going strong. Why is that? For the same reason that the waters did not break away and drowned the Israelites in the Jordan. Because God is Faithful.

Philippians 1:6 KJV 1900

6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:

The stones signify that God started a work in His people & He would not neglect nor forsake them. He would be there until everything was finished is what our text said this morning. This morning Brother & Sister in Christ, friends, if you trust God this morning He will be faithful to finish good works in & through you.

God Shows Grace

The 2nd thing the stones are evidence of is that God Shows Grace.

Joshua 4:18 KJV 1900

18 And it came to pass, when the priests that bare the ark of the covenant of the Lord were come up out of the midst of Jordan, and the soles of the priests’ feet were lifted up unto the dry land, that the waters of Jordan returned unto their place, and flowed over all his banks, as they did before.

When God calls you to serve Him, when He leads you to share your faith, when He guides you down a path, when he directs you to do anything it important to remember that His grace is in the midst of that service, that leadership, that guidance, that direction. Now none of us should ever deceive ourselves in thinking that Following & Serving God will always be Sunshine & Bliss. Because it is not.

However, it is imperative that you remember that even in the midst of the most trying times, when you feel as if you may be defeated, when you are overcome with grief and despair that you are never outside God’s capacity to extend Grace. There is no place where he can’t reach. On the opposite side of that coin even when you are at the tip top highest peak of that spiritual mountain. When you can see God moving, things are going exceptionally well, when you are filled with the Spirit and your cup has runneth over, that things are never so well that you are no longer in need of God’s Grace.

Romans 6:14 KJV 1900

14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.

We must never forget that we are only made righteous through the Blood of Christ. We only have access to His atoning blood because of God’s Grace.

God is Merciful & Loves You

The 3rd thing the stones reveal is that God is Merciful & Loves You.

Joshua 4:22–23 KJV 1900

22 Then ye shall let your children know, saying, Israel came over this Jordan on dry land. 23 For the Lord your God dried up the waters of Jordan from before you, until ye were passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red sea, which he dried up from before us, until we were gone over:

God is not a God of closing people out. He is not a God that does not allow access to Him. He is not a God that says I will only pick 1 person or 1 generation to show grace, love, & mercy. God’s desire is for all to come to Him, for none to perish but all to have everlasting life. When God is painted as this hateful, heinous, vengeful, condemning being just remember what His Word says of Him. Remember what Jesus said in His conversation with Nicodemus?

John 3:17 KJV 1900

17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

The stones served as a placeholder in a physical sense, but also in the minds & hearts of the Israelites that this is where God showed His love. By providing a way for them to cross the Jordan into the promised land. By the way He has done the same thing for you & for me. Jesus has prepared a way & a place for us to be with Him in eternity.

John 14:1–4 KJV 1900

1 Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also. 4 And whither I go ye know, and the way ye know.

If Jesus has done that for us in Heaven we must never lose hope that He will provide a way to get us through anything during our time on this earth. We see God’s Mercy in Joshua Chapter 4 when he dried up the waters when they were flooding the banks of the Jordan. If someone instructed you to cross through the river while you looked at those waters swelling & flowing you would probably say no way. I know I would.

When we are faced with difficult circumstances, when it seems as if the task at hand is too demanding, or when the next chapter of life seems out of the question & unrealistic we must remember that nothing is impossible with God. This is true in every instance even when faced with temptation. No doubt there had to be some of these people who were tempted to say you know what I am fine with staying on this side of the Jordan.

1 Corinthians 10:13 KJV 1900

13 There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.

There were people who were probably enticed with giving up and quitting. But God dried up the water showing His mercy and providing a way through. God is Merciful & Loves You.

God is Mighty

The 4th thing the stones attest to is that God is Mighty.

Joshua 4:24 KJV 1900

24 That all the people of the earth might know the hand of the Lord, that it is mighty: that ye might fear the Lord your God for ever.

God is Mighty & Powerful. He had the power to create everything, He had the power to Flood the Earth, He had the power to part the waters of the Red Sea, He had the power to rain down manna from the skies, He had the power to hold the waters of the Jordan, He also has the power to save! He is mighty enough to break the bonds of sin and set you free!

There are times when we focus more on our shortcomings than the power of God which dwells within us. I love history and I recently read this account of a small Austrian town. Napoleon’s army was camped above a small town on the Austrian border. It was Easter Sunday morning & the people of the city assembled together to try and come to consensus on rather they should fight or surrender when the army invaded. After some deliberation the town’s Pastor went in front of the visibly intimidated and worried people and said, “Friends, we have been counting on our own strength, and apparently that has failed. Since this is the day of our Lord’s resurrection, let us just ring the bells, have our services, and leave the matter in His hands. We know only our weakness, and not the power of God to defend us."

While being led by God through the Pastor’s direction the people agreed and rang the bells atop the church. When Napoleon’s army heard the ringing bells they believed that to be the battle song for the forward movements of the Austrian Army. By the time Easter Service ended Napoleon's army had withdrew from their encampment.

You see even the sound of Church Bells can demonstrate God’s ability to move mightily among the people. Can you point to areas in your life where you have witnessed God perform a mighty work?

Conclusion:

These stones were to serve as a reminder of what God had done & continues to do. They were placed to no only remind but to teach the people of Israel the exact same thing that the Calvary teaches us today. That is deliverance & salvation is possible through God. That He is sufficient in every problem, concern, circumstance, or weakness that we have. Let us never forget that Jesus has made a way for us to navigate this life & propel into the next one all by the shedding of His blood. Like the stones, the cross is a reminder for us to recognize that a way is prepared, we just have to go God’s way.

Will you pray with me?