MEMORIALS Joshua 4:8-9

8 The Israelites did just as Joshua had commanded them. The twelve men took stones from the middle of the Jordan, one for each of the Israelite tribes, just as the Lord had told Joshua. They carried them to the camp and set them down there. 9 Joshua also set up twelve stones in the middle of the Jordan where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant were standing. The stones are still there today.

Joshua 4:8-9 (CSB)

FOCUS: God has placed many things in our paths to remind us of what He has done for us. We need to see them and be thankful for them and His faithfulness.

Introduction

Memorial Day is not about division. It is about reconciliation; it is about coming together to honor those who gave their all. Memorial Day was officially proclaimed on 5 May 1868 by General John Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, in his General Order No. 11, and was first observed on 30 May 1868, when flowers were placed on the graves of Union and Confederate soldiers at Arlington National Cemetery. Traditional observance of Memorial day has diminished over the years. Many Americans nowadays have forgotten the meaning and traditions of Memorial Day. At many cemeteries, the fallen graves are increasingly ignored and neglected. Most people no longer remember the proper flag etiquette for the day. While some towns and cities still hold Memorial Day parades, many have not held a parade in decades. Some people think the day is for honoring any dead, and not just those fallen in service to our country. You know the same can be said for the church and what God has given us to remember what He has pledged. Today we will look at four different memorials that God has given His people to remember Him by.

The Rainbow (Genesis 9:12-13)

12 God said, “This is the sign of the covenant which I am making between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all successive generations; 13 I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth

God is telling us that He will never flood the entire world again. Yet what do we say that the rainbow is - a gateway to some gold pot. Society has lost the true meaning behind what God’s symbol is.

The Irish say that there is a pot of gold at the end.

Buddhist tradition says that it is the highest spiritual plane one can access before crossing over to the other side.

Ancient stories from Bulgaria say that if one walks underneath one, their sex changes.

In Burma, legends claim that is a devilish monster.

In America today, it is the symbol of the homosexual community.

This is the danger of not knowing what God says, or not teaching the Bible. The miracles of God get hijacked.

The Stones at the Jordan (Joshua 4:1-7)

Joshua 4:1-7

1 Now when all the nation had finished crossing the Jordan, the LORD spoke to Joshua, saying, 2 “Take for yourselves twelve men from the people, one man from each tribe, 3 and command them, saying, ‘Take up for yourselves twelve stones from here out of the middle of the Jordan, from the place where the priests’ feet are standing firm, and carry them over with you and lay them down in the lodging place where you will lodge tonight.’” 4 So Joshua called the twelve men whom he had appointed from the sons of Israel, one man from each tribe; 5 and Joshua said to them, “Cross again to the ark of the LORD your God into the middle of the Jordan, and each of you take up a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the sons of Israel. 6 Let this be a sign among you, so that when your children ask later, saying, ‘What do these stones mean to you?’ 7 then you shall say to them, ‘Because the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the LORD; when it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off.’ So these stones shall become a memorial to the sons of Israel forever.”

These were to be a reminder of what God had done for the nation

He led them out of Egypt with the power of the miracles.

He led them with the pillar of fire by night and the cloud by day.

How He opened the Red Sea for them to cross and closed it on their enemies.

How He provided the manna in the wilderness.

God always gives us reminders of what He has done for us in order for us to both remember and pass it down to the next generation.

The Cross (Isaiah 53:4-6 & Matt. 27:35-37)

Isaiah 53:4-6

Surely our griefs He Himself bore, and our sorrows He carried; yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed....But the Lord has cause the iniquity of us all to fall on Him.

Matt. 27:35-37

And when had crucified Him, they divided up His garments among themselves, casting lots; and sitting down, they began to keep watch over Him there. And they put up above His head the charge against Him which read, “THIS IS JESUS THE KING OF THE JEWS.”

The original purpose of the cross was a sign of disgrace

Deut. 21:22-23 And if a man has committed a sin worthy of death, and you hang him on a tree, his corpse shall not hang all night on the tree, but you shall surely bury him on the same day (for he who is hanged is accursed of God) so that you do not defile your land, which the Lord your God gives you as an inheritance.

Jesus came and turned the disgrace into grace for all who would accept what He did

Galatians 3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, having become a curse for us - for it is written, “ Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”

Over the past several years, the cross has become more of a fashion statement than a lifestyle statement.

The Empty Grave (1 Corinthians 15:3-11)

1 Cor. 15:3-11

For I delivered to you has of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; then He appeared to James, then to s all the apostles; and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. For I am the least of the apostles, wand not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.

We celebrate what no other religion in the world has

Judaism - Abraham, and Moses both died.

Buddhism - the Buddha passed away.

Islam - Mohammed is dead and Muslims are supposed to make a pilgrimage to his tomb.

Confucianism - he died.

We preach an empty grave because it is

Historical

Reality

Life changing

Heart changing

Determines your future

SO WHAT?

As Christians, we need to not only be aware of our memorials and symbols, but we need to protect them from those who seek to undermine what they are, what they stand for, and the message they give about God, His love, His grace, His forgiveness, and His judgment.