What Do These Stones Mean To You?
Steve W. Reeves
stevereevesoutlines.blogspot.com
INTRODUCTION:
A. You have seen them by the roadside but likely have never stopped to read them. I
am talking about Historical Markers that provide information about a noteworthy
person or event that was associated with the site. There is one near the intersection
of Highways 677 and 64 in Bald Knob describing a skirmish in the Civil War that
involved 7999 men in August of 1864. There is a historical marker at our county
courthouse, one at the Civil War site called Searcy Landing and others through out
the county. Some friends of ours had a plaque by their front door that said, “On this
site in 1894 nothing happened.”
1. In this lesson I want to talk about some historical markers that had tremendous
meaning for the Israelites who entered the land of Canaan.
2. I want us to consider the importance of tangible spiritual markers in our own
journey of faith. Paul wrote in Romans 15:4, “For whatever was written in earlier
times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the
encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”
B. Can you imagine how Joshua and the people of Israel must have felt as they stepped
up out of the dry riverbed of the Jordan into the land of Canaan? This was the
fulfillment of a promise that was over 400 years old. This was an event that previous
generations had only dreamed of. Some had been adamantly skeptical that they
such a day would ever occur.
1. After Israel had crossed the Jordan, God commanded Joshua to select twelve men
(one from each tribe) and command them to return to the place in the river where
the priests stood. There, each one would pick up a rock and carry it on his
shoulders to the place where the people would camp (Joshua 4:1-3).
2. According to verses 6-7 Joshua gave the command, “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.”
3. It is very important to teach children. This is a theme in Exodus, Deuteronomy and
Joshua – See Exodus 12:26, 13:14; Deut. 4:9, 6:20-25,11:19, 32:46 - for
continued emphasis on the training of children.
4. According to verse 8, Joshua and the Israelites did as God commanded. Twelve
men carried these stones to the place where Israel lodged. Then, according to
verse 9, Joshua commanded another monument to be built at the place in the
Jordan where the priests had stood. This was a monument that remained visible
for years to come.
5. Imagine the scene described in verses 10-13 as the priests stood in the midst of
the river bed and all Israel crossed led by 40,000 men from the tribes of Reuben,
Gad and the half tribe of Manasseh, dressed in battle array. If there was ever an
event that deserved to have a historical marker, this was it.
C. Why was this event so important that not one, but two monuments would be built for
its commemoration?
1. Remember that Paul wrote in Romans 15:4, “For whatever was written in earlier
times was written for our instruction, so that through perseverance and the
encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”
2. This story was written for us to learn, for us to be encouraged and for us to have
hope.
3. These stones stood as a memorial to the faithfulness of God.
I. GOD’S FAITHFUL PROMISE
A. There are three occasions in the book of Joshua where stone monuments were
built as a testimony to the covenant God had made with His people.
1. Here in Joshua 4 the stones were a reminder of God’s promise to give the land
of Canaan to the descendants of Abraham (Genesis 12:7). Now, over 400 years
later, God’s promise was fulfilled after delivering the Israelites from Egypt,
crossing the Red Sea, leading them through the wilderness and crossing the
Jordan.
2. In Joshua 8:30ff, after Israel conquered the city of Ai, Joshua built an altar of
stones as Moses had commanded in Deuteronomy 27. Upon these stones he
copied the law of God as a reminder of God’s covenant with His people.
3. In Joshua 24:15-28 near the end of Joshua’s life he challenged Israel to
“Choose this day whom you will serve.” According to verses 24-27, “And Joshua
wrote these words in the book of the law of God; and he took a large stone and
set it up there under the oak that was by the sanctuary of the Lord. 27 Joshua
said to all the people, “Behold, this stone shall be for a witness against us, for it
has heard all the words of the Lord which He spoke to us; thus, it shall be for a
witness against you, so that you do not deny your God.”
B. Why were these monuments so important? They were continual, visual, tangible
reminders of God’s promises.
1. Have you ever known someone with a poor memory? Many years ago, there
was a Harding professor named B.F. Rhodes. Brother Rhodes had poor vision
and a poor memory. For many years he had only one suit of clothes. One day a
merchant in town gave him a new pair of pants. Unbeknownst to his wife he put
on the new pair of pants and left the old ones draped across the bed. When
Sister Rhodes saw them, she snatched them up and ran across campus thinking
he had forgotten to put his pants on.
2. A story I cannot validate says that Albert Einstein left his office one afternoon to
go home. Shortly after he left his secretary received a call asking for Professor
Einstein’s address. When she explained that this information was not made
public the caller whispered, “This is Professor Einstein. I have forgotten where I
live.”
C. The New Covenant is not written on tablets of stone but upon human hearts
(2 Corinthians 3:3). Even so, God still considers it important to provide tangible
reminders of spiritual realities.
1. When we are baptized we are participating in the death, burial and resurrection
of Jesus (Romans 6:3-5). The water is a physical sign of a spiritual reality.
2. The Lord’s Supper is a physical reminder to us of our own deliverance from
bondage to sin and the new life that is ours through the life, death, burial and
resurrection of Jesus Christ.
3. In July 1969 two men landed on the moon. The landing was a fulfillment of a
promise made by President Kennedy years earlier. What did the astronauts do –
set up an American flag. They left a plaque and celebrated the fulfillment of a
promise.
II. GOD’S FAITHFUL PROVISION
strength, wisdom, knowledge, skill and ability. As remarkable as those may be they
do not have the capacity to sustain you through all of the challenges of life.
B. Everything is the book of Joshua is about God. These people had not come to this
juncture in their lives by their own strength.
1. According to Joshua 1:2-3 it was God who was giving Israel the land of Canaan.
2. In chapter 2 it was God who providentially brought the two spies to the house of
Rahab where they would be protected and where Rahab’s family would
ultimately be spared.
3. In chapter 3 it was God who stopped the flow of water in the flooding Jordan to
allow Israel to cross on dry ground.
4. Later, it will be God who delivers the city of Jericho to the Israelites. It will be
God who delivers them from a humiliating defeat at Ai. At every step of the
journey it was God who made provision for them.
C. Not only is this the message of Joshua, it is the message of the entire Bible.
1. Psalm 28:7 states, “The Lord is my strength and my shield; My heart trusts in
thank Him.”
2. Psalm 46 begins with the familiar words, “God is our refuge and strength, A
very present help in trouble.”
D. The church needs to learn that our strength is not in programs, personalities,
property, possessions or prominence.
1. The early church had none of these. They relied upon the provision of God.
2. Martin Luther came to understand this. In his grand hymn, “A Mighty Fortress,”
he declared, “Did we in our own strength confide; our striving would be losing.
Were not the right man on our side; the man of God’s own choosing. Just ask
who that might be. Christ Jesus it is He. Lord Sabbaoth, His name. From age to
age the same. And He shall win the battle.”
III. GOD’S FAITHFUL PROTECTION
guarded Israel from their days in Egypt and would continue to guard them as they
conquered the land.
1. The raising up of a leader – Moses.
2. The plagues that demonstrated God’s superiority over the gods of Egypt.
3. God’s guidance with a pillar of cloud by day and fire by night.
4. Parting the waters of the Red Sea.
5. Manna, Quail and Water during their wilderness wanderings.
B. At the corner of Beebe-Capps expressway and Elm Street in Searcy you will
notice several monuments in front of our central fire station. One of these is a
piece of the Twin Towers in New York City. Why do we have these monuments?
They represent the faithfulness of fire-fighters and first responders who gave their
lives seeking to protect others.
1. For Christians the cross is such a monument. Paul wrote in Galatians 6:14, “But
may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ,
through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.”
2. It was the death of Christ on that cross that protects us from the wages of sin
and extends to us the gift of eternal life.
CONCLUSION:
A. Kent and Barbara Hughes wrote a book entitled, Liberating Ministry From The
leading a new church plant. They had done all of the research to determine a
location, secured funding from an older, established church, consulted all of the
experts about the steps to take and done everything they could think of to make
their efforts successful. Yet, within a few years the struggling new church failed. They
were devastated. Kent contemplated leaving ministry. Ultimately, he and Barbara set
down and engaged in an intensive study of the Bible about God’s expectations of
ministry. They concluded, “God does not want success. He wants faithfulness.”
B. The stones at Gilgal were a reminder of God’s faithfulness to His people. The same
faithfulness He demonstrates to us through His Son Jesus Christ. The question we
must answer is this. “What about our perso
