What mean ye by these stones?

Joshua 4 5-7

  •     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: 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?. 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 a memorial unto the children of Israel forever.

 

  •         I wonder how many times the children stopped and looked up at the memorial that was built with those 12 stones. According to Adam Clark [Clarks Commentary Vol II pg18], more than likely a monument of some type was erected that included these 12 stones. The site it was built on was the site of Israel's crossing of the Jordan river. It was here that after fleeing Egypt, God had given the command that the practice of circumcision would be renewed. For there had been no circumcision during the 40 years Israel journeyed in the wilderness. The Lord spoke to Joshua saying, "This day have I rolled away the reproach of EGYPT from off you” Joshua 5:9. Thus, it was given the name Gilgal which means rolling.
  •           I can close my eyes and take a deep breath and just listen as fathers and grandfathers take their children by the hand, set down and begin to tell the marvelous story of how God rolled back the waters of the Jordan river. Then as the high priest carrying the ark began to step into the water, the waters rolled back AND STOOD up like a wall. letting them cross stepping on dry ground. Then to tell of the plagues that God had performed against Pharaoh and all of Egypt. Tales of frogs, flies and hailstones of fire. The story of another time that waters were parted but only this time it caused the destruction of Pharaoh's army. Manna that fell from the sky and a river of water that came forth from a rock. Miracle after miracle that God had performed, bringing them out of Egypt. Those stones had a purpose, they had a meaning. So that the children might not forget who they are. Those stones spoke of the past, they spoke of their history.
  •      So now I wonder if we have any stones in our church's today that would make our children stop and ask WHY?  Maybe that odd shaped one on the left that might represent the way we worship. When asked why we worship different than others.  let us explain why we worship with freedom and joy that others can’t claim. Stones that represent things like why we still believe in God's healing power, or why we seek a move of God's Spirit every opportunity. Maybe that stone on the right at the bottom could represent the foundation of prayer that the church is built upon. That is why we have prayer meetings, and we develop our own prayer closet. whether it is in our bedroom or maybe in the recliner in the living room, it could even be at the kitchen table. Most important we all find that special place to get into His presence. Our heritage is built on those stones, don’t let them be buried by time, because they will stand the test of time. Judges 2:10 tells us that an entire generation rose up not knowing the works of the LORD or what he meant to ISRAEL. We can't blame the children, but the blame falls on the parents for their failure to tell their children who they, are and where they came from. Maybe there were no stones to be seen to cause the question to be asked ‘What is meant by these stones?’. We are but one generation from losing this precious faith. If we let one generation come forth not knowing what being Apostolic means, this great salvation could be lost to us. The Word and the Faith are eternal but only if we keep it.  I pray our church’s today are full of stones and that we are ready and willing to answer when the question is asked 'What mean ye by these stones?

 

  •       The important thing is that when a child asks “Why” or” What” we don’t just say “Because that’s what we are supposed to do”. Stop and tell them where that stone came from and what it means. The next opportunity you have, take a look around and see if you can see any of those stones in your church.

                                                                                                                                    Rev. Dennis Ploch