Mere Stones/Reminders-9 Series

MERE STONES/Reminders-IX—Joshua 4:1-24(:15-24)

Reminder/Recall/Memorial/Symbol/Post-it notes/String on finger

Seemingly insignificant reminders can make all the difference in a Christian‘s life!

Joshua had twelve stones removed from the Jordan River as a memorial to the crossing.

Memorials or Spiritual Reminders hold a great deal of significance to God’s people.

What significance can spiritual reminders offer?

Achievements of spiritual reminders.

Previously we have found that...

Mere Stones/Reminders, little things, can transport us to a Position of...

1. UNIQUE ACCOMPLISHMENT(:3, 5)

2. BLESSING(:3)

3. IMMINENT DANGER(:5)

4. RESPONSIBILITY(:5)

5. INFLUENCE(:6)Envision

6. REFLECTION(:7-9)

7. COMPLETION/End(:10-11)

8. OPPORTUNITY(:10b)

9. COMMITMENT(:12-13)

10. PROMINENCE(:14)

11—Mere Stones/Reminders can transport us To a Position of...

NORMALCY/The Mundane(:15-18)

Explanation:(:15-18) Return/Regular appearance/no enhancement

:15—“Then the LORD spoke to Joshua, saying,”

:16—“Command the priests who bear the ark of the Testimony to come up from the Jordan.”

:17—“Joshua therefore commanded the priests, saying, "Come up from the Jordan.””

:18—“And it came to pass, when the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD had come from the midst of the Jordan, & the soles of the priests' feet touched the dry land, that the waters of the Jordan returned to their place, & overflowed all its banks as before.”

As the priests came out of the riverbed, & even as the soles of their feet were lifted up beyond the River’s normal reach, then the waters returned to their place & the banks continued as usual to flood stage.

cf.—3:15

“Returned...As Before”—No physical sign of anything different.

The river “returned” but the people were changed.

They had witnessed something miraculous.

They had witnessed & were themselves a tangible part of God’s miraculous work.

*Normalcy can be deceptive....

We can become convinced that God is not working(nor has a desire to) & can be lulled into complacency.

Deut. 4:24-26—[Moses warned Israel]“For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God. When you beget children & grandchildren & have grown old in the land, & act corruptly & make a carved image in the form of anything, & do evil in the sight of the LORD your God to provoke Him to anger, I call heaven & earth to witness against you this day, that you will soon utterly perish from the land which you cross over the Jordan to possess; you will not prolong your days in it, but will be utterly destroyed.”

2Pet.3:3-4—“Know this first of all, that in the last days mockers will come with their mocking, following after their own lusts, & saying, “Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all continues just as it was from the beginning of creation.””

The miracles/mountain top experiences must pass—describe what being on the top of a mountain is like—Pilot Mtn. Mountain top experiences are meant to empower us in the trenches/usual/mundane.

God is present & works in the everyday, ‘run-of-the-mill’ things as well! “Returned”—bwv shoowb—Qal Imperfect—1) To return, turn back—1a) (Qal)--1a1) To turn back, return—1a1a) To turn back, 1a1b) To return, come or go back, 1a1c) To return unto, go back, come back, 1a1d) Of dying, 1a1e) Of human relations(fig), 1a1f) Of spiritual relations(fig)—1a1f1) To turn back(from God), apostatize, 1a1f2) To turn away(of God), 1a1f3) To turn back(to God), repent, 1a1f4) Turn back(from evil), 1a1g) Of inanimate things, 1a1h) In repetition;. Strong—a primitive root; To turn back(hence, away) transitively or intransitively, literally or figuratively(not necessarily with the idea of return to the starting point); generally--To retreat; often adverbial--Again.

“Overflowed/Flowed Over”—Lit.=‘Walked upon/over’—Klh haw-lak'—Qal Imperfect—1) To go, walk, come—1a) (Qal)--1a1) To go, walk, come, depart, proceed, move, go away, 1a2) To die, live, manner of life(fig.). —&—le ‘al—Preposition—1) Upon, on the ground of, according to, on account of, on behalf of, concerning, beside, in addition to, together with, beyond, above, over, by, on to, towards, to, against—1c) Above, over(of elevation or pre-eminence), 1g) Down upon, upon, on, from, up upon, up to,, towards, over towards, to, against (with verbs of motion). Above, over, upon, or against(yet always in this last relation with a downward aspect) in a great variety of applications.

The same as le ‘al; properly--The top; specifically--The highest(i.e. God); also adverb--Aloft, to Jehovah.

“As before”—Mwvlv shil-showm' OR Mvlv shil-shom’—Adverb—1) Day before yesterday, three days ago—1a) An idiom for ‘heretofore in times past.’ Strong—from the same as vlv sheh’-lesh[triplet; from vlv shaw-lash’—perhaps originally to intensify, i.e. treble]; Trebly, i.e. in time--Day before yesterday. Used 25X.

Argumentation:

Deut. 31:8—(Moses to Joshua)—“And the LORD, He is the one who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.””

1Kgs 19:11-13—(to Elijah)—“Then He said, “Go out, & stand on the mountain before the LORD.” And behold, the LORD passed by, & a great & strong wind tore into the mountains & broke the rocks in pieces before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; & after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake; & after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; & after the fire a still small voice. So it was, when Elijah heard it, that he wrapped his face in his mantle & went out & stood in the entrance of the cave. Suddenly a voice came to him, & said, “What are you doing here, Elijah?””