Iliff & Saltillo UM
May 30, 2004
Memorial Day Weekend
"Memorial Stones"
Joshua 4:1-9
INTRODUCTION: Today is Memorial Day Sunday. It may mean different things to different people and how we observe it now and how we have observed it in the past. There may be parades and special Memorial Day services to remember those who fought for our country and who died in wars. It is a time to visit cemeteries and put flowers on the graves to remember parents, grandparents, and other who have gone on before. It is a time set aside for reflection and being with family and friends. Maybe a time for picnics or cooking out. It marks a transition into summer activities. It is a time to stop and remember to reflect on where we’ve been and where we are going.
In today’s scripture we find a common custom of Old Testament times--that of raising Memorial Stones. The purpose was to preserve the memory of an event for future generations. We might call these stones "conversation pieces." These particular stones, set up in two places, were intended to raise questions so that the story of God’s miraculous intervention might be told over and over. Remembering was a way for future generations to participate in the great acts that God had already done for Israel. That is similar to our various traditions today.
Joshua saw the importance of these stones for future generations as a memorial to the crossing of the Red Sea and the Jordan River. They were always to be celebrated by Israel because they marked the Exodus from Egypt (bondage) to their entrance into the Promised Land (freedom). They were a sign of Israel’s transition from slavery to freedom, and they weren’t to forget what God had done.
They may have piled the stones in a heap or at Gilgal they may have placed them in a circle. Gilgal comes from the Hebrew word galal meaning to "roll" and there may have already been a circle of stones there because research says that there were "sculptured stones near Gilgal."
Joshua had chosen 12 men, one from every tribe to particpate in collecting these stones for the memorial. This was a testimony to the fact that all 12 tribes were in the wilderness together, and they all entered Canaan at the same time.
Of the two sets of stones one was piled up right in the middle of the river bed where the priests stood with the ark of the covenant. The other was set up at Gilgal--showing where they had been and where they were now. As they looked back to the one that stood in the middle of the river they could see how God had brought them through a seemingly impossible spot--through the overflowing Jordan which was at flood stage.
Knowing some of the background for this scripture, what does it say to us today? What about our Memorial Stones? Do we have any and what is significant about them for us?
1. Our Memorial Stones serve as an encouragement to us--We all have "Memorial Stones" whether we have thought about it or not. Most of the time we rush through the weeks and months without much thought to where we have been or what God is doing in our lives. But there are mileposts along the way that we remember--our baptism, our confirmation, graduation, marriage, the birth of children and grandchildren, graduation from college, when we sang our first solo or made our first speech, when we first came to the Lord...One woman had an unusual memorial stone.
STORY:
A woman’s husband dies and she has only $20,000 to her name.
After everything is done at the funeral home and cemetery, she tells her closest friend that she has no money left.
The friend says, "How can that be? You told me you still had $20,000 left just a few days before your husband died. How could you be broke?"
The widow says, "Well, the funeral home cost me $5,000. And of course,I had to make the obligatory donation to the church, so that was another
$5,000. The rest went for the memorial stone."
The friend says, "$10,000 for the memorial stone? Wow, how big was it?"
Extending her left hand, the widow says, "Three carats."
More important, though, is looking back and remembering certain events in our life when God brought us through some difficult thing, and you knew that it was definitely God’s intervention. You might have written down something in the margin of your Bible and dated it. You might have a special momento of this event that reminds you today of it. It could be a picture--this was when...and it serves as not only a reminder to you of the event but also as a conversation piece to tell others your story.
Different people have said, "I knelt right here at this altar and gave my heart to the Lord."
Joshua and the people had various reminders throughout the journey just as we do and he wanted them to remember not only what the Lord had done for them but to remember their commitments to him. We, too, need to be reminded of God’s power to do for us and also show the reverence toward Him. Too often we forget of all the times He has helped us in the past--we think we are going to drown in our Jordan Rivers--we wonder CAN He--WILL He do it again for me? These Memorial Stones say, "Yes, he can do it. He was perfectly capable in the past. He is perfectly capable now. I think the reason that He took the people across the Jordan at flood stage--the worst possible time--was that He wanted them to know that this was no problem for Him--it wasn’t then and it is no problem today for us either. The Memorial Stones tell us, "God can handle your Jordan Rivers." Not a problem. Can we look back at our Memorial Stones and see His hand at work in our life--not just in the good times but in difficult transition times where we have doubted His power?
Memorial stones should remind us of something that will help us in the future. Too many times we remember all the wrong things.
STORY: A motorcycle patrolman was rushed to the hospital with an inflamed appendix. The doctors operated and advised him that all was well. However, the patrolman kept feeling something pulling at the hairs on his chest. Worried that it might be second surgery the doctors hadn’t told him about, he finally got enough energy to pull his hospital gown down enough so he could look at what was making him so uncomfortable.
Taped firmly across his hairy chest were three wide strips of adhesive tape, the kind that doesn’t come off. Written in large black letters was the sentence, “Get well quick..... from the nurse you gave a ticket last week."
Document those things for future reference that will be valuable and encouraging to you. Jot it down in a book and put the date beside it. We forget so quickly the things God did for us once the crisis is over. Think about some Memorial Stones that you have which are a reminder of God’s intervention in your life --how he helped you get across your Jordan Rivers. You will probably come up with quite a few.
A CONFIRMATION CERTIFICATE: April 23, 1916 (88 years ago). My dad came to receive the Lord 60 years later. And what struck me was the verse on the certificate---Look unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of your Faith.Hebrews 12:2
Our Memorial Stones serve as an ENCOURAGEMENT to us when we are faced with other difficult times.
Can I pay my bills?,
Can I get through this crisis?,
Can I hold up under this pressure and this stress?
Look back to your Memorial Stones--God’s power brought you through in the past --He is no different now. He is still the God of Joshua. He still has all power. He will do it again. Your Memorial Stones can serve as an encouragement to you today.
2. Serve as a Testimony--Our Memorial Stones serve as a testimony to others of how God has worked in our personal lives in the past. It is concrete evidence that He worked in a similar human situation to theirs.
I was out of work; He supplied a job
I was sick; He healed me.
I was on drugs; He delivered me.
I was depressed; He lifted me out of it.
Joshua said when future generations see the Memorial Stones and ask, "What does this mean? You’ve got an answer. You can pass it on to them--to your children, to your grandchildren, to anyone who asks--this is what God did and He will do it for you too.
Sometimes you want to tell people about Jesus and you think, "I don’t know what to say. I don’t know what the book of Revelation says, don’t know a lot about the Bible, don’t know theology--don’t know. But the question is, "What do you know from your OWN EXPERIENCE with the Lord. What can you tell them from your Memorial Stones? This is when the Lord did__________________.
When you refer back to certain events in your own life, it is not difficult to relate them to others as a part of your ordinary conversation. Our Memorial Stones serve as a testimony to others of what God has done for us personally.
3. Serve as an evaluation of where we are now in our journey of faith. Looking at these tangible signs gives us an indication of where we are in our Christian walk. Have we become lax in our commitment to the Lord, have we grown weary in our work? Have we begun to take the Lord for granted? Are we walking afar off? In Joshua 24:26 a Memorial Stone was used again to mark their renewed commitment to God.
"...and Joshua made a covenant with the people--and he wrote these words in the book of the law and he took a GREAT STONE and set it up under an oak that was by the sanctuary of the Lord and Joshua said, "This stone shall be a witness unto us--it shall be a witness unto you lest ye deny your God."
Joshua knew that commitments are easily forgotten and he wanted to memorialize the event through the written word and through a VISIBLE OBJECT such as the stone. Sometimes there were inscriptions written on the stones. He wanted it to be a constant reminder of their covenant promise. He wanted them to be accountable to their promise and their vows to the Lord.
Sometimes the Memorial Stones we value so highly really are not all that important in the light of eternity.
STORY: A FAMILY was viewing old slides and one flashed on the screen that caught everyone’s attention. The father, wearing his favorite golf shirt, was holding his three week old daughter. The look on his face told all. "There’s my
prize possession," the father said. Touched by this statement, everyone smiled.
Then he continued, "I wonder whatever happened to that old golf shirt?"
We need to stop and take a look at our Memorial Stones. What are they saying? Have I kept my commitment that I made? Just where do I stand in relationship to the Lord as compared to previous Memorial Stones? Am I in need of a fresh dedication to walk with the Lord? Have I grown careless and forgotten? Or can I see that I have made progress and have grown spiritually? The Israelites got off target lots of times, they failed, they were rebellious, they failed to grow spiritually. We do the same thing at times when we become so busy rushing through our lives. We allow too many things to crowd out the really important things.
Paul tells us in II Cor. 13:5 "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you--unless of course you fail the test?"
Are you a different person this year from what you were last year? Have you grown spiritually? Are you walking closer to the Lord than you were 6 months ago? Do you know more about the Bible? Are you a productive Christian or just sliding by barely making it? Or are you a victorious, overcoming person?
Look at your Memorial Stones. What do they tell you? And from these stones along the way, determine what you need to do. Make a new commitment, change directions, slow down, get back on track or keep right on marching on. What do your Memorial stones say about you?
Conclusion: Memorial stones serve a purpose today just as they did for the Children of Israel-
1. to encourage us in our faith journey and remind us of God’s great power in difficult situations
2. to be a testimony to others of what God has done in the past-- children and grandchildren
3. to serve as a measure of where we currently are in our walk with the Lord that we can make necessary changes.
Let us pray:
