Standing Stones

Standing Stones

And Joshua said to them, "Pass on before the ark of the Lord your God into the midst of the Jordan, and take up each of you a stone upon his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the people of Israel, that this may be a sign among you. When your children ask in time to come, 'What do those stones mean to you?' then you shall tell them that the waters of the Jordan were cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When it passed over the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. So these stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever." Joshua 4:5-7

Introduction

Over the past year and a half, I feel my family has been through one major event after another. Last summer, I found myself caught amid a church conflict, which ended in a split 2 days before my daughter was born in October. My wife had to have an emergency c-section due to Evangeline bleeding within the womb and almost perishing. Following the church split, my daughter endured a 102-day NICU stay caused by human error, scheduling mistakes, and the need for my daughter to have jaw distraction surgery. While this happened, we searched for a church to call home (which we found in early December); Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year passed by. Winter was a nightmare of constant illness. We had flu, COVID, stomach viruses, and everything went through our house. Our son, Micah, lost a scary amount of weight from his virus that he couldn't shake. We joke about getting shirts that say, "We survived the Winter of 2023/2024," with a list of everything that went wrong on the back.

As Spring came, we found ourselves getting back up from a long storm that had hit us hard. We were exhausted from it all, but there was a short reprieve through the Spring and Summer that we were able to enjoy. Then, around September, we knew it was time for our son to have another surgery to help with issues in his bowels. So, as we hit the anniversary of the church split and our daughter's birthday, we found ourselves in another challenging month. Emergencies with family members, another round of illness as we got closer to Micah's surgery, and so on. October wouldn't end. Then it did. Micah had his surgery, and as I write this, he's back to his usual self, harassing his sister and running around the house.

I say all this because we all have seasons of struggle and hardship. We pray for deliverance, we pray for rain, we plead for relief, and yet, we are seemingly met with silence. Our eyes, hearts, emotions, and souls become fixated on everything wrong, and we become blind to everything that was good. Our gaze becomes transfixed upon the dark clouds, and we lose sight of our savior. It's easy to do. Many of my diligent prayers were met with "no" or "not yet," which frustrated me. I couldn't figure out why my faithfulness was going unanswered. Here I was, committing the same sins as the prodigal son's brother, looking to his master and saying, "Where's my party? Have I not done what you've asked of me? Where's my miracle? Where's my deliverance? Where's my healthy child? Where's my relief from it all?" I would repent of these as God opened my eyes to the sin that so easily beset me. However, I'm positive I'm not alone in this. This brings me to the text for this post.

The Israelites had been in the wilderness for 40 years. This served as punishment for the sin of disbelief and faithlessness they committed when they refused to go into the promised land. For 40 years, a generation died off in the deserts. The people struggled, argued, and did everything they could to ensure that Moses felt every day of those 40 years he led them. Then, the day came when Joshua brought them to the shores of the Jordan to cross over into the new land. Forty years of wandering ended, but one final hurdle remained: the Jordan River.

Crossing the Jordan

We read in Joshua 3 that when it comes time to cross the Jordan, God parts the waters as He did with the Red Sea so that the Israelites can enter the promised land. This miracle confirmed that God was with Joshua and that no one and nothing would stand against God's people. The other important element to this was the need for the people to consecrate themselves to the Lord beforehand. Such a miracle necessitated the people to wash themselves before the Lord and to make themselves Holy (Lev. 20:7). The Ark held by the priests crossed the river first, and then the people followed.

For those in Christ, we crossed the Jordan led by our Shepherd. He parted the waters, so we entered a new, narrow path that only a remnant could travel. That lovely narrow path goes through a land filled with enemies, traps, snares, and temptations, but we are not alone, for the Son of God lights the path around our feet and sees us through. After all, He alone laid the foundation of this road with His body. His blood consecrates us. He delivered us from the wilderness that we dwelled in for so long. As we cross from death unto life, we lose our desire to look back upon those dark times before Christ and instead look towards the Celestial City that we long for.

Standing Stones

After the people cross the river, the Lord gives them another command. God commanded the erection of a twelve-standing stone memorial commemorating their deliverance and His grace and mercy. As Joshua 4:7 says, "…These stones shall be to the people of Israel a memorial forever." The people obeyed, and the bible says in Joshua 4:9, "…they [the stones] are there to this day." What a remarkable testament to the power of God.

For us, our standing stone is our testimony. We no longer look to our wilderness experience but instead toward the day, God delivered us from the wages of sin. Our lives become a testament to God's grace and glory. As the children then asked about the stones, people will ask about the Cross. "What does that cross mean to you?" It means everything. That God-Man who hung from it parted death so I could enter life with Him. It is He who bridged the gap between my soul and heaven. It is He who always serves as my mediator. It is He who brings my prayers before the Father. It is He who gifted me His righteousness in exchange for my sin. It is He who sanctified me. That blessed Cross represents the eternal hope secured for me by the perfectly holy and sinless Christ who died on my behalf as my kinsmen redeemer, delivering me from a hell that I so rightfully deserved.

Giving Thanks

All this is to say that despite our struggles, hardships, trials, tears, hurts, pains, frustrations, disappointments, failures, and slumps, we must give thanks and reflect upon our testimony, our standing stone. Times are tough, days are dark, but Christ went before us. He stood in our place as God poured His holy wrath upon Him. Dear friends, you and I will have seasons of storms. It may feel like a monsoon with all the rain and rolling storms that pass through. However, we can look to the Cross, which reminds us of our deliverance from the wilderness. No matter the circumstances, it is far better to be on this side of the river than on the other, lost in a deadly wilderness with no hope.

Give thanks for God choosing to remove you from the dark tombs in which you dwelled at one time. Give thanks that the pure blood of Christ washed away your sin. Give thanks that despite your pain, hurt, and struggles, there's a heaven waiting for us to enter when you draw your final breath. Place your worries and concerns at God's feet, let Him answer your prayers as He desires, keep your eyes transfixed upon Christ, and keep giving thanks and celebrating the strength He provides for each step you take on that narrow way. It's not easy. It never will be in this life. However, we can thank God for every breath as we consider the standing stone of Christ, who gave everything willingly on our behalf.