Stones of Memory

When all the nation had finished passing over the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, “Take twelve men from the people, from each tribe a man, and command them, saying, ‘Take twelve stones from here out of the midst of the Jordan, from the very place where the priests’ feet stood firmly, and bring them over with you and lay them down in the place where you lodge tonight.’” Then Joshua called the twelve men from the people of Israel, whom he had appointed, a man from each tribe. 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 4:1-7 ESV).

 

The stones at the bottom of the Jordan River probably hadn’t seen a dry day till the people of Israel crossed that barrier on dry land. But when taken from the exposed riverbed, twelve of those stones became a memorial of God’s mighty works. Standing in a pile beside the river, the stones were to remind all who passed by that the Lord had dried up the Jordan so that his people Israel could cross over into the Promised Land.

 

As time passed, Israel began to have trouble remembering all that God had done for them. Perhaps they were too busy with the challenges of daily life; or, perhaps they simply began to trust in their own effort rather than the power of God. The stones at Gilgal remained where they were erected. The stones had not moved. Their focus moved. This was certainly a result of a failure to teach the memory to their children. These memories were to be their ministry, reminding everyone of God’s power and of his faithfulness to his promises.

 

Again, we must not wag our finger at them and somehow forget our own failure to remember. We actually have a much clearer memorial. We have an empty tomb. Can we so easily forget that great miracle? I am well aware to the reality of the inevitable struggles that intrude into our lives. They always do. However, we must not forget to revisit our “stones of memory.” They are there to remind us of the source of all goodness and joy. To this very day God’s Word reminds us of all God has done, especially through Jesus Christ. It’s a great collection of memory stones pointing us to the Savior as our chief cornerstone (cf. Ephesians 2:20).