A faith that acts
When all the people had crossed the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua, “Now choose twelve men, one from each tribe. Tell them, ‘Take twelve stones from the very place where the priests are standing in the middle of the Jordan. Carry them out and pile them up at the place where you will camp tonight.’” So Joshua called together the twelve men he had chosen—one from each of the tribes of Israel. He told them, “Go into the middle of the Jordan, in front of the Ark of the Lord your God. Each of you must pick up one stone and carry it out on your shoulder—twelve stones in all, one for each of the twelve tribes of Israel. We will use these stones to build a memorial. In the future your children will ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ Then you can tell them, ‘They remind us that the Jordan River stopped flowing when the Ark of the Lord’s Covenant went across.’ These stones will stand as a memorial among the people of Israel forever.”Joshua 4:1-7 NLT
It is one thing to claim that you have faith in God, but it is another thing to show that faith really exists by how you are living it out. It is only by faith that we can please God. “And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him” (Hebrews 11:6). The Lord was in control in all the activities that transpired when the Israelites crossed the Jordan River. The priests were told when to enter the river. To memorialize the miraculous event, the Israelites were told to take twelve stones. They will serve as tools by God so that they will be reminded that they entered Promised Land because they did not waver in their faith. They can look again to these stones and remember the wonderful grace of God demonstrated when He delivered them. Parents would be able to tell their children the relevance of the stones so they too will in turn live their lives having faith in God. If God had done this to the Israelites, they could trust Him with everything. Let us not forget the mighty acts of God and let that reminder cause us to worship His Name for He is faithful. It is in losing that we find; “If you cling to your life, you will lose it; but if you give up your life for me, you will find it” (Matthew 10:39).
Blessings,
