Joshua 4:22 “Then you shall let your children know, saying, ‘Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land’;”
As Joshua leads the children of Israel into the promised land they would cross the Jordan River. Instead of swimming or treading through the waters or building a build over the river, God did a miracle for them in that the waters were held back. Joshua 3:17 tells us, “Then the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the LORD stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan; and all Israel crossed over on dry ground, until all the people had crossed completely over the Jordan.”
Having completely crossed over God now tells Joshua to get twelve men to get twelve stones out of the middle of the river and bring them to the place where they were camping in the Promised Land. God tells Joshua the reason as He wanted a memorial monument of this most memorable moment so that generations to come would know what God did!
Notice Joshua 4:20-24. “And those twelve stones which they took out of the Jordan, Joshua set up in Gilgal. 21 Then he spoke to the children of Israel, saying: When your children ask their fathers in time to come, saying, What are these stones? 22 then you shall let your children know, saying, Israel crossed over this Jordan on dry land; 23 for the LORD your God dried up the waters of the Jordan before you until you had crossed over, as the LORD your God did to the Red Sea, which He dried up before us until we had crossed over, 24 that all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the LORD, that His hand is mighty, that you may fear the LORD your God forever.”
Just as we have monuments to commemorate national historical moments, we need to have spiritual monuments to remind us as well as use to tell others, especially family members, of God’s work. For me, I have made various purchases of what one might call souvenirs that I place in various places in our home. For instance, I have a large wooden giraffe that reminds me of an incredible time of ministry in Kenya. I also have numerous pictures that show of a time when God was working at a place in very special ways.
Drawing from our verse, we must be intentional to have things that will create teachable moments for the generation to come, and as they ask about those past moments, we can challenge them to trust God and see Him do miraculous things for them. Make the decision to make memorial monuments of significant spiritual moments.
Remember to DATE the Word
Bonus: In the 4th month of the year, April, we are extending a 4 x 4 challenge and encouraging you to read a chapter 4 each day of April. For April 22 we challenge you to read Joshua 4.