What mean these stones?

Joshua leads the Israelites into the promised land of Canaan after a 40 year stint in the desert. The priest took the ark of the covenant into the Jordan river and the waters parted, just as with the Red Sea, and the Israelites crossed on dry ground. God commands Joshua to have one man from each of the 12 tribes to remove a stone from the river bed and they used these 12 stones to construct a monument, a memorial of what happened that day. So that one day when someone asks “What mean these stones?” they would learn of the power of God that brought the Israelites to their land. There were many piles of stones in Canaan, but these stones were significant.
One day each of us will cross over the Jordan river into the promised land, and whether you realize it or not you are right now building a memorial that will be left behind. A memorial much like that o that someone may ask the question “What mean these stones?” And the memorial that you are constructing now will be all that is left and people will either benefit from what they learn of the memorial you leave behind, or much like the man in prison with the Bible, what you leave behind will be seen as trivial as a life wasted. None of us want a life that is trivial, none of us want to leave behind just any old pile of stones. We can’t take anything from this world with us to Heaven, but what we leave behind can be make a difference. What kind of memorial are you building? What stones will you leave behind for your children, grandchildren, church family?
What I want to do in this sermon series in the coming weeks is give you the stones to build a memorial that will demonstrate the power of God in your life. But today I want to ask a couple of questions.

What does the memorial you are now building indicate about God's work in your life?
1. Spoke of God’s grace and mercy – (When they rebelled against God by worshiping the golden calf – God would have destroyed them because of their sin, but showed grace and mercy)
-Ex 32:19 and will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and will shew mercy on whom I will shew mercy.
-Psalm 145:7-9 7: They shall abundantly utter the memory of thy great goodness, and shall sing of thy righteousness. 8: The LORD is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. 9: The LORD is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.
-Psalm 103:8-12 8: The LORD is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy. 9: He will not always chide: neither will he keep his anger for ever. 10: He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. 11: For as the heaven is high above the earth, so great is his mercy toward them that fear him. 12: As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us.
2. Spoke of God’s faithfulness – God was faithful to keep his promise that he made to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob Genesis 13:14-17 14: And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: 15: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. 16: And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered. 17: Arise, walk through the land in the length of it and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee.
-Psalm 119:90 Thy faithfulness is unto all generations: thou hast established the earth, and it abideth.
-2 Tim 2:13 13: If we believe not, yet he abideth faithful: he cannot deny himself.
3. Spoke of God’s power and might
-Deuteronomy 9:29 29: Yet they are thy people and thine inheritance, which thou broughtest out by thy mighty power and by thy stretched out arm.
-Ephesians 1:19 19: And what is the exceeding greatness of his power to usward who believe, according to the working of his mighty power, 20: Which he wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the dead, and set him at his own right hand in the heavenly places, 21: Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: 22: And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,

What is the evidence of God’s power in your life?
God’s power to save, God’s power to heal, God’s power to deliver, God’s power to provide, God’s power to sustain, God’s power to transform

What does the memorial you are now building indicate about your relationship with God?

1. Spoke of their faith in God (in contrast to their parents who were called stiffnecked, stubborn, rebellious, wicked,)
Hebrews 11:1-2 1: Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. 2: For by it the elders obtained a good report.
11:6 6: But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
2. Spoke of their obedience to God
-1 Samuel 15:22 to obey is better than sacrifice
-Deuteronomy 11:26 26: Behold, I set before you this day a blessing and a curse; 27: A blessing, if ye obey the commandments of the LORD your God, which I command you this day: 28: And a curse, if ye will not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside out of the way which I command you this day, to go after other gods, which ye have not known.