I grew up in steel and
coal country. Steel mills lined
the upper Ohio Valley and strip mines cut into the surrounding mountains.
My friends and I would
often use the strip mines as trails to ride our motorcycles and we would swim
in the lakes that formed throughout the old mines (which was a pretty bad idea,
as they were full of leeches and snapping turtles).
On a couple of
occasions, as we hiked through the mines and the surrounding woods, we found
piles of old tombstones, cast aside by the mining companies as they cut through
old homesteads, farms, and long-forgotten communities. Sadly, instead of treating the old
cemeteries with the respect they deserved (and that the law required), the coal
companies would simply toss the stones into a pile, assuming that no one would
ever know, demonstrating a harsh and uncaring attitude toward the memorials of
human lives. It was a jolt to find
those piles of tombstones, carelessly tossed aside, and to think of the lives
they represented. Those stones
represented real people; people who were important to and loved by others.
All of us want to be
remembered. The drive to remember
– and be remembered – is a powerful force among humanity. Pictures, songs, anniversaries – and
other practices and material objects – carry powerful meanings to us because of
the events with which they are associated, helping us to remember the people
and experiences that have been so important in our lives.
This morning we return
to the Old Testament, to a story that tells us of when Joshua prepared to lead
the Hebrew people across the Jordan River and into the Promised Land. This was a momentous occasion. After centuries of bondage in Egypt and
a generation wandering in the wilderness now the people had arrived at the
moment which would fulfill the promise of which they had long been told. After centuries of bondage in Egypt, a
generation of wandering in the wilderness, the Hebrew people had arrived at
their long promised destination.
The instructions were
that the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant should step into the Jordan
River and when they did, the water would stop flowing and the people could
cross on dry land. After crossing
the river, Joshua instructed that one person representing each of the twelve
tribes go back down into the river and pick up a stone. The stones were piled together on the
bank of the river, as a memorial that God had fulfilled his promise. The stones would remain there at the
banks of the Jordan River as a permanent reminder of what God has accomplished
for them.
Listen to a portion of
that story, from the book of Joshua –
1 When the whole nation
had finished crossing the Jordan, the Lord said to Joshua,
2 “Choose twelve men
from among the people, one from each tribe,
3 and tell them to
take up twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan, from right where the
priests are standing, and carry them over with you and put them down at the
place where you stay tonight.”
4 So Joshua called
together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites, one from each
tribe,
5 and said to them,
“Go over before the ark of the Lord your God into the middle of the
Jordan. Each of you is to take up
a stone on his shoulder, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites,
6 to serve as a sign
among you. In the future, when your children ask you, ‘What do these stones
mean?’
7 tell them that the
flow of the Jordan was cut off before the ark of the covenant of the Lord. When
it crossed the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan were cut off. These stones are
to be a memorial to the people of Israel forever.”
8 So the Israelites
did as Joshua commanded them. They took twelve stones from the middle of the
Jordan, according to the number of the tribes of the Israelites, as the Lord
had told Joshua; and they carried them over with them to their camp, where they
put them down.
9 Joshua set up the
twelve stones that had been in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the
priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. And they are there to
this day.
Each of us has a collection of “stones” in our
lives. Each of those “stones” is
representative of experiences and promises that God has given to us. I want us to consider several of
those “stones” this morning (but don’t worry; I’m not going to have a point for
all twelve stones).
My grandmother, my father’s mother, was the keeper of our family’s
stories and information. I can
still hear her in my mind as she told us on numerous occasions that one of us
needed to write down the stories she told about our relatives and our family
history. We would ask Grandma, why don’t you write them down? Her reply was always the same – my job is to tell the stories, not write
them down. One of you needs to
write them down. How I wish we had done what she said, and written down
what she told us about who we are as a family.
On several occasions, as I prepared a funeral message, families have
allowed me to read through the writings of their loved one, and it is very
moving to read their recounting of family stories and important events.
It is certainly no accident that so much of the Bible is comprised
of stores and much of the teaching of Jesus was delivered through the vehicle
of stories. I use stories in my
messages not to fill up time, but because that is how truths and lessons are
instilled into our souls. I don’t
mind that people remember the stories I tell more than they remember the other
content of my messages; that’s just how we are as people – stories communicate
powerfully to us.
Stories remind us that we are an historical people, but we don’t
always think about how we are shaped by the past and the lessons of the past. We are a continuation of the past, and
by the past I mean not just a few years, or a few decades, or a generation; I
mean centuries and millennia of faith tradition. We are a part of two thousand years of church history, and
part of an even longer tradition of faith through our connection to the
patriarchs and people of the Old Testament. We don’t just read of Abraham, but we become a part of
Abraham’s story, and the same is true of other great characters in Biblical and
faith history. We’re not to be
prisoners of the past, but the past matters far more than we often give credit.
The ancient Hebrews were always reminded of the importance of
remembering. They were told on
more than one occasion to build a reminder of what God had done for them. Even to our day and time, at the
Passover meal, the youngest in attendance will ask the purpose of what is done
and the story of God’s deliverance of his people out of Egypt is retold, so
they will never forget.
We can have remarkably short memories, and we must not forget what
God has done for us. It is by
looking to the past that we find strength, hope, and faith for the future.
When the Hebrew people crossed the Jordan River, God held back the
water so that they might cross.
The water, however, did not stop flowing until the priests carrying the
Ark of the Covenant stepped into the water (as
soon as the priests who carry the ark of the Lord – the Lord of all the earth –
set foot in the Jordan, its waters flowing downstream will be cut off and stand
up in a heap – Joshua 3:13).
It is important to note that the water did not stop flowing until the
feet of the priests stepped into the river. I wonder what it was like for the priests as they considered
that step into the water. Did they
have any doubt and did they worry about what might happen when their feet
touched the water? Taking that
literal step of faith can be both difficult and frightening, but their faith
was rewarded by God’s promise. One
of the foundational lessons of faith is that we must take the step that is
based upon a promise of what has yet to be seen. We are stepping into the unknown, and as we lift our foot to
take that step we are placing our trust in the promise of God that when our
foot comes down he will keep his promise.
Faith is questioned with
increasing veracity in today’s world.
Skeptics have drawn a line in the sand that claims any doubt is evidence
of faith’s weakness and doubts triumph.
This is, simply put, not at all true. The healthiest faith is one that can exist with doubt. A mature faith is one that is not
afraid of questions and uncertainties, but is able to live simultaneously with
them. It is a sign of strength,
not weakness, to question and even to doubt. Many of the great Biblical characters, and many of the most
important characters of church history had their share of doubts and questions,
and those doubts and questions led not to a weaker faith, but to a faith that
was much stronger.
One of the reasons we look to the past is to be reminded of the
faithfulness of God in the past, and from that affirmation comes the promise of
his faithfulness in the present and the future.
At our Scripture text takes place around water, I’ll share with you
a story about an encounter of mine with water. When I was younger I really liked to play hockey (I know I
don’t look like a hockey player – I’ve got my front teeth). In the West Virginia winters we had
plenty of frozen pond and lakes on which to play hockey, and one of our
favorite places was just off of Cross Creek, which flowed into the Ohio River. Just before Cross Creek connected with
the Ohio River there was a several acre area of water that was perfect for
hockey, not only because it was so large, but also because it was only about
three or four feet deep.
There are two very important rules about ice skating, if you are
skating outside. First, never skate
over moving water. Some of my
friends would skate on frozen creeks, which I always avoided. If the ice breaks and you go under, the
current of the water will carry you quickly away from the hole in the ice and
tragedy is certain. But an even
more important rule is this – never skate alone.
One day my friend Steve and I arrived at the location on Cross Creek
a while before anyone else. We
decided to get there early and warm up for a game of hockey that afternoon. As we hit the puck back and forth, it
eventually slid to a section of the ice we knew was thin. I decided that I would skate over that
ice and retrieve the puck, thinking that if I had enough speed and momentum I
could glide across the ice without any danger of falling through into the water
below.
It was only a few degrees above zero that day. Bitter cold weather is certainly not a
good time to skate across thin ice, and as I glided across the ice my momentum
began to fade and I could hear the ice beginning to crack below my skates. When I pushed with one foot to try and
increase my speed, the ice gave way and I fell into the frigid water. Thankfully, the depth of the water was
not above my head – it was about four feet deep – but my momentum carried me
forward and I plunged completely below the water. I can still remember the feeling of that frigid water. It was so cold it literally hurt. The water temperature, coupled with the
air temperature, took my breath away and quickly sapped my strength. As I tried to climb back on top of the ice
it continued to break beneath my weight, and each time it broke I would plunge
underneath the frigid water. I
don’t know how many times the ice broke beneath my weight, but I remember how
quickly I was exhausted by trying to get out of the water and how rapidly I
developed a sense of resignation about my ability to escape that frigid
water. Thankfully, I wasn’t
alone. Steve was able to get a
piece of rope from the car, slide it across the ice, and pull me to
safety. What if I had been
alone? It could have been
disastrous.
Steve and I haven’t seen each other in a lot of years, but I keep up
with him through my mom. It’s sad
to me that some people are in our lives for just a period of time – sometimes a
very short period of time – but they occupy an important place in our lives,
nonetheless. Steve, and many
others, have been very important in my life, even if for just a time.
Remember the people with whom God has graced your life. The people with whom we walk through
life are profoundly important to us, and that certainly includes the people in
this congregation. Look around
you, at the people seated near you, the people God has placed in your path;
look around at this church, a place where your children and grandchildren are
loved and taught, where they are baptized and buried; look around at the place
where are loved ones are bid their earthly farewell. Sometimes, this can be treated as just another commodity,
just another service, as we ask what’s it
going to do for me, or to be a part of such a body in times only of
convenience and agreement.
God has created us to live in relationships, and we need those
relationships to get through life.
Life can be very difficult, and our relationships carry us through life,
as God gifts us with people who will celebrate with us and mourn with us.
From my vantage point as a minister I am very aware of this truth –
there is a lot of grief occupying people’s lives. And I don’t mean to limit grief only to the loss of loved
ones, but grief encompasses all manner of difficulty. In fact, you don’t have to scratch very deeply into anyone’s
life before you find grief that is ready to pour out. If that grief is not managed in a constructive way it will
come out in destructive ways. I
truly believe that one of the greatest gifts given to us by God are the people
with whom we are in a relationship, as they help us to carry burdens, celebrate
our joys, and will walk with us through our difficulties.
Imagine when the Hebrew people crossed the
Jordan River that day, and as they piled those stones one on top of the other,
how they must have thought about the journey they had managed because of their
faith in God, and also because of the strength that came from their
relationships.
What do
these stones mean? They mean
that we must remember these gifts of God.
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