Stones from the Jordan River

Welcome to the Eat This Bread Drink This Cup podcast. The communion meditation today is based on a passage of Scripture from the Old Testament, Joshua 4: 1-8. All Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation (NLT) and are used with permission

My hope is that you will be encouraged from this time with Jesus. You are a special person; the one Jesus died to save!

Transcript

Welcome to Eat This Bread Drink This Cup. The title of my communion meditation today is "Stones from the Jordan River." I read from Joshua 4: 1-8. All quotations are from the New Living Translation and are used with permission.

1 When all the people had crossed the Jordan, the LORD said to Joshua, 2 “Now choose twelve men, one from each tribe. 3 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.’”

4 So Joshua called together the twelve men he had chosen—one from each of the tribes of Israel. 5 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. 6 We will use these stones to build a memorial. In the future your children will ask you, ‘What do these stones mean?’ 7 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.”

8 So the men did as Joshua had commanded them. They took twelve stones from the middle of the Jordan River, one for each tribe, just as the LORD had told Joshua. They carried them to the place where they camped for the night and constructed the memorial there.

Once again, we see God at work; no obstacle is too great for Him. This time He parts the Jordan River so the Israelites could cross over on dry land. The miracle was very practical as the Scriptures tell us “It was the harvest season, and the Jordan was overflowing its banks." The Lord instructs Joshua to send one man from each of the 12 tribes to pick up a stone from the place where the priests and the Ark of the Covenant were standing in the middle of the Jordan River. The men then carried the stones on their shoulders and built a memorial on the west side of the Jordan River. While the Israelites present at the crossing would remember the event, the memorial stones were for future generations to learn about how God parted the Jordan River for the Ark of the Covenant to pass. How would future generations of Israelites find and view these stones? I am glad you asked! Israelites going to and from Jerusalem would routinely take the Jericho Road to Jericho and then cross the Jordan River to take the eastern route to Galilee and its regions. They would pass the stones along the way and be given the opportunity to tell the story behind the stones to their children! The perfect object lesson! By now, you know where I am going with this meditation. The bread in the plate and juice in the cup always arouses intense curiosity among children, and it provides a perfect opportunity for us to reflect on the story as we relate it to our children and others. Yet another perfect object lesson! As we partake of the bread and drink from the cup, we remember Jesus' suffering on the cross, the cost He paid that we might have forgiveness of our sins and eternal life in heaven with Him. Let us pray.

Abba, Father. Today we bless and set aside this bread and the fruit of the vine in this cup to remember Your Son, Jesus. We know that the bread represents His body that was nailed to the cross, and the fruit of the vine represents His blood that He shed for us. As we pour out the wine from the cup, we are reminded of how Jesus poured out His own blood that our sins might be forgiven. Abba, Father, I am thrilled when I read these powerful stories in the Old Testament. I am likewise endeared, Abba, Father, that it was Your idea for the Israelites to retrieve the stones and create a memorial to help families recall Your great works. In Your wisdom, Your Son did the same thing when He set aside the bread and the cup to help remember the price You paid for the forgiveness of our sins. In the name of Jesus, I pray. Amen.

Today, Jesus invites you to partake of His supper. I read from Matthew 26: 26-28 (NLT).

26 As they were eating, Jesus took some bread and blessed it. Then he broke it in pieces and gave it to the disciples, saying, “Take this and eat it, for this is my body.” Let us partake of the bread.

27 And he took a cup of wine and gave thanks to God for it. He gave it to them and said, “Each of you drink from it, 28 for this is my blood, which confirms the covenant between God and his people. It is poured out as a sacrifice to forgive the sins of many." Let us partake of the cup.

And the assembly of believers said, "Amen!"

Until next time, from Numbers 6: 24-26, "May the LORD bless you and protect you. May the LORD smile on you and be gracious to you. May the LORD show you his favor and give you his peace."

Artist's Note: If you have questions about the Lord's Supper, I invite you to visit my website, https://eatthisbreaddrinkthiscup.com, for a brief overview. The Eat This Bread Drink This Cup podcast is listed in most podcast directories, and I invite you to add my podcast to your favorites and be notified of new posts. There is a written transcript that accompanies each podcast, and you are free to use the transcript in accordance with US copyright law. My prayer is that you will benefit personally from this time with Jesus and encourage others to observe the Lord's Supper. In these trying times, we need to keep our eyes on Jesus!