ALPHA MAAMA (A.M.)

 Falaite Sepitema 24, 2021

For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you

He na‘e fakamātu‘u ‘e Sihova ko homou ‘Otua ‘a e vai ‘o Soatani ‘i homou ‘ao

Siosiua 4 (Joshua 4)

(v. 21-24) Pea ne lea ki ha‘a ‘Isileli, ‘o pehē, Ka ‘eke ‘e ho‘omou fānau ‘amui ki he‘enau ngaahi tamai, ‘o pehē, Ko e hā ‘a e ngaahi maka ni? Pea te mou fakahinohino ho‘omou fānau, ‘o pehē, Na‘e a‘a mātu‘u pē ‘a ‘Isileli ‘i he Soatani ko ē. He na‘e fakamātu‘u ‘e Sihova ko homou ‘Otua ‘a e vai ‘o Soatani ‘i homou ‘ao, kae‘oua ke ‘osi ho‘omou laka mai, ‘o hangē ko ia na‘e fai ‘e Sihova ko homou ‘Otua ki he Tahi Kulokula, ‘a ia na‘a ne fakamātu‘u ‘i homau ‘ao, kae‘oua ke ‘osi ‘emau a‘a atu. Koe‘uhiā ke ‘ilo ‘e he ngaahi kakai fua pē ‘o māmani, ko e nima ‘o Sihova ko e nima mālohi ia; ka mou ‘apasia ki homou ‘Otua, ‘o lauikuonga.

(v. 21-24) And he said to the people of Israel, “When your children ask their fathers in times to come, ‘What do these stones mean?’ then you shall let your children know, ‘Israel passed over this Jordan on dry ground.’ For the Lord your God dried up the waters of the Jordan for you until you passed over, as the Lord your God did to the Red Sea, which he dried up for us until we passed over, so that all the peoples of the earth may know that the hand of the Lord is mighty, that you may fear the Lord your God forever.”

David Guzik :: Study Guide for Joshua 4

What are these stones?  There was obviously a purpose in the memorial stones for the people of Israel themselves.  It is so easy for us to forget the great miracles God has performed on our behalf.

We don't remember the past great works of God so that we can live in a dreamland of the past, thinking that the best days of our Christian experience are behind us.  We remember them as a point of faith, so we can trust God for greater and greater works in the future, because we have seen and experienced His past faithfulness.

Then you shall let your children know: There was an important purpose for their children, so they would have a point of contact with God's work in the past, and remember that God's work did not begin with them and their time.

That all the peoples of the earth may know the hand of the LORD: There was also a purpose for the world, so they would know that there is a God in heaven who can work miracles, a God they should seek with all their heart.