Don't Forget to Remember

Now we will hear the reading of Joshua chapters 3 and 4 from my wife Rachel.

Joshua 3 · chapter mention

Our reading is from Joshua chapters 3 and 4.

Joshua 3 · chapter mention

Early in the morning, Joshua and all the Israelites set out from Shittim and went to the Jordan, where they camped before crossing over.

After three days, the officers went throughout the camp, giving orders to the people.

When you see the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord your God and the Levitical priests carrying it, you are to move out from your positions and follow it.

Then you will know which way to go, since you have never been this way before.

But keep a distance of about 2,000 cubits between you and the Ark. Do not go near it.

Joshua told the people,

Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.

Joshua said to the priests,

Take up the Ark of the Covenant and pass on ahead of the people.

So they took it up and went ahead of them.

And the Lord said to Joshua,

Today I will begin to exalt you in the eyes of all Israel,

So that they may know that I am with you as I was with Moses.

Tell the priests who carry the Ark of the Covenant,

When you reach the edge of the Jordan's waters,

Go and stand in the river.

Joshua said to the Israelites,

Come here and listen to the words of the Lord your God.

This is how you will know that the living God is among you,

And that he will certainly drive out before you the Canaanites,

Hittites,

Hivites,

Perizzites,

Girgashites,

Amorites,

and Jebusites.

See,

the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord of all the earth will go into the Jordan ahead of you.

Now then,

Choose twelve men from the tribes of Israel,

One from each tribe.

And 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.

So when the people broke camp to cross the Jordan,

The priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant went ahead of them.

Now the Jordan is in flood all during harvest.

Yet as soon as the priests who carried the Ark reached the Jordan,

And their feet touched the water's edge,

The waters from upstream stopped flowing.

It piled up in a heap a great distance away,

At a town called Adam,

In the vicinity of Zarethon,

While the water flowing down to the sea of the Ereba,

That is the Dead Sea,

Was completely cut off.

So the people crossed over opposite Jericho.

The priests who carried the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord

Stopped in the middle of the Jordan,

And stood on dry ground,

While all Israel passed by,

Until the whole nation had completed the crossing on dry ground.

When the whole nation had finished crossing the Jordan,

The Lord said to Joshua,

Choose twelve men from among the people,

One from each tribe,

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.

So Joshua called together the twelve men he had appointed from the Israelites,

One from each tribe,

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,

To serve as a sign among you.

In the future,

When your children ask you,

What do these stones mean?

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.

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.

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.

Now the priests who carried the Ark

Remained standing in the middle of the Jordan

Until everything the Lord had commanded Joshua

Was done by the people,

Just as Moses had directed Joshua.

The people hurried over,

And as soon as all of them had crossed,

The Ark of the Lord and the priests came to the other side

While the people watched.

The men of Reuben, Gad,

And the half-tribe of Manasseh

Crossed over,

Ready for battle,

In front of the Israelites,

As Moses had directed them.

About forty thousand,

Armed for battle,

Crossed over before the Lord

To the plains of Jericho for war.

That day the Lord exalted Joshua

In the sight of all Israel,

And they stood in awe of him

All the days of his life,

Just as they had stood in awe of Moses.

Then the Lord said to Joshua,

Command the priests carrying the Ark of the Covenant law

To come up out of the Jordan.

So Joshua commanded the priests,

Come up out of the Jordan.

And the priests came up out of the river,

Carrying the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord.

No sooner had they set their feet on the dry ground

Than the waters of the Jordan returned to their place

And ran in flood as before.

On the tenth day of the first month,

The people went up from the Jordan

And camped at Gilgal

On the eastern border of Jericho.

And Joshua set up at Gilgal

The twelve stones they had taken out of the Jordan.

He said to the Israelites,

In the future,

When your descendants ask their parents,

What do these stones mean?

Tell them,

Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground.

For the Lord your God dried up the Jordan

Before you until you had crossed over.

The Lord your God did to the Jordan

What he had done to the Red Sea

When he dried it up before us

Until we had crossed over.

He did this

So that all the peoples of the earth

Might know

That the hand of the Lord is powerful

And so that you

So that you might always fear the Lord your God.

This is the word of the Lord.

Do any of you have something

That has special meaning to you

Because of a story behind it?

It might remind you of a certain time

Or person or place.

Maybe it's a souvenir.

Maybe it's a gift someone's given you in the past.

Perhaps it's a family heirloom

That's been passed down to you

From generation to generation.

I have one of those things

I actually brought it

To Scotland with me from the States

It's actually just a brick

And though it's not particularly attractive

It has significant meaning to me

Because it actually comes from

My home church

In Greenville, South Carolina

And if you were to come to my house

And see this brick

Sitting on a shelf

And ask me what it's about

I would tell you

The story behind this brick

I'd tell you the story of my home church

My church in the States

Was downtown Presbyterian Church

It was founded in 2005

When several local families

Felt the Lord's calling

To love and serve downtown

By planting a church there

For the first several years

That it met

The church didn't have a building

And we were eventually able

To purchase an old auto body shop

Which served as our church building

For a number of years

But we eventually outgrew

The size of that building

And rather than trying to renovate

We realized it was going to be

Cheaper and easier

Just to demolish the building

And build a new one

And so these bricks

Were collected after the demolition

And were given to church members

Primarily to remind us

Of God's faithfulness

How he uses flawed people

Who didn't know what they were doing

To plant a new church

And to symbolize

How God had blessed the church

By growing us in numbers

By allowing us to be a light

In the city

By allowing us to even

Plant other churches

And so when I look at this brick

As it sits on my shelf at home

I am reminded of God's goodness

And his faithfulness to me

And to my church family

In Greenville

And so as we look at our passage tonight

And we see the people

As they crossed into the promised land

Through the Jordan River

We see emphasized God's faithfulness

And his desire for his people

To remember his faithfulness

And we see that God gives them a memorial

After they complete their crossing

So those are the two things

I actually want to focus on tonight

Is the miracle

And the memorial

The miracle of God performing

That God performed by parting

The Jordan River

For the Israelites

To walk on dry ground

And that memorial

That God instructed them

To build from rocks

Gathered from the dry riverbed

So let's first look at that miracle

Now we heard from the last couple weeks

From James as he preached

That the book of Joshua

Joshua starts with God's commissioning

Of Joshua

Moses who had led the Israelites

Out of Egypt

And through the wilderness

For 40 years

Has died

And now it's Joshua

Who would lead them

Into the promised land

The land of Canaan

And so as we read in chapter 1

Joshua gave a notice

Throughout the camp

That they would be crossing the river

In three days

Joshua had sent spies to Jericho

They had made contact with Rahab

And they had returned

With a good report

That the Lord

Had truly given them

Or was going to give them

The land

All the lands of Canaan

Into their hands

And so now it was go time

After 40 years

Of wandering in the wilderness

God's promise

Was about to be fulfilled

So you can imagine

Their excitement

And their anticipation

Maybe you've experienced

These same emotions

In thinking about our family

We actually went on a trip

To Disney World last year

And it was a gift

That was given to the kids

At Christmas time

Although we didn't actually go

Until mid-February

And so we had two months

Of this building excitement

And anticipation

It was every day

The kids would ask

You know

How many more days

Till we leave

When can we pack our bags

And that day finally arrived

And we boarded our plane

And flew to Orlando

And we drove under that archway

When you get on Disney property

That says welcome

To Walt Disney World

And the kids were ecstatic

So you think

How much more

Were the Israelites

How much more

Would they have been excited

About this prospect

They weren't merely going

On a holiday

They were moving

Into the land of milk and honey

That had been promised to them

They were no longer

Going to be living as nobads

They would live in a house

In a city

They would have farmland

Where they could raise

Their families

The time had finally arrived

And so we see

How Joshua commands them

To get ready

But it's not

With instructions

That you might think of

As we would think of

When we prepare

To go on a trip

He didn't tell them

To pack their tents

Or fashion any sort of raft

To cross the river

He told the people

To consecrate themselves

And this was actually

The same instruction

That God gave

The people of Israel

At Mount Sinai

Before Moses received

The Ten Commandments

It would have actually

Involved the people

Washing their clothes

Abstaining from sexual relations

It was intended

To help prepare them

Spiritually

God wanted them

To be focused

And clear minded

He wanted to remove

All distraction

So that they could

Fully appreciate

The amazing things

The Lord

Was about to accomplish

And so we

Similarly we do

This ourselves

When we prepare

For worship

Each morning

And each evening

During our worship

Time together

We did it today

Where we read

A passage

Perhaps it's

A responsive reading

And it's intended

To prepare us

To experience

The goodness

And the greatness

Of God

It's intended

To help us

Put aside

Any distraction

That we can

Settle our hearts

And focus our minds

In order that

We can be sincere

In our worship

And we have

The same struggle

When we think

Of serving the Lord

Too right

How often do we say

We are doing

The Lord's work

But we end up

Relying on our own

Planning and our

Own execution

We may give

God lip service

Or pray occasionally

But our focus

May remain on

Ourselves and

Our own ability

We may have

The best of intentions

But how often

Do we really pause

To acknowledge

Our need for God

That it is God

Who must work

In us

And through us

To accomplish

His purpose

And so that's the reason

Why God paused

And had them

Consecrate themselves

Prior to telling him

Of his plan

And so we see

After they

Consecrate themselves

God reveals

How he is going

To bring them

Into the promised land

He has devised

A plan

Where there will be

No mistaking

By the people

Of Israel

Or the people

Of the land of Canaan

The power

And the presence

Of God

And so we read

That in chapter 3

Verses 9 through 13

I'm going to read

Them again for us

Joshua said

To the Israelites

Come here

And listen to the word

Of the Lord your God

This is how you will know

That the living God

Is among you

And that he will

Certainly drive

Out before you

The Canaanites

Hittites

Hivites

Perizzites

Girgashites

Amorites

And Jebusites

See the ark

Of the covenant

Of the Lord

Of all the earth

Will go on

Into the Jordan

Ahead of you

Now then

Choose twelve men

From the tribes

Of Israel

One from each tribe

And 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

We see that God

Just like God

Parted the Red Sea

For the people

As they were escaping

The Egyptians

Who were pursuing them

God was going to do

The same thing here

He was going to

Part the waters

Of the Jordan

For his people

To enter

The land of Canaan

And so what's even

More impressive about

Though

This is what is noted

In verse 15

That the Jordan

Jordan River

Was overflowing

At that time

Because it was

The time

Of harvest

And so this crossing

Would have actually

Occurred in the springtime

Possibly

March or April

And due to

The spring showers

The melting snow

From the north

This would have

Turned the Jordan

Into this raging river

Typically the Jordan

River was probably

About a hundred feet

Wide in most places

But in this case

During flood season

It could have been

As much as

A mile wide

And the water

Spilling out

Across the plain

Of Jordan

There's certainly

No one who

Would have expected

A person

Much less

A whole nation

Of people

To cross the river

At this location

And at this time

Of year

So God is making

Abundantly clear

That it is He

Who is asserting

His power

Over creation

But it's not only

God's power

That's emphasized

In this passage

It's actually

His presence

The main focus

Of this narrative

If you look closely

Is actually

The Ark of the Covenant

As we know

The Ark

Was created

To be a symbol

Of God's presence

Among his people

And we see

Repeatedly

That each time

That God

Or Joshua

Gives instruction

To the people

It involves

The Ark of the Covenant

It's the Ark

That's carried

By the priests

That pass on

Ahead of the people

It's the Ark

That's carried

To the river's edge

Causing the waters

To stand up

In a heap

It's the Ark

That remains

On dry ground

In the middle

Of the river

As the people

Pass through

And it's the Ark

That's carried

Out of the river

On the opposite side

Of the Jordan

Causing the waters

To return

To their flood stage

As before

God is clearly

Showing that

He is with

His people

And that He

Is solely

Responsible

For this miracle

And so

It's worth asking

Why did God

Choose to act

In this way

What was the purpose

Of this miracle

I mean

God certainly

Could have had

His people

Travel further north

Where it would have

Been easier

To cross

The Jordan River

He could have

Just simply

Waited a couple

Months

Until the flood

Season had ended

I mean

They've been traveling

Around the wilderness

And wandering

For 40 years

What difference

Would a couple

Months make

At that point

Right

But God

Chose to do

The impossible

By stopping

A raging river

For an entire

Nation to cross

On Jai ground

And we see

The reason

That God

Gives for this

At the very

End of chapter

4

In chapter 4

Verse 24

It says this

He did this

He did this

Speaking of God

That all the

People of the

Earth might know

That the hand

Of the Lord

Is powerful

And so that you

Might always

Fear the Lord

Your God

God wants

His greatness

To be known

By all

And he craves

The loyalty

Of his people

As this passage

Says

And so what

Better way

Of doing that

Than by exposing

The helpless

Condition of those

Who saves

God's power

And his presence

Is always most evident

When we are

At our weakest

And maybe you've

Experienced that

Yourself

Just like the

Israelites

Where God

Has put us

Put you

Into an

Impossible

Feeling situation

Where the

Circumstance

Around you

Make you feel

Like the outcome

Is so bleak

That you are

Without hope

You know

Maybe a family

Member

Has passed away

Maybe you've

Experienced a

Cancer diagnosis

Or you have

A rebellious

Child

Perhaps a

Horrible boss

In a dead

End job

Or some

Sort of

Financial

Hardship

Maybe it's

The isolation

And loneliness

That you're

Experiencing

During this

Lockdown

That doesn't

Ever seem

To have

An end

In these

Hard times

It's important

That we

Recognize

That God

May bring

About these

Difficult

Situations

For the

Intended

Purpose

Of revealing

Our limitations

To reveal

To us

That our

Deliverance

Only comes

Through the

Power

And the

Presence

Of the

Lord

And when

We recognize

This it's

Important

God notes

That it's

Not just

His people

That recognize

This but

It's something

That is to

Be recognized

By all

The people

Of the

World

The revelation

Of God's

Might and

Glory is

Missional

In nature

It draws

The attention

Of the

Unbelieving

World

When the

Unbelieving

World sees

God work

In us

And through

Us

Despite

Our

Impossible

Situations

Around us

It compels

Them

It compels

Those who

Have rebelled

Against God

To turn

And embrace

Him

And to be

Saved

And further

God says

In this

Reasoning

Here

That when

We acknowledge

His power

And his

Presence

We will be

Compelled

To fear

Him

This means

That we

Want to

Give him

Our whole

Hearted

Loyalty

When we

See his

Goodness

And greatness

We desire

To be

Drawn

Closer

To him

Because we

Recognize

That it's

He alone

Who's

Worthy

Of our

Praise

And our

Worship

And so

That's why

God

Performed

This miracle

In this

Way

This is

Why God

Continues

To intervene

In our

Lives

Today

That he

May reveal

His power

And that

He may

Attract

The loyalty

Of his

People

And so

If that's

Why God

Performed

The miracle

Then let's

Consider this

Memorial

That he

Creates

Instructs

The Israelites

To assemble

After this

Miracle

Is performed

Hope

You know

We've

My family

Has been

In Edinburgh

For over

Four months

Now

And though

There hasn't

Been a lot

We can do

With everything

Closed down

One of the

Things we've

Really enjoyed

Doing is

Is going

On walks

Where we

Have been

Able to

See a

Number of

Monuments

And memorials

It's truly

One of the

Things that

Makes Edinburgh

So distinct

And especially

For myself

And my

Family

That's

Americans

We come

From a

Country that

Doesn't have

This long

Of a history

To come

Here and

See such a

Rich history

Is such a

Neat thing

For us

Where we

See these

Monuments

Or memorials

That are

Constructed

For poets

Or theologians

Or politicians

For war heroes

Whatever it may

Be

They really

All serve

The same

Purpose

To preserve

And to

Promote

The memory

Of a person

Or an event

And so that's

What God

Instructs Joshua

To do here

After the

People of

Israel had

Passed through

The river

Onto dry

Ground

Joshua

Instructs

The leaders

From each

Tribe

To take

A rock

From the

Riverbed

To form

This

Memorial

And so we

See it

If we look

In Joshua

Joshua 4:5–7

4

Verses

5

Through 7

It says

This

Go over

Before the

Ark of

The ark

Before the

Ark of the

Lord

Into the

Jordan

To serve

To serve

As a sign

Among you

In the future

When your

Children ask you

What do these

Stones mean

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

So we see

That even

Though God

Had just

Revealed

His power

To his

People

By this

Miracle

He

Recognizes

Our

Tendency

To forget

In fact

Back in

Deuteronomy

He warned

The Israelites

While they were

Still in the

Wilderness

Not to

Forget

In Deuteronomy

6

10-12

He says

This

When the

Lord your

God

Brings you

Into the

Land

He swore

To your

Fathers

To Abraham

And Isaac

And Jacob

To give

You

A land

With large

Flourishing

Cities

You did

Not build

Houses

Filled

With all

Kinds

Of goods

That you

Did not

Provide

Wells

You did

Not dig

And vineyards

And olive

Grows

You did

Not plant

Then

When you

Eat

And are

Satisfied

Be careful

That you

Do not

Forget the

Lord

Who brought

You out

Of Egypt

Out of

The land

Of slavery

In fact

God goes

Even further

Than giving

This warning

Because a

Few chapters

Later

Chapter 34

Of the

Book of

Deuteronomy

God actually

Predicts

That his

People

When they

Experience this

Wealth and

This comfort

In this

Promised land

They will

Rebel

And they

Will break

His covenant

And so I

Imagine when the

Israelites heard

This news

When they

Were told

That they

Would rebel

In the future

That they

Might find it

Unimaginable

Right?

Even if they

Admit they

Kind of grumbled

A lot in

The wilderness

Because they

Just didn't

Have any

Shelter

Any permanent

Place to

Live

They were

Eating the

Same food

Every day

They would

Have thought

Hey you

Get us to

The promised

Land and

We are going

To be so

Thankful

There's no

Way we are

Going to

Forget your

Goodness and

Your faithfulness

But God

Obviously knew

Them and he

Knows us

Better than

We know

Ourselves

And he

Knows that

One of the

Greatest

Enemies to

Our faith

Is our

Forgetfulness

Some have

Described it

As spiritual

Amnesia

We see

This cycle

Repeated by

The nation

Of Israel

We see it

Repeated in

Our own

Lives

That God

Provides

For us

He proves

His faithfulness

To us

And we

In turn

Show our

Gratitude

And our

Praise

But as

Time passes

We lose

Focus

We face

And when we

Come to face

New challenges

Or difficulties

Then we

Grow to

Worry again

And we

Grow anxious

And we

Completely

Forget about

How God

Has cared

For us

And has

Provided for

Us in the

Past

So God

Gives his

People

This sign

To remember

His faithfulness

And the

Importance of

The sign

Is twofold

Not only

Does it

Point

Backward

At the

Miracle

That God

Performed

It also

Is intended

To point

Forward

You know

You may

Know people

Who love

To reminisce

About old

Memories

They always

Talk about

The good

Old days

Right

But the

Criticism

That they

Often receive

Is that

They are

Living in

The past

But by

Instructing

His people

To build

This memorial

Of stone

God

Is not

Wanting his

People

Simply

To live

In the

Past

These stones

Are meant

To signify

A much

Greater

Reality

They reveal

God's

Character

As a

Covenant

Keeping

God

He is

Telling them

That

I

As I

Was faithful

To you

In the

Past

I am

Faithful

To you

Now

And I

Will be

Faithful

To you

In the

Future

And that's

The good

News that

We see

Throughout

The scriptures

Right

That God

Always

Remains

Faithful

To his

People

And so

Just as

That memorial

Served as

A sign

To the

People

Of Israel

God

Has given

Us signs

As well

That we

Use today

One of

Those signs

Is the

Lord's

Supper

When we

Take communion

Together

And although

We haven't

Been able

To participate

In this

Sign for a

While due

To COVID

It's important

For us to

Remember the

Sacrifice

Of Jesus

That when

We break

Bread

And drink

From the

Cup

We are

Remembering

How the

Body of

Jesus

Was broken

How his

Blood

Was shed

On the

Cross

So that

We can

Be rescued

From the

Punishment

Of our

Sins

And be

Presented

Pure and

Holy

Before God

The Father

By sending

His son

Jesus

God

Was actually

Fulfilling a

Covenant

That he

Made to

Abraham

Long ago

Abraham

As you know

Was considered

The father

Of the nation

Of Israel

And a

Part of

That same

Covenant

Is what

God

Fulfilled

Through

Joshua

Here

God

Had also

Promised

To give

Abraham's

Descendants

The land

Of Canaan

And so

It's worth

Noting

This parallelism

That we

See between

God's

Parting

The Jordan

And God's

Providing

Jesus

And we

See this

Specifically

In the

Person

Of Joshua

As I

Mentioned

It's Joshua

Who is

Now

The leader

Of the

Israelites

Who is

Leading them

Into the

Promised Land

And we

See what

God

Says to

Joshua

Specifically

In chapter

Three

Verse

Seven

He says

This

Today

I will

Begin

To

Exalt

You

In the

Eyes

Of

All

Israel

So

That

They

May

Know

That

I

Am

With

You

As

I

Was

With

Moses

Joshua

Had

Proved

Himself

To be

A

Faithful

Servant

And God

Said

That

Through

His

Presence

He

Was

Going

To

Make

Him

A

Great

Leader

Now

I

Think

It's

Interesting

To

Note

The

Name

Joshua

Means

God

Saves

And

If you

Remember

From our

Advent

Series

Last

Month

It's

The

Same

Name

That

Was

Given

To

The

Child

Born

Of

The

Virgin

Mary

Jesus

Yeshua

God

Saves

And

So

In

The

Same

Way

That

God

Exalted

Joshua

He

Also

Exalts

His

Son

Jesus

We

Read

This

In

Philippians

2

9

11

Therefore

God

Exalted

Him

To

The

Highest

Place

And

Gave

Him

The

Name

That

Is

Above

Every

Name

That

At

The

Name

Of

Jesus

Every

Knee

Should

Bow

In

Heaven

And

On

Earth

And

Under

The

Earth

And

Every

Tongue

Acknowledged

That

Jesus

Christ

Is

Lord

To

The

Glory

Of

God

The

Father

Yoon

This

People

Man

Goes

Everyone

Where

了

Hindus

their river by themselves. And we see Jesus who comes to save us in our helpless, hopeless

condition and bring us into relationship with God. And we see instead of building a memorial of stones,

Jesus is called the one who performed signs and miracles. He himself is our sign. In fact,

the New Testament, Jesus is referred to as the living stone. In 1 Peter 2, 4-8, it says this,

As you come to him, the living stone, rejected by humans but chosen by God and precious to him,

you also, like living stones, are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood,

offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. For in the scriptures it says,

See, I lay a stone in Zion, a chosen and precious cornerstone, and the one who trusts in him will

never be put to shame. Jesus is our living stone, and as our living stone, he is the foundation of

our faith. He is the embodiment of God's faithfulness to us. And the neat thing about this passage, not only

is he is he the living stone, but it says that those who trust in him are also like living stones.

We, the church, are his temple. We are considered the Lord's holy priesthood.

And so just like the priests who carried the Ark of the Covenant across the Jordan, we ourselves

carry the Holy Spirit who indwells us.

And so if you are discouraged and if you are in need of reminding of God's faithfulness,

we can look to Christ as our sign. We can look to Christ as our rock and our salvation. We can remember

that once we were rebels against God, but now have been made children of God. We can be encouraged by

the Holy Spirit who lives within us. There is a YouTube video that I really love. It may be one

that you've seen before. It's a number of years old. It's a recording of an old lady who's lying in bed,

and she has Alzheimer's. And her adult daughter is lying next to her in bed. And the daughter says to

her mother, I love you, mama. And the mother says, I love you too. The daughter asks, but mama,

you don't know who I am, do you? And this old lady who had, because of her Alzheimer's disease,

had previously forgotten who her daughter was. During this video, she has that light bulb moment.

And she responds, yes, you're Kelly. And the daughter is just visibly shocked. And she says,

yes, mama. And the mother continues, and I named you Kelly. And I love you, Kelly.

The daughter smiles and replies, I love you too, mama. And the clip ends with the mother saying,

she says, oh, isn't it wonderful?

Isn't it wonderful for us? Isn't it wonderful when we remember the faithfulness of God?

Isn't it wonderful to remember how he loves us and how he has saved us and how he continues to care for

us? But the reality is, just like that old lady who likely forgot her daughter again,

we don't always remember. Just like the people of Israel, even with signs and memorials,

we too are prone to forget the faithfulness of God. But we can take comfort in this because

our salvation is not based on our memory. Our salvation comes through the power of a covenant

keeping God who never forgets. Our salvation is achieved by his son who promised to never leave us

or forsake us. Psalms 105.8 says this, that God remembers his covenant forever.

The word he commanded for a thousand generations. And so if you are in Christ, you can take comfort in

the security of your salvation. And you can have faith. You can rejoice in the faith that is given to us

through Christ.

If you are not a believer, I pray that you will recognize the power and the presence of God, that

you will recognize the hopelessness of your condition, that you cannot save yourself. But it's Jesus who

comes to us, who offers us life, who offers to carry us into relationship with God through faith.

And so as we close, I want to actually leave you with some lyrics from a song that our family

really loves. It's actually a kid's album put out by a musical artist, Ellie Holcomb. And it's just a

whole album that overflows with wonderful gospel truths. I'd recommend it to anyone who has kids and

even those who don't. And the song is entitled, Don't Forget to Remember. And though the lyrics are

simple, its message is powerful. And the chorus goes like this,

Don't forget to remember you're never alone, no matter if you are up high or down low. And as sure

as the sun will keep rising above, don't forget to remember that you are dearly loved.

The song ends like this,

Let the whole earth remind you of what God has said, from the moment you wake up till you go to bed.

Oh, and even on days you forget what is true. Don't forget to remember that God won't forget you.

You pray with me.