Crying Stones?

Luke 19 records the story of Jesus’s triumphal entry.  As Jesus rode on a donkey into Jerusalem, people placed their coats on the ground and shouted praises to God:  “Blessed is the king who comes in the name of the Lord!” and “Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!”  But some Pharisees told Jesus, “Teacher, rebuke your disciples!”

This was Jesus’ response (verse 40):  “I tell you,” he replied, “if they keep quiet, the stones will cry out.” 

The stones will cry out.

I always thought of this as another demonstration of Jesus’s power – that He could make inanimate stones sing His praises if He wanted. 

But last night I started thinking about the importance of stones to the nation of Israel, and I realized…if stones could speak…OH the stories they could tell.  For years, the nation of Israel had been using them as witnesses and reminders of who God is and what He had done.  Both the Old and New Testaments are full of stories about rocks and stones. 

What would the stones have to cry out about?

·       The Faithfulness of God

o   He keeps his covenant:

§  Pillar at Bethel:  After Jacob had a dream were God promised to be with him, Jacob placed a stone up as a pillar and called the place “Bethel” (Genesis 28:18-22).

o   He provides for His people:

§  Water from the Rock:  Moses struck the Rock and water came out for the people of Israel (Exodus 17)

o   He protects His people: 

§  Memorial of 12 Stones after Crossing the Jordan: After the nation of Israel crossed the Jordan, God told Joshua to have each tribe take a stone from the middle of the Jordan River.   “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.” (Joshua 4)

o   He guides His people:

§  The Tablets of the Testimony:  Moses was given 2 tables inscribed by the finger of God to take to the people of Israel.  When he came down from Mount Sinai, Moses found them worshiping a false god and threw the tablets down, breaking them into pieces at the bottom of the mountain (Exodus 31:18 , 32:15-19).  Moses carved another two tablets out of rock and God rewrote the law on them (Exodus 34).

§  Stones of the Law:  When the Israelites crossed into the promised land, they were to set up large stones and cover them in plaster.  They were then to write on them the words of the law and offer sacrifices there (Deuteronomy 27:1-8, fulfilled in Joshua 8).

o   He reveals Himself to those who seek Him:

§  Cleft of the Rock:  Moses asked to see God’s glory, so God put Moses in the cleft of the rock and covered him with His hand until He passed by (Exodus 33:22).

o   Even when His people are unfaithful, He remains faithful:

§  Witness Stone:  “On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people, and there at Shechem he drew up for them decrees and laws.  And Joshua recorded these things in the Book of the Law of God.  Then he took a large stone and set it up there under the oak near the holy place of the LORD.  ‘See!’ he said to all the people.  ‘This stone will be a witness against us.  It has heard all the words the LORD has said to us.  It will be a witness against you if you are untrue to your God” (Joshua 24:25-27).

§  At the Trial of Jesus…on the “Stone Pavement” (Gabbatha):  The same people who a week earlier shouted “Hosanna!” shouted “Crucify him!” at a place known as the Stone Pavement.  Pilate handed Jesus over to be crucified at their bidding when they claimed to have no king but Caesar.

·       The Compassion of God

o   Dropped stones:  A woman caught in adultery was about to be stoned.  Jesus’s words caused the stones held by her accusers to drop after he wrote in the dust and said:  “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her” (John 8) ….(***interesting note:  could the writing in the dust tie into Jeremiah 17:13?)

·       The Power of God

o   Over the earth

§  Earthquake and splitting rocks:  During Jesus’s death on the cross, the Earth shook & the rocks were split (Matthew 27:51).

o   Over animals

§  Sealed Stone covering the Lion’s den:  Daniel was sentenced to be thrown in the lion’s den and die for praying to the Lord.  A stone covered the entrance and sealed him in, but he was not harmed by the lions (Daniel 6).

o   Over humans

§  A stone called Ebenezer:  “Then Samuel took a stone and set it up between Mizpah and Shen. He named it Ebenezer, saying, ‘Thus far the LORD has helped us’” (I Samuel 7:12).

§  A shepherd, a sling and 5 smooth stones:  David kills Goliath with a sling and a stone (I Samuel 17).

§  The building of the wall of Jerusalem:  Pretty much the whole book of Nehemiah J

§  People who wanted to stone Jesus and couldn’t:  John 8:59, 10:31 

o   Over spiritual enemies

§  Elijah’s stone altar:  Elijah built an altar and the LORD consumed the sacrifice, wood, stones, soil and water in the trench, soundly defeating the false god, Baal (I Kings 18:16-39). 

§  Stone-cut demon-possessed man saved by Jesus:  Demon-possessed man “night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones” (Mark 5:5).  Jesus cast the demons out and healed the man.

o   Over Satan

§  Temptation of Jesus – Stones to Bread:  Satan tempted Jesus to turn stones into bread – but Jesus said, “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God” (Matthew 4, Luke 4).

o   Over Death

§  Stone over Lazarus’s tomb:  Jesus commanded them to take away the stone from Lazarus’s tomb and called him back from the dead!

Well…it sure looks like the stones would have had quite a few things to say if they had been given the ability to speak during the triumphal entry.  They could have spoken of God’s faithfulness, compassion, power, and might.  I didn’t even write all the stories down!  There are more!  But the greatest thing to praise God for didn’t happen until after the triumphal entry – and there is one large stone that was privy to that bit of history.

Matthew 28:2-7  “There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it.  His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow.  The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.  The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified.  He is not here; he has risen, just as he said.  Come and see the place where he lay.  Then go quickly and tell his disciples: ‘He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee.  There you will see him.’  Now I have told you.’”

I admit.  I’m jealous of that stone. :)  I would have loved to see Christ conquer death!

But I don’t have to be jealous of the fact that stones have witnessed so much of God’s power through time.  As much as the stones have witnessed of God’s faithfulness, compassion, power, and might throughout the ages – I have witnessed those very same things in my life. 

May Jesus never have to make inanimate objects sing His praises because we, the Church, are silent.

We have much more to be thankful for than stones.

Stars

“Silently one by one, in the infinite meadows of heaven,

Blossomed the lovely stars, the forget-me-nots of the angels…”

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

In these past few weeks, I have seen more clear nights than I can remember.  I have been struck with the beauty of the stars and the hope, comfort, and inspiration they bring. 

I’m not the only one who loves looking at the stars.  Scientists describe them, poets and song-writers celebrate them….astrologers even go so far as to worship them.  Isn’t it strange that looking at exploding masses of hydrogen and helium gives people hope? 

Not at all.

Because when we look at the One who made them, we see that stars were designed to do just that.

1.       They were designed as signs.

a.       For time-keeping

                                                               i.      Genesis 1:14  “And God said, ‘Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth.’  And it was so.  God made the two great lights – the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night.  He also made the stars.”

1.    ***Please don’t miss that last phrase.  Oh, okay.  “He also made the stars.”  That’s not a big deal?!?!?  It’s written almost as an afterthought.  And yet we sometimes try to worship things that are so miniscule in comparison to our great God. 

b.      For revealing the greatness of God

                                                               i.      Job 9:7 “He speaks to the sun and it does not shine; he seals off the light of the stars.  He alone stretches out the heavens and treads on the waves of the sea.  He is the maker of the Bear and Orion, the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.” 

                                             ii.      Psalm 8:3 “When I consider you heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?”

                                             iii.      Psalm 147:4 “He determines the number of stars and calls them each by name.”

                                             iv.      Jeremiah 31:35 “…he who appoints the sun to shine by day, who decrees the moon and stars to shine by night…the LORD Almighty is his name…”

Stars are numerous and expansive, yet finite.  They give light in the night and serve as signs for seasons and have also been used to give direction.  (God also clearly says not to worship the stars (Deuteronomy 4:19) and condemns those who do (Isaiah 47:13-14)).

2.       They were/are reminders of promises.

a.       To the Jewish/Israelite nation: 

                                                        i.      Genesis 15:5 “He [God] took him [Abraham] outside and said, ‘Look up at the heavens and count the stars – if indeed you can count them.’  Then he said to him, ‘So shall your offspring be.’” 

1.    God promised his people that they would be as numerous as the stars in the heavens (Genesis 15:5, Genesis 22:17, Genesis 26:4, I Chronicles 27:23, Jeremiah 33:22, Hebrews 11:12) and they did become numerous (Deuteronomy 1:10, 10:22, 28:62, Nehemiah 9:23).

b.      Of God’s consistency

                                                               i.      Isaiah 40:26 “Lift your eyes and look to the heavens:  Who created all these?  He who brings out the starry host one by one and calls them each by name.  Because of His great power and mighty strength not one of them is missing.”

                                              ii.      Hosea 6:3 “Let us acknowledge the LORD; let us press on to acknowledge him.  As surely as the sun rises, he will appear; he will come to us like the winter rains, like the spring rains that water the earth.”

                                              iii.      Psalm 136 “Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good….to him alone who does great wonders….who by his understanding made the heavens….who made the great lights…the sun to govern the day….the moon and stars to govern the night; His love endures forever.”

Stars remind us of the promise of God’s consistency, of His promises to the children of Israel (the Jews)…

Interestingly, when the Bible mentions despair and judgment, it is often depicted by stars being dark or “no longer shining” or being “thrown down” (Ezekiel 32:7; Daniel 8:10; Joel 2:10, 3:15; Matthew 24:29; Revelation 6:13, 8:10-12, 12:4).  Stars do give hope!

But here’s why I’m excited to write about stars at Christmas.

One star was also spoken as a promise of a future blessing.

In the book of Numbers, a story is told of a man named Balaam who was hired by the Moabites to curse the nation of Israel.  Interestingly, when he opened his mouth, he found that blessings, not curses, came out.  At one point Balaam said:

“I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near; a star shall come out of Jacob and a scepter shall rise out of Israel; it shall crush the forehead of Moab and break down all the sons of Sheth” (Numbers 24:17).

As Israelites remembered this event they stated:  “…Ammonite or Moabite…had hired Balaam to call a curse down on them. (Our God, however, turned the curse into a blessing)” (Nehemiah 13:1-2).

God did turn the curse into a blessing at that time.  But there was also going to be a future star of Jacob that would signify the coming of an even GREATER reversal to a curse.

“After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, ‘Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?  We saw his star in the east and have come to worship Him.’ 

When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.  When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Christ was to be born.  ‘In Bethlehem in Judea,’ they replied, ‘for this is what the prophet has written:  ‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; for out of you will come a ruler who will be the shepherd of my people Israel.’ 

Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared.  He sent them to Bethlehem and said, ‘Go and make a careful search for the child.  As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.’ 

After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.  When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.  On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him.  Then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh.  And having been warned in a dream not to go back to Herod, they returned to their country by another route.”  Matthew 2:1-12

God’s biggest promise was signified by a bright star in the night sky.

A star announced the birth of the Messiah – the one who would come to save. 

For, you see, God does turn curses into blessings (Genesis 3:15).

The Bethlehem star over 2000 years ago was the sign of Jesus, the “Bright and Morning Star” (Revelation 22:16).  Because of what happened in Bethlehem and later on Calvary, someday, there will be no more night.  Death will be swallowed up by Life!

Right now, we still live in a world with night.  As Henry Wadsworth Longfellow so poetically said:

I heard the bells on Christmas Day
Their old familiar carols play,
And wild and sweet
The words repeat
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And thought how, as the day had come,
The belfries of all Christendom
Had rolled along
The unbroken song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Till, ringing, singing on its way,
The world revolved from night to day,
A voice, a chime
A chant sublime
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

Then from each black accursed mouth
The cannon thundered in the South,
And with the sound
The carols drowned
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

It was as if an earthquake rent
The hearth-stones of a continent,
And made forlorn
The households born
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!

And in despair I bowed my head;
"There is no peace on earth," I said;
"For hate is strong,
And mocks the song
Of peace on earth, good-will to men!"

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:
"God is not dead; nor doth he sleep!
The Wrong shall fail,
The Right prevail,
With peace on earth, good-will to men!"

Longfellow was in despair because of war and loss….he could see no peace on earth! Isn't it the same today?  And yet, in the darkest of nights, in the most desperate of times…God’s promises do shine like the stars.  At Christmas we celebrate the coming of the Prince of Peace (Isaiah 9:6).  God is not dead.

My brain is still pondering all of this poetic beauty – I could keep writing about how we as Christians have the privilege of shining like stars in the universe (Philippians 2:14-16) and having the morning star in our hearts (II Peter 1:19) as we wait for the Bright and Morning Star to come for a second time and dispel the night.

But, I need to stop typing. :)

I’ll close with this:  one of my favorite authors, Robin Jones Gunn, described two characters in her novel as they looked up at a beautiful night sky.  She said of them:

“They stood in quiet mutual admiration for the unwritten poetry that hung in the air around them.”

This Christmas, may we stand in awe of God’s signs and promises.  He has written poetry into the sky.

And may we most of all be amazed by the Bright & Morning Star, Jesus, who came to Earth so that someday, we will have no more night.

Merry Christmas to all!