Lessons from a Rock

Yesterday, I talked about the gift of a tiny stone – a gratitude stone. It got my weird little brain thinking about the use of stones in Scripture. And I realized there are so many uses from Genesis to Revelation.

There are big stones, little stones, rocks, cliffs, crag, Petra, and more. You find piles of stones, heavy stones, cornerstones, rejected stones, precious stones, stones in the breastplate of the high priest, stones used as pillows, stones that are cast, stones that are dropped, stones used metaphorically (Jesus is the cornerstone, He is our rock, …), and people being named rock (Peter).

So let me hit a few instances when stones are mentioned that the Biblical narrative inspired me …

1. Stones as a witness pile. In Joshua 4, after crossing the Jordan, 12 stones are piled as a memorial, a witness to God’s power and presence. They were to be talked about from generation to generation – where kids would ask about the pile of stones and parents would share the story of God’s bringing them out of Egypt, out of the wilderness, into the promised land. We all need reminders of God moments in our lives.

2. Five stones collected by David. Was it for the four brothers? For backup? We may never know, but he got five. I see where the one that hit home was probably saved and sold on eBay later. But do ever wonder what happened to the other four. Sometimes. We are the four – staying in the bag, ready to be used, never really being in the public eye … other times we are the one – used directly and on the front line.

3. Stones dropped by the mob … from oldest to youngest. Jesus wrote in the sand and the stoning mob dropped their stones and left one by one. This is a beautiful picture of God’s mercy.

4. Heart of stone … we are broken, hard hearted, uncaring, and very rebellious. But he will take our heart of stone and make it a heart of flesh.

5. Living stones … not sure everything this entails, but it great to be considered part of the house of the Lord.

6. A new name on a white stone … way too many opinions on what John was really talking about to discuss here, but I see it as his closeness, intimacy with us (renames us), ownerships, purity, and more. I’ve got a new name and it’s forever. Sweet.

So many lessons from something as simple as a stone.

One last one …

If we don’t praise Him, the rocks will cry out. I say keep those stones silent and let’s lift our voices loud!