[One-Verse Meditation]

Joshua 24:27 “And Joshua said to all the people, ‘Behold, this stone shall be a witness against us, for it has heard all the words of the LORD that he spoke to us. Therefore it shall be a witness against you, lest you deny your God.’”

[Meditation]

After writing all the words in the Book of the Law of God, Joshua takes a large stone and sets it up by the sanctuary. And he declares, “This stone shall be a witness… a witness against you, lest you deny your God.”

At first glance, this sounds like a command: ‘Look at this stone, remember the warning, and do not deny God.’ But between the lines, there is a deeper promise: ‘Your life itself will be such clear evidence that I am alive, that you will never be able to deny me.’ So this verse is not a simple warning, but a ‘declaration of grace’ concerning the identity of God’s people.

This is why the book of Joshua ends with ‘the story of Joseph.’ Joseph’s life was a ‘living witness’ showing how God’s promises are fulfilled. Thus, the final scene of Joshua awakens Israel to that very identity of Joseph.

And that Israel is us, the Church. Our lives, too, are lives that bear witness to God. God uses our successes and failures, all of our time, to make it so that we can never deny the fact that He is alive. In this way, He makes our lives a ‘witness stone.’

Therefore, we are beings who cannot deny God. This is the glorious identity of a saint. It is a grace too overwhelming to comprehend.

[Prayer]

Lord, You have made my life a witness that You are alive. Let this be a new day full of the joy of that undeniable witness. Amen.
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[Daily Reading]

Joshua 24:25-33