Living Stones: What Got You Here Won't Get You There

Devotional

Day 1: Ankle-Deep Faith in Flood Stage Waters

When God calls us into new territory, He often waits for our first obedient step before parting overwhelming obstacles. The Jordan River stood at flood stage – impossible to cross without divine intervention. Yet God didn’t ask the Israelites to swim or strategize, but to simply let priests’ sandals touch the water. Our most intimidating barriers become testimonies when we trust God’s presence over our perceptions. What looks like reckless faith to others is often surrender dressed as small obedience. The miracle begins when we get our feet wet. [15:08]

Then the priests who carried the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood firm on dry ground in the midst of the Jordan, and all Israel was passing over on dry ground until all the nation finished passing over the Jordan.
(Joshua 3:17, ESV)

Reflection: Where is God inviting you to take an “ankle-deep” step of faith this week? What makes this step feel more like a flood than a puddle to you?

Day 2: Back to Adam: Breaking Cycles of Stalled Promise

The Jordan’s waters rolled back to a town named Adam – a hidden echo of humanity’s ancient brokenness. Just as God suspended judgment’s current to bring Israel into promise, Christ’s presence suspends old cycles of failure in our lives. Every step toward God’s calling rewrites generational narratives. Our obedience doesn’t just advance our story; it heals ancestral ground. The river still flows backward for those willing to carry His presence forward. [17:05]

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.
(2 Corinthians 5:17, ESV)

Reflection: What “Adam” – what recurring struggle or inherited pattern – needs Christ’s intervention to stop its influence upstream from your life?

Day 3: From Moses’ Shadow to Joshua’s Tent

Joshua lingered in God’s presence after others left the tent of meeting. While Israel depended on Moses’ encounters, Joshua craved firsthand nearness. Transitioning from delivered people to promise-inheritors requires moving beyond secondhand spirituality. The same presence that parts seas trains us to conquer giants. Our wilderness ends when we stop demanding answers and start desiring the Answer-Giver. [23:37]

But his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, did not depart from the tent.
(Exodus 33:11, ESV)

Reflection: Are you content with spiritual leaders’ encounters with God, or are you pressing into the tent until His presence reshapes you?

Day 4: Giants or God – The Forty-Year Lens

The spies saw giants through the lens of their sandals; Caleb saw them through the lens of God’s sandal promise. Fear magnifies obstacles, but faith magnifies the One who walks on water. Our “forty years” often begin when we critique challenges more than we consult Christ. Every delay reveals what we’re worshipping: the size of our problems or the sovereignty of our God. [11:00]

And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
(Matthew 10:28, ESV)

Reflection: What current “giant” have you been assessing through human calculations rather than covenant promises?

Day 5: Chairs, Children, and Kingdom Authority

A child confidently claims “Dad’s chair” not by personal power, but by relational position. Sons and daughters reign not through self-importance but through surrendered identity. True authority comes not from demanding respect but resting in whose we are. When we stop trying to earn the Father’s seat and simply occupy our place as heirs, demons recognize the family resemblance. [26:41]

The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ.
(Romans 8:16-17, ESV)

Reflection: Where are you still striving to prove yourself rather than resting in your position as God’s heir?

Sermon Summary

The call to live as living stones begins with the reality that God has a plan, a purpose, a hope, and a future, but that plan requires cooperation. Jeremiah 29:11 reveals God’s heart to prosper rather than harm, while Jeremiah 29:13 names the way into that purpose: seeking God with all the heart. Salvation comes by grace alone, because sin is the only thing anyone brings to the rescue of God. Responsibility begins after salvation, because relationship with God calls for a life that moves with Him.

The Red Sea paints the picture of deliverance from captivity. God’s power parts the water before Israel can do anything, and Israel walks out on dry ground. The Jordan paints a different picture. God’s presence goes first in the ark, but the priests must step into the flooded river before the water moves. The contrast says it plainly: what got someone here will not take someone there. Grace saves freely, but the promise requires faithful obedience.

Israel’s wilderness years did not come from God’s inability to lead. Israel’s fear made giants look bigger than God, and disobedience turned a place meant for walking through into forty years of living there. The flooded Jordan reveals that God sometimes brings His people to an obstacle too big for their own strength so that His presence and power become undeniable. The priests do not have to drown or figure everything out. God asks for an ankle-deep step of faith, then begins moving upstream in ways that cannot yet be seen.

The Jordan, called the river of judgment, points to an even bigger picture. God’s presence holds judgment back all the way to Adam so that Israel can cross from wilderness into promise. Christ’s gospel includes His death, burial, and resurrection, but it does not stop there. The gospel brings people into relationship with God, into the filling of the Spirit, and into the release of God’s presence on earth.

The contrast between chasing power and pursuing presence exposes a real problem. God’s power is not a high to chase, a problem-solving tool, or a genie summoned by a checklist. God’s presence prepares sons and daughters for hard things and forms confidence that rests in the Father’s authority. Joshua stays near the tent until God’s presence lifts, and that hunger qualifies him to lead Israel into promise. God calls His children to be strong and courageous, not because they have every outcome figured out, but because He goes with them.

##

Key Takeaways

1. Grace saves, obedience enters the promise. Grace does not need human effort to rescue a person from captivity. Faithfulness does matter once God begins leading that person into the life He has called them to build. The Jordan requires a step because relationship with God is more than receiving rescue; it is learning to follow His presence. [07:43]
2. Fear can turn wilderness into residence. Israel was meant to pass through the wilderness, not make a home there for forty years. Fear made the giants seem bigger than the God who had already split the sea and defeated Egypt. The promise often waits on the other side of the place that feels too big to face. [11:00]
3. God moves before people can see it. The priests stepped into the water, but the river began backing up upstream at Adam. Faithfulness does not always receive instant proof, because God may be moving far beyond the small piece currently visible. God’s timing calls for steady obedience rather than panic when the water has not dropped yet. [15:43]
4. Presence matters more than spiritual power. Power without presence can become another thing to chase from conference to conference and moment to moment. God wants more than a checklist of needs brought into His presence. Joshua models a deeper hunger by staying close simply because God is there. [19:38]
5. The Father’s authority changes everything. Sons and daughters do not speak from personal strength or personal importance. The Father’s authority stands behind their obedience, prayer, and resistance against what does not belong. Confidence grows when identity rests in who God is rather than in what a person can manage alone.

## [26:41]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[01:18] - God Has a Plan and Purpose
[02:59] - Salvation Is God’s Grace
[04:28] - Crossing the Red Sea
[05:45] - Following God’s Presence
[07:05] - What Got You Here Won’t Take You There
[08:34] - The Gospel of God’s Kingdom
[10:32] - Fear and Forty Years of Wandering
[12:39] - Stepping Into the Flooded Jordan
[16:28] - Judgment Held Back to Adam
[19:38] - Chasing Presence, Not Power
[23:08] - Joshua Stayed Near God’s Presence
[26:08] - Walking in the Father’s Authority
[28:30] - Leaving the Place of Fear
[32:33] - Obedience Before Confidence

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

Joshua 3:1-17
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 two thousand 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 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 at flood stage 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 water from upstream stopped flowing. It piled up in a heap a great distance away, at a town called Adam in the vicinity of Zarethan, while the water flowing down to the Sea of the Arabah (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. [05:45]

Jeremiah 29:11-13
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me, when you seek me with all your heart.” [02:28]

Exodus 14:21-22
Then Moses stretched out his hand over the sea, and the LORD drove the sea back by a strong east wind all night and made the sea dry land, and the waters were divided. And the people of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry ground, the waters being a wall to them on their right hand and on their left. [04:28]

Joshua 1:9
“Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.” [33:05]

Observation questions

In Joshua 3, what did Israel need to watch for before moving forward, and what did the ark of the covenant represent? [06:01]
What is different about Israel’s crossing at the Red Sea and their crossing at the Jordan River? Consider what God did before Israel crossed each body of water. [07:05]
Joshua 3 says the Jordan was at flood stage. What details in the passage show that this was not an obstacle Israel could simply handle in their own strength? [13:32]
In Jeremiah 29:11-13, what response is connected with finding God and walking in His plan? [02:28]

Interpretation questions

Salvation is God’s gift of grace, while following God into His purposes calls for faithful obedience. How can a believer hold both truths together without trying to earn God’s love? [07:43]
Israel was told to follow the ark because they had “never been this way before.” What might it look like for a believer to follow God’s presence when the next step is unfamiliar or uncomfortable? [06:23]
The priests stepped into the water before they could see the riverbed become dry. Why might God sometimes ask for obedience before giving visible proof that He is working? [15:43]
Joshua 1:9 grounds courage in God’s promise to be with His people. How does God’s presence give a believer courage that is different from simply feeling confident in an outcome? [32:33]

Application questions

Is there an area of life where fear has kept you in a place you were meant to walk through rather than live in? What is the “giant” that has looked bigger than God in that situation? [30:02]
What might an “ankle-deep” step of faith look like for you this week? Is there a conversation, decision, act of forgiveness, prayer, or act of obedience that God may be inviting you to take? [14:35]
Where have you been waiting for immediate evidence that God is moving? How could you remain faithful while trusting that God may be working upstream in ways you cannot yet see? [15:56]
When you spend time with God, do you usually come mainly with a checklist of needs, or do you also come simply to be with Him? What small change could help you pursue His presence this week? [21:43]
What regular space in your week could become an intentional time to seek God with your whole heart—such as a morning routine, commute, walk, worship time, or Scripture reading? [24:22]
Where are you tempted to rely on your own ability, comfort, or control? How does remembering that you are a son or daughter who walks in the Father’s authority change the way you face that situation? [26:41]
Who are one or two trusted people who can remind you of God’s Word and encourage you when courage feels weak? How could you invite them into that part of your life this week? [34:07]

Sermon Clips

34s

“Here's the thing. I wanna pause here. I wanna camp and make sure we get this. When God's taking you to the place of the promise, it's gonna require more of you than it did for you simply to accept him. We're not saved by works. We are saved by grace, but your works are part of building what God has called you to. If you're taking notes, I forgot to give you my title. What got you here won't take you there.”

40s

“And before we begin to worship into this, I wanna encourage you with something because a lot of you just raised your hand and said, alright, I'm gonna walk out in this thing. And here's the important part. Walking out in it doesn't mean I'm confident in the outcome. It just means I'm gonna be obedient in the meantime. Did you catch that? Means I'm willing to step out, and I'm gonna get ankle deep. And, God, I'm gonna step out in boldness. I'm gonna step out in faith. It's up to you to do the rest.”

65s

“When they got ankle deep, it says the water above that point began to back up at a town called Adam. I don't know how far away the town of Adam was from where they stepped in the water. But what I can tell you is they stepped in the water, and the river started to dry up upstream. I don't know how long they had to stand in the water before they started to see it decrease. But I can tell you it was a period of time. Sometimes when we step out in faith, we're like, alright, God. Nothing happened. Anybody feel that? You step out and say, okay, God. Here we go. Where you at? Sometimes God's like, okay. I'm moving. You don't see it yet. Just because it doesn't happen in your time, in your way, doesn't mean God's not moving in your situation.”

Ask a question about this sermon

Destiny Christian Center This sermon · AI assistant

What distinguishes God's presence from His power?

Why must believers step ankle deep in faith?

How does sonship grant authority over spiritual opposition?