Choose This Day Whom You Will Serve

Introduction

During the Exodus, Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt and through the wilderness for 40 years. However, he was not able to lead them into the Promised Land before he died. His death is recorded at the end of Deuteronomy. Joshua was then called to be his successor as the leader of the Israelites.

He then led them into the Promised Land.  The book of Joshua describes the Israelites following God’s command to drive the corrupt and idolatrous inhabitants out of the Promised Land, settle it, and divide it up amongst the 12 tribes.

The Unfaithfulness of the Israelites

During this time the Israelites were not always faithful to God and allowed themselves to be corrupted by the influence of the surrounding cultures and even worshiped idol gods. Joshua, nearing the end of his life, pleaded with them to change.

He met with the leaders first and then with the people. He first outlined how God had honored his promises in freeing them from Egypt, giving them victory over their enemies, and bringing them into the land that He had promised them. Joshua then made his plea to them on chapter 24:14-15:

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Joshua’s Call to Return to Faithfulness

Joshua called them to put down the false gods and to return to covenant faithfulness to the God of Israel. He called them to fear the Lord and serve Him with faithfulness. He was telling them to return to respect for God and His authority and teachings and to follow His Law and commands. They were to commit to Him as Lord of their lives and throw away false gods.

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This is what Jesus calls us to today. To return to Him and his New Covenant. We are to put aside our false gods. These are anything that we worship or put ahead of Him whether it’s cars, money, houses, or anything else that we try to use to fill the God-sized hole right in the middle of each and every one of us.

Do You Desire to Serve the Lord?

He said in Joshua 24:15, “if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you…” This is a more powerful and accurate statement about us than it first appears. Some claim that they just don’t believe in God and therefore, of course, they don’t serve Him. Paul said in Romans 1:18- 20 that these people are self-deceiving by suppressing the truth that they inherently see and know.

However, others believe God exists, but still choose not to serve Him because it’s undesirable to them. The first group rejects God outright. The second group concedes that He exists but rejects His teaching and morality in favor of their own. This is still a rejection of God.

Another group claims to accept God but still rejects His teaching and morality.  Jesus indicated that this is still a rejection of God in Matthew 7:21 when he said, “Not everyone who says to me ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of the Father in heaven.” He also tells us in John 14:15, “If you love me keep my commands.” We can say we are Christians, but if we don’t serve Him and follow His teachings then we are fooling ourselves. We are still rejecting Him.

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Choose Today

Therefore, we are to “choose today whom we will serve” (Josh. 24:15). God in His sovereignty has decided not to force us but to give us a choice. Not making a choice is still making a choice. There is no middle ground or straddling the fence. There is no such thing as a lukewarm Christian (Rev. 3:15-16). We either choose Him or we don’t. When you study the gospels, you realize Jesus didn’t leave us any other option. Heaven is being in the very presence of God and God doesn’t force you into His presence against your will.

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We must understand that Jesus is not moderately important. Either He is the most important figure to walk the Earth, or He is completely irrelevant. If we believe Jesus to be who he claimed to be, God become flesh, the Son of the living God, then we should take His teachings and commands seriously.

If He is, as Paul says in Phil. 2:6 “in very nature God”, then we cannot believe Him to be “kind of right”. We can’t take some of His teachings and throw the others out. In other words, we can’t “kind of” follow Him (Rev. 3:15-16). We must go “all-in” and  become a committed follower of Christ (Lk. 9:23).

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As For Me and My House

 Joshua was reflecting this understanding when he said, “as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” He was telling the Israelites that he was all in for the God. And this is how we are to be. Jesus wants our all. Ray Vander Laan said this in his “In the Dust of the Rabbi” series, “If we are going to follow a savior who walks on water, we had better be willing to step out of the boat.”

We must go even if no one else goes. As Christians, we can’t be afraid of what society thinks of us. We must commit to Christ even if the way seems difficult or overwhelming. Jesus didn’t promise Christians an easy life but He did promise that He would always be with us (Matt. 28:20).

Jesus said in Mark 8:38, “if anyone is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous generation, the Son of Man will be ashamed of them when he comes in His Father’s glory with the holy angels.” Hebrews 4:14 tells us that Jesus is our “great high priest”. He is the one advocating to the Father in Heaven for you and me. So, we definitely do not want HIM to be ashamed of US.

Corrupt Society

Our society is becoming more and more corrupted just like the Canaanite societies. Money and material possessions have become our false gods. In some places we are murdering one another in the streets daily. We are engaged in rampant sexual immorality, and we are sacrificing our babies for the sake of our own prosperity.

But, unlike the Canaanites, we still have hope. That hope is in Jesus. Because of His loving patience we still have time to turn from our wicked ways and fully commit to Him. And we can be that light shining in the darkness for His name’s sake.

Choose

We must choose today whom we will serve because we are not promised another week, another day, another hour, or another second.

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Blessings