Today is the Day to Choose...

Today is the Day to Choose…

Joshua 24:1-24

It was the Fall of 1985; I was 14 years old, it was halftime of the last soccer game of the season, and we were tied.  I can remember the scene vividly, how our coach gave us a rousing pep talk. I can still remember the words he said to us, but they’re not really appropriate for a Sunday morning talk!  We went on to preserve the tie, the only game that season that we didn’t lose.  The halftime speech did what it was intended to do.

What makes a good halftime pep talk?  A reminder of who the team is – their history, maybe even their past failures as well as their successes.  A reminder of what has brought them there; what hardships they’ve overcome to get there and what has defined them as a team.  Do you think the New Orleans Saints mentioned Hurricane Katrina before or during the Super Bowl? During times of transition or difficulty, it is always important to be reminded of what’s most important and of who you are.

This is what we find in Joshua 24; Joshua was Moses’ successor as the leader of God’s people, but now he is coming to the end of his life.  This is the pep talk he gives the people of Israel as he prepares for his own death.

Today is the day to choose.

When Joshua reminds the people of their past, he reminds them about their forefathers, even including Terah, the father of Abraham, and how they used to worship other gods. It can be easy for us to jump past the first step, the beginning, because after all, we’re enlightened and we don’t serve other gods, do we? 

I wouldn’t be so quick to say that.  Our God doesn’t allow for serving him halfway.  Here’s what Jesus said about that: No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. (Matthew 6:24). You can’t serve God and money – which one do you serve? You can look at your finances and determine which you serve. What percentage of your money do you really give to God?  To the church, to missionaries, to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, to serve the oppressed and persecuted? Really? Studies show that we Christians give around 2% of our income.  The tithe (10%) was a biblical standard, but Jesus advocated giving all, not just 10%. So if you’re unwilling to work toward giving a tithe, don’t lie and tell yourself that you’re serving God. Your god is your money.

I’m not finished.  Their ancestors worshiped many gods.  In fact, there were pretty much gods for everything.  Some of them were big names, like Ba’al and Molech, whose names we read in scripture, but there were numerous fertility gods, seasonal gods, and so forth.  And we have those today, just bearing different names.  Some of you worship success or career; you lay everything on the altar of your job.  You even hear worship language when people talk about the sacrifices they have made to move ahead in their career path. You sacrifice their time, giving all of your energy to move up the ladder. You sacrifice some of the best years of your life to get your career set, and you often sacrifice your family.  Doesn’t sound a whole lot different than followers of Molech, who were known for child sacrifices.

Maybe you worship the god of busyness. As long as you keep busy, as long as you feel like you’ve accomplished something, then you’re doing the right thing.  You try to fill the inner void you feel by doing more and more.  Many of the things you’re doing are good things, but when you do good things for the wrong reasons, though God may still use you, you are not living in God’s will.  Are you so busy that you don’t have the time to sit and listen to God’s still, small voice?  Is His voice drowned out by the noise of your life?

Maybe you worship a god named “stuff.”  You constantly are chasing after more and more. You need the newest car, the biggest house, the hugest TV, the latest gadgets.

Maybe you worship a god named “relationship.”  There are those among us who worship the family god – your family comes first, before the Lord.  While this seems good at the outset, it’s idol worship, plan and simple. I’m not advocating stepping away from your family, but worshiping them is not healthy as a Christian. God must be first.  This is why when Jesus was told that his mother and brothers were waiting outside to speak to him, he responded: Who is my mother and who are my brothers? (Matthew 12:48).  He radically changed family relationships, reordering family around the mission of God. How is your family life ordered? Is it ordered around God, or is your life with God ordered around your family?

But chances are, somewhere along your journey, many of you decided to follow Jesus.  I had the benefit of growing up in a Christian home, but that wasn’t the case with my parents. My mom’s “teenage rebellion” consisted of joining and becoming active in the church down the street.  There she found meaning and purpose.  She found people who loved her and appreciated her gifts, but even more, she found the God who loved her and gave her those gifts.  When I was a college student, I tried out all kinds of things, basically trying to “hedge my bets” – I wanted to be popular, I wanted to meet people, to have fun, to do all “the college things.” I wanted to be a good student (well, I didn’t really want that so much, I guess). I wanted to be a good Christian.  But these things proved incompatible in the way and order I chose to seek them. My friend David confronted me on that; “you introduced me to Jesus, but now I don’t see you living that kind of lifestyle” was his quote.  Truth be known, I was worshiping other gods.

But God delivered me from that and put Himself in my path.  He surrounded me with Christian friends like David, his roommate Nick, my fraternity brother Drew, and the whole group at InterVarsity Christian fellowship. He brought me to Russia on a mission trip. He uplifted me during the dark time of my life when my fiancée and I broke up. He brought me and Tara together and has given us two delightful sons. He provided for us when we were dirt poor, and He continues to provide for us.

Joshua focused on what God had done for the Israelites: He brought Abraham out and led him and gave him many descendents.  He sent Moses and delivered Israel from Egyptian captivity. When difficulty came (in their case, the Egyptians, who were pursuing them), Israel cried out to the Lord (Joshua 24:7), and God delivered them miraculously.

What’s your story?  Can you see God’s hand in your life?  What has God done for you?  For your family?  For your parents or grandparents? For your friends?  It is important to share how God has worked in your life; this is part of the pep talk: this can be an encouragement to others, but also to you! Remember what God has done. It’s not just about where you are right now, but where God has brought you.  We see again and again, especially throughout the Old Testament, the command to “remember.”  Remember what the LORD has done.  This is what Joshua is doing; he’s reminding the people, who are looking ahead to scary times, to remember.  God had been with them, leading them through tough times.  Bringing them out of Egypt, driving out enemies before them.  God gave them good gifts; they received the food from the land they didn’t work and they lived in cities they didn’t build…

The old hymn tells us to “Count your blessings, name them one by one” – today is a good time to do this. In fact, every day is a good day to count blessings.  I’ve told you before that whenever I have a hard time getting to sleep, I start naming things I’m thankful for, one for each letter of the alphabet.  I never even make it halfway through.  How about starting your day with a prayer of thanksgiving?  Every day, start out by reminding yourself how blessed you are.  See how that impacts your day.

Now we get to the challenge.  Joshua put it clearly. Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD.  But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” (Joshua 24:14-15)

This is a real challenge.  It’s not just words.  It’s not just a plaque to go in our houses.  It’s real.  Who will you serve?  If I flew a dual Ohio State/Michigan flag in my office, I’ll bet I’d get comments on it.  People would ask me, “Which will it be? You can’t have it both ways.” I’ve got to choose a side.  Friends, Ohio State/Michigan is nothing when compared with the choice we’re faced with today.  Choose today whom you will serve.  If you hear nothing else today, make sure you hear this: you are making a choice, no matter what you think. If you choose to ignore this, you are making a choice.  If you choose to try to make your compartmentalized lives work, you are making a choice. If you choose not to choose, that’s a choice as well, and you can’t have it both ways. 

Many have chosen to accept Jesus as their Savior, but have never made him Lord.  Yes, there is a difference.  You understand that you need someone to save you from your sin, and that only Jesus can do it.  You have acknowledged that it’s only by his death and resurrection that you can have forgiveness and can lead the life you were meant to live.  Yet you refuse to be obedient in every aspect of your life.  Obedience doesn’t come naturally to us.  This is why the “terrible twos” are so terrible.  Any of you who have raised children – you know that obedience doesn’t come naturally. I’ll admit, I’m hard-headed and God sometimes has to use the Holy 2x4 method to get me to listen.  When I went through the United Methodist supervised years program, I packed a 3 year program into 5 chronological years, mostly because I needed to learn obedience.  Was I really going to be obedient to those God has placed in authority over me, or just to myself?

Making Jesus Lord is placing yourself in willful obedience to him in everything. Joshua made it clear that this isn’t easy. You are not able to serve the LORD. He is a holy God; he is a jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you. (Joshua 24:19-20)

The people agreed that they would serve the LORD.  So Joshua told them to throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel.

This is where it gets personal.  What gets in the way of you serving God with a whole heart?  Have you been totally, 100% obedient to Him?  Is he your LORD, or just your Savior?  Or maybe neither. 

If you’re ready for full obedience, would you read along with me the response of the people: “We will serve the LORD our God and obey him.” (Joshua 24:24)

Each of you should have a post-it note. If there’s anything holding you back from serving God 100%, I invite you to write it on your post-it, then bring it up to the cross and give it to Jesus. If you are serious about serving the LORD and obeying him, today is the day to choose.  Make the right choice.