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Sometimes profound theology comes from very unlikely sources. What kind of
person do you imagine when you think of a theologian? You know children are
often wonderful theologians.
And Bob Dylan did some pretty good theological work when he
gave us the song, “Gotta Serve Somebody.” Do you remember that
one? The key line is: “It may be the devil or it may be the Lord but
you’re gonna have to serve somebody.” He’s right, you know.
Every one in this room bends their knee to a god. Even the atheist or the
agnostic serves a god of some kind—probably self.
I make some assumptions when I come into this sanctuary on a
Sunday and preach the Word. One assumption I make is that not everyone here
has bowed their knee to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. I believe
some here today know a lot about God, or perhaps you are seeking to know more
about God, but you have not yet crossed the line and confessed your personal
faith in Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord.
I want you to know right now that before this service is over,
I’m going to ask you to consider crossing the line. I am going to give
you an opportunity to choose the way of Jesus. I want you to have a chance
to become truly a child of God. The reason I’m telling you that now
is because I want you to be thinking about it as we are taught by this text
we just read. Because that’s the issue being raised by this story. You
have a choice to make. You cannot avoid the choice. “You’re gonna
serve somebody” either by purposeful choice or by default. Who is it
going to be?
This final chapter of Joshua is the last of three great assemblies
of the people before Joshua passes away. In the first part of the chapter,
Joshua gathered the people together and he reviewed with them their covenant
history. Joshua was a good historian. He knew the story well. And he recited
for the people the wonderful and amazing story of how God carved out this
people when they were not a people, and gave them a land and an inheritance.
He reminded them of their slavery in Egypt and their deliverance through Moses.
He reminded them of all we have seen in walking through this book—coming
to the river, finally crossing over into the new land, and taking possession
of it through the mighty acts of God. It’s an amazing history. It is
an incredible history that never should have happened, and only did happen
because of the grace and love and intervention of Yahweh, the God of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob.
As Joshua rehearsed this great story of redemption there was
a powerful sense of God’s ownership of these people. He is a jealous
God. He laid claim to these people and He poured out His grace to bring them
to this point. It’s the kind of thing the apostle Paul talks about over
in 1 Corinthians 6 when he says, “You are not your own; you were bought
with a price.” That kind of love calls for a response. You cannot be
neutral with that kind of a God. Some kind of decision is called for. Some
kind of response is necessitated.
So Joshua called his people once again, here at the very end
of his life, to respond to God’s great covenant love with fidelity and
with returned love. He threw down the challenge and called for a commitment.
This morning I just want us to see what kind of commitment is being called
for and ask the simple question: “Have I made that kind of commitment
to God? Have I crossed the line and responded to what God has done for me?”
And if you haven’t yet made that kind of commitment, you’re going
to have a chance to make that decision in just the next few minutes. You cannot
be neutral about this. Deciding not to decide is a decision—and it’s
not one with which I would want to face eternity.
I want us to see three simple things about this commitment.
First, it is a logical commitment. As Joshua reminded these people of all
that God had done for them to bring to this point, as he reminded them of
God’s undying love even in their rebellious times, there was a sense
that any response other than loving Him back was utterly ridiculous. Israel
was clearly being held in the grip of His grace and they were compelled to
love Him back. As Paul says it in Romans 12:1: “In view of God’s
mercy, present yourselves to God.”
But second, this was to be an exclusive commitment. And this
is where the challenge to make a decision became very real. After all these
people had been through, and after all that God had done for them, Joshua
asked them to make a definite choice about serving God. In fact, look carefully
at the challenge he placed before them. He called them to serve the Lord,
but then he said, “Listen, if you don’t want to serve Yahweh then
you still have to choose to serve somebody.” And he gave them a choice
between pagan gods. He said to them, “Either serve the gods your forefathers
served beyond the river, or serve the gods of the Amorites.” Can you
believe that?
Now the conservatives among them might pick the old Mesopotamian
gods they knew way back when. The liberals, on the other hand, might go for
the new Amorite gods they discovered when they came into this land.
But Joshua said to them, “You have to make a choice. Who’s
it going to be?” Now this is offensive. How could Joshua actually hold
out these pagan gods as a real choice next to the One who had given them so
much? But you see, in spite of all these people had experienced and all God
had done for them, they still suffered from the spiritual malady of double-mindedness.
They wanted it both ways. They wanted the power and promise of Yahweh but
they also wanted the ease and convenience of the other gods. Not much has
changed, has it? We are so much like these people.
We really like to hang around Jesus and we sense we really need
for Him to hang around us, but our loyalties are divided. We still want it
both ways. We want the gods of this age and of this world in addition to the
Christ. Joshua was pushing Israel for a decision. He said, “If you’re
not going to serve Yahweh, then serve one of these other gods.” But
how could this be a choice? Perhaps that’s the point. He’s arguing
from absurdity. He’s saying, “If you reject the one true God,
you are only left with stupid choices.”
The kind of commitment to which you and I are called in Christ
is an exclusive commitment. Jesus calls us to serve Him and no other. He calls
us to surrender everything and take the way of the Cross. Joshua was still
the leader at this point. He was out in front of these people showing the
way. He said to them, “You’ve all got a decision to make, but
as for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh.”
But not only is this commitment a logical commitment and an
exclusive commitment, it is a total commitment that is being called for. Listen
to this. After Joshua laid out the challenge, the people responded and they
responded well. They said, “Far be it from us to forsake Yahweh for
other gods.” Sounds like they were getting it.
But then listen to Joshua’s response. He said to them:
“You are not able to serve the Lord.” How’s that for confidence
in your people? The people cheered, “Yes, we will serve the Lord.”
And Joshua answered back, “You can’t do it!” In other words,
you’d better count the cost. Don’t profess your faith lightly.
This is no time for emotional commitments; it’s time to get off the
fence and make a serious decision about which direction your life is headed.
The God we worship today has always called His people to that
kind of commitment. It’s rooted in the Ten Commandments: “You
shall have no other gods.” Can you honestly say that about your life?
Is it really true you have no other gods in your life than the One who made
you and gave His Son to die for you? You may acknowledge God and believe in
Him, but have you made a total commitment?
It’s like the old story about the hen and the hog. The
hen and the hog were walking one day past the church and noted the pastor’s
sermon title on the bulletin board outside. It read: “What can we do
to help the poor?”
The hen and hog began to discuss this question as they walked.
At last the hen had an idea. “I’ve got it,” she said. “We
can help the poor by giving them a ham and eggs breakfast.”
“Oh, no you don’t,” shot back the hog. “For
you that only means a contribution but for me it’s a total commitment.”
Believe me, when you are dealing with the God of the universe,
there is no chicken’s way out. If we are really going to follow this
God, then all other gods, all idols must be put away. We must serve Him with
what Joshua calls here “all faithfulness.” The word there really
gives the sense of “with total integrity and faithfulness.” There
must be a congruence of what we profess and what we live. Or to put in popular
language, “If you’re going to talk the talk, you’d better
walk the walk.”
This is really a simple episode. Joshua reminded them of their
story, reminded them of what God had done and on that basis, called them to
cross the line of faith and serve God exclusively and totally.
You know what? We have a story like these people. It’s
a story we rehearse every time we gather in this place. A story of what God
has done out of His great love for us. It’s a story beautifully summarized
in our confession of faith that we sometimes recite together, the Apostle’s
Creed. [recite]
There is a sense in which you can believe everything in the
Creed and still go to hell. It’s more than agreeing in your mind that
there is a God or even that Jesus really did die and rise again. What’s
called for here is a commitment of your heart, mind, soul, and body. What’s
called for here is a definite response to what God has already done for you.
And that response—that total commitment—can only
be embraced through the grace of God. You will never be able to rack up enough
points with God to get to heaven. It doesn’t work that way. God has
done the work through Jesus Christ. And the only way to have life is through
a heart-deep faith in Jesus Christ. Confessing your need and your sin. Asking
Jesus to forgive your sin and come into your life to drive out all other gods
and take complete leadership of your life.
And when you invite Jesus to come, He has promised to forgive
you for your sins and wipe away your guilt. He has promised to make you new
inside. And He has promised to make you a part of God’s great family,
so that from now on you can live with the assurance that when this life is
over, you have an eternity in heaven waiting for you.
This is the gospel. This is why we exist as a church. This is
our mission as Christians. To tell the great story of how God has saved us
and then to ask the question: “What are you going to do about it?”
What’s your decision? When are you going to cross the line and give
your life over to Jesus?
“It may be the devil or it may be the Lord, it may be money or power or pleasure. It may be your self, but you’re gonna’ serve somebody.” I lay before you this morning the challenge of Joshua. “Choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve.”
