“Choose Whom You Will Serve” Joshua 24:14-24

A friend on Facebook posted an entertaining thing the other day. It was a “survey” to see which a person prefers. The choices were things like “steak or fish,” “Mexican or Italian,” “sunrise or sunset.” You get the idea. It was interesting to look at, a bit of fun amid all the other stuff that goes on at Facebook.

In today’s passage, Joshua confronts the people of Israel with a choice they have to make. Their choice is: Will they follow God, or won’t they?

Background

Following the confusion over the altar erected by the Reubenites, Gadites and Manassites, things seemed to settle down in Israel. They were finally enjoying the peace that had come upon the land. There were still pockets of settlements to conquer, but for the most part, there was peace in the land.

Joshua had served as Moses’ aide during most of the Exodus. He had served as one of the spies sent into the Promised Land and, along with Caleb, argued that Israel could claim the land. When God sentenced the people to wander in the wilderness for 40 years, only Joshua and Caleb survived to actually cross the Jordan River and enter the land God had promised first to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. We know from a couple of weeks ago that Caleb was 85 years old as he claimed his hill country. We have no idea how old Joshua is by the time of this passage, but assuming he was around Caleb’s age, he was past retirement age when Chapters 23 and 24 take place.

Chapter 23 opens with, “After a long time had passed and the Lord had given Israel rest from all their enemies around them, Joshua, by then old and well advanced in years” (23:1). We have no idea when exactly these two chapters take place, but Joshua spends Chapter 23 speaking to the elders and leaders of Israel.

In the chapter, he tells them, among other things, “Be very strong; be careful to obey all that his written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or left. Do not associate with these nations that remain among you; do not invoke the names of their gods or swear by them. You must not serve them or bow down to them. But you are to hold fast to the Lord your God, as you have until now” (vs. 6-8).

Joshua reminds the leaders that it was God that brought them to the land, and that it was God that drove out their enemies. He implies that their devotion to God is what led to the victories, because he then warns them that they will never be able to stand against their enemies if they turn away from serving God.

Joshua finally tells them that he’s near death, and that they must remain true to God after he is gone. He tells them that God has been faithful to keep His promises, but that God will also be sure to bring judgment should they fail to follow Him and Him alone.

Having thus spoken to the elders and leaders, Joshua now addresses the people of Israel, giving them the same basic speech. He reminds them of all that God has done for them, beginning in Egypt, through the wilderness and crossing the Jordan. He comes to his summary, which is the passage look at today.

Central Truth: Serving God is always a choice we must make.

The options (14-18)

Everyone has choices. We see them every day. Some of the choices we have are insignificant, while others can be major in their impact. We don’t usually know what our choices will do or mean, but we make them as best as we can.

Joshua tells Israel they have the most important decision they will ever make, and it is a decision they will need to make each day of their lives. The choice is to serve God or to serve other gods.

His first choice is to encourage them to “fear the Lord and serve Him with all faithfulness.” Joshua has already stated all the reasons they have to faithfully follow God, so he doesn’t belabor the point. Instead, he tells them one of the concrete ways they can demonstrate this faithfulness to God is to “throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt” (v. 14b). Reading this, it seems somewhat shocking that this is the first time they are told to get rid of idols and other representations of foreign gods. It would have been fitting that Sinai would have been the time to do that, if not the night of Passover. There were plenty of times to get rid of these images, but only now is Joshua telling them to do so.

The other choice is to keep the idols. It’s interesting how Joshua puts it. “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable for you” (v. 15a). It almost seems flippant the way he says it. It’s almost as if he’s saying, “Look, this isn’t all that important. Maybe following God just doesn’t seem that practical. Maybe it’s inconvenient. God doesn’t want to make too many demands on you, and He’ll certainly understand if you choose not to follow Him.” We would be wrong to assume that.

The choice they have is to follow God or to reject Him. To follow God is to walk in faithful obedience to Him, with a trust built upon the experiences of walking under His guidance in the past. Seeing all that God has done for them, how He has kept His promises, indicates that He will continue to do so.

But there are always some who refuse to see God’s hand in things. There may have been some in Israel who saw all that had happened as merely pure coincidence. Maybe they were giving themselves too much credit. “I never saw God fight for us; that was our bodies and our lives were put out there on the battlefield every day,” could have been some of the thinking. There are others who may think that God had done well in the wilderness, but this was Canaan, and the people who lived there had been served well by the gods of Canaan. Why rock the boat now and start worshiping a new God to the region? Why not give the local gods a go?

Joshua reminds them that they have a host of other gods they can choose to follow. However, he lets them know his position: “As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (v.15b).

The people are quick to respond. They acknowledge all that God has done for them, and they commit themselves to follow God and God only. “We, too, will serve the Lord, because He is our God” (v. 18).

The difficulty (19-21)

When is the best time to shut up? Do you ask a girl to marry you, and then when she says yes, you try to talk her out of it, reminding her of all the hardships that come with marriage? When someone says they’ll hire you, do you spend time to warn the boss that he may not be getting the employee he thinks he’s getting?

Joshua isn’t content to let the people wind up with their declaration that they will serve God. In fact, he tells them they can’t do it. “You are not able to serve the Lord. He is a holy God; He is a jealous God. He will not foregive your rebellion and your sins” (v.19). He reminds them of the judgment that will come upon them if they should turn from God. They may be willing to serve God right now, but what happens on the day they forget to do so? What happens if one day they choose to serve other gods? Joshua warns them God will bring a disaster on them. Just as He did to the people who lived in the land before them, God will bring judgement upon them.

And the people told Joshua, “No! We will serve the Lord.” They are saying their commitment is strong and firm, that they are a people who will never forget what God has done for them. They are certain and committed: They will serve the Lord.

Actions in keeping with the choice (22-24)

It’s easy to say I’m going to do something; it’s another thing to do it. People have been “going to” lose weight for decades; some actually take the steps to do it. Some have been “going to” read a particular book; few actually pick it up and read it. It’s easy to say we’re going to do something; it’s another thing to do it.

Twice Joshua has challenged the people of Israel to choose between serving God or serving other idols. Both times, the people have responded with a rousing, “We will serve the Lord!” Now Joshua tells them to put their money where their mouths are, so to speak.

Joshua begins by reminding them that they have made a commitment before each other, and as such they are each witnesses of what has been declared that day. There is a lot to be said for accountability. When I am accountable to others, I am more likely to do whatever it is I said I would do. Without a sense of accountability, it’s easy to slack off. Joshua reminds them that, as witnesses of each other’s pledge to follow God, they are each accountable to each other.

The people agree: “Yes, we are witnesses” (v. 22b). There is the acknowledgement that each of the people will give account to the others. Now it’s time for the next step.

Talk is cheap. Joshua tells them, in light of their commitment and of their accountability, they need to “throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel” (v. 23). You say you want to follow the Lord; prove it. Put away the idols that could entice you to break your promise. Take the step that demonstrates the words spoken.

It’s interesting to see Israel’s response. Instead of going to their tents and bringing the idols out for a mass meltdown or garbage heap, they simply repeat the words, “We will serve the Lord our God and obey Him” (v. 24). Was it they were waiting for the assembly to be formally dismissed? Where they waiting for a signal? Or could it be they were willing to voice their commitment, but reluctant to take the step? We can’t say for certain. Verse 31 says, “Israel served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced everything the Lord had done for Israel.” It is probable that most of those present that day did indeed remove the idols from their possession, and it is the testimony of Scripture that they were faithful to God.

(The elders who outlived Joshua were people under the age of 20 when Joshua, Caleb and the other spies brought their report to Moses. God’s judgement of the 40 years wilderness wandering was to kill off the people who were of age at the time Israel rebelled against God. It would be safe to assume that the years after Joshua’s death were probably another 20-30 years.)

When we make a pledge or a commitment to God, it is important that we take a concrete step as our initial step in travelling the path God has set before us. Sometimes, that initial step is to give up something that has hindered our walk in the past. Sometimes, it is beginning to do something we haven’t done in the past. Whatever the step is, it is important that we take that step.

Conclusion

God has taken Joshua and his people a long way from the moment Joshua assumed leadership of God’s people. For the most part, Joshua has followed the Lord in every step. Now, most of the fighting is over and the land is at rest.

Joshua died at the age of 110, a man who had demonstrated what it means to trust in the Lord with all one’s heart and to lean not on his own understanding. Joshua was a man who took God’s words to heart and sought to live a life of obedience and truth in God’s eyes.

One of his last great acts for the people was to challenge them to choose to follow the Lord. He reminded them of all that God had done for them, and he encouraged them to choose wisely. He stated for them all what he and his family would do.

Today, as we hear God’s word, we must ask ourselves: Who will we serve, and what steps will we take to draw closer to our Lord?