Joshua 24:14-15, Matthew 6:24 ~ Elder’s Notes

Hey Countryside!

This week I read the last chapter of the book of Joshua.  It is an interesting chapter as Joshua knows that he has grown old and is going to die soon.  He gathers the people that he has led in the conquest of the Promised Land, and he gives them final instructions.  As he recounts the victories that God has secured on their behalf he comes to the point where he offers a choice.

Joshua 24:14-15 ESV
“Now therefore fear the LORD and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD.  (15)  And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

The point here is that you cannot half-heartedly serve God.  You must be sincere, and you must choose.  The New Testament tells us that we cannot worship with a divided heart, we cannot have two masters.  In this modern era, we are much less likely to have a idol on our mantle that we bow to, but money has become a god that we serve.  Jesus says this:

Matthew 6:24 ESV
“No one can serve two masters, for 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 God and money.

The God of the bible will not force you to worship Him, He calls to you, He offers you His salvation that He procured through Jesus on the cross, but He will not be worshipped in a half-hearted way.  He will not tolerate divided affections.  So, as Joshua says, choose whom you will serve.  As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

Pastor Jonathan Welch