Who Do You Serve?

…but as for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh. Joshua 24:15

When Joshua was at the end of his life, he went before the people of Israel (Joshua 24) and spoke for God. God spoke through the prophet and said, “I gave you a land on which you had not labored and cities which you had not built, and you have lived in them; you are eating of vineyards and olive groves which you did not plant.” God reminded the people of Israel of all the things He had done for them, from the calling of Abraham to the conquering of the promised land.
Joshua challenged the people, “So now, fear Yahweh and serve Him in integrity and truth; and put away the gods which your fathers served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve Yahweh. If it is evil in your sight to serve Yahweh, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served which were beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living ( Joshua 24:14-15).” Joshua answered his question before the people responded, “but as for me and my house, we will serve Yahweh.”
How do you answer that question? We aren’t the Israelites or under the Covenants God made with the Israelites, but that does not mean this passage dose does not have application in our lives. It is a simple question, “who do you serve.” If you are a follower of Christ, there is only one correct answer, Jesus. He is the Lord and Savior of every professing Christian. If He is your Lord and Savior, you should be serving and obeying His commands. The problem is that in modern progressive Christianity, we have been led to believe that you can be a Christian without serving Jesus. Do you find you and your family seem to be more occupied with the things of the World than you do with the things of God? Do your actions agree with your lips if you say you love God and will serve Him?
Let’s start by answering a few questions. Do you regularly attend Sunday morning worship and only miss when providentially hindered or scheduled vacations? Do you find yourself missing Church regularly for any number of reasons? Do you allow your children to be involved in sports that take you away from worship on Sunday mornings? Do you decide to miss Church because you have had a long week and you need to rest? Do you miss Church because you need “me” time? It is hard to claim to be a follower of Christ and not love and participate in worship on Sunday mornings. How can one claim to love Christ and yet not love what He loves, the Church? The universal Church (all Christians) gathers at the local Church on Sundays to worship. That worship includes prayer, fellowship, singing of hymns and praise, giving our first fruits, and preaching His Word. Too many so-called Christians have expressed with their lips that they will follow Christ, yet their actions speak differently. We are called to be transformed by the renewing of our minds and not to be conformed to the World. Our minds are renewed by studying God’s Word, praying, hearing God’s Word preached and taught, and serving and fellowshipping with other Christians. We are conformed to the World when the things of God take second place in our lives. So, ask yourself, do you serve Yahweh or the gods of your own making?

Your shepherd,
Pastor Mark