You Choose Joshua 24:1-9 CLICK TITLE FOR AUDIO
In life you choose and you live by the consequences of your choices. In the Bible, God chose some things. He chose the people, Israel [Deut 7:7], he chose the priest, Aaron [Num 17:5], he chose the place, Jerusalem [Deut 12:5], he chose the prince, David [1 Ki 11:34], he chose the prophet, Jesus [Matt 12:18] and he chose the ‘postles [Acts 1:2], even Paul [Acts 9:15]. These were his principal choices.
Today we are going to look at your principal choices. How you decide among these choices determines the quality and the character of your life. So, choose wisely. You choose:
Whom to please – Is 56:4, 65:12 – God said of Jesus, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased,” [Matt 3:17]. That’s because Christ pleased not himself [Rom 15:3]. Speaking of his Father, Jesus said, “I do always those things that please him,” [Jn 8:29]. Today, men are “lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God,” [2 Tim 3]. They are like Samson, whose choice for a wife was based solely on his own pleasure. He said to his father, “Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well,” [Jud 14:3].
Whom to follow – Prov 3:31 – Jesus said, “Follow me,” [Jn 21:19]. Peter said, “We have not followed cunningly devised fables,” [2 Pet 1:16]. When you choose to follow Jesus then he wants you to follow the people he puts in your life who are following him. Paul said, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ,” [1 Cor 11:1]. Good pastors are good “ensamples to the flock,” [1 Pet 5:3]. You should follow them.
Whom to serve – Jos 24:15 – a true Catholic, for instance, does not serve the Lord. He serves the god of his church, who is not the God of the Bible. He serves his priest and his priest’s doctrine. We are to serve the Lord and that affects how we serve all those who are in authority over us. Eph 6:5-7 says, “Servants, be obedient to them that are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in singleness of your heart, as unto Christ; not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but as the servants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart; with good will doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men.”
Whom to fear – Prov 1:29 – Phil 2:12-13 says, “Wherefore, my beloved, as ye have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” We are to fear the Lord. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge [Prov 1:7] and wisdom [Prov 9:10]. A college student, for instance, who does not fear the Lord will become educated in “the instruction that causeth to err from the words of knowledge,” [Prov 19:27].
Whom to love – 1 Sam 20:30 – Jonathan chose to love David. He was a good man to befriend. Amnon chose to befriend Jonadab. He was a bad friend. He helped Amnon to sin and his sin eventually resulted in his death. Choose your friends to love, wisely. You choose a mate. So, be sure to choose wisely [1 Cor 7:39]. We are to love God with all our heart. Choose to love him above all.
With whom to spend eternity – Deut 30:19, Jer 8:3 – Rom 10:13, Rev 20:15 – the choice where you will spend eternity is yours. No one else can make that choice for you. How you choose will affect you for all of eternity. So, choose wisely.
Conclusion: Refusing to choose is choosing. And not accepting the responsibility for your own choices is dishonest. So, choose to receive Jesus Christ and then choose to please, follow, serve, fear and love God.