11-12-23 Sermon "We Will Worship Yahweh" - 17 Minutes

Joshua 24:14-25

This morning I'll be reading Joshua chapter 24 verses 14 through 25. And I'll be reading from the Holman Christian Standard Bible. Joshua 24:14-25 In these verses,,, Joshua,,, is giving the Israelites advise for them to follow after he is gone,,, since he dies shortly after this at 110 years old. Joshua 24:14–25 (HCSB) — 14 “Therefore, fear the Lord and worship Him in sincerity and truth. Get rid of the gods your fathers worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and worship Yahweh. 15 But if it doesn’t please you to worship Yahweh, choose for yourselves today the one you will worship: the gods your fathers worshiped beyond the Euphrates River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. As for me and my family, we will worship Yahweh.” 16 The people replied, “We will certainly not abandon the Lord to worship other gods! 17 For the Lord our God brought us and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery, and performed these great signs before our eyes. He also protected us all along the way we went and among all the peoples whose lands we traveled through. 18 The Lord drove out before us all the peoples, including the Amorites who lived in the land. We too will worship the Lord, because He is our God.” 19 But Joshua told the people, “You will not be able to worship Yahweh, because He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not remove your transgressions and sins. 20 If you abandon the Lord and worship foreign gods, He will turn against you, harm you, and completely destroy you, after He has been good to you.” 21 “No!” the people answered Joshua. “We will worship the Lord.” 22 Joshua then told the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you yourselves have chosen to worship Yahweh.” “We are witnesses,” they said. 23 “Then get rid of the foreign gods that are among you and offer your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.” 24 So the people said to Joshua, “We will worship the Lord our God and obey Him.” 25 On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people at Shechem and established a statute and ordinance for them. The word of God for the people of God,,, thanks be to God! God bless the reading and the hearing of your word this morning. Let us pray: Dear Lord,,, as we begin this morning,,, with everyone here today and all that are listening and watching by video,,, we ask that you open our ears to hear and our hearts and minds to receive the message that you have for us today,,, In Jesus' name I pray,,, Amen. ___________________________________ As Kaye and I have been gone these last 2 Sundays,,, while we have traveled and seen different places,,, I've been struck,,, many times,,, of the beauty that is out there for us to see,,, if we just take the time to experience them!

I wanted to thank each of you for that opportunity to see what God has available for us to appreciate here on this earth.

And to let you know,,, that as beautiful as everything is here,,, nothing will compare to what is waiting for us in heaven!

And we have some beautiful places in this world,,, and it's hard to imagine anything better,,, but that's what God has prepared for us according to Paul's words in

1 Corinthians 2:9 says: But as it is written: “Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man the things which God hath prepared for them that love Him.”

This means that we haven't seen anything,,, heard about anything,,, or even imagined anything,,, that compares to what He has for us in heaven,,, what a wonderful God we serve!

And even though what we have here doesn't compare to what awaits us,,, we have some beautiful places,,, and I have been amazed at the beauty we have,,, and also been struck over and over,,, that it's hard to imagine places better than what we've seen,,, but it's promised for us that are Christians,,, and I've spent several mornings and other times,,, praising Him,,, and thanking Him,,, for everything that He has done,,, is doing,,, and,,, what He has for me in the future,,, and I just wanted to remind each of you this morning,,, of that promise,,, and what we,,, all of us,,, have,,, to look forward to in the future!

Now,,, getting back to the scripture.

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Joshua has lead the Israelites into the promised land,,, across the Jordan River,,, and they have taken possession of the land,,, and they are reaping the bounty of a land that they haven't labored and dwell in cities that they haven't built,,, according to Joshua 24:13.

His job is almost complete.

And because of that,,, Joshua is wanting to give them instructions before it is his time to leave them,,, and he wants them to understand the words that he leaves with them.

___________________________________ Verse 14 said: 14 “Therefore, fear the Lord and worship Him in sincerity and truth. Get rid of the gods your fathers worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and worship Yahweh.

The stipulations of the covenant renewal were then stated: Israel must fear the LORD and serve "only" Him.

In this covenant Israel was to reject alliances with all foreign gods.

Joshua boldly challenged them to choose between the gods of Ur that their ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River,,, the gods in Egypt,,, the gods of the Amorites in Canaan,,, and Yahweh.

And then once they have chosen God,,, they must serve Him,,, and worship Him,,, in sincerity and truth!

___________________________________ Verse 15 said: 15 But if it doesn’t please you to worship Yahweh, choose for yourselves today the one you will worship: the gods your fathers worshiped beyond the Euphrates River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living. As for me and my family, we will worship Yahweh.”

Then,,, Joshua tells them that no matter their decision,,, his mind was made up,,, his course clear: as stated in the scripture,,, As for me and my family, we will worship Yahweh.”

___________________________________ Verses 16-18 said: 16 The people replied, “We will certainly not abandon the Lord to worship other gods! 17 For the Lord our God brought us and our fathers out of the land of Egypt, out of the place of slavery, and performed these great signs before our eyes. He also protected us all along the way we went and among all the peoples whose lands we traveled through. 18 The Lord drove out before us all the peoples, including the Amorites who lived in the land. We too will worship the Lord, because He is our God.”

The people responded with sincerity,,, moved by the words of Joshua's determined decision.

They despised the very thought of forsaking the God who had delivered them out of Egypt … that land of slavery … protected them in the wilderness, and brought them into the land of promise. “We will certainly not abandon the Lord ” was their instant reply.

They promised that they too would worship the LORD.

___________________________________ Verses 19-21 said: 19 But Joshua told the people, “You will not be able to worship Yahweh, because He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not remove your transgressions and sins. 20 If you abandon the Lord and worship foreign gods, He will turn against you, harm you, and completely destroy you, after He has been good to you.” 21 “No!” the people answered Joshua. “We will worship the Lord.”

Joshua spoke again.

He was not at all satisfied with their burst of enthusiasm.

Did he detect some traces of insincerity?

Had he hoped that the people would bring out their idols like Jacob’s family had done here some centuries before,,, as they did in Genesis 35:4?

Since there was no response,,, Joshua bluntly declared,,, “You will not be able to worship Yahweh, because He is a holy God. He is a jealous God; He will not remove your transgressions and sins.

Now,,, Joshua did not mean that God was not a God of forgiveness.

He meant that God was not to be worshiped or served lightly,,, and that to forsake Him deliberately to serve idols would be a presumptuous,,, willful,,, high-handed sin for which there was no forgiveness under the Law (Numbers 15:30).

Such sin would result in disaster.

But once more,,, the people responded to Joshua’s probing words,,, earnestly reaffirming their purpose to serve Yahweh.

___________________________________ Verses 22-23 said: 22 Joshua then told the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you yourselves have chosen to worship Yahweh.” “ are witnesses,” they said. 23 “Then get rid of the foreign gods that are among you and offer your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.”

Joshua spoke a third time,,, deliberately challenging them to serve as witnesses against themselves if they did turn aside from God.

And the people immediately replied Yes,,, we are witnesses.

Joshua then spoke a fourth and final time,,, again telling them to throw away the foreign gods that are among you.

He had heard their words,,, now he challenged them to prove them by their actions.

Knowing that many of them were secretly practicing idolatry,,, Joshua immediately demanded that they remove their foreign gods.

___________________________________ Verses 24-25 said: 24 So the people said to Joshua, “We will worship the Lord our God and obey Him.” 25 On that day Joshua made a covenant for the people at Shechem and established a statute and ordinance for them.

Without the slightest hesitation the people said,,, “We will worship the Lord our God and obey Him.”

They said they would be obedient servants of God,,, not slaves of Egypt or of other gods.

Joshua warned them that there couldn't be any mixing of allegiance to God with idol-worship.

A firm choice had to be made then,, just as all Christians have to do,,, in every generation.

People must choose between this world and eternity,,, between God and idols,,, and stick to that choice,,, or accept the consequences.

So,,, Joshua,,, realizing that further words would be fruitless,,, and semi-satisfied with the sincerity of the people’s declaration,,, Joshua,,, established a statute and ordinance for them.

___________________________________ Joshua has done everything that he can to help the Israelites remain obedient to God after he leaves them.

Of course we know that they didn't keep their word,,, and that they paid the penalty for it as well!

They should have heeded Joshua's warning,,, and apparently they meant to at the time,,, but it didn't last!

___________________________________ This is something that we need to remember going forward as well.

We are beginning our own covenant with God,,, as we begin our new journey as we leave the UMC,,, and we must be sure that from this day forward that we follow God the way that He leads,,, as He shows us the way!

Being sure that we don't let the world around us pull us down.

Being sure that we keep our eyes and thoughts on God,,, and God alone,,, without any idols of our own tearing us away from His love and guidance!

The way that we have followed God's voice to get us to this day,,, we must continue to follow the rest of our days,,, and we must be careful to maintain that relationship so that we,,, as a church,,, can prosper the way that God intends for us!

Just as Joshua asked the Israelites then,,, and expected an answer,,, we too are asked and must answer,,, who we will follow?

And our answer must be,,, to worship and serve the Lord, our God,,, while at the same time,,, remembering the mistakes that the Israelites made,,, and being focused on our path forward,,, so that we remain on course,,, and don't let the world pull us down!

Today,,, and tomorrow,,, our answer must be,,, the same as Joshua’s,,, As for me and my family, "this church family",,, we "will" worship Yahweh.”

___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ ___________________________________ Hymn: 337 - Oakdale Hymn: 337 - Seminary Benediction -----------------------------------------------------------