The Ultimate Choice

Joshua 24:15 “And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of 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.”

Decisions, decisions! Many people nowadays drown in a sea of opinions within of free marketplace of ideas. But fortunately, despite the myriad of decisions you and I must make everyday, most decisions are not particularly life changing. On the other hand, we can examine decisions in history that changed the course of nations.

I read that someone once asked Alexander the Great; “How did you manage to conquer the whole world?” Alexander replied: “ By not wavering.” Is decision-making really that simple/ Well, it may be more profound than we think. But when we find that as we hesitate, ponder, and consider things, we don’t conquer much of anything; not even our own indecision.

We do have one decision we must make as soon as possible, and it is life changing. In the Bible verse above, History shows that Joshua laid this same decision on the line for the Israelite people. He had gathered the Israelites together at Shechem, which (before the conquest of Jerusalem) was the most holy place in all of Israel. At Shechem, Abraham had built an alter when he came from UR of the Chaldes. At Shechem, Joseph’s bones had found their final resting place after the Israelites brought them from Egypt. At Shechem, tribes gathered to hear the curses and the blessings from Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim. At his most historic place, Joshua once more gathered 12 tribes of Israel and delivered his equivalent of Washington’s Farewell Address. Joshua rehearsed God’s goodness and His mercies to the people over the years and called upon the Israelites to make a decision. He said: “Choose for yourself this day whom you will serve.”

Sooner or later we all must decide whether or not we’ll live for God and serve Him. Joshua ended his farewell address with the words that many a godly family has made their own: “But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.” Do these words describe your life and family? This is the ultimate choice and the one decision you’ll never regret.

In Christ, Brian