“But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
Joshua 24:15
When I purchased my first home, I received a framed Joshua 24:15 sign as a housewarming gift. It is small and simple, but it has been on a wall in every house I have owned since. I loved it because it was a gift from a dear friend, but my love for it has grown, along with the size of my family, over the past twenty years as these words have become the foundation of our home and lives.
We live in a world that downplays the value of the home, family and our faith. Author and Pastor Chuck Spurgeon wrote, “Whatever may be said about the home, it is the bottom line of life, the anvil upon which attitudes and convictions are hammered out. It is the place where life’s bills come due, the single most influential force in our earthly existence…It is here life makes up its mind.”
Joshua certainly understood the power of the home, family and our faith. As he came to the end of his life, he called the leaders of Israel together for one final message. He recounts the story of the conquest of the Promised Land, and he reminds them of what the Lord has done for them (Joshua 24:1-13). He wanted them to never forget that they owed everything to God. Then he challenges the people to be faithful to God (24:14-27).
“Serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 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.”
(Joshua 24:14-15)
The word “serve” here could also be translated as worship. Joshua used the word “serve” in various forms six times in two verses. This was obviously the burden on his heart. Nothing mattered but this, that the people should willingly choose to serve the Lord.
Joshua reveals an important truth: we all worship something. And what we choose to worship will bear consequences. He presented them with a choice and his words are not just a challenge for the Israelites thousands of years ago, but for us today. Who will you serve? Who will you worship?
Joshua ends verse 15 with his personal commitment. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. He could not control what everyone else did, but he could control what happened in his own house. And he was determined that his household would serve the Lord. He was in control of what physical actions his family took, the things that came into his house and what happened within his walls.
Like Joshua, we must wake up and choose every day to follow and serve Him. We can control the things that come into our home and what happens within our walls. More is caught than taught so we must talk about God’s faithfulness in our lives, worship and pray together, and show our family that the Word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword.
Joshua was faithful to the end, and his example points us to Jesus. Jesus fulfilled the covenant so even though we will fail frequently, just like the Israelites, no one can snatch us from His hands. He chose us from the beginning (Ephesians 1:4) and as for me and my house, we will choose to serve the Lord until the end.
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