“So now, revere the Lord. Serve him honestly and faithfully. Put aside the gods that your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates and in Egypt and serve the Lord.” – Joshua 24:14 (CEB)
All week we’ve walked through Joshua’s long retelling of everything God has already done: an ordinary family chosen, a cry answered at the sea, curses turned to blessings, cities nobody in the room had built. And now, finally, Joshua turns the history into a decision. So now, he says. Revere the Lord. Serve him honestly and faithfully.
Notice the order. The history comes first. The decision comes second. Joshua doesn’t ask Israel to choose God out of nowhere. He asks them to choose God after reminding them, at length, what God has already done for them.
Come worship with us tomorrow as we sit together with the question this whole week has been building toward: choose today whom you will serve. We worship at 8:30 and 10:15, and online worship is available at youtube.com/@mcphersonfirst.
Faithful God, after everything you have already done for me, help me choose you honestly in worship tomorrow, and again on every ordinary day after it. Amen.