The Weight of Choosing: When "Yes" to God Means Everything
The Weight of Choosing: When "Yes" to God Means Everything
There's something deeply unsettling about the question Joshua posed to Israel at Shechem: "Choose for yourselves today whom you will worship."
On the surface, it seems straightforward. The people had witnessed miracle after miracle. They'd seen walls crumble, enemies fall, and a land of promise finally within their grasp. When Joshua declared, "As for me and my family, we will worship the Lord," the people's response came quickly: "We will certainly not abandon the Lord to worship other gods!"
But then Joshua did something shocking. Something that would make any leader pause.
He told them they couldn't do it.
"You will not be able to worship the Lord," he said, "because he is a holy God. He is a jealous God."
The Reality Check We All Need
This might be one of the most jarring statements in all of Scripture. Imagine a pastor asking people to commit to following Jesus, hearing an enthusiastic "Yes!" and then responding, "Actually, no you can't."
Yet Joshua wasn't being discouraging. He was being honest.
The Israelites had a track record. They'd flirted with Egyptian gods. They'd grumbled in the wilderness. They'd been tempted by the fertility cults of Canaan with their promises of blessing and pleasure. Joshua knew their hearts. He knew that without divine grace, without genuine transformation, their commitment would be nothing more than empty words.
We live in a culture obsessed with rights. We know our Miranda rights, our constitutional rights, our consumer rights. We teach children in sandboxes about personal space and boundaries. But Scripture operates on a different frequency entirely. It focuses not on our rights, but on our responsibilities.
When we declare Jesus as Lord—kurios in Greek, the equivalent of Yahweh in Hebrew—we're not adding another option to our spiritual portfolio. We're surrendering control. We're acknowledging that He is master and we are servants. In ancient terms, we're slaves with no rights, only devotion to our master's will.
This clashes violently with Western sensibilities. We want Jesus as consultant, not commander. Advisor, not authority. But that's not the offer on the table.
The Two Truths That Change Everything
Joshua gave two reasons why worshiping God isn't something we can casually decide to do:
First, God is holy. The Hebrew word means "one of a kind," completely set apart, utterly different from everything else. God isn't a warm, fuzzy teddy bear we can cuddle when convenient. He's more like a 160-pound mastiff—gentle until you treat Him carelessly.
Remember Moses at Mount Sinai? Don't touch the mountain. Why? God's holiness. The seventy people who died handling the Ark of the Covenant improperly? God's holiness. Humanity's sinfulness creates a serious problem when it encounters God's holiness. We can't simply waltz into His presence on our own terms.
Second, God is jealous. He will not tolerate divided loyalty. He won't share His throne with the god of materialism, the idol of success, or the altar of self. You can't say "I love God" while bowing to cultural idols. You can't worship both God and money. You can't serve two masters.
It's like telling your spouse, "I love you, but I'd like to explore relationships with a few other people on the side. Don't worry, I'll always come back to you." That wouldn't go well, would it? God desires—demands—complete faithfulness.
What Worship Actually Looks Like
So what does it mean to truly worship and serve the Lord? Joshua's life and words paint a clear picture:
We affirm Jesus' lordship. Romans 10:9 says, "If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." This isn't intellectual agreement. It's surrendering to His authority over every area of life.
We do what He taught. If Scripture says be holy, we pursue holiness. If Jesus commands us to love our neighbors, we love our neighbors. Following Jesus means obedience, not selective compliance.
We model what He lived. Joshua modeled what he learned from Moses. Paul urged believers to imitate him as he imitated Christ. Our culture desperately needs people who don't just talk about faith but live it out—marriages that reflect Christ's love, families that function with grace, men and women who walk with integrity.
We share in His suffering. This is the uncomfortable one. In Western culture, we want blessing without cost, victory without battle. But true discipleship means we may face opposition, rejection, or hardship because we profess Christ. That's different from everyday difficulties; it's suffering specifically because we follow Jesus.
The Stone That Heard Everything
At the end of his life, Joshua set up a large stone as a witness. "This stone has heard all the words the Lord said to us," he declared. It would stand as testimony against them if they abandoned their covenant.
It's a fascinating image—a stone that hears and remembers. We need such witnesses in our lives. Maybe it's a Bible with the date you surrendered to Christ written inside. Maybe it's something on your wall that reminds you of God's faithfulness. Not idols, but reminders of moments when God moved, when you made commitments, when grace transformed you.
These witnesses speak when we're tempted to forget. They testify when we drift toward compromise.
The Title That Matters Most
At his death, Joshua received a title he'd never carried before. Throughout his life, he'd been "Joshua, son of Nun" or "Moses' assistant." But in death, the text calls him "the Lord's servant."
Moses had been called God's servant throughout his ministry. Now Joshua earned the same designation. He'd moved from the temporary to the eternal, from earthly identity to heavenly recognition.
One day, we'll all face eternity. The question is what title we'll carry. "Well done, good and faithful servant" are words worth living—and dying—for.
The Better Joshua
The book of Joshua ends with three burials: Joshua the prophet-type, Joseph the king-type, and Eleazar the priest-type. These three roles point forward to someone greater.
Jesus is the better Joshua—the perfect prophet who is Himself the living Word. Jesus is the better king who sits on an eternal throne. Jesus is the better high priest who tore the veil and gave us access to God's presence.
The question Joshua posed at Shechem still echoes today: "Choose for yourselves today whom you will worship."
Not a casual choice. Not lip service. But a complete surrender to the holy, jealous God who demands all of us because He gave all of Himself.
The stone is still listening. What will your answer be?
There's something deeply unsettling about the question Joshua posed to Israel at Shechem: "Choose for yourselves today whom you will worship."
On the surface, it seems straightforward. The people had witnessed miracle after miracle. They'd seen walls crumble, enemies fall, and a land of promise finally within their grasp. When Joshua declared, "As for me and my family, we will worship the Lord," the people's response came quickly: "We will certainly not abandon the Lord to worship other gods!"
But then Joshua did something shocking. Something that would make any leader pause.
He told them they couldn't do it.
"You will not be able to worship the Lord," he said, "because he is a holy God. He is a jealous God."
The Reality Check We All Need
This might be one of the most jarring statements in all of Scripture. Imagine a pastor asking people to commit to following Jesus, hearing an enthusiastic "Yes!" and then responding, "Actually, no you can't."
Yet Joshua wasn't being discouraging. He was being honest.
The Israelites had a track record. They'd flirted with Egyptian gods. They'd grumbled in the wilderness. They'd been tempted by the fertility cults of Canaan with their promises of blessing and pleasure. Joshua knew their hearts. He knew that without divine grace, without genuine transformation, their commitment would be nothing more than empty words.
We live in a culture obsessed with rights. We know our Miranda rights, our constitutional rights, our consumer rights. We teach children in sandboxes about personal space and boundaries. But Scripture operates on a different frequency entirely. It focuses not on our rights, but on our responsibilities.
When we declare Jesus as Lord—kurios in Greek, the equivalent of Yahweh in Hebrew—we're not adding another option to our spiritual portfolio. We're surrendering control. We're acknowledging that He is master and we are servants. In ancient terms, we're slaves with no rights, only devotion to our master's will.
This clashes violently with Western sensibilities. We want Jesus as consultant, not commander. Advisor, not authority. But that's not the offer on the table.
The Two Truths That Change Everything
Joshua gave two reasons why worshiping God isn't something we can casually decide to do:
First, God is holy. The Hebrew word means "one of a kind," completely set apart, utterly different from everything else. God isn't a warm, fuzzy teddy bear we can cuddle when convenient. He's more like a 160-pound mastiff—gentle until you treat Him carelessly.
Remember Moses at Mount Sinai? Don't touch the mountain. Why? God's holiness. The seventy people who died handling the Ark of the Covenant improperly? God's holiness. Humanity's sinfulness creates a serious problem when it encounters God's holiness. We can't simply waltz into His presence on our own terms.
Second, God is jealous. He will not tolerate divided loyalty. He won't share His throne with the god of materialism, the idol of success, or the altar of self. You can't say "I love God" while bowing to cultural idols. You can't worship both God and money. You can't serve two masters.
It's like telling your spouse, "I love you, but I'd like to explore relationships with a few other people on the side. Don't worry, I'll always come back to you." That wouldn't go well, would it? God desires—demands—complete faithfulness.
What Worship Actually Looks Like
So what does it mean to truly worship and serve the Lord? Joshua's life and words paint a clear picture:
We affirm Jesus' lordship. Romans 10:9 says, "If you confess with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." This isn't intellectual agreement. It's surrendering to His authority over every area of life.
We do what He taught. If Scripture says be holy, we pursue holiness. If Jesus commands us to love our neighbors, we love our neighbors. Following Jesus means obedience, not selective compliance.
We model what He lived. Joshua modeled what he learned from Moses. Paul urged believers to imitate him as he imitated Christ. Our culture desperately needs people who don't just talk about faith but live it out—marriages that reflect Christ's love, families that function with grace, men and women who walk with integrity.
We share in His suffering. This is the uncomfortable one. In Western culture, we want blessing without cost, victory without battle. But true discipleship means we may face opposition, rejection, or hardship because we profess Christ. That's different from everyday difficulties; it's suffering specifically because we follow Jesus.
The Stone That Heard Everything
At the end of his life, Joshua set up a large stone as a witness. "This stone has heard all the words the Lord said to us," he declared. It would stand as testimony against them if they abandoned their covenant.
It's a fascinating image—a stone that hears and remembers. We need such witnesses in our lives. Maybe it's a Bible with the date you surrendered to Christ written inside. Maybe it's something on your wall that reminds you of God's faithfulness. Not idols, but reminders of moments when God moved, when you made commitments, when grace transformed you.
These witnesses speak when we're tempted to forget. They testify when we drift toward compromise.
The Title That Matters Most
At his death, Joshua received a title he'd never carried before. Throughout his life, he'd been "Joshua, son of Nun" or "Moses' assistant." But in death, the text calls him "the Lord's servant."
Moses had been called God's servant throughout his ministry. Now Joshua earned the same designation. He'd moved from the temporary to the eternal, from earthly identity to heavenly recognition.
One day, we'll all face eternity. The question is what title we'll carry. "Well done, good and faithful servant" are words worth living—and dying—for.
The Better Joshua
The book of Joshua ends with three burials: Joshua the prophet-type, Joseph the king-type, and Eleazar the priest-type. These three roles point forward to someone greater.
Jesus is the better Joshua—the perfect prophet who is Himself the living Word. Jesus is the better king who sits on an eternal throne. Jesus is the better high priest who tore the veil and gave us access to God's presence.
The question Joshua posed at Shechem still echoes today: "Choose for yourselves today whom you will worship."
Not a casual choice. Not lip service. But a complete surrender to the holy, jealous God who demands all of us because He gave all of Himself.
The stone is still listening. What will your answer be?
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