I understand, from an astronomical point of view, the last day of summer coincides with the autumnal equinox (this year that means the official last day of summer will be Saturday September 22nd at 9:54PM.) but for me, the end of August feels like the end of summer. I don’t know if it is the same for you, but it feels like my work obligations increase in September. I’m not saying I sluff off in June, July, and August but for some reason those months seem more serene than the rest of the year. By the end of August even our children’s obligations increase. Back to school means morning cartoons are replaced with a mad scramble to catch the bus, instead of spending afternoons outside they are sitting in a desk, and late-night movies are replaced with homework. Very soon now, our social calendars will be filled with parent-teacher meetings, fall festivals, and Christmas parties. Likely your calendars are already filling up with the extracurricular events we feel obliged to have our children participate in. Music lessons, cheerleading practice, ball games, school recitals, club meetings you name it our children are signed up for it. (For example, did y’all know the Olson girls take Karate? I don’t know why, but the thought of those two little darling kung-Fu kickin and a judy-choppin tickles my heart. Girls when you get to the point that you are breaking boards with your fist of furry and smashing cinder blocks with your foreheads you have to let me know, I have a lot of obligations with my own children, but I will make time to see that.)
It’s a busy time of year. It can seem overwhelming. With so much going on its likely you can’t keep track of whetheryou are coming or going. With so many obligations to meet, it’s not surprising if every now and then something falls through the cracks. Sometimes I wonder if we are overly obligated.
If ever there was a guy who understood obligation, it was Joshua. Joshua was born during the bitter bondage years in Egypt. We first take note of him in Exodus chapter 17 where Moses obligated Joshua to choose some men and fight the Amalekites. We may remember that battle at Rephidim as the one in which Moses held up his hands with Aaron and Hur supporting his tired arms, but Joshua was the general who orchestrated the battle. Later in Exodus we see Joshua’s obligations increase as he is appointed Moses’ personal aide and after the death of his master Moses, Joshua is placed under still more obligations. The book of Joshua begins with the LORD saying to Joshua, “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them—to the Israelites.”[1] Joshua is appointed the new leader over the nation of Israel and is tasked with the responsibility of settling the people of God in the promised land.
In the book that bears his name, we read about Joshua meeting his obligations. In the decades that follow, cities are sacked, kings are killed, and territories are taken. By the end of the book, the land has been divided, disputes have been resolved, and the people are settled. Better than most, Joshua understood how challenging it can be to meet all your obligations.
Before he dies, Joshua wants to talk to his people about the importance of meeting one obligation above all others. He assembles all the tribes of Israel at Shechem. He summons the elders, leaders, judges, and officials. He says to them, “14 Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living.” Joshua tells the Israelites their most important obligation is to serve the LORD. He commands them to repent of any worship they have given to a false god, telling them to throw those false gods away. He points out to them that there really is no choice in the matter. He facetiously asks them if, instead of serving the LORD, they would rather worship the gods of their forefathers; the gods of Egypt who were humiliated by ten plagues and the parting of the Red sea or if instead of serving the LORD they would rather serve the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living; the gods who recently failed defend their people from the army of the LORD.
It seems absurd to think anyone would choose to serve a false god over the LORD. And yet we deal in such absurdities on a daily basis. We may not bow to the sun god Ra as the Egyptians did and we may not devote ourselves to the moon god Sin as the Amorites did, but we have fashioned gods just as foolish as those. Like the idolatrous Egyptians and Amorites, we imagine mystic forces controlling our lives. Their names are chance, and accident. We perform religious rituals, we call superstitions, in an attempt to appease these gods. We credit these gods with the power to bestow blessings or curses upon us, we call this power luck. It is absurd to think that anyone would pay more attention to a false god than to the LORD, and yet Joshua’s call to repentance still rings true today. ‘Throw away such gods!’, he commands.
For Joshua the choice is clear. Standing before the nation of Israel, Joshua has what I like to call a William Wallace moment. You know, from that inspirational scene in Braveheart where Wallace stands before his fellow Scotsmen and shouts, “they may take our lives, but they’ll never take OUR FREEDOM!” Like William Wallace, Joshua makes one of the most inspirational confessions of faith in all of scripture, equal even to the one Peter makes in our gospel lesson for today. As I imagine it, Joshua stands before his fellow Israelites and shouts, “15 But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
Regardless of what anyone else may choose to do, Joshua makes a pledge to serve the LORD. “As for me, I will serve the LORD”, he says. Joshua leaves no doubt about his choice. The future “will serve” is used in the NIV, but the Hebrew imperfect leaves room for past actions, as well as future. Indeed, Joshua had served the Lord his entire life; this was nothing new for him. From his days as a general, to serving as Moses’ aide, to his governing of the Israelite nation, serving the Lord was his full-time occupation. What he had done, he would continue to do.
Joshua knew, before he obligated anyone else to the service of the LORD, he must first obligate himself, and so must we. No matter how passionate our plea, no matter how persuasive our speech, the strength of our argument lies in our willingness to first oblige ourselves to the LORD’s service. Regardless of all the other obligations that we might have, and I understand they are many, the LORD must be our first priority, we must take the time to read His word, we must be active in bible study, we must faithfully gather for worship, we must fear, love, and trust in the LORD our God above all things. Before we even attempt to encourage another person to serve the LORD, be they child or sibling, friend or neighbor we must first obligate ourselves to the service of the LORD, we must have our own William Wallace moment, regardless of what anyone else may to choose to do, we must make our stand and proclaim, “As for me, I will serve the LORD.”
At this point, I should probably point out that Joshua does not feel burdened by the service he has obligated himself to. Joshua does not see his obligation as some grand sacrifice that he is making. It is neither threat of law nor terror of punishment that motivates Joshua. Joshua is motivated by the promise of the gospel and the providence of blessing. Joshua began this chapter recalling how his God of grace had delivered him from death and set him free from slavery in Egypt. Joshua remembered how his LORD provided him manna to eat and protected him from his enemies during the 40 years he spent wandering in the wilderness. Joshua was standing in the very land the LORD had promised to give to his people. Joshua obligates himself to serve the LORD because Joshua wants to continue to receive all the blessings that come from his God of grace.
Joshua obligated himself to the LORD’s service because of God’s grace, and so do we. We too have been delivered from death and set free from slavery. We too have had our needs provided and been protected from the enemy during the years we have been wandering in this wilderness. One day we too will stand in the land the LORD God has promised His people. Obligating ourselves to the LORD’s service is not a burden we must bear, and it is not a sacrifice we must make. We obligate ourselves to the LORD’s service willingly, joyfully, excitedly because of the promise of the gospel and the providence of blessing.
Having obligated himself to continue to receive blessings from his God of grace, Joshua seeks to share those blessings with others. His desire was for all of Israel to enjoy these blessings and he used his considerable influence to that end. But in his own home, where his authority was greatest, Joshua did more than influence, he insisted. “My house will serve the LORD.” Was Joshua’s pledge. Joshua remembered well the words of his master Moses who wrote in Deuteronomy 11:19, “Teach them [these words of mine] to your children, talking about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.” Joshua understood it was his responsibility to train up his children in the way they should go, it was his responsibility to correct, rebuke, and instruct them, it was his responsibility to obligate them to faithful service to the LORD.
Joshua knew it was his responsibility to share the LORD’s blessings with his family, and it is ours’s as well. Now, I know that is not easy. As a father of three, I know how challenging it can be to obligate your house to serve the LORD. You parents of little children, I implore you to take advantage of the authority God has given you and bring those little ones to Sunday School and worship; bring them up in the training and instruction of the LORD. Do it now, do it while they are young, because as your children grow older the task becomes more difficult. Ask the parent of any high school student how well their child listens to them. Talk to the parent of a college student about the extent of their authority they can exercise over those young adults. Listen to the empty nester as they lament their loss of influence. Do it now, do it while they are young. You parents of older children, even though your task is more difficult, I beseech you, don’t give up. No matter how much they whine and complain about how you are ruining their life, no matter how stubborn their refusal and loudly they argue with you, don’t give up. There is simply too much at stake.
Allow me to exercise my limited influence in this matter. To the young people who are gathered here or whose parents are forcing you to read this sermon, when your parents invite/ inform you that you are going to church, when they get you up early so that you can attend bible study, when they talk about the word of God with you as you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and get up. They are not trying to punish you. They are not trying to prevent you from having fun. They are trying to ensure that you will enjoy the blessings your God of grace has to offer you. I beg you, for your own benefit, listen to them.
At this point, I should probably point out that Jesus died to forgive the sins of both the irresponsible parent and the disobedient child. As your substitute, Jesus met His obligations, every single one of them, every obligation of the law, perfectly met on your behalf. As your sacrifice, Jesus offered his life as payment for your sinful failure to serve the LORD your God. As your savior, Jesus invites and encourages you to re-obligate yourself and your family to the LORD’s service, so that you and they may continue to receive the blessings your God of grace has to offer.[2]
Having been encouraged to obligate themselves to the service of the LORD, “16 the people answered, “Far be it from us to forsake the LORD to serve other gods! 17 It was the LORD our God himself who brought us and our fathers up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we traveled. 18 And the LORD drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve the LORD, because he is our God.” Despite our busy schedules, full calendars, and hectic lives, may we young and old alike be equally obliged. Amen
[1] Joshua 1:2
[2] “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.” Hebrews 12:2-3