One of the verses that I often use to encourage those who are just married or are starting a new family is Joshua 24:15b. Joshua’s words to the children of God were: “… but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.” The challenges that we face today are no less than Joshua’s.

In Joshua 24, Joshua had led the Israelites to occupy the Holy Land that was promised by God. Since they left Egypt, the land of bondage, they had faced many trials, fighting and challenges. Surely they must have learnt their lesson. But Joshua was not taking things for granted. He knew their weaknesses and vulnerability to sin and temptation. Therefore, in Joshua 24:15, he demanded that they make their choice. Who would they choose to serve? God or other gods? Joshua took the lead and set the example before the people. And the choice he made was not just for himself but for his whole family as well. We all have to choose, either individually or for our family. We must choose God because that is the only right thing to do. But how are we going to serve the God we choose to serve? Joshua 24:14-15 gives us the answer, a threefold answer: “Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD. And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.”

First: Fear the LORD

To choose to serve God means we have to fear Him. Start fearing Him today! But what does it mean to fear God? To fear God does not mean to be afraid of God, as man sometimes is afraid of cockroaches, height, darkness, etc. No, these are irrational fears. There is no need to teach such fears. They come naturally.

But Joshua gave the specific command that we are to fear God. The fear of God needs to be taught rightly. It is not developed according to our emotions, but in our understanding of who God really is according to the holy scriptures. We begin to fear God when we truly know Him. The more we know Him, the more we fear Him. Therefore the main reason most people live their lives carelessly and do not fear God is that they do not know or understand who God really is. God is the One who loves us and has given us His only begotten Son, Jesus, that through Him we might be saved from the bondage to sin. And He is the One who will punish sin and judge those who do not fear Him.

We must fear God because He is God, there is none else but Him. As His creatures, we must fear Him. He is above, and over, us. As we fear Him, we want to obey Him and be found faithful before Him. This puts us in our rightful place and, as God-fearing Christians, we will remain humble before our God.

Second: Serve Him in Sincerity and in Truth

To be sincere in our service is to put our heart to serving God, and actually serve Him. So when we choose to serve God, we are to serve from our heart. But this is not all. Sincerity alone is not enough. We must be sincerely right. For example, those who are born blind may be sincere in their belief that there is only one colour, and that that colour is black. But this blind person is sincerely wrong. You may also sincerely believe with all your heart that 2 + 2 = 5, but it will not change the fact that 2 + 2 will always equal to 4. Sincerity is good and important, but it is not enough! Sincerity and truth go hand in hand. It is important for us to seek to be sincerely right. There can be no true sincerity without God’s truth. Let us then seek to be sincere in serving God but make sure

that our sincerity is founded upon His truth.

Third: Put Away the Idols

If we truly fear God and serve Him in sincerity and in truth, putting away the idols in our life will not be difficult. What idols do you have in your life? Note that idols are not restricted only to those placed on altars in homes or in temples. More often than not, they are found in the secret chambers of our heart. They go beyond images of stone or clay made with hands. Idols today can include money, celebrity, power, property, etc. Anything that keeps our eyes off the LORD is an idol and we must remove it at all cost. As we fear God truly, and serve Him sincerely and truthfully, we must not forget to put away our idols and keep putting them away, again and again. In Genesis 35, Jacob buried “… the strange gods … under the oak which was by Shechem” (Gen 35:4), and headed towards Bethel to dwell in the house of God forever, never to return to these idols again. We too must learn to “bury” our idols. Do you have any “idols” that are preventing you from choosing to serve God? Remove them right away!

Conclusion

Fear God, serve Him with sincerity and truth, and put away all idols are what Joshua meant by choosing to serve the LORD. It is the LORD whom we are to serve. There is no mistake about it. The LORD is the One who has called us out of darkness into His marvellous Light. It is He who has sent His begotten Son Jesus Christ into the world to live a perfect, righteous life by keeping the Ten Commandments perfectly; Commandments which we have failed miserably to keep. And then He died on the cross for our sins, was buried, and rose again on the third day, overcoming sin and death, after which He ascended to heaven and is now seated at the right hand of God interceding for us. And He is coming again to receive us into the place He is preparing right now for us. This is the God whom we are to choose to serve all the days of our life. There is no retirement in the service of the Lord. May every one of us who is called a Christian be found serving God. To choose to serve God means to fear Him, to serve in sincerity and in truth, and to put away all idols and serve only Him who has saved us. May God help us. Amen.