Remembering God's Good Work Keeps Me from Idolatry
Scripture Passage: Joshua 24:14-18 (NASB)
14 “Now, therefore, fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and do away with the gods which your fathers served beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 But if it is disagreeable in your sight to serve the Lord, choose for yourselves today whom you will serve: whether the gods which your fathers served, which were beyond the Euphrates River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
16 The people answered and said, “Far be it from us that we would abandon the Lord to serve other gods; 17 for the Lord our God is He who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of slaves, and did these great signs in our sight and watched over us through all the way in which we went and among all the peoples through whose midst we passed. 18 The Lord drove out from before us all the peoples, even the Amorites who lived in the land. We also will serve the Lord, for He is our God.”
SUMMARY
After Joshua proclaims God’s faithfulness to his people, he again urges them to eradicate idolatry. Joshua confesses that there is only one true God for him and his family, and declares that he will serve only God. Then the people of Israel also pledge to serve only the Lord, acknowledging it is the Lord who brought them out of Egypt out of slavery and drove out all the enemies in Canaan.
REFLECTION
Nearing his death, Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel at Schechem, and called for the elders of Israel, their heads, their judges, and their officers. As a farewell speech, Joshua reminded Israelites the great salvation history of God for the people of Israel. From the days of Abraham until the very days of Joshua, Joshua proclaimed the grace of God and how God Himself fought for the people of Israel. In fact, they were not able to drive out all these nations in Canaan if it wasn’t for God. That’s why today’s passage starts with a very important word, “therefore.” Therefore means, for that reason. Yes, for that very reason, knowing that God has been there for all our lives all along, we need to “fear the Lord and serve Him in sincerity and truth; and do away with the gods.” (verse 14) Because Joshua was so sure of God’s faithfulness and goodness for His people, he was able to declare boldly that he and his household will serve the Lord only.
It is somewhat sad though because we know that the Israelites actually fell for idols and gods of other nations in later part of their history. People who said, “far be it from us that we would abandon the Lord to serve other gods.” (verse 16) actually abandoned their first love for God. God’s people turned their backs on him to worship idols, ironically, made by their own hands. I am reminded of our QT readings from Psalm. Psalm 115:4~8 says, “Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see. They have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell. They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk; and they do not make a sound in their throat. Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them.” Basically, these false idols that we adore and worship in our lives actually give us no promises and protection. They are powerless to do anything. Yet, we sin greatly against God believing these false gods of money, fame, security, education, and relationships have power and will fulfill the promise and bring protection in our lives. We end up serving them instead of serving one true God.
APPLICATION
So what then made the Israelites fall? Why did they start serving other gods? These are the questions that I myself have to think about all the time. I must remember “therefore”! I constantly need to remember and remind myself of the salvation history of God in my life. He saved me out of bondage of sin, He helped me cross the Red Sea and Jordan, and He Himself
has fought every battle that I faced in my life. Without His goodness and faithfulness, I wouldn’t be where I am today. He lets me live and enjoy the land that I had not labored for, and cities which I had not built. He lets me eat of vineyards and olive groves which I did not plant. (verse 13) Everything that I enjoy in my life; family, relationships, house, stability, health and all other goodness are not from the work of my hands, but from the hands of God. I also need to be the Joshua in our family, for my children. Not only declaring the faith with mere talk, but following through with my action to make the faith come alive. Joshua completely trusted God and he submitted to His leading with full obedience. Whenever the opportune times come, I will remind my children and my family of His amazing love and purpose that He has in each one of our lives. I pray the declaration of my faith and testimony will bring their declaration of faith to say “we also will serve the Lord, for He is our God.” (verse 18)
PRAYER
Lord, I confess that if I’m not careful, I fall into the sin of serving other gods. Yes, there are things that I depend on more than you at times, and you know what those are. But Lord, I’m once again reminded that I am able to sustain my life and my lifestyle only because you let me. Everything is from you and should be for you. Just like Joshua talked about what you have done for the people of Israel, I will remind myself daily of your goodness and faithfulness for me. You are the one true God I want to serve and should serve wholeheartedly. In Jesus’ name I pray.
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