Good Morning.
The reading from Joshua assigned for today contains a warning that we don’t like to think about: “You cannot serve the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm, and consume you, after having done you good.”
If you read the entire history of our covenant relationship with the Lord from Abraham until today, sooner or later you must ask yourself: do I take the Lord seriously? Let’s not dwell on the past. Let’s fast forward to today.
Do we take the Lord seriously or do we serve “foreign gods?” Perhaps you are side-stepping the question by declaring: “What foreign gods?” That would be any thing that we serve and/or worship other than the Lord God, the triune God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Money can be a foreign god. Nationalism can be a foreign god. Fame can be a foreign god. Factual knowledge can be a foreign god. I can even make myself into a foreign god. Even religion can become a foreign god.
Do you view your religion through the lens of a foreign god, or do you view the world of foreign gods through the lens of your religion? Have you ever responded to a suggestion about living your life as a Christian by saying, “Well certainly I’m a Christian, but let’s be practical here!”
Joshua was faced with a nation that swore that they worshipped the Lord, but in their daily life they regularly turned their backs on the Lord; they lived their lives in ways that they recognized that the Lord had not wanted them to live. Perhaps they thought that if they tried to rationalize their behavior that would satisfy God. After all, they were willing to pay God enough homage that they recognized that they needed to develop excuses for what they did.
When children do something wrong, the fact that they know their parents wouldn’t approve rarely stops them if they think that they can get away with it. If it’s something that they really want to do – well, you know, parents just don’t understand what it is to be a teenager today – they may also convince themselves that there’s no reason that their parents will find out. When their parents find out, they try to come up with a good story either rationalizing their behavior to try and make it fit somehow into their parents’ rules or they claim ignorance of the rules or they try to look cute and hope they will be forgiven.
How often do we deal with the Lord in the same way? Jesus talked about the fact that over time hundreds of commandments were developed by the priests and scribes to try and rationalize not obeying God’s original commandments. We still do that. We excuse our behaviors in the name of some “higher good”: financial security, professional survival, national security.
Joshua is telling the people that they really should not claim to be worshipping the Lord unless they really mean to do just that. The Lord should not be toyed with. What God demands of those who serve God is pretty clearly communicated in scripture, although it does require that we study scripture in order to understand it. It does require that we develop an open and honest relationship with God, nurtured by prayer and praise. It may not always seem “practical.” It may not always seem easy.
God forgives us many things, but perhaps the most foolish sin of all is not taking God seriously.
Prayer: Almighty God, You are the Lord Whose word we praise. Of whom shall we be afraid? Strengthen our commitment to You, O Lord. Let Your Spirit so fill our hearts that we walk easily in Your paths. Forgive us when we seem to take Your word too lightly. Forgive us when we fail to be worthy stewards of the many gifts that You have given us. With the Psalmist we declare: “Let the righteous rejoice in the Lord and take refuge in him. Let all the upright in heart glory.” Amen.
Today’s readings are Joshua 24:16-33; Romans 16:1-16; Matthew 27:24-31; Psalm 56, 57, 58, 64 & 65.
Blessings.
Pastor Jim
Comments
Post a Comment