As for Me and My House
Theme:
Text: Joshua
Introduction
Chapter 24 of Joshua could easily be called Joshua’s final farewell speech. The Bible says in verse 29 “And it came to pass after these things, that Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died, being an hundred and ten years old”. Joshua one last time challenges the people to serve the Lord.
As we begin chapter 24 it almost seems like a testimony service. Joshua reminds the people what God has done. Not only in their life but in their history. How God had divinely brought them to this point.
As I began to read this I began to get excited in my spirit. You see I realized that my testimony of God’s goodness in my life goes way back before my salvation. I look back on my own life and see God’s ordered plans. How he had people praying for me. How he sent people of influence in my life. But oh my testimony goes back father than that. You see there were people who labored in prayer and physical to build these churches that I attended. They built them for souls to be one.
As in our own church. God has given us a rich heritage here at Elizabeth St. A heritage here that extends to 1934 but we can also include 1886 the founding of the church of God on Godly principles. But we can even go back before that as God would raise up men and work in his divine way.
Let me tell you Christian your steps have been and are ordered by God. God has his hand upon your life. Oh praise God even before you knew him he was making plans for you. Even before you cried out his name he was making plans for you. Just look back and see the guiding hand of the Lord.
Testimony and shouting
Well I could just imagine what it must have been like in these first 13 verses. Joshua would get to talking about what God has done over the last 400 plus years. I believe he would get a little happy as he testified of the hand of God working and preparing them for this day.
From God calling a man named Abraham to raise up a special nation. How God kept his hand upon this family even delivering a nation of slaves from Egypt. Oh how God destroyed the Egyptians in the Red Sea. When they got to the land God protected these untrained soldiers. Sometimes they would fight for themselves and it seems that the spirit of the Lord would come upon them and they would have amazing victory. Or other times God would command the hornets to attack the enemies and bring defeat. Couldn’t you imagine this great time. I believe they would testify a little bit and worship a little bit.
It is hard not to get happy when you think where God has brought you from. When you think that God knew you before you were in the womb and has made plans for your life. It is hard not to get happy when you think about how God raised up people who would one day make a difference in your life. Praise the Lord!
The Challenge.
Yet with every testimony comes a challenge. Joshua was not going to leave them with out challenging them to stay righteous before the Lord. It seems that when we experience the greatest victory is when we are tempted the most. Maybe it is we get relaxed and try to lean on yesterday’s blessing. Maybe we just feel so tired after the victory we let our guard down a little. That is when the devil “who goes about as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour” steps in.
We must be careful. Especially as we stand here on the heels of revival. We must be careful that we don’t forget what God has done but better yet what God has promised this week.
Listen to what Joshua says:
Jos 24:14-15 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.
Joshua doesn’t play around. He knows that the first & second commandant given unto the people was:
Exo 20:3-5 Thou shalt have no other gods before me. (4) Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: (5) Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
Oh this is the very heart of God. He wants our “undivided” attention. Over and over again this same command is repeated. From Genesis to Revelation it is “serve God and him only”.
Mark 12:30 And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.
This is what is most important in our relationship with Christ. Serving him and him only.
Now listen to verse 15 Joshua makes a profound statement.
(15) 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.
What is he saying. If you don’t feel right or comfortable “serving the Lord” then don’t. But make that choice. Don’t try to play both sides of the fence because you will always lose. This is so important.
Now listen to Joshua’s testimony.
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.
He said you can chose whomever. Don’t make a game out of it and don’t try to fool yourself “but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord”.
Oh this is so important to us today. This stand. This commitment. This non-compromising stance.
We live in a generation today where parents are serving one God on Sunday morning and serving another during the week. We live in a generation where parents have said for years that I will not allow these things in my home but they are flooded with them.
I don’t know what has happened. But I will tell you too many parents don’t have the back bone to stand against sin in the home, and the ones that are losing are the children.
I could name you many of parents who have said I would never allow this in my home but they have given in. The devil has convinced them that we live in a different age. Some are convinced that what was sin in our day is not sin today. As I heard one child say, “Lighten up, we are in the nineties”.
The devil is a liar
The devil has told us just a little won’t hurt. He has told us, “Don’t shelter them let them experience it.”
I have even heard some parents say, “Well I did the same things and look how I turned out”. Oh let me tell you friend. I don’t want my children to go through the same sin I went through. I don’t want them to carry the same images that I carry in my mind. I don’t want them to fight the same demons of temptation that I fight day in and day out.
Oh if only someone would have stood up in my home and said, “Let them other parents do what they want to with their child but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord”.
Oh God wants to call us back to repentance. Repentance for allowing things that go on in our home that doesn’t glorify him. Not only does it not glorify him but it is purely ungodly.
Train up a child is more about training
We often quote that verse, Proverbs 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Then we question the very promise of God “when he is old, he will not depart from it.” Yet our focus should be on that word train. How are we training? What are we teaching our children. What are we telling them when we allow the filth on our television or allow the ungodly music in our homes. Or magazines.
Psalms 127:1 Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it:
One of the most ungodly magazines out there is not the pornography magazines. Oh they are sin and we know that. There is not doubt. But these “Teen” magazines that teaches our children that anything is OK. Whether it is pre-marital sex or godly rebellion. This can’t be of God.
So I ask you how can we continue to allow this in our homes and yet expect our children to turn out OK? That is a lie from the devil. We wonder why we have fewer teenagers who are interested in church than ever before.
We are afraid that if we are too strict we will lose them. But let me tell you will gain their respect if they can see some kind of standard in our lives. It is time we took a stand. It is time we stood up.
We need to “Take back what the devil stole from us”
What am I trying to say? It is time that we “Took back what the Devil has stolen from us”. It is time we took back our belief in a holy God. It is time that we took back the spirit of a sound mind that we have replaced with fear. It is time that we dedicated our house to the Lord and lifted up his standard.
God sent me with a mandate this morning. He called me to challenge you to separate your home as a righteous home. Oh I can’t tell you your family will always like it. But they will respect it.
I have heard so many “pessimistic” parents who tell me, “You wait to your girls are teenagers. We will see you compromise. We will see you give in.” If I accept that then I might as well start now. I won’t receive that. I will be as Joshua and say, “You parents chose you this day whom you will serve but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord.”
Conclusion
God spoke to me this week about this message. This is what he told me to tell you. This is a new day. Today is a new day. Today God has spoken to challenge us. Challenge to holiness challenge our home to purity. This is what I want you to do. I want you to come to these altars with your family. Whether or not you have children come with your family. If you are by your self you come to represent your home.
It doesn’t have to be just those with children. God says for all of us we need to “chose whom our house will serve”. Let it be known.
Years ago someone gave me these gold stickers that has this very verse on them, It said, “As for me and my house we will serve the Lord.” I took it and stuck it on my front door. I wanted everyone to know. God spoke to my heart and said, “It don’t mean a thing if it is just on the outside and nothing is different on the inside.”
God’s charge as head
Oh if we could realize the charge God has given us as been responsibility for our home. We are his stewards. Our ministry first is to our family. That is why the qualification for a leader but be that he “has control of his home”. His house is in order. He rules his house.
So I want to pray for you as a family. I want to challenge you with this question. Will you come today and say, as for me and my house we will serve the Lord”. I don’t want to limit to families but even the leaders of the home. I want you to pray together. Go get your spouse and children if they are somewhere else.
Psalms 127:1 Except the LORD build the house, they labour in vain that build it:
