Farewell to Israel’s People (Part C)

God says when you get into the land use in your heart my power and my might might of my hand gained me this wealth. God said to his people. When I give you these things you're going to think you did this once you do that you going to do part and we have to always be on guard for these things. Imagine, advise, a pastor said yeah I built this church yeah was my preaching. That was my just imagine mass in the evening. This is cross reference radio with our pastor and teacher Rick Gaston.

Rick is the pastor of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville. Pastor Rick is currently teaching through the book of Joshua. Please stay with us after today's message to hear more information cross reference radio, specifically how you can get a free copy of this teaching today. Pastor Rick will conclude his message called farewell to Israel's people in Joshua chapter 24 on Mount Carmel cutting themselves watching around all day screaming and hooting and hollering. They were wrong. No fire came from. In fact, the prophet mock them. Maybe a God is busy. Maybe he's in the bathroom and he's talking them. And of course these begin, the rules were the God who answers by fire. He is God.

These were the days of the prophets and it was a remarkable time.

Indeed, Israel as Joshua speaks to them saying you have to make a decision to serve the Lord and it has to be genuine and it has to be based on truth, not just genuine, not just true.

You can say well this is true, but you don't really you not into it or you can be into it, but it's lies your following no new true neutrality is offered when it comes to truth and so let's just look at a few verses in the scripture, I will read the verses we don't have the time, but I'll give you the coordinates here in Joshua 24 verse 14 sincerity and truth is coupled together but in Psalm 89 verse 14 mercy and truth are coupled together as with Proverbs 16, six faithfulness and truth. Isaiah 25, one grace and truth. John chapter 117 spirit and truth. John 423 righteousness and truth. Ephesians 59 deeds and truth.

First John 318, love and truth. Second John three so truth is not a lonely character in the Scripture is got to be more than truth.

If you just have truth you can be a brute, you can be a full there are other things.

For instance, you know, every semi that really thinks they know the Bible Satan is not impressed by that incidentally your flesh is not impressed by that the world is not impressed by that. So you know the Bible. Do you have grace and truth is that there righteousness and truth. The spirit of God and truth about your deeds about your faithfulness.

Are you sincere about them or see or do you just use truth is a hammer mercilessly on others judging everybody else you ever be around someone who's just a lifetime critic.

Everybody else is wrong. He was talking to the hypocrites and Pharisees and everybody else but me.

That person needs to be put in their place maybe is not your place to put them give me their number: so is my place.

Let's be careful. Sometimes we can feel so right that would we feel like we have license to clobber and sometimes it is necessary to put it has to be in the spirit of love he says and put away the gods of your fathers served your fathers served on the other side of the river and in Egypt and they are settled in the land. In this still cherishing idols. What is up with that.

Did you not see the miracles and the names of in the name of Yahweh. Why do you still do these things well. We look around today we see much of Christian music and church events that take place in much of it is soaked in error and if it's not soaked in marriage soaked in shallowness is scary.

And again, that would be a good opportunity if you go around someone who's you misusing these things to be gentle to be kind, but adhere to the truth no matter what Jacob gave this warning to his family had problems with this. Rachel and Holland idols Samuel P had to deal with this. Centuries later, with the Jews.

Ezekiel after they had been taken captive after all the prophecies of Jeremiah how how could that possibly be, Ezekiel 20, verse seven.

Then I said to them, each of you throw away the abominations which are before his eyes, and do not defile you defile yourselves with the idols of Egypt, I am Yahweh your God. Verse 15 and if it seems evil to you to serve Yahweh choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the river or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell.

But as for me and my house we will serve the Lord. Well, he says, choose for yourselves this day is echoing Moses of course in much of the speech is sort of a Deuteronomy type review, submit and commit to God is telling. Not not to spend too much on that power for Bob Claus in this verse but as for me and my house that that would merit an entire sermon, but I think were so familiar with it. What could a preacher really add to that, we we get the point. I think the pastor better serves the flock when he opens up points that maybe the flock is not had a chance to consider the grammatical tents in the Hebrew here is a continuous action. I'm going to continue to serve my God, and don't you continue to serve those false gods. We gives four choices in this section, the gods of their ancestors in the Chaldees, the Mesopotamia, as we mentioned earlier, the gods of their ancestors in Egypt beyond the Nile. The gods of the wicked in Canaan, the land that they are now in the only true God which one, of course, the God of Canaan would include the east side of Jordan. How much heartache is piled up into the life of this man Joshua. As I mentioned earlier was not easy for him and yet he's leading the people he still standing.

He still pledges allegiance to God. Still preaching the word. Still loving the people. The tone of Joshua is not angry in the speech is very encouraging. His firm he challenges them.

He says I don't think you can do this and I'm sure many of them said yeah comes fighting words were going to do this. Joshua is exactly what happens. He says choose God's people are volunteers. Is there anyone here that is born again that feel like you're forced to serve God, you really would not like to know because it's a voluntary you respond to the invitation you receive care what the Calvinists not really don't care anyway. Deuteronomy 30 is such a great book is absolute. Along the two verses with the last Deuteronomy. As each verse is like a book but I call heaven and earth as witnesses today against you that I have set before you life and death.

Moses speaking blessings and cursing. Therefore choose life, that both you and your descendents may live that you may love Yahweh your God. It she may obey his voice, that you may cling to him, for he is your life. The length of your days that you may dwell in the land of Yahweh that Yahweh swore to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to give them so that your we have Joshua emphasizing the very things his teacher taught him for 16 so the people answered and said, far be it from us that we should forsake Yahweh to serve other gods. Verse 17 for Yahweh our God is he who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, the house of bondage, who did those great signs in our sight preserved us in the way that we went and among all the people through whom we passed verse 18 Yahweh drove out from before all the people, including the Amorites, who dwell in the land. We also will serve Yahweh, for he is our God is the same generation and met Joshua in the first chapters that were going to be with you Joshua anybody stand to get you a ghost, and against them, they reply there applied when Joshua says as for me and my house.

They say us to. They apply with allegiance and reason it's not without truth just say we could feel it. We just feel your passion Joshua which is with you for that know is that we saw this. This is true that our faith is based on true. So what Peter says sanctify the Lord God in your hearts, and always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you for reason hope is in you and he says give it with meekness and fear or respect.

Good to remember why God has done what he has done in your life. Joshua said to the people.

You cannot serve Yahweh, for he is a holy God is a jealous God, he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins pause there more when the New Testament church was born. The Greek gods and the Roman gods were not wholly what they were file this is with the New Testament often as the Jews understood or were supposed to and we are supposed to also what would make them fail a flawed sense of self-sufficiency.

I got it. God, I don't really need any help.

Now, Deuteronomy 8, 11 to 20 is the whole package, but verse 17 extracting that God says when you get into the land then you say in your heart my power and my might might of my hands have gained me this wealth. God said to his people. When I give you these things you're going to think you did this once you do that you going to depart, and we have to always be on guard for these things.

Imagine if I as a pastor said yeah I built this church yeah was my preaching yet was my just imagine.

Imagine the evil I would get nervous saying that I should use another guy is an example so this moment of challenge that he throws before them is because Joshua was there when the people said that they would serve Yahweh, and then the next thing they were doing was dancing around the golden calf. He knew talk could be cheap.

Sometimes talk is not cheap but it can be. And so he nudges them to honestly look into their hearts out. Think you could do this here is that all man Joshua nobody is going to challenge and is a very beautiful scene that the Bible is captured force of this day in Israel.

He says God is jealous. This is not the jealousy of criminal possessiveness that someone your mind and nobody else can have you that's not that's a carnality or carnal jealousy. This is the jealousy of protection.

This is mine, and I'm going to protect. That's what is meant by our God, being a jealous God it so to serve Satan notice that God is the defender of his people and is serves anyone who is insincere in their faith.

A warning verse 20 if you forsake Yahweh and serve foreign gods, then he will turned and do you harm and consume you, after he has done you good ways booking for sure they obligation on the believer is to believe there is no obligation of God to bless the apostate. That's what's being said if you go and follow other gods. God's not going to follow you except in judgment.

Verse 21 and the people said to Joshua, no, we will serve Yahweh.

Verse 22 so Joshua said to the people you are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen Yahweh for yourselves to serve him and they said we are witnesses. Now, therefore, he said, put away the foreign gods which are among you incline your heart to Yahweh, God of Israel cc why is Jesus driving is only knows there still people that are planning on playing games and that's why saying it like this is telling the elders especially clean it up. Verse 24 and the people said to Joshua Yahweh our God will we will serve in his voice we will obey.

So this repetition as is necessary and three times the people affirm their desire to serve the Lord.

Joshua accepts the word. He doesn't say yeah okay fine get what you say he accepts it all right we got this verse 25 so Joshua made a covenant. There is with the people that day and made for them a statute and an ordinance in Shechem.

Verse 26 and Joshua wrote these words in the book of the law of God, and he took a large stone and set it up under the oak that was by the sanctuary of the Lord likely if there in Shechem tent golden altar and the bronze all brazen altar that's in Shiloh.

They likely took the ark of the covenant to Shechem with them for this event is a possibility because the right is to fragment points as they write in the Old Testament, especially, but it appears ease the sanctuary is referring to the ark of the covenant in verse 27 and Joshua said to all the people. Behold, the stone shall be a witness to us. Grid has heard all the words of Yahweh which he spoke to us shall therefore be a witness to use less you deny your God. This is the ninth of 10 memorials mentioned in the book of Joshua so throughout the book of Joshua the son of these memorials are all over the land all over the place. I don't forget, don't forget, don't forget us all over the place we put them on our refrigerator on a desk depends of T-shirts and we forget how many of you have done the wrong thing with a Christian teacher quite aware so I remember being back of somebody once that had a Christian bumper sticker and I was so upset with them but I felt is nothing I could do I pair felt that their father is my father and I really didn't feel like getting in trouble and I are and it was another Christian next to me and he was just grinning degree. Many was just as you can do anything can just talk and misery because of a Christian brother. This Christian brotherhood we have is very special.

Another time driving on a road and it was a an interstate in New York and is of a sharp bend and was early morning I'm on my way to church and there's this car broken down and is in the lane with the bend is an so I pull over and put my flashers on back and and a second give you push out the way and he was yet a collar on you know is a preacher in the car was lovely would be plugged together may be other than going to the circus so anyway push them out of the way and he was so grateful because he know he was dissing dead man Sally and his family was and it would get out the car was no way to stand and push the car away any try to give me money and I accorded the Scripture verse two of us had never seen the righteous forsaken on the Russian break and he was done by weeping a little older man to you know probably is older much older and was such a blessing to be able to do that. Now I knew by how he was dressed that doctrinally or philosophically we did not share the same opinions, but I could feel that we had the same God.

I was hatched from a moment I was over 30 years ago. Others like it happened yesterday. Verse 27 Joshua said to all the peoples.

Behold, this stone shall be a witness to us where it has heard all the words of Yahweh which he spoke to us. It shall therefore be a witness to use less you deny our God is a very powerful the with the stone uses. Don't you know was present when you said this and let's review the monuments in the book of Joshua chapter 4 the stones in the midst of the Jordan. In chapter 4. Also the stones on the Western bank of the Jordan, in chapter 7 stones in the valley of a core in chapter 8 heap of stones at AI while they didn't have you know bills monument making company so they just piled stones up. Sometimes they whitewash them to make them stand out.

But anyway Joshua chapter 8 the altar at Mount Ewald was a memorial. The spirit was not for sacrificing of Joshua Wade. Also again on Mount Ewald stones of the law, then at Makeda at the cave.

In chapter 10. Again monument for God's victories. There is the altar that the trends Jordan Saints Gad Manasseh half of the from had built it almost caused the Civil War was a monument. Nonetheless, and then here in Joshua Joshua 24 the stone of witness for the people agreeing to serve the Lord in this one more and that will be the bones of Joseph when they bury those bones that some monument to the history of the Jews were mean the just incredible.

A part of the story so they serve the purpose.

Of course if they're not abuse the lessons that we can extract from yesterday's events. That's what a monument is supposed to be in all historians have a lot to say about people not learning the lessons of history and collectively, that is true, but as individuals go, we can learn from history and not allow ourselves to repeated a character flaw will override that if you're not careful. Verse 28 so Joshua let the people depart each to his own inheritance to plow their fields. Verse 29 now it came to pass after these things that Joshua the son of nun servant of Yahweh died being 110 years old. Verse 30 in the buried him within the border of his inheritance, Tim Nath, Sierra, which is in the mountains of Ephraim on the north side of Mount Gerrish well Joshua is dead but there's no mention of a successor when Moses was going to die go to heaven we could say God made sure he appointed Joshua to carry the people in but as the leader to follow Joshua and is the leader to follow Jesus remember the name Joshua in the in the Greek it is Jesus and what I about the good I look at this and I say yeah but when there is no head there are headaches when there's no leader, there's always a problem something without a head is dead or a monster and you say well how do you account for that. While the tribal it was tribal rule.

The tribes had their leaders that's we invited God did and so God is saying I'm going to let the tribes do what they're supposed to do have their leaders govern them, which did work for this generation. And after that it fell apart and God had to raise up deliverers judges verse 31 Israel served Yahweh, all the days of Joshua and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had known all the works of Yahweh which he had done for Israel.

But here's a case of those who saw miracles and it held them true to the Lord judges chapter 2 we won't read it.

Verses 10 through 12 will be getting it soon tell us the same thing.

Verse 32.

The bones of Joseph which the children of Israel had brought out brought up out out of Egypt.

They buried at Shechem in the plot of ground which Jacob had bought from the sons of Haim or the father Shechem for 100 pieces of silver, and which had become an inheritance of the children of Joseph and so here the bones of Joseph. Finally put to rest and becomes a monument probably the most powerful monument at this time in the land.

Nothing really to add to that while you think about them carrying the those that bones with them. That emblem of death and deliverance of the cross of Christ. We carry that emblem around.

This is the emblem of of death Jehovah witness will argue or what is like carrying a wheelchair around with him in a wheelchair. Electric chair around with use and emblem and our responses you've got it right innocent emblem of death my death that should've been me.

That should been units substitutionary. The tomb is empty. Joseph's bones are in the grave, the Lord Jesus bones are not incorruptible because of who he is. He rose again how deliverers grave is empty and so that there is great significance in this moment for the Jews. And there's a greater significance in the cross of Christ.

Verse 33 and Eleazar the son of Aaron died the buried him in a hill belonging to Phineas's son, which was given to him in the mountains of Ephraim, and so the that the leaders Joshua and the high priest that God and I think of their deaths and the holes with second Timothy. I am by ministering. Finally, there is laid up for me the crown of life. Lord righteous judgment give to me on that day, not to me only look to all those who have loved his appearing. That would be us. Thanks for tuning in to cross reference radio for this study in the book of Joshua cross reference is the teaching ministry pastor Rick Gaston of Calvary Chapel Mechanicsville in Virginia. If you're interested in more information about this ministry, please visit our website cross reference radio.com find additional teachings from Pastor Rick available there also encourage you to subscribe to our podcast by doing so, you'll be notified each new edition of cross reference radio. Just search for cross reference radio in iTunes Google play music or your favorite podcast. You could also follow the links and cross reference radio.com. Glad we were able to spend time with you today do the next time to continue learning from the book of Joshua right here on cross reference radio