"But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.
"Then the people answered, 'Far be it from us to forsake the Lord to serve other gods!'" Joshua 24:15-16.
Joshua then tells the Israelites that they will not be able to serve the Lord, that he is holy and jealous and that they are rebellious, but they insist, "No! We will serve the Lord." Joshua declares that they are witnesses against themselves. He makes a covenant for the people, writes it down, and sets up a large stone under an oak tree as further witness. This is all recorded in the last chapter of Joshua. Then Joshua dies. We turn the page, and Judges begins, the record of a time when "every man did what was right in his own eyes."
The covenant is broken. The stone bears witness that the people did not hold to their promise.
If I were to rewrite Joshua 24:15 as an address to myself, I might say, "OK, Barb, if you think God seems harsh and distant at times, if Christianity seems too bloody and exclusive, if you'd prefer something more rational and less mysterious, why don't you choose a different God or maybe just go without." The options present themselves.
Atheism -- leaving me with Darwin, the Big Bang, survival of the fittest, and a world of chance. Everything in me screams that life cannot be purely random. Every glimpse of creation bespeaks design to me. Secular humanism -- where man is his own god, capable of the ultimate good, and science and reason reign supreme. Perhaps I'm just too right-brained. While I struggle with mystery, I also cling to it, and I have far too little faith in mankind to hope in us as the Final Answer. The other major religions of the world -- Islam, Buddhism, Judaism, Hinduism -- seem fraught with the same problems as Christianity -- the problem of evil, a sometimes distant god -- and less plausible answers -- reincarnation, karma, jihad, ever-increasing levels of perfection. I answer with the Israelites: "No, far be it from me to forsake the God of my mother and my father."
So, I choose this day whom I will serve, and I am a witness against myself that I am not always loyal.
My own loyalty to Jesus and to others suffers at almost every turn of my life. This makes the promise of Jesus payment once and for all for all of my sins, such an important part of God's love for me. He loves me despite my fickle heart. I do want to serve Him even if I know I will fail.
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