Living Dangerously: Dangerous Choices
2015 Summer Sermon Series
Sunday, August 9, 2015
Our “Dangerous Choices” every Christian must make. making God-honoring choices in family, marriage, and moral contexts strengthen our ministries. The world always tries to move us in the wrong direction in the major areas of our lives. A warning and celebration of the life that comes to those who choose wisely.
If you go to a Bible search site, like biblegateway.com, and search for “choose,” you will probably be surprised like I was. While there are a few passages that deal with choice, words that you might expect, like Proverbs 8:10, “Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold,” or Proverbs 3:31, “Do not envy the violent or choose any of their ways,” the majority of passages connect choice with God Himself. Over and over again, He is the One primarily making choices in the Old Testament. The message is that God chooses His people, He chose them to be recipients of His presence and blessing, He wanted them to be His. Because He has chosen us to be His sons and daughters, there is a choice for us to make. That very important choice is really the spotlight of the books of Deuteronomy and Joshua.
As the end of his life approached, Moses started preparing the people for the transition of leadership. In Deuteronomy 4-28, he revisits the commands of God with the people, reminding them of the blessing and curse that could come from obedience and disobedience. In some of his final words, Moses said, “This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live 20and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.”
Moses declared that when Israel came into the Promised Land, the people would be divided in a valley between Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim, at Shechem, that there, they would be reminded of God’s laws and be given a choice of God’s blessing or curse. And after his death and when Israel crossed the Jordan River into the Promised Land, Joshua followed those directions. Joshua 8:30-35 gives us the details of that event. The conquering generation set up an altar, divided six tribes on one mountain, the other six on the other, and they read the Law and confirmed their commitment to the Lord.
Years later, at the end of Joshua’s life, the people were called again to the valley between Ebal and Gerizim at Shechem, for a renewal of their vows. The Law was read, God’s blessings and curses were reviewed, and all the people said “Amen.” At the end, Joshua uttered his most famous words which echoed Moses’ words before his death, “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:15).
This place is called the Valley of Decision.”
James 4:4. “You adulterous people,[a] don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.” Covenant unfaithfulness,
Therefore, since Christ suffered in his body, arm yourselves also with the same attitude, because whoever suffers in the body is done with sin. 2As a result, they do not live the rest of their earthly lives for evil human desires, but rather for the will of God. 3For you have spent enough time in the past doing what pagans choose to do—living in debauchery, lust, drunkenness, orgies, carousing and detestable idolatry. 4They are surprised that you do not join them in their reckless, wild living, and they heap abuse on you. 1 Peter 4:1-4.
1 Timothy 4:12. Setting an example in speech (that’s all your words), in life (your lifestyle and conduct), in love (your care and compassion for others and for God), in faith (not just belief but also in action prompted by belief), and in purity (especially sexual purity, fleeing from sexual temptation and sin). Paul was writing initially to Timothy, a young pastor. Regardless of age or vocation, choosing to follow Christ means choosing to march to an entirely different drumbeat.
It’s one thing to say you love Christ, that you’re a Christian, that you believe in Him. Talk is cheap. Live like you say you believe. Don’t just talk the talk; you MUST walk the walk.
The Israelite people were challenged by Moses and Joshua to choose whether they would obey the Lord or local gods. The Life Application Study Bible commentator says about Joshua 24:15, “It’s easy to slip into a quiet rebellion – going about life in your own way. But the time comes when you have to choose who or what will control you. The choice is yours. Will it be God, your own limited personality, or another imperfect substitute?” Once you have chosen to be controlled by God’s Spirit, reaffirm your choice every day.
Page 1 of 3