Whom will you serve. SERMON ppt.pptx

Sermon

1. Whom will you serve? Joshua 24:14-24

2. Joshua 24:15 “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.”

3. Background/Context Joshua means “Yahweh is Salvation” Joshua became the leader of Israel after Moses died Israel were in a period of rest from war with their enemies Joshua was old and feeling the effects of it too Joshua gathered together all of Israel together with their leaders He reminded them of all the great things that God has made for them Joshua charged Israel to make a decision- to choose to serve God because of all that He had done

4. Joshua explained the factors needed in deciding to serve God 1) the requirements to serve God 2) the conditions of serving God

5. Serving God requires a Fear of God (Joshua 24:14) Fear- biblically, it means reverence and respect People obey those who they revere and respect Fear keeps people alive: Sailors respect the ocean Mountain climbers respect the mountains Sodom and Gomorrah did not fear God- look at what happened to them

6. Sincerity: Having an honesty of mind or intention Freedom from simulation, hypocrisy Being humble We are living in the Laodicean Church age- Lukewarm (Rev. 3:13-16) Serving God requires Sincerity(Joshua 24:14)

7. Serving God requires Separation(Joshua 24:14) Put away- means to separate, to place distance between yourself When you draw nearer to something, it draws nearer to you without ever moving (James 4:8) Israel was commanded to separate from Idols, false gods, past cultural traditions, and vain religions

8. As Christians, we have to: Separate from idols and false Gods Separate from past cultural traditions Separate from vain religions Being sincere in Christian life, you won’t need to separate from bad friends- they will separate from you (Luke 6:22)

9. Serving God requires a Decision(Joshua 24:15) Israel were called to make a decision- Serve God or don’t serve God Service to our God requires an act of obedience We can obey and serve God or else we can disobey and serve idols What are modern day idols? There is no middle ground in decision making whom to serve

10. Serving God requires Faithfulness(Joshua 24:16) How can we show faithfulness to God? Forsake- means to quit, withdraw, abandon We are meant to forsake some things (Proverbs 9:6- forsake the foolish) We are not meant to forsake other things (Proverbs 6:20- forsake not the law of thy mother) Choosing to serve other gods and idols means forsaking God

11. Summary Serving God requires a Fear of God (Joshua 24:14 ) Serving God requires Sincerity(Joshua 24:14 ) Serving God requires Separation(Joshua 24:14 ) Serving God requires a Decision(Joshua 24:15 ) Serving God requires Faithfulness(Joshua 24:16)

12. Challenge: Are you serving God right now? Has God spoke to you over the course of this month, week, or day and called you to serve him in some ministry? Have you decided to obey that call and serve him?

13. Now, whom will you serve? May your answer be: “….. but as for me and my house we will serve the Lord.” HAPPY SABBATH! GOD BLESS!