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A Time to Choose

Clark Beck | Joshua 23–24 | April 19, 2026

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Life is full of choices. We constantly make choices — sometimes we forget that our days are full of them. What time will I wake up? What will I eat for breakfast? What am I going to wear today?

At other times, we are keenly aware of the choices in front of us. Which career am I going to choose? Where should I go to college? Which church should I join? Should I marry this person? These are the choices that tend to get our attention.

But there’s a whole other set of choices we must make every day. Will I stay faithful to my spouse? Will I read God’s word and obey it? These get closer to the two most important choices we make about how we spend our lives — the two choices Joshua laid out before the Israelites in these final chapters of the book. These two choices are whether we will love the Lord and whether we will serve the Lord. Now is the time to choose.

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Choose to Love the Lord

In Chapter 23, Joshua gathers the leaders of Israel. His time to die is coming, but they still have people to lead, enemies to defeat, and land to possess. He gives them this charge:

“Be very strong to keep and to do all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, turning aside from it neither to the right hand nor to the left… but you shall cling to the Lord your God.” — Joshua 23:6-8

What does God-given strength look like? It means keeping and doing all that is written in his word, not mixing with the world around us, and clinging to the Lord. These two things — not mixing and clinging — are two sides of the same coin. If we are to obey God, we can’t be all mixed up in worldly things. Rather, we must draw near to him. I love the image of clinging here. If you’ve ever had a child who was scared of something, you know what it means to have someone cling to you. They do everything they can to keep you from putting them down. That’s the same word used in Genesis to describe how a man is to hold fast to his wife — faithful, fully devoted, holding her close.

Joshua sums up all of these charges with the greatest commandment: “Be very careful, therefore, to love the Lord your God” (Joshua 23:11).

And Joshua also warned them what would happen if they turned back to serve false gods. He said the remnant of the nations around them would be “a snare and a trap for you, a whip on your sides and thorns in your eyes” (Joshua 23:13). As Proverbs says: “Bread gained by deceit is sweet to a man, but afterward his mouth will be full of gravel” (Proverbs 20:17). There is no sin that will satisfy you — it will only break you, hurt you, and trap you.

The ultimate weapon we have against temptation is to remind ourselves of God’s goodness and faithfulness. As Joshua told the people: “Not one word has failed of all the good things that the Lord your God promised concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one of them has failed” (Joshua 23:14). We can trust every good promise God has made. We speak these promises by reading and quoting scripture. This is the shield of faith.

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Choose to Serve the Lord

In Chapter 24, Joshua reminds the people of everything God had done — how he called Abraham out of idol worship, how he delivered Israel from Egypt, how he defeated nation after nation and gave his people a land they had not labored for, cities they had not built, and vineyards they had not planted. Israel was saved by grace. God chose them, called them, delivered them, and enabled them to walk in power.

It’s the same for you and me. If God had not chosen you, you would be lost and worshipping idols. If Jesus had not come to save you through his death on the cross and his resurrection from the grave, you would still be a slave to sin, still under the curse, and without hope and without God in the world. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. While we were still idol worshippers like Abraham, God chose us out of the world to be his sons and daughters. That’s what grace looks like.

It is out of this context that Joshua commands them: “Fear the Lord and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness. Put away the gods that your fathers served… But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 24:14-15).

We are not saved to please ourselves — we are saved to please God. We are saved to worship and serve him with our lives. So, this is the choice before you today. Will you serve the Lord? Fathers and husbands, will you answer on behalf of your household that you will serve the Lord?

Joshua had great insight when the people enthusiastically said yes. He pushed back: “You are not able to serve the Lord, for he is a holy God” (Joshua 24:19). He could see their pride. He knew the people would not be able to do it in their own strength. None of us can. But that leads us to the good news of what Jesus did on the cross. Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. He is the greater Joshua — he didn’t just lay the law in front of us and tell us to do it. He came and fulfilled it for us. Now he gives us his commandments, and he also gives us the power to keep them. We get to walk in the joy of his presence, in the freedom of his Spirit, and in the light of his grace.

So the charge still stands. Choose today whom you will serve. Put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your heart to the Lord. Lay aside every weight and sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith.

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Now Is the Time

At the end of this book, Joshua died at 110 years old. His legacy of faith and obedience lived on in the elders who outlived him. Joseph’s bones were buried in the land of his fathers. Eleazar the priest died. These men were marked by their faith, their obedience, and their love for God. They chose to serve the Lord with their lives.

Yet, we are confronted with the fact that all these great men of faith died. You are going to die, too. Today, while you still have breath, choose to love and serve the Lord.