Fear the Lord
Richard A. Bradley
Joshua 24:14-18
Joshua 24:14-18
14 ''Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! 15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, 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.'' 16 So the people answered and said: ''Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods; 17 for the Lord our God is He who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, who did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way that we went and among all the people through whom we passed. 18 And the Lord drove out from before us all the people, including the Amorites who dwelt in the land. We also will serve the Lord, for He is our God.''
Any good sermon incorporates both reminders and exhortation. Just prior to this passage Joshua reminded the people of all that God had done for them in bringing them into the promised land. Based on all that God had accomplished for His people, in Joshua's mind, serving the Lord was their only real choice.
The word ''fear'' is a powerful Old Testament word. Sometimes it means ''to be afraid of.'' A good, healthy amount of fear in anyone's life is good. Too much fear, whether real or imagined, can be a bad thing. That is a terrible way to live. However, this word can also mean ''to stand in awe of.'' This is the way Joshua meant it when he told the people to fear the Lord in verse 14.
It's pretty clear that we often don't serve the Lord the way we should because we don't have enough respect for Him. Look this evening at why we should respect and worship the Lord and what our awe of Him will do for us.
THE D ...
Richard A. Bradley
Joshua 24:14-18
Joshua 24:14-18
14 ''Now therefore, fear the Lord, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the Lord! 15 And if it seems evil to you to serve the Lord, 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.'' 16 So the people answered and said: ''Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods; 17 for the Lord our God is He who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage, who did those great signs in our sight, and preserved us in all the way that we went and among all the people through whom we passed. 18 And the Lord drove out from before us all the people, including the Amorites who dwelt in the land. We also will serve the Lord, for He is our God.''
Any good sermon incorporates both reminders and exhortation. Just prior to this passage Joshua reminded the people of all that God had done for them in bringing them into the promised land. Based on all that God had accomplished for His people, in Joshua's mind, serving the Lord was their only real choice.
The word ''fear'' is a powerful Old Testament word. Sometimes it means ''to be afraid of.'' A good, healthy amount of fear in anyone's life is good. Too much fear, whether real or imagined, can be a bad thing. That is a terrible way to live. However, this word can also mean ''to stand in awe of.'' This is the way Joshua meant it when he told the people to fear the Lord in verse 14.
It's pretty clear that we often don't serve the Lord the way we should because we don't have enough respect for Him. Look this evening at why we should respect and worship the Lord and what our awe of Him will do for us.
THE D ...
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