God calls us to a decision of deep commitment

Sermon preached at St. Mark’s Honey Brook, PA

by The Rev. Thomas C. Pumphrey, August 27, 2006

The Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 16, year B), Joshua 24:1-2a, 14-25 (John 6:60-69)

Joshua 24:1-2a, 14-25 (NRSV): Then Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel; and they presented themselves before God. And Joshua said to all the people, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel:…

"Now therefore revere the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD. Now if you are unwilling to serve the LORD, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region 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 that we should forsake the LORD to serve other gods; for it is the LORD our God who brought us and our ancestors up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight. He protected us along all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed; and the LORD drove out before us all the peoples, the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve the LORD, for he is our God." But Joshua said to the people, "You cannot serve the LORD, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm, and consume you, after having done you good." And the people said to Joshua, "No, we will serve the LORD!" Then Joshua said to the people, "You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the LORD, to serve him." And they said, "We are witnesses." He said, "Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your hearts to the LORD, the God of Israel." The people said to Joshua, "The LORD our God we will serve, and him we will obey." So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made statutes and ordinances for them at Shechem.

Today’s reading from Joshua is a fairly well known passage of scripture, calling for a decision of commitment to the Lord. Joshua lays the decision on the line for the children of Israel: “Choose this day whom you will serve,” Joshua tells the people. God calls the children of Israel to a decision—a decision of deep commitment to God. Today and every day, God calls us to the same decision: “Choose this day whom you will serve.” God calls us to a decision of commitment.

There are very few pop-culture images of deep commitment. The more common story about commitment is the story of the stereotypical ‘reluctant boyfriend’ who runs from the commitment of marriage. The boyfriend is reluctant to truly commit—he is reluctant to give all of himself to his girlfriend for better or for worse.

One movie that I rented recently did raise this question of making a decision for a deeper commitment. This is a movie that people from a certain generation will recall when you hear the phrase “wax on; wax off!” “The Karate Kid” was a movie from the 1980s about a high school boy who wants to learn karate because of some bullies at school. Daniel begs an old maintenance man from Okinawa to teach him karate. Mr. Miagi doesn’t want to teach Daniel at first, since Daniel wants to learn for the wrong reasons. Finally Mr. Miagi agrees to teach him. Before the first lesson, however, Mr. Miagi tells Daniel: “First a promise. I promise karate teach; you promise karate learn.” Daniel brushes off the request, but Mr. Miagi looks at him intently and repeats “I promise karate teach; you promise karate learn!”

Mr. Miagi calls Daniel to a decision of commitment. Daniel must trust Mr. Miagi, and through that trust, Daniel learns more than just the physical skills of karate. In order for Daniel’s trust to endure time and difficulty and impatience, Daniel must make a decision to commit to his teacher. His master promised to lead Daniel, Daniel must promise to follow his master. God also has given us his commitment, and he calls us to a decision of deep commitment to God. “Choose this day whom you will serve.”

The scene in today’s reading from Joshua comes at the end of the book. God brought the children of Israel out of slavery in Egypt and he led them through the wilderness. There Moses leaves them and the people follow Joshua into the Promised Land of Canaan. The tribes of Canaan fight against God’s people, but God delivers them each time. Then when they find peace enough to settle the land, Joshua gathers all the tribes of Israel to Shechem. He summons the elders and leaders of the people, and they are all presented before God. Joshua tells them to put away the Egyptian gods from their past and stay away from the foreign gods of the tribes around them. “Choose this day whom you will serve,” Joshua tells them, “but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”

The people respond ‘Oh, sure, no problem, we love the Lord, yeah, we’ll serve the Lord.’ But Joshua answers ‘no—you can’t serve the Lord, the Lord is a holy God. He doesn’t put up with this wishy-washy commitment and fickle fidelity, messing around on the side with other gods when the going gets tough. He doesn’t care if your neighbors think your religion is weird—a commitment to God is serious business.’ So the people answer emphatically ‘no—no—we will serve the Lord!’ So Joshua tells them—‘OK, its on your heads then—you are all witnesses that you have committed yourselves to the Lord to serve and obey only him.’ God called them that day to a decision of commitment.

You see, the children of Israel were often fickle and shallow in following God. They were easily attracted to other gods when trusting the Lord became difficult. Of course, you and I are often like the children of Israel in that regard. Oh, I doubt if we have statues of Baal in our living rooms, but think of the other gods we serve. Our jobs are important, but we often get sucked into worshipping our careers and serving only them. Our desire for material wealth drives our life’s plans and occupies our budgets and enslaves us to debt. Even our families can become idols, pushing us to unhealthy expectations of each other or offering our kids indulgence when discipline would have been more loving. Even when we think about our involvement in church or close relationships, we think in terms of self-fulfillment and self-interest. We say we “want the church that serves me best,” or “the spouse that serves me best,” or “the job that serves me best,” or “the friends that give me the kind of happiness I want and define.”

We treat God the way that reluctant boyfriend treats his girlfriend “oh, I’ll commit one of these days, let’s just hang out together for a little while longer…I’m just not ready.” But God presses us for a decision of deep commitment. “Choose this day whom you will serve.”

Commitment to God is a whole-person, whole life endeavor. Commitment to God may start with that one hour in church each week, but God calls us to a commitment of more that just one Sunday hour. This year I have been challenging you to commit three hours each week to devotion to God in this community: one hour in worship, one hour in Christian formation and spiritual growth, and one hour in the ministry of this congregation. This discipline is a way that you can build a life more deeply committed to God, and find your life enriched in the process. But in truth, God wants more than the time we give to church. God wants to connect with us through prayer—prayer that is embedded into the rhythm of our daily routine. God wants to share a transformation of the heart with us so that we seek reconciliation in our relationships and bring grace and mercy to those around us.

This commitment has costs for sure. The old gods that we once served must be put away. We must resist the temptation to chase after the shallow gods of our culture to be faithful to the Lord alone. A deep commitment to God changes our priorities—changes the way we care for our families, the way we carry out our careers, the way we prioritize our finances and our goals in life.

A deep commitment to God asks us to brave discomfort for the gospel. What if I told you that there is something you can do starting next Sunday that will significantly impact this parish’s success in the mission of the gospel? What if I told you that this contribution will require no more time than what you already give, and cost you not one penny more than you already donate? Would you do it? Do you trust me?

Next Sunday, sit in the front pews. How is this a significant contribution to the Gospel? Jesus commanded us to make disciples of all nations. Our mission calls us to nurture relationships with God, in part by gathering new disciples into our midst. So where are these new disciples going to sit? What seats can we offer them that will help them to be comfortable in our worship, and open to that connection with God and with our congregation that we hope to nurture?

If you are a stranger in a church, where would you want to sit? The back pews. Why? Because you don’t know the customs—when to sit and when to stand. You don’t want to stick out like a sore thumb and you want to watch the rest of the congregation to perhaps learn something about who they are and how they worship and whether or not they are engaged in the worship of God in this place. If you are a stranger in a church, you would be petrified to ask someone to move forward, and you would rightly be offended if you were told you were sitting in “someone else’s pew.”¹

There are people that study church growth and the things that help a stranger to feel comfortable returning to a church for a second or third visit. One of the most basic issues for visitors is “where can I park? and “where can I sit?” Studies show that when more than 80% of the desirable seats or parking spaces are occupied, newcomers feel much less comfortable and much less engaged in the worship and life of the congregation. That means that if we have only forty people in attendance, yet they are all sitting in the rear pews, 100% of the desirable seats are taken!

Sitting closer to the front is uncomfortable for us, and we might be reluctant to pay that price for our commitment to God. Yet God calls us to a decision of deeper commitment.

Perhaps you’re reaction is the same as Jesus’ disciples in this morning’s Gospel reading “this teaching is difficult; who can accept it?” This is what brings us back to Mr. Miagi. Mr. Miagi’s offer to Daniel indeed demanded discipline from Daniel. His promise to teach karate demanded Daniel’s trust and deep and lasting commitment. But Mr. Miagi’s demands on Daniel are different from God’s demands on us.

You see, the lectionary left out some important verses in the reading from Joshua. In order to shorten the reading, perhaps, they skipped over verses three through thirteen. Before Joshua asks them to choose this day whom they will serve, Joshua relates all that God had already done for them. When they complained to God, God still delivered them from slavery in Egypt. When they prayed to the golden calf in the wilderness, and said they would rather be back in Egypt, still God led them and gave them manna and quail to eat. God chose to give his blessing to these fickle people that they might bless the world.

God’s covenants are different from Mr. Miagi’s covenant with Daniel. When God makes a covenant with us, the covenant starts with what God has done for us. What Joshua does in this covenant ceremony with the elders and the people of Israel is what we do at the Easter Vigil: we recount all the mighty acts of God to save his people. We, too, remember deliverance from slavery in Egypt, God’s promise to renew his people, and ultimately the gift of God himself in Jesus Christ, who moved beyond the front pews to give his whole life for us so that we might know joy forever. After we recount what God has done for us, then and only then do we recommit ourselves to God by renewing our baptismal covenant.

God calls us to a decision of deep commitment, but first God shows us his deep commitment to us. We see this in the life of this parish: we have seen how God has sustained this parish and provided for it in miraculous ways. We have seen God’s blessings to us in vitality and ministry and in the gifts that so many faithful people have given to this community.

God calls us to a decision of deep commitment, but first God show us his deep commitment to us. Each of you know what this means. Each of you has felt God’s grace —some of you in dramatic ways, some in small ways. You know how God’s presence has sustained you. God gave you hope in the midst of loss, God gave you joy in the midst of struggle, God gave you faith in the midst of doubt. At some time, in some way you felt the draw of the power of God on your life—that’s what brings you here today. God has shown you a glimpse of his love for you, and a glimpse of God’s deep commitment to you. God is committed to you—God calls you to a deeper commitment to him. Choose this day whom you will serve.

(Here are the verses passed over in the lectionary reading for 12 Pentecost: )

Joshua 24:2-14a (NRSV): And Joshua said to all the people, "Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel: Long ago your ancestors-- Terah and his sons Abraham and Nahor-- lived beyond the Euphrates and served other gods. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River and led him through all the land of Canaan and made his offspring many. I gave him Isaac; and to Isaac I gave Jacob and Esau. I gave Esau the hill country of Seir to possess, but Jacob and his children went down to Egypt. Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt with what I did in its midst; and afterwards I brought you out. When I brought your ancestors out of Egypt, you came to the sea; and the Egyptians pursued your ancestors with chariots and horsemen to the Red Sea. When they cried out to the LORD, he put darkness between you and the Egyptians, and made the sea come upon them and cover them; and your eyes saw what I did to Egypt. Afterwards you lived in the wilderness a long time. Then I brought you to the land of the Amorites, who lived on the other side of the Jordan; they fought with you, and I handed them over to you, and you took possession of their land, and I destroyed them before you. Then King Balak son of Zippor of Moab, set out to fight against Israel. He sent and invited Balaam son of Beor to curse you, but I would not listen to Balaam; therefore he blessed you; so I rescued you out of his hand. When you went over the Jordan and came to Jericho, the citizens of Jericho fought against you, and also the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Girgashites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; and I handed them over to you. I sent the hornet ahead of you, which drove out before you the two kings of the Amorites; it was not by your sword or by your bow. I gave you a land on which you had not labored, and towns that you had not built, and you live in them; you eat the fruit of vineyards and oliveyards that you did not plant. Now, therefore revere the LORD…