A very smelly Christmas (Mark 14:1-11)

To some it is the king of fruits. To others it is the world’s smelliest fruit. I am describing, of course, the durian. Smelling like gym socks yet tasting like custard, the durian is a fruit you completely love or absolutely loathe. Mmm, durian.

Imagine durian for Christmas. Instead of a tree, a durian. Instead of roast turkey, a durian. Instead of a present, a durian. Your family will disown you. Your neighbours will call the police on you.

Extreme reactions. That is the theme of today’s passage from Mark Chapter 14 - extreme reactions or responses to Jesus Christ. One of hatred and murder. But the other of love and worship. And the question is: Pushed to the extreme, what is your response to Jesus? What is your extreme reaction to Christ?

Now the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread were only two days away, and the chief priests and the teachers of the law were looking for some sly way to arrest Jesus and kill him. “But not during the Feast,” they said, “or the people may riot.”

Mark 14:1-2

The passage begins (and ends) with murder - with the religious leaders scratching their heads thinking of a way to kill Jesus. And it’s tempting to say, “It’s just those extremists.” Or, “Let’s skip this bit,” but we lose something if we do. Mark wants us to compare the religious leaders with this anonymous lady. To compare their reaction with hers.

It’s not as simple as saying one is bad and the other is good. Look at verse 1 and notice how secretive they are. “They were looking for some sly way to arrest Jesus.” Verse 2, “Not during the Feast,” they said. Why? Because the people would riot. Because there were too many witnesses. This was a business meeting. They wanted to kill Jesus - to commit murder, yes - but to do it in such a way that they still looked respectable, that they still maintained control.

But then comes this woman who does something so public, so embarrassing yet so full of love.

While he was in Bethany, reclining at the table in the home of a man known as Simon the Leper, a woman came with an alabaster jar of very expensive perfume, made of pure nard. She broke the jar and poured the perfume on his head.

Mark 14:3

She has no words, no name, she probably has no invitation. But Mark tells us that the jar was made of alabaster. The perfume was made of pure nard. That was the centre of attention. This rare, expensive jar of perfume which was broken, which was poured out on Jesus’ head. In John’s gospel, he writes, “The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume” (John 12:3). Everyone could smell the extravagance of this act of worship.

Some of those present were saying indignantly to one another, “Why this waste of perfume? It could have been sold for more than a year’s wages (three hundred denarii) and the money given to the poor.” And they rebuked her harshly.

Mark 14:4

A very Asian thing to do when we see a friend with a new phone or a new toy is ask, “Eh, how much?” As Asians, we measure everything in dollar signs. That’s how much something is worth - my clothes, my car. That’s how much I am worth - my salary, my Christmas present that my loved one gave to me. It’s interesting how they knew how much that jar of perfume cost. Three hundred denarii. What a waste - not of perfume - but a waste of money. Three hundred denarii poured down the drain.

Three hundred denarii in today’s money is twenty thousand pounds. “We could have given twenty thousand pounds to the poor.” That’s what they were saying. “We could hire a new pastor.” “We can renovate the church centre.” We can do so many things with twenty thousand pounds. But what you do not do with twenty thousand pounds is buy one gigantic bottle of Chanel Number 5 and pour it out on your pastor’s head. What a waste!

So they scolded her, “Silly girl.” But what does Jesus say? “She has done a beautiful thing to me.”

“Leave her alone,” said Jesus. “Why are you bothering her? She has done a beautiful thing to me. The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me.”

Mark 14:6-7

It’s strange. When Jesus says, “The poor you will always have with you… but you will not always have me,” it almost sounds wrong. Is Jesus saying he is more important than the poor?

Well, remembering their objections in verse 5, “This money could have been given to the poor,” Jesus is quoting an Old Testament passage back at them - back at the bullies - about the importance of helping the poor. Hopefully, when I read it, you will see the connection. This is Deuteronomy 15, verse 11.

There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be open-handed towards your brothers and towards the poor and needy in your land.

Deuteronomy 15:11

Jesus says there will always be poor among us - there will always be this problem of poverty in this world - but then quotes a verse that says this is why we should be generous. To be open-handed with the poor. Now, that same chapter in Deuteronomy also has this to say about the poor.

However, there should be no poor among you, for in the land the LORD your God is giving you to possess as an inheritance, he will richly bless you.

Deuteronomy 15:4

It sounds like a contradiction: There should be no poor (verse 4) and yet the poor you will always have with you (verse 11). How can that be? The reason for the poor is not lack of money, not lack of blessing, not lack of food - no, after all, God says he will richly bless the land he has given them as his people. Yet even in this special land he has given to his people overflowing with his blessing, God has to give the command to be open-handed. Why? Because we forget. We need to be reminded not to hold onto God’s blessing with closed fists. Be open-handed, God says. Be generous.

Do you see what Jesus is saying? Some of us think, “If only I had twenty thousand pounds, wow, I will donate all that money to the poor.” You know you won’t. You will be thinking, “I need twenty thousand more.” But what has this woman done? She poured out everything she had, emptied everything she owned in one single act of abandonment, one single act of worship. Notice, Jesus says, in verse 8, “She did what she could.” Meaning if she had two bottle of perfume, she would break both bottles on Jesus’ head. Well, not quite. What it means is, in her eyes, this was nothing. She didn’t think she was rich. She didn’t wait until she was rich. We give out of our excess, our spare change, but this woman she poured out everything she had in worship and in love for Jesus Christ.

You don’t need to wait. Till you are older. Till you have more talents, more money, more respect. Coming to Jesus means you don’t have much but you give him everything. That’s worship. He is worth everything.

She did what she could. She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial. I tell you the truth, wherever the gospel is preached throughout the world, what she has done will also be told, in memory of her.

Mark 14:8-9

A couple of days ago at a friend’s birthday bible study (that’s right, he had bible study on his birthday), I was reminded this was not the first time Jesus was given perfume. If you remember the magi, the wise men from Matthew Chapter 2, who followed the star and came to Christ when he was a child, you will recall how they gave him gold, incense and myrrh as gifts - gold symbolising kingship, incense which was used for worship - but then there is also myrrh. What’s the point of giving myrrh to a kid? (It’s not chocolate). Myrrh is used at funerals, as a kind of perfume to preserve dead bodies. Jesus says, “She poured perfume on my body beforehand to prepare for my burial.” Aside from the fact that Jesus is God and Jesus is King is the fact the Jesus has come to die on the cross for our sins. He has come to save us from God’s judgement by dying in our place for our forgiveness.

And he says wherever this gospel is preached throughout the world, what this woman has done will also be told in memory of her. The cross hasn’t happened yet, it’s two days to the Passover, two days to the crucifixion, but Jesus is saying, “This is a picture of what I am going to do for you on the cross.” Think of the shame she endured - “Foolish girl”. Think of the price she paid pouring out everything she had. Think of her love measured in terms of her sacrifice.

Jesus says, “She has done a beautiful thing to me.” What she did was make Jesus’ death look good. That’s the gospel. It’s pointing others to Jesus on the cross and showing them what a beautiful Saviour we have in Jesus Christ.

At that same bible study, someone said, “Loving someone always looks foolish.” Why would God give up his Son to die for you, a sinner? Why would Jesus Christ become a man, become a baby, die on the cross, for you, a sinner? Because of love. Others will say, “What a waste!” If you know this love of God, you will say, “What a Saviour!”

Then Judas Iscariot, one of the Twelve, went to the chief priests to betray Jesus to them. They were delighted to hear this and promised to give him money. So he watched for an opportunity to hand him over.

Mark 14:10-11

And so the story ends with the plans to kill Jesus moving swiftly ahead. Back in verse 2, they were stuck, they put their plans on hold, but here comes Judas handing Jesus to them as a gift.

I am reminded of a story a pastor once told about a bible study in prison (gives new meaning to cell group) when the prisoners were asked, “Who killed Jesus?” One prisoner said, “The Pharisees!” Another prisoner said, “I killed Jesus,” in remorse over his sinfulness. But the bible study leader wisely said, “God killed Jesus.” It was God who gave Jesus into the hands of the chief priests. It was God who made this happen.

And you have to ask: Why did it have to be this way - through betrayal, through deception? The reason is: Jesus is the ultimate poor man. When Jesus says, “The poor you will always have with you but you will not always have me,” Jesus is calling himself the ultimate poor man. You see, the poor are the oppressed, the victimised. Jesus could not save us as a rich man. The bible says, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, for you sakes he became poor, so that you through his poverty might become rich.” (2 Corinthians 8:9)

Recently, scientists in Singapore discovered the gene which gives the durian its pungent smell and the significance of that discovery opens up the possibility of creating an odourless or milder-tasting durian of the future. But one Singapore wrote back and said this, “A durian without smell is like a human who has lost his soul.” It’s the smell that’s the essence of the soul of the durian. It is the cross that is the essence of Christ, that is the essence of Christmas.

For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life.

2 Corinthians 2:15-16

Coming home (Mark 2:1-12)

[Preached at the Chinese Church combined service on Sunday, 8 January 2017. Translated into Cantonese.]

When Jesus heals the man, he tells him to get up, take his mat and go home. Every day after work or after school when we pack our bags and go home. What is so special about this man? Why does the crowd go, “Wow! We have never seen anything like this.”

Because he cannot walk. Because, if this man wants to go home, he has to be carried home. The word for this is “stuck”. To be “stuck” means you want to go home, but you can’t. Like this Chinese New Year: You want to go home, but you are stuck at work. Or here in church, you want to go home but you are stuck because my sermon is too long-winded (cheung hei)!

But Jesus heals the man and he goes home! And everyone goes, “Hooray!” Yet, Jesus says: More important than going home is being welcomed home. More important than going home early or quickly is being loved in your own home.

Look with me to verse 1.

Jesus goes home

Verse 1: “The people heard that he (Jesus) had come home.” It’s like when Along comes home. Or when David comes home. Everyone says, “Let’s have tea in Wetherspoons!”

Jesus has just come home after travelling the villages. And everyone says “Let’s go and see Jesus!” Verse 2: “They gathered in such numbers, there was no room left.” “Not even outside the door.” So many came that some were standing outside next to the rubbish bins.

And Jesus “preached the word to them.” (verse 2) They wanted to see Jesus. Jesus wanted them to hear God’s word. Those standing outside couldn’t see him. But everyone could hear Jesus preaching God’s word to them.

Imagine your house full of people. That’s stressful! Is there enough food? Are there enough chairs? Imagine every Chinese person in Cambridge came to CCCC on Chinese New Year. Two thousand people! What should we do?

What we should do is preach God’s word. That was Jesus’ number priority. “That is why I have come,” Jesus says in Mark Chapter 1 (verse 38), “so that I can preach there also.”

Whether we go out to them or they come to us. We want to preach God’s word to our friends. That’s our number one priority.

Faithful friends

Some men came, bringing to him a paralysed man, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on.

Mark 2:3-4

These are good friends.Tam Wing-lun (Alan Tam) wrote a song about good friends. (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUMA8g3-lnM)

Nei wai liu ngor / 你为了我 (You’re there for me)

Ngor wai liu nei / 我为了你 (I’m there for you)
Kung foo wan nan chuit mong lui
/ 共赴患難絕望里緊握你手
(In times of troubles to the end, I’ll hold your hand)

Kan nap nei sau

… Pang Yau!!! / 朋友 (My friends!)

Good friends will do anything for you especially in times of trouble. “We will get you to Jesus.” They climb up the roof. They dig a hole (in Jesus’ house). Everyone is looking at them but they don’t care. Like Tom Cruise on Mission Impossible, they lower their friend down from the ceiling.

Parents don’t approve of these kind of friends. So naughty! But these friends are the best friends because of their faith in Jesus Christ. Look at verse 5.

When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralysed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

Mark 2:5

What did Jesus see? Their faith. Not: Oi, what are you doing to my roof? No, the bible says he saw their faith. They were trusting Jesus to help their sick friend. “Only you can help him, Jesus.”

When my father was sick, for a long time he didn’t want to see the doctor. One day, he friend drove an hour to the house, put my father in the car, drove him another hour to the hospital and admitted him. For every check-up, he drove my father. He drove four hours each time. Not to the restaurant or to sing Karaoke, but to hospital to get the help he needed. What do you call that? A good friend.

Jesus sees our faith. When you pray. When you share the gospel. When you pick people up to come to church. Don’t give up bringing your friends to Jesus. But more importantly, keep trusting Jesus with your friends and family. “Jesus, only you can save them. Only you can change their lives.”

Secret enemies

Finally, we see some secret enemies.

Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, ‘Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?’

Mark 2:6-7

I call them secret enemies is because they are undercover. On the outside, they look good. Firstly, they were sitting there, meaning, they came early - not like those four friends who came late and the house was full. Secondly, even though they were saying bad things about Jesus, they said it secretly in their hearts.

But Jesus could see into their hearts. Verse 8: “Immediately, Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them and he said to them, ‘Why are you thinking these thing?’”

What were they thinking? Jesus cannot forgive sin. He is not God. He is insulting God because only God can forgive sin.

And Jesus asks them a question. “Which is easier: to say to this paralysed man, ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or to say, ‘Get up, take your mat and walk?’” Or put it another way: Which is cheaper? When we buy something we often compare the prices? This brand is cheap, but that brand has a big discount. Jesus offers two options: Which do you choose?

The first is Brand Forgiveness. “Your sins are forgiven,” and we say, “OK, let me think about it.” But the second brand is Brand Fortune. Get up: Meaning, Immediately! You are healed immediately. Pick up (your mat): Meaning, No need for your friends to carry you. You are strong enough to carry your mat. Go home: Meaning, Life is back to normal. And Jesus says: Which is better?

If I am honest, I want Fortune more than I want Forgiveness. When I pray, I ask God for health, for happiness, for my exams, for my job, for more time, for more money, for more people to like me. I pray for fortune more than i pray for forgiveness. And Jesus says, “Why are you thinking these things?”

But then Jesus says, “I want you to know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins…” and he heals the man. He gets up, picks up, goes home. Everyone goes “Wah, so amazing!” and he goes home. But what should they have said instead? They should have said,  “Wah, his sins have been forgiven.” They should have said, “Wah, Jesus has authority to forgive my sin.” Maybe even, “Wah, Jesus is God!”

Going home is important, but more important is being welcomed home. Why go home if you are only going to argue with your parents, to boast about yourself, to fight with your friends? Why go home if you are not welcome in your own home? We are stuck. We want to go home but we can’t, not because of money. Because we are not welcome.

But if you are welcome home, it means you are going back to a family who loves you. To friends who want to see you (Paaang Yaauuuu!!). And when Jesus says, “Your sins are forgiven,” he is saying, “God is welcoming you to come home.” “Son,” he says, “Your sins are forgiven.”

There is a story of a man named Paco who ran away from home. His father put an advertisement in the newspaper - “All is forgiven. Paco come home.” 800 sons named Paco came home. Why? Because all of us want to be forgiven. All of us want to go home.

At the cross of Jesus Christ, where he died for our sins, God is saying, “All is forgiven. Come home.”

All is forgiven

We have seen three things. Jesus comes home to preach God’s word. That is his number one priority - that people hear God’s word in the bible. Secondly, Jesus sees our faith. Don’t give up bringing your friends to Jesus. Jesus sees your love and your sacrifice.

But finally, Jesus sees our hearts. He offers us the most expensive gift God could ever buy - forgiveness. On the cross, Jesus died to pay for all our sins, for all our hatred towards God so that he can say to us, “Come home. All is forgiven.”

Let’s pray.

Heavenly Father,

We pray for our friends,

Who are sick,

Who are in trouble,

Who don’t yet know you as their God,

We pray, most of all, for them to be forgiven of their sin.

And to hear Jesus saying to them, “All is forgiven. It is time to come home.”

In Jesus name, we pray,

Amen.

Are you a Christian? (Joshua 24)

Are you a Christian?

It is a simple question I ask frequently in church, actually. When I meet someone new, I’ll ask them their name; I’d be interested to know what brought them to church; but I always make it a point to ask: Are you a Christian?

You might think it strange. After all, you don’t want to embarrass anyone, especially if they’re not a Christian. I doubt that’s true, though. On numerous occasions, my non-Christian friends have been eager to say that they weren’t believers.

Conversely, it’s the regulars who tend to get nervous with the question. Some have said to me, “Of course! My parents have been coming to church for years.” But others have said, “I’m not sure.”

Now I would love nothing more than to affirm your relationship with God in Christ. But it is important for us to ask this question today because that is what’s happening in Joshua Chapter 24. Look with me to verse 14:

Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshipped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the LORD.

Joshua 24:14

The book of Joshua ends with a megachurch meeting: All the tribes assembled in one place at Shechem. That’s over half a million people. They are gathered not to offer sacrifices nor to sing praises but so that Joshua can ask them one question: Will you worship God?

This happens three times in Chapters 22, 23 and 24. Joshua gathers everyone in one place (initially the three tribes beyond the River Jordan in Chapter 22, but everyone else in Chapters 23 and 24) and asks, “Will you commit yourselves to God?”

If a pastor did that at a meeting in church, some would assume that he was talking to someone else - the youth group, perhaps - but not to them. Or some might walk out offended that their faith was being questioned.

But that is what Joshua does here in Chapter 24.

Specifically, Joshua does three things. Firstly, he challenges them to serve God (verses 14 to 18). Secondly, he questions their commitment (verses 19 to 27). And finally, he dies (verse 28 to the end).

1. Choose for yourselves

The first thing Joshua does is say to them, “Make up your mind.”

He begins in verse 14. “Fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness.” It is a command - “Worship God!” But then he gives them a choice in verse 15:

But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served 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.

Joshua 24:15

It is important to see that the choice is not between serving God and some other god. Those are not the options. The people think that they have already chosen God; that they are true worshippers of God.

No, the choice Joshua gives them is between serving the pagan gods of their fathers or the foreign gods of their neighbours. Look again at verse 15: “If serving God is undesirable (literally, ‘evil’) to you, then choose for yourselves whom you will serve: Either the gods of your ancestors or the gods of the Amorites.” That’s a risky move. It’s like your pastor saying, “If you’re not going to be a Christian, then be a Buddhist or be an atheist.”

What is he doing? Joshua is challenging their assumptions, specifically, their assumptions about God’s blessing. God had blessed Israel again and again - with land, prosperity and success; and the danger was they might equate God’s abundant blessing with God’s automatic approval. They might think, “I am worth it.”

So much so, that in verses 1 to 13, Joshua spends one-third of the chapter recounting all of God’s blessings: Beginning with the promises made to Abraham (in verses 3 and 4), then the rescue from Egypt (in verses 5 to 7), then the defeat of their enemies (the Amorites, Perizzites, Canaanites, Hittites, Girgashites, Hivites and Jebusites in verses 8 to 12), and finally, the Promised Land, in verse 13, where God says:

So I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.

Joshua 24:13

Conclusion? You did not deserve any of this.

The more that you’ve experienced God’s blessing, the more that you need to say to yourself, “I did not earn this.” You might come from a Christian family; you might have an inspiring testimony; you might belong to a good church, but you might still be taking God’s grace for granted. Because the more you’ve experienced God’s blessing, the more you’ll be tempted to take Him for granted.

It is a new academic term. Cambridge students will spend the coming weeks “shopping” for a new church. Maybe that’s you. Instead of looking for a church where you will “fit in”, where you can serve - important things to mature as a Christian - why not look out for a church where God’s word is heard and God’s people are held accountable. Look out for a church where the leaders call you to repentance every single Sunday.

That is the purpose they meet as the church in Joshua 24. To hear God’s word and to respond to God’s grace. Joshua confronts Israel with God’s word (verse 2, “This is what the LORD, the God of Israel says,”) and challenges Israel to respond to God’s grace (verse 14, “Now fear the LORD and worship him.”)

Notice how worship is a response. God calls Israel to himself, saves them from slavery and blesses them with the Promised Land; and in response, Israel is to serve God. That is, you do not serve God in order to be saved. God saves you so that you might worship him.

Paul says the same thing to Christians in Romans Chapter 12:

Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God - this is your true and proper worship.

Romans 12:1

Meaning: Worship is the proper response of the redeemed; Those have been saved by God are called to serve the living God. And yet, this does not happen automatically. Paul has to urge us to respond - to consider all that God has done - and to consciously offer up our lives as a sacrifice in worship.

Joshua does the exact same thing in Chapter 24 with one big exception: He challenges them to make up their mind right there and then. If they will not serve God, then they should choose for themselves that day whom they will serve. There will be no delays; no excuses.

That’s the first thing we see: Joshua pressing Israel for a decision; Joshua challenging Israel to worship God.

2. You are not able to serve the LORD

Look at Israel’s response in verse 16:

Then the people answered, “Far be it from us to forsake the LORD to serve other gods! It was the LORD our God himself who brought us and our parents up out of Egypt, from that land of slavery, and performed those great signs before our eyes. He protected us on our entire journey and among all the nations through which we travelled. And the LORD drove out before us all the nations, including the Amorites, who lived in the land. We too will serve the LORD, because he is our God.”

Joshua 24:16-18

Just before (verse 15), Joshua proclaims, “As for me and my house, we will serve the LORD,” to which they answer, verse 18, “We too will serve the LORD.” In other words, “You’re not the only one on God’s side, Joshua. He is our God, too.”

Before that, Joshua reminds them of God’s abundant blessings (Abraham, the Exodus, the battles) and in verse 17, they repeat the same stories back to Joshua, effectively saying, “Duh! We went to Sunday School.” So on the surface at least the people seem to be saying, “We agree with you.” What a positive response from God’s people!

But look again at their first, initial response in verse 16. They actually begin by disagreeing with Joshua. Verse 16: “Far be it from us to forsake the LORD!” What they are saying is, “No way! This will never happen!”

Bearing this in mind, look at Joshua’s critique in verse 19.

Joshua said to the people, “You are not able to serve the LORD. He is a holy God; he is jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make an end of you, after he has been good to you.”

Joshua 24:19-20

“You cannot serve God!” Joshua says; to which they reply “No!” Again, in the negative, they say, “No! We will serve the LORD.” (verse 21)

Now don’t get me wrong. Of course it is encouraging to hear of Israel’s commitment. Imagine how disastrous it would be if they turned around and said, “I’m off to worship the pagan god Molech. So long, Joshua!” Obviously, Joshua did not want them to abandon God. But if so, why challenge them to worship other gods?

Because some of them were, in fact, worshipping other gods.

Remember how he began in verse 14, “Now fear the LORD and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods (of) your ancestors… and serve the LORD.” Joshua says again in verse 23, “Now then, throw away the foreign gods that are among you.” Why does he keep coming back to the subject of foreign gods?

My parents aren’t Christians. Every year at Chinese New Year, my mum lays out an altar to ‘Pai Tee Kong’ - to pray to the Chinese god of heaven - and she tells me that it’s OK for anyone to come and worship this god, saying, “Even Christians do it.” Now, I’m not sure if these guests actually burn joss sticks at the altar but suppose that they are genuine believers who trust in Jesus and confess him as Lord? Is it OK for them to ‘Pai Tee Kong’ just once a year out of respect and tradition?

Israel have committed themselves to worshipping God alone. Yet Joshua reminds them - twice - to get rid of idols. Why? Because it is not OK to bow to idols. Because Joshua knows that some of them have idols hidden away at home. “Throw away the foreign gods that are among you.” (verse 23)

In doing so, Joshua is questioning their commitment to God. That’s not a nice thing to do, Joshua! Can’t you see how enthusiastic they are? And yet, he says in verse 19, “You are not able to serve the LORD.” Isn’t that too harsh; too much for a young Christian? Well, remember that Jesus said the same thing to the crowds in Luke 14:

Large crowds were travelling with Jesus, and turning to them he said, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters - yes, even their own life - such a person cannot be my disciple. And whoever does not carry their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.”

Luke 14:25-27

This is much more radical than forsaking idols. “Unless you forsake your father and mother... unless you forsake your own life, you cannot follow me.” The crowds followed Jesus because he was popular, because he did miracles but Jesus says, “Unless you follow me to the cross, you cannot be my disciple.”

A friend from twenty years ago got in touch on Facebook last week. I wrote, “Good to hear that you are still following Jesus.” The response I got was, “To whom shall I go? He has the words of life.” (a quote from John Chapter 6) Friends, the longer you walk with Christ, the more you realise how dependent you are on Christ. The longer you are a Christian, the more you depend on Christ to remain in Christ.

That is what Joshua is getting at when he says, “You are not able to serve the LORD.” They were blind to their sin (keeping idols at homes). But more seriously, they were blind to their pride. “We can do it!” They seem to be saying, “We will prove ourselves to God.” (Or as my friends back home would say, “Malaysia Boleh!”)

In a climactic scene from the Dreamworks animation movie, Kung Fu Panda, the bad guy, a Snow Leopard named Tai Long confronts Master Shifu, a tiny Red Panda (voiced by Dustin Hoffman). As Tai Long strikes blow after blow in rage against his frail Shifu, he says, “All I ever did, I did to make you proud! Tell me how proud you are… tell me!” Tired and solemn, Shifu replies, “I have always been proud of you. And it was my pride that blinded me.”

Joshua is wise enough and loving enough not to make that mistake. A mother whose wayward son left home to pursue a sinful life prayed this prayer to God, “Lord, do everything and anything that needs to be done to bring him to his knees.” Parents would you dare pray that for your children? “Do everything and anything to bring my son, my daughter to their knees and confess you as Lord.”

Joshua does not mince his words. Verse 20: “If you forsake the LORD and serve foreign gods, he will turn and bring disaster on you and make and end of you, after he has been good to you.”

...Which is why he makes a big deal about witnesses. Towards the end of the section, Joshua make them witnesses against themselves (verse 22), he writes everything they say down in the Book of the Law (verse 26) and even sets up a stone (in verse 27) as a “witness against us”. A friend from my church group sets up reminders on his iPhone to read the bible; his wife sets up reminders to pray for her friends. Why? Because they are a forgetful couple? No, because they want to be faithful Christians.  Joshua does the same thing: He makes them witnesses (against themselves!); he writes everything down as a legal contract; and he sets up the stones as visual reminders (ala iPhones) of their promises to God. Why? To keep them accountable to God and to keep them accountable one another.

A friend told me this week why he and his wife decided to join a bible study group. “To be accountable,” he said. (I replied, “Only a Christian would say that!” - not because it was Christian but because it was cliche. Still, it was a good answer!) Being accountable means you are living your life before God and before God’s people. Not unlike Christian weddings: The husband and wife make promises before God and their church, saying, “Help us to keep our promises to one another.”

So the second thing we see in this passage is Joshua questioning their commitment - partly because he knows how prone his people are to idolatry - but mainly because he knows how prone we all are to pride. We cannot do this by ourselves. We need God’s help to walk in faithfulness and holiness before him. Graciously, God gives us that help though his Spirit that he places in us and through his people he gathers around us.

3. After these things

But finally, we see that Joshua dies.

After these things, Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of a hundred and ten. And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnah Serah in the hill country of Ephraim north of Mount Gaash.

Joshua 24:29-30

In this last section, Joshua dies. A whole bunch of other people die as well (his elders; Joseph, who is really just a bag of bones; and Eleazar the son of Aaron, also long dead). The good news is: They each receive their inheritance - the piece of land that God promised them - an indication of the fullness of God’s blessing. We see this in Joshua’s age - a hundred and ten - symbolic of a full life. All this is saying is that this generation died having lived well. They died having seen all of God’s promises fulfilled.

But what about the next generation?

The sad thing is, Joshua’s faithfulness died with him. Turn to next page and the first words you read are, “After the death of Joshua...” Read the book of Judges and you find the entire nation descending into moral decay. “In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as they saw fit.” (Judges 21:25)

Joshua did not appoint a successor (he wasn’t supposed to). While his elders were still around, things were stable (verse 31) but as soon as they were gone, the nation abandoned God. What a sad end to his legacy.

The main point of all this is to say: It is not enough. You can have a great leader like Joshua, but it is not enough. You can force everyone to come to church, go to Sunday School, do quiet time, but there are no guarantees they will not go astray. I think Joshua realised that, hence the big meeting he called in Shechem. He was concerned: “Are they truly following God or just faking it?”

What we need is faithfulness that transcends death. What we need is a Joshua whose death results in more faithfulness, not less. And that is precisely what we have in Jesus. If there’s one thing you need to know about Jesus it’s this: He died. He really, really died - a horrible death - condemned as a criminal and hung naked on a cross.

But here’s the thing: When Jesus talked about the cross, he called it his glory.

Jesus replied, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. I tell you the truth, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds. The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honour the one who serves me.”

John 12:23-27

“Unless a grain of wheat… dies, it remains a single seed. But if it dies, it produces many seeds.” With Joshua, they continued to worship God while he was still alive. Not so with Jesus. His death is the reason we worship God. His death is the reason we worship Jesus as God. “My Father will honour the one who serves me,” Jesus says.

I don’t know if anyone has ever asked you this before, but: Will you follow - will you serve - this Jesus? This Jesus who lived the life you should have lived; and this Jesus who died the death you absolutely deserved to die? Will you give your life to him and serve him all the days of your life as your Lord and Saviour and God?

If your answer is Yes, then know this, my friend:

You are a Christian.