God created mankind and privileged us with the ability of choice. He could have chosen to create us as robots, doing things according to pre-determined settings like the computerised systems of our day, but He did not. Each human being to a great degree will influence the outcome of their lives by the choices they make. I saw an example of this many years ago while in High School which was a mixed boarding school. One day on my way to class, I saw outside the boys’ wash rooms a young boy learning to smoke from a group of older boys. It may have appeared the ‘cool thing’ to do at the time, but I believe he must have regretted it some years later! Looking at the life of Joshua from Scripture can teach us something about making choices.
Joshua, as a leader of God’s people learnt a very expensive lesson when he made a presumptuous choice without consulting the One Who appointed him!
In chapter 9 of the book that bears his name, at a time when they were in the process of taking possession of the promised land, some men from a city named Gibeon approached him. Their story and the evidence they gave him sounded and looked so true that he didn’t see the need to corroborate it with the Lord! Before long, when it was too late, he realized his mistake and discovered that they had deceived him! This made Israel enter into a covenant of protection with an enemy nation which now became their ally!
Throughout his life, right from the days of Moses, he had also watched his countrymen’s fickle behaviour and how they continually made wrong choices. They had prostituted themselves with the surrounding nations and got involved in all their strange idolatrous practises which God had forbidden. As His life drew to a close, and having a great wealth of experience, he challenged them in Josh. 24:14-15 to make a choice as to whom they would serve:
“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! 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.”
He took a stand and made it very clear what he would personally do – he made the choice that he and his family would serve the Lord. This shows us that, it is not about following the crowd, but rather, knowing the right thing and doing it.
The world and it’s systems have many options to offer by way of life’s choices. This however doesn’t mean that it’s methods are acceptable for the child of God. The Apostle John gives us a warning in 1 John 2:15-17 where he admonishes us as follows:
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.”
Is it really possible to always make the right choice in every situation? A sure way of knowing that we’re on the right track is to line up with God’s word which is our proven road map in all aspects of life.
We need accurate discernment and judgement now more than ever before, as we wade through life’s myriads of alternatives so that we may always do those things that honour our God and heavenly Father – 1 Cor. 10:31.
Prayer
Lord, we pray that You would help us to always remember to consult You in all that we do. We desire to make the right choices that will lead us to do Your will, both for our good, that of our families, those in our spheres of influence and for the glory and honour of Your holy name, Amen.