By Evangelist Wil Rice IV
From the Branding Iron of the Bill Rice Ranch June-July 2012, Vol. 51—No. 3 (Used with permission)
Joshua 24:15: “And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell; but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
What is a rebel? Let me ask you to try to picture one. Allow me to give the parameters. This rebel is eighteen, and this parents are Independent Baptists!
What does he thing about abortion? What does he think about sex outside of marriage, social drinking, and the kind of friends he chooses? The answers should be simple to find.
Though Independent Baptists are independent and therefore not necessarily a monolithic group, it is still true that their answers to the above questions would be fairly consistent. So what are his parent’s answers?
Parents and abortion? No! Parents and impurity? No! Parents and social drinking? No! His friends? They must be godly.
The rebel, by definitions, would differ. Abortion? Sure. Sex outside of marriage? In some circumstances, yes. Drinking? Come on, it is 2012! And his friends? His friends are his friends. He is not judgmental!
You see, he is a rebel, and he is opposed to a certain set of beliefs. In this case, he rebels against the convictions of his family, church, or (most importantly) his parents.
The question is, does he “do his own thing” or is he following—is he serving a master? Is he independent or part of a group? After all, he is a rebel. He may be a rebel, but he is also very much a follower. Frankly, he is a servant. A rebel is “anyone who serves the wrong master!” Everybody serves a master. Everybody! I am opposed to social drinking, for example, because I really believe the Lord is. Others are opposed to abstinence when it comes to alcohol, because those whom they admire, follow, and yes, serve believe that total abstinence is wrong. I am not saying that there cannot be legitimate differences between thinking people. There are. And these differences are often determined by the master they follow.
Joshua didn’t say choose whether or not you will serve, because everyone already serves a master. His instruction to God’s people was to decide which master they would follow and serve. They could serve the gods of Egypt, the gods of the Amorites, or the God Jehovah. They could choose the master but could not choose whether or not they would serve. The same is true of us. We cannot choose whether or not to serve. Our choice is only deciding which master we will follow.
How often I’ve met people who claim that they follow no one—that they march to the beat of their own drummer; but their speech, appearance, friends, likes, and dislikes reveal that they follow and who they follow. They serve a master but often not The Master.
When you do not follow and serve God, you will follow and serve a god. The choice is yours. Be a rebel, or serve the right master.
