The Power of Commitment
Today is a good day to talk about the power of commitment since there was such an excellent illustration of commitment rolling by the church last Sunday morning. More than 5,000 bicyclists, including our own Paul Goodhue, endured pain, discomfort, and inconvenience as they rode past BBC during their two day, 192 mile journey from Sturbridge to Provincetown as part of the Pan-Mass Challenge which generates nearly half of the Jimmy Fund’s annual budget as it seeks to find a cure for cancer and to help those dealing with the disease. Paul and small group of riders rode even farther because they rode for a third day beginning at the New York/Massachusetts state line. Each rider doing the two-day journey has to raise or personally donate at least $4,300. That’s commitment.
August 10, 2014
Joshua 1:5-9, 24:1-15, The Power of Commitment
Doug Scalise, Brewster Baptist Church
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Many of the riders and the volunteers are taking part because they or someone they love has been touched by cancer and because of their experience they’re highly committed to do the hard, time consuming work of training and fund raising in order to participate. Billy Starr, the founder and executive director of the Pan-Massachusetts Challenge, said, “It helps them understand that we are all – by choice or default – a part of a larger community.” We are part of a larger community which is why instead of having an 8:00 service last Sunday we were outside lining the sidewalk cheering on the riders. It was definitely worth it to see the expressions and appreciation of the riders.
Tom Marr, who organizes the Brew Run which took place yesterday in Brewster, is a five time rider of the Pan Mass Challenge. He came in to the church on Tuesday morning to say Thank You for everyone being outside cheering them on. He said that during the ride there are bits of people cheering here and there but to come around the corner and see a crowd of people outside of the church cheering for them was really meaningful and made him feel proud. It truly meant a lot to him.
On Thursday afternoon, I saw Lt. Bausch of the Brewster Police Department and he told with me how great it was that we had so many people out in front of the church and shared that he had heard from several people about it. In the most recent edition of The Cape Codder, there is a nice photo by Susan Crowley of our group. Everyone involved in the Pan Mass Challenge understands the power of commitment, there was even one team of riders who had that as their name on their shirts, Team Commitment. The man in the Bible known as Joshua also understood the power of commitment. Near the end of his life Joshua delivers his final speech to the people, reminding them of their historical roots and challenging the people of Israel to commit themselves to God alone.
“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. 2And 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. 3Then 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;4and 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. 5Then I sent Moses and Aaron, and I plagued Egypt with what I did in its midst; and afterwards I brought you out. 6When 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. 7When 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. 8Then 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. 9Then King Balak son of Zippor of Moab, set out to fight against Israel. He sent and invited Balaam son of Beor to curse you, 10but I would not listen to Balaam; therefore he blessed you; so I rescued you out of his hand. 11When 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. 12I 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. 13I 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.
14“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. 15Now 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.”
In today’s scripture, Joshua is seeking to convey to the people that they are all part of a larger community, a community of faith, and being part of the community of faith requires commitment. That commitment, like riding in the Pan-Mass Challenge, sometimes may involve enduring some pain, discomfort, inconvenience, and even suffering. Some of us don’t like hearing that; we think God and the church should be about serving us and our needs and what we want rather than us being willing to endure pain, discomfort, inconvenience, or even suffering for the sake of serving God and other people. Joshua’s call for commitment makes it clear that the people, including us, have a choice about which god they will worship and serve. The choices in the scripture are three: “the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River,” the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living, the third choice is to serve the Lord who has done so much for them.
These three choices represent a choice between remaining stuck in the familiarity of the past, accommodating to the present, or choosing to serve the Lord who has blessed us beyond measure. At this point in Joshua 24, hundreds of years have past since Abraham left the land beyond the Euphrates River so the fact that there were some people who were still worshiping the gods of that area means that they had been passing on the way they had always done it for generations. It’s not easy to give up something that connects us to our family and our past yet Joshua says there comes a time to choose. Some of us find it hard to let go of yesterday in order to embrace tomorrow – we’d like to have only the former or maybe a little bit of both. Joshua says, sometimes we can’t have both, we have to choose.
Joshua also knows that some people will be tempted to worship the local gods, (when in Amor, do as the Amorites). It often seems it’s easier to go along to get along, after all if we’re going to live among people, trade with them, do business with them; it might help if we had some common ground. Joshua says we have to choose between the familiarity of the past, accommodating the present, or to serve the Lord. In his speech the personal pronoun “I” is used about 18 times to describe what God has done for the people. The point Joshua is making is – the gods beyond the Euphrates have done nothing for you, the gods the Amorites worship have done nothing for you, never forget all the Lord has done – count your many blessings as the old hymn says and make a commitment.
When we turn from Joshua to the New Testament we recognize answering Jesus’ call to follow him requires a powerful commitment that lasts for the rest of our life. Being a disciple of Jesus is not one component of our life; along with family and relationships, work, education, service and leisure. Committing our selves to following Jesus is the defining, shaping force that influences how we act in our relationships, how we carry out our work (maybe even what kind of work we do), how we seek to learn and grow, and how we invest our time and our resources.
Following Jesus is the greatest, most transforming, most rewarding commitment anyone can make. If we’re engaged in genuine discipleship, even major decisions such as where to go to college, whom to marry, and what to do with our life, will not have as great an impact on our future as following Jesus. Following Jesus, will influence all those decisions.
When we choose to commit our selves to following Jesus, we truly don’t know where Jesus will lead us or what experiences we may have. Jesus uses an imperative, “Come, follow me.” And the fishermen and others had a choice to make. Only Jesus knows what decisions and partings will be demanded of us, what nets and people we may have to leave behind like the first disciples. What we know is that the person we are following is trustworthy and that he will lead us on the right road. Dietrich Bonhoeffer wrote, “Jesus asks nothing of us without giving us the strength to perform it. His commands never seek to destroy life, but to foster, strengthen and heal it.”[1]
Before we decide to answer the call of Christ, and commit our lives to him, we may think about what it will cost us and what we have to give up. Author Dallas Willard tells us what it will cost us and what we will miss if we refuse Jesus’ invitation to follow him. “Nondiscipleship costs abiding peace, a life penetrated throughout by love, faith that sees everything in the light of God’s overriding governance for good hopefulness that stands firm in the most discouraging of circumstances, power to do what is right and withstand the forces of evil. In short, it costs exactly the abundance of life Jesus said he came to bring.”
Jesus wants us to be totally committed to following him, working with him and for him, and struggling onward no matter how difficult the challenge may be. Jesus wants followers who trust him enough to say, “I won’t stay in the comfort of what’s familiar, I won’t just accommodate to the trends around me. You are my leader; I trust you and will follow you in my relationships, in whatever cross you have shaped and chosen for me to carry, and in surrendering all that I have and all that I am to you and to your service.”
German poet, novelist, and scientist Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) expresses in a memorable way the power of making a commitment. “Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favour all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Begin it now“.
As you heard earlier in the video about our Fund Raising Campaign Preserving our Past, Building Our Future and in the testimony from Ben Gregson, we are at another Defining Moment in our church’s history. I’m asking all of you to pray and think about the part you can play in helping the Lord to reach and serve people for the coming decade, not just by our financial support, but our service as volunteers and by our attitude as we go forward together.
I hope many of you enjoyed breakfast in Fellowship Hall today, I imagine many of you had eggs and sausage. You know the story about breakfast – the chicken was involved, the pig was committed. The Lord is looking for folks who are committed.
Joshua exhorted the people to choose to serve the Lord.
Jesus called those he encountered to make a commitment. Jesus wants people who are not ashamed to say, “As for me and my house with all that we have, we will serve the Lord we trust and to whom belong.”
As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord. I hope you will do the same.
Blessing:
Go now as God’s servants choosing to love & serve the Lord.
Remember God’s presence often & draw strength from the knowledge that the One who calls & invites also strengthens & sustains.
May God give us joy as we follow Jesus on the adventure of discipleship.
The Power of Commitment Joshua 24:1- 15.
Questions for Reflection or Discussion
- Think about someone of something that you are committed to…what is the evidence of your commitment? How would someone know you’re committed to that person or cause?
- Joshua is reminding and challenging the people to be a part of the community of faith. What sort of commitment does that entail? What is required of us is we’re going to be found among those who are committed to being part of the community of faith at BBC?
- Joshua’s call for commitment makes it clear that the people have a choice about which god they will worship and serve. What are the three choices he gives the people? How would those choices be described in our time?
- “Following Jesus is the greatest, most transforming, most rewarding commitment anyone can make.” If someone asked you to defend or explain that statement, what would you say?
- Joshua exhorted the people to choose to serve the Lord. Jesus frequently challenged people to make a commitment. If Joshua and Jesus were standing in front of you, looking you in the eye, asking you how committed you are – what would you say?