Introduction: A physician my wife and I knew in college died
recently. He knew he was dying, so he had the time to write
a note to be read at his funeral. If you knew you were
dying, what would you write? If I were writing one now, it
would be a note of gratitude for God’s kindness. I don’t
think I would write to tell my children what to do, because
they are adults and they know what to do. My wife knows a
man from her hometown whose father died. Before he died, he
was able to write a note which informed his surviving
children what terrible people they were. Our study this week
is the message Joshua proclaimed to the people before he
died. Let’s dive into our study of Joshua to study his
message and find what we can learn from it.
I. Early Pagan Beginnings
A. Read Joshua 24:1-2. Joshua tells the people that
their ancestors served other gods. What do you
think is his purpose in this? (Some spouses like to
remind the other of their humble beginnings. “I
married you when you were poor and uneducated…”)
1. If you were the spouse with the humble
background, would you appreciate hearing that?
2. Or would it make you feel grateful?
3. Let’s look at another possibility. Could it be
that God mentioned that Terah followed other
gods to say something positive to the people?
(This sounds like God had a very limited
number of people who followed Him. But He saw
potential in Terah’s son Abraham.)
B. Read Joshua 24:3-5. What point is Joshua making
here that could be helpful? (The helpful point is
that God has been actively involved with Abraham
and his descendants. Because Abraham chose God, his
life was different.)
1. Notice verse 4. What do you conclude from the
fact that Joshua mentions Esau only once even
though he is a son of Isaac? (This shows us
election. Isaac, even though he was flawed,
wanted to have a relationship with the true
God. Esau apparently did not and that ended
his recorded journey with God.)
II. The Journey With God
A. Read Joshua 24:6-8. What point is being made about
having a relationship with the true God when you
face large obstacles in life? (God will make you a
victor. He will give you success.)
1. Notice that Joshua did not mention the most
frustrating time of his life, the first time
they approached Canaan and turned away because
of a lack of faith. Why is there no mention?
B. Read Joshua 24:9-10. Why do you think Joshua
mentioned the Balak and Balaam story? What is
different about the conflict with King Balak’s
people? (King Balak tried to manipulate the prophet
Balaam to have the true God curse Israel. This is
not a story about opponents relying on other gods,
this is a story about an opponent appealing to the
true God.)
1. What important spiritual point do we find in
verse 10? (God was faithful. He did not
“listen” to Balaam.)
2. What kind of situation in your life would make
this point relevant and comforting to you?
(Your opponents may be in your church. They
may appeal to your God. If you are faithful to
God, He will be faithful to you.)
C. Read Joshua 24:11-13. What point is Joshua making
when he refers to the “hornet” and vineyards and
olive orchards that they did not plant? (God will
do the hard work when you face opposition. He used
an insect to defeat nations. He gave them a reward
they did not have to build or plant.)
III. The Decision
A. Read Joshua 24:14. What does this tell us about
Joshua’s audience? (Some of them still have other
gods with them.)
1. Does this fact speak to you? Do you still
cherish sins that you know are not right?
B. Read Joshua 24:15. This says that some in the
audience thought it was “evil” to serve God. Does
this suggest that my question about “cherished
sins” is inappropriate? (If you think something is
“sin,” then you have made a choice for the true
God. This reference to people who knowingly and
willingly reject God is a different sort of
problem.)
1. Is the advice to “choose God” relevant to
those who have already chosen God? (Yes.
Recall that Moses had several failures even
though he chose God. We need to keep choosing
God even when the choice is only how to better
choose God.)
2. Was it necessary for Joshua to tell the people
at the end of his life that he and his family
will serve God? (Joshua was their leader.
Leaders need to inspire by their words and
their example.)
C. Read Joshua 24:16-18. The people respond positively
to Joshua’s challenge. What is their stated reason
for choosing the true God? (They agree with
Joshua’s statement of the great things God has done
for them in the past.)
1. Is this a part of your decision-making in
choosing God? (I think this is an extremely
important point. When I face challenges, I
think about how God has helped me in the past
and it gives me confidence for the future. On
the other side, I remember a couple of times
when I actively considered turning away from
God and it made me fear. How could I live
without God by my side?)
D. Read Joshua 24:19. Wait a minute! Joshua is
encouraging the people to serve God, and then
Joshua says, “Well, you cannot do it.” How should
we interpret that?
1. Let’s try to break this down logically. What
is the reason why Joshua seems to suddenly say
that they cannot serve God? (God is holy. God
is jealous (meaning He demands exclusive
loyalty). God will not forgive sin.)
a. Whoa! We know something seems wrong with
this last point. We have read the New
Testament, God does forgive sins. Is
Joshua getting off the right track?
E. Read Joshua 24:20. Joshua threatens the people by
saying that God will hurt them if they serve
foreign gods. Is this true? Is this how Joshua
should present God?
F. Read Joshua 24:21. Despite Joshua telling them they
cannot do it, and threatening them, the people
respond, “No, but we will serve the Lord.” Do they
disbelieve Joshua?
1. Have you ever heard something like this
before? A person who wants you to do something
tells you that you cannot do it? (This was my
brother’s job at one point in his life. He
flew around the country telling people who
wanted to become movie stars that they could
not do it. My brother’s employer made money
taking photos of those who wanted to become
stars and putting those photos in a directory
that was sent to movie producers. This came at
a price! Telling these aspiring actors the
truth made them more determined to try.)
G. Read Joshua 24:22. Why does Joshua tell them that
they are witnesses “against yourselves?” (He is
impressing on them the importance of their words.
Choosing God exclusively is a serious matter.)
H. Read Joshua 24:24-26. What else is Joshua doing to
elevate the importance of the decision to choose
God? (He writes it in a book and he sets up a large
stone by the sanctuary to memorialize this
decision.)
I. Let’s skip down and read Joshua 24:31. Did Joshua’s
final message accomplish its purpose? (God’s people
were faithful even after Joshua died. They were
faithful during the lives of the elders who were
present with Joshua.)
IV. A Life Well-Lived
A. Read Joshua 24:29-30. How would you describe
Joshua’s life? (He was God’s man, even from his
youth. He was one of two (with Caleb) faithful spies
who argued they should immediately enter Canaan. He
suffered 40 years in the wilderness because of the
unfaithfulness of others. He remained faithful and
led the charge to rely on God to enter Canaan and
take the land promised them. He was a faithful
advocate for following the Lord.)
B. Friend, will they say the same about you after you
have died? Will you remain a faithful advocate for
God even through frustrating times? Will you stand
strong and serve God only?
V. Next week: We begin a new series of studies on
Philippians and Colossians.
Copr. 2025, Bruce N. Cameron, J.D. Scripture quotations are
from the ESV Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard
Version ), copyright 2001 by Crossway, a publishing
ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All
rights reserved. Suggested answers are found within
parentheses. If you normally receive this lesson by e-mail,
but it is lost one week, you can find it by clicking on this
link: http://www.GoBible.org. Pray for the guidance of the
Holy Spirit as you study.
