CHOOSE WELL
Joshua 24:14-18
I Corinthians 3:10-11, 16-23
We probably make thousands
of decisions everyday: when to get up in
the morning, what to have for lunch, which way to turn at a particular
intersection. Some are so minor that
they seem to be inconsequential, although every decision does affect our lives
in some way. Other decisions are so
major that they impact our very futures.
In Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book, the wolf pack gathers
to choose which cubs will be allowed to join the Seeonee Pack. Their leader, Akela, the gray, lone wolf, lays
across the high rock over looking a clearing in the jungle and admonishes them,
“Look well, O wolves.” Look well; choose
well, because their choices will determine the future of the Pack.
Along with the other cubs, Mowgli, the
toddler rescued and raised by a pair of wolves, is pushed into the circle of
moonlight for review. Shere Khan, a force of evil and destruction,
claims the boy as his prey. He demands the pack turn Mowgli over to him. After all, what good is a man’s cub to them? Mowgli’s future lies in the decision of the
Pack.
Paul tells the Christians
of Corinth that the present and the future belong to them. What that present and future will look like
for each of them will depend on how they choose to build their lives on the
foundation the Gospel Paul proclaimed to them. “Choose well,” Paul advises, “You are like
temples, holy and set apart for God, so be careful what you choose to build
your lives with.”
When the younger members
of the Pack who have been deceived and led astray by Shere Khan, demand that
Mowgli be turned over to the tiger, Bagheera, a black panther, comes to the
child’s rescue. According to the Law of
the Jungle, a cub’s life may be bought for a price. Bagheera offers the large water buffalo bull
he has just killed. The Pack accepts the
price, and Mowgli’s life is redeemed.
When humanity was enslaved
by sin and destined for eternal death, Christ came and paid the price for us with
his death on a cross. Through Christ, we
were redeemed, and we all have the choice to accept this wondrous gift of God’s
unconditional love for us or to refuse it.
When we choose Christ, our future is built not upon the uncertainty of
life’s circumstances or on ever-changing cultural trends and fads but on the
steadfast, faithfulness of God’s love through Christ.
The Corinthians had
received and accepted the gift of salvation through Christ. Belonging to Christ, they had a strong and
sure foundation upon which to build their lives. Paul urged them to not build upon that Holy
foundation with the wisdom of the world or the craftiness of human beings. Rather, they should build with the Wisdom of
God and the things that would grow their faith.
Joshua and the Israelites
stood at the threshold of the Promised Land.
It was a time for them to make a future-determining decision. Would they serve God in sincerity and
faithfulness or would they stay where they were at, serving the past and false
gods?
"The people
answered: We’d never forsake God! Never! We’d never leave God to worship other gods.
God is
our God! He brought up our ancestors from Egypt
Count
us in: We too are going to worship God. He’s our God.'” (Joshua 24:17-18, The Message)
From the moment we came into being, God's eye has been upon us. Through God's grace, Christ came into our lives, saving us from sin and death and freeing us for a life full of promise and joy. God has never given up on us and has always been with us -- protecting us, guiding us and working for our good.
Everyday, we stand at the threshold of God's future for us. Everyday, we're called to choose whether we'll build our lives upon Christ or the ways and things of this world. How will we choose?
Look well, O people of God. Look and see what God has done and what God is
doing. Look well with eyes of faith and
hope in the God-possibilities that await us.
The present and the future belong to us, and we belong to Christ.
Look well; choose well. Let us choose the things of Christ upon which to build our lives and our futures.
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