“Throw Away The Foreign gods That Are Among You!”

“Throw Away The Foreign gods That Are Among You!”(Jos.24:1-2&13-25).*”‘…I gave you a land on which you did not toil and cities you did not build; and you live in them and eat from vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant.’ ‘Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshipped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord’… But the people said to Joshua, ‘No! We will serve the LORD.’ Then Joshua said, ‘You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen to serve the LORD.’ ‘Yes, we are witnesses,’ they replied. ‘Now then, throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your hearts to the LORD,’ Joshua said. And the people said to Joshua, ‘We will serve the LORD our God and obey him.'”*In one word, the reason why YAHWEH seems to have left us in midstream is *”apostacy.”* Apostacy here means we have abandoned belief in the LORD, the Living God!Let us examine a few beliefs to see where each persons apostacy leads to.We begin with kathenotheism, the worship of *one God at a time.* Henotheism, adhering to one particular god out of several, especially by a family or group. *Theism, belief in the existence of a god or gods, specifically of a creator who intervenes in the universe.*Deism, belief in the existence of a supreme being, specifically of a creator who does not intervene in the universe.Polytheism, the belief in or worship of more than one god.And of course, monotheism, which is the belief that there is only one God. And to us Christians, that one God is the Holy Triune God.We are living with all the gods and beliefs above, even when the LORD has been the one leading us all the way.Apostacy in our midst including practicing Christians who belong and depend on esoteric fraternities such as AMORC, Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn, Fraternitas Rose Crucial, Rosicrucian Fellowship, Skull and Bones, Illuminati, Ordo Temple Orientis, Freemasonry, etc. To add to these include the strong belief in ancestral veneration, mystical powers as the sources of human welfare and security. Joshua does not challenge those who want to follow any of the other gods. I do not either! The choice is yours!*”…choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve… But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD…”*If you say you will serve the LORD, you are a witness against yourself that you have chosen to serve the LORD. Therefore my friend, choose for yourself this day whom you will serve.*If you choose to serve the LORD, “then throw away the foreign gods that are among you and yield your heart to the LORD.”* It is easy to throw away the gods. They are idols, but the invisible LORD sits enthroned in heaven eternally!Prayer of the day and week: Holy Spirit, endear my heart to serve only the LORD, the God and Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen!Have a blessed day and week! Welcome back to a new working day and week!Rev Babila Fochang. 10/12/2025.