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A Time For Choosing: Not Left or Right…But Up
2025: Follow Me: Practicing The Way of Discipleship
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A Time For Choosing
“And if it is evil in your eyes to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
(Joshua 24:15 ESV)
The Lord had given rest to Israel from all their surrounding enemies, and Joshua was old and well advanced in years. Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel. And standing before all the people who had come to present themselves before God, Joshua’s voice thundered, “Choose you this day whom you will serve…But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord” (Joshua 23:1; 24:1, 15).
When it's a time for choosing, the right choice is the Lord.
Growing up, I enjoyed “choose your own adventure” books. Do you remember those? The boy comes upon a large cave. If you wish for the boy to go in the cave, turn to page 21. If you choose to go on past the cave to explore something else, turn to page 35. It was meant to simulate the joy of boyhood life–every day, in every way, you could choose your own adventure.
Video games were similar: only this time, you could choose your own identity! Pick an avatar that represents the “you” you wish to be today. You could be Mario, Luigi, Bowser, or Princess Peach, depending on your mood. Who knew that it too would one day simulate real life.
In our secular world today, we are encouraged to choose our own adventure and choose our own identity. We have a deep need to know “who am I?” To define ourselves. In the face of a paralyzing number of options, we tend to make it up as we go or to simply go with our instincts. But hasn’t trial and error proven to us that being “the master and commander” of our fates, the “captains” of our own soul, has proven disastrous? In the words of Scripture, each has turned to his own way and has gone astray. The heart is deceitful above all things. We don’t know what we need, and we don’t know where to go.
But Christians have long claimed to know the antidote: Choose Christ, let him have his way with you. Let him give you an identity and let him chart the course of your adventure. And so, many of us gave our lives to Christ. We look back on that as our day of choosing.
And then, for the rest of our lives, we come to church to be reminded of that day we escaped danger, that day we chose right. The last time we needed to be told to choose.
But I’d like for us to seriously rethink that. What exactly did we choose then? What identity have we accepted? Whose adventure are we really living? We assume that a time for choosing is for the lost; but it just may be that today the saved need some saving.
Choosing Our Own Identity
How do we Christians traditionally, historically, define ourselves? How do we tend to find our identity?
Generally, we do it in one of 4 ways.
The first way is by listing the right things I do. Maybe I give every Sunday. Maybe I fast twice a year. The strength of this approach is that there really are good and right things to do, as Jesus commands. The weakness, of course, is that when this is how we define our identity, it leads to self-righteous pride. We find our identity in ourselves: The good that “I” do–the operative word is “I.” Paul talks about this. Do you remember his list of “I’s”? Born of the tribe of Benjamin. Hebrew of Hebrews. Blameless in zeal. He said make your list; mine is longer. But its useless (Phil 3:4-9).
The second way is by listing the wrong things I avoid. I don’t smoke. I don’t chew. I don’t go with girls that do. The strength of this approach is that there are wrong things we should avoid, as Jesus commands. The weakness, of course, is that when this is how we define our identity, it leads to self-righteous fear. Paul says a religion that is known as “don’t touch this. Don’t taste that” is a religion of will power which is powerless (Col 2:20-23)! Fear and pride can constrain the heart, but they cannot change the heart. And we still find our identity in ourselves. The wrong that “I” avoid–the operative word is still “I.”
The third way we traditionally seek to find our identity is by belonging to the right group. I found the people that believe the right things, worship the right way, and call themselves by the right terms. The strength of this approach is that God does call us to be together, to worship and serve as local congregations, and to worship and serve as the Lord would have us. The weakness, of course, is that when this is how we “know who we are,” it quickly gives way to “group think.” We in our group have always held X, so we can’t rethink that position; our brethren over there would think we don’t belong with them anymore (even if its right, and we’ve been wrong?). Well, that’s not possible. You see, we know who we are because we’re in the right group. To change our minds might put us in a different group! It stifles creative learning and the freedom to follow the truth wherever we find it. It makes our spiritual parents more of an authority than the Spirit who leads us. And the right group to which I belong still uses the operative word “I” or “we.” Jesus faced people who thought this way in John 8. He tried to get them to rethink some things; and all they could say is “We are Abraham’s seed; we are of the right stock; we belong to the right group. We know who we are because of who we belong to.” And Jesus said, “are you kidding? God could from these stones raise up children unto Abraham! Your job is to know the truth and let it make you free!” And…they tried to stone him for messing with their groupthink!
The fourth way we usually seek to identify ourselves is by saying at least I don’t belong to any wrong group. Some of the major voices of the American Restoration Movement warned against this very strongly. David Lipscomb spoke of people who always rail against every other group and he called them “anti-sectarian sectarians!” He meant “I know I’m right because I can argue why everybody else is wrong!” But if the church is one, and the church contains all the saved, and there are people all over the world who come to Jesus without checking with me first (or without calling Harding to let them know they’ve chosen Christ), then there are Christians in groups of which I’m not aware. And if there are people who think like me and worship like me who are wrong on any number of things [as I’m sure I am], and I believe God somehow overlooks that or works with that [as I’m sure God does], why am I so ungracious as to assume He isn’t just as willing to work with others? The idea that I know my identity by categorizing everybody else as “wrong” so that I can feel right is not only unhealthy, but yet another way to find my identity in myself–I’ve avoided wrong groups, so I must be right! Some of Jesus’ followers struggled with this. Jesus gave them power to heal and do miracles. But they found some other people doing the same thing in Jesus’ name…but they had the wrong nametag. They didn’t clear it with them first. So these apostles tell Jesus, “I told them to cut it out…they are in the wrong group.” And Jesus said, “Leave them alone. Whoever is not against us…is for us.” It was hard for them…it’s hard for us.
The four traditional ways of expressing our identity are basically this: “look at where I stand on all the right or wrong stuff.” And these approaches lead to self-righteous pride, or self-righteous fear, or group think, or sectarianism. And all these offer is lifeless formalism, when Christ came to offer the abundant life.
A New Way: Choosing To Let Go
There has got to be a better way. And it’s very very simple.
Stop focusing on yourself. Trust Christ as captain of the ship.
You may have noticed on our typical red banner or on our website or youtube page that we have chosen a slogan for West Side: “Christ is all.” This simple 3-word tagline is taken from Colossians 3:11, where Paul says “Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.” We want every member, every visitor, every person who hears any sermon, attends any class, or reads any thing we produce to know that what motives us is simply this: Christ is all.
We have a sign out front of our building that says “Church of Christ.” I love that sign. I think that, for some, the name “Church of Christ” is meant to answer this question: “This church belongs to who?” But I like to imagine a different question: “This is a church where everything is centered around, looks like, and is inspired by a desire to be just like…who?”
What if the center of your life was simply this: I follow King Jesus. He’s the captain of the ship. I don’t determine whose on board. I don’t make it my mission to count the occupants. I don’t define who I am by which deck I live on. I don’t find my identity in the proper dining courses. But I know I’m on his ship, and I allow the spirit of God to change me each and every day into the kind of person ruled by the King.
There is no doubt that God cares about knowledge, doctrine, and truth. In Hosea, God said, “my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.” Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12 that knowledge is a gift from God. But when he wrote to the Galatians and listed the “fruit of the Spirit”--how you can know that one is filled with the Spirit of God, knowledge doesn’t even make the list! Because, as Paul says elsewhere, “knowledge puffs up,” but love “builds” up. Paul lists a way of living, a way of being, that doesn’t bring attention to you; in fact, it involves emptying yourself of whats peculiar to you, and being filled with what is true about God.
What if discipleship is less about what I’ve got right or done right, and its more about who I’ve become–especially when no one is looking?
Dallas Willard once said we spend most of our time talking about how to get into heaven; but the real goal of following Jesus is how to get more of heaven into you! How to become the kind of people who live the life of eternity in our everyday lives, full of joy and peace that comes from letting go.
Two Real Options: Christ…or Self
In 1 Samuel 1-2, Samuel presents us with a tale of two approaches to being “Christian.” The first approach is the Hannah way. When you start to read, you’d get the impression she wants one and only one thing: she wants a son. That alone might be enough to preach a sermon about singular devotion. But that is actually wrong. She wants a son, alright. But she wants something even more. She wants God to be glorified. She says if you give me a child, I’ll give him back to you–I’ll dedicate him to you forever. It’s like Abraham with wielding the knife: I want a son, but I want something even more: I want you, God, to have your way. Total devotion. That’s the first way.
There is a second way to be Christian, represented by Eli’s two worthless sons. These boys were raised in the Temple too (just like Samuel); but they couldn’t be more different. Samuel waited to hear the voice of the Lord; Eli’s two boys were in the family business, held positions of influence, and came to think of themselves as a pretty big deal. So they began to abuse their position. They even stole sacrificial meat (the meat dedicated to God) and kept it for themselves to eat.
A tale of two ways of being Christian. Both can be found in the Temple. But going to church doesn’t make you a disciple any more than being in a garage makes you a car. If you are all about total devotion—nothing in my hands I bring, only to your cross I cling—you can hear the voice of the Lord. But if your Temple-dwelling is about pride, or fear, or self-importance, or whats in it for me, then you are heading straight-on for an iceberg.
Thinking that discipleship is about choosing right doctrines and right people masks the deeper reality. It seems to me that the choice…the choosing…we are called to make is the choice between Jesus and ourselves! Discipleship is simply self—less. Not thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself…less! Have you wondered when your kids should get baptized? My friend Jonathan has a great suggestion here. Instead of telling them “when you know enough” (thats a complicated approach, for sure), try this one: “when you are ready to start letting others pick the movie on family night.” You are ready to be a follower of Jesus when you are ready to think of yourself…less! Discipleship begins with attitude and spiritual fruit.
“Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’” (Luke 18:10-12)
Identified by the right things I do–I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get. Identified by the wrong things I avoid–extortion and adultery. Identified by the right group-I’m a Pharisee after all. Identified by avoiding the wrong groups–I thank you I’m not like this tax collector.
“But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Luke 18:13-14)
Do you remember how Jesus begins this parable? Why Jesus told it in the first place? “He told this parable,” says Luke, “to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt” (Luke 18:9). “Some who trusted in themselves.”
We have a choice: who is the captain of our ship? There are the self-righteous, and then there are those who empty themselves so God can fill it.
This is the goal: empty our selves…be LESS..so that the Spirit can do more…and God can be all in all.
This is what Jesus means by saying “lay down your life. Take up your cross.”
America is filled with neurotic, achievement-based, self-absorbed Christians. But if their idea of following Jesus is having the right checks on the list, doing less bad things than their neighbor, or looking down their nose at others, then hear me when I say the saved need some saving…because it sure looks to me like they are simply trying to save themselves.
A Time For Choosing
In 1964, Ronald Reagan was still an actor. It had been 24 years since his famous line “win just one for the Gipper.” But Reagan was becoming interested in politics. Just 3 days after the release of his movie “The Killers” (co-starring Lee Marvin and Angie Dickinson), Reagan gave a speech in support of Barry Goldwater called “A Time for Choosing.” You may remember the speech for some of its memorable lines like this one: “You and I have a rendezvous with destiny.” But my favorite line is this one: “
“You and I are told increasingly we have to choose between a left or right. Well I'd like to suggest there is no such thing as a left or right. There's only an up or down.”
We have been led to think that our baptism is our time for choosing, and we ought to choose the correct list, the correct group and the correct formulas. Thats how we know who we are, how we are doing, and where we are going. But Jesus says every day is a time for choosing: every day, to pick up our cross, and choose Jesus over ourselves. To choose Jesus as the one to reorient our lives. To choose to identify ourselves by how much we look like Jesus.
Today, am I choosing Jesus, or am I still trying to save myself?
This is a portion of a sermon preached on February 23, 2025 at the West Side Church of Christ (Searcy, AR) entitled “A Time For Choosing.” It is the fourth lesson in a sermon series called “Follow Me.” This lesson is available to watch or listen, and appears on the Life on the West Side podcast (Season 4, Episode 53). Available on all podcast platforms.
2025 West Side Sermon Focus: Follow Me—Practicing The Way of Discipleship
In 2025, the West Side Sunday morning sermon focus will be on discipleship—following Jesus in everyday life. The lessons will be arranged into several mini-series, but each of these will contribute to the larger whole. Mini-series titles include the following:
-Apprentices to Jesus
-Holy Connection: Being with Jesus
-Formational Growth: Becoming Like Jesus
-Contributing Mission: Doing What He Did
-Taking up your Cross
-Struggles we Face
-Habits for Growth
A major conversation partner—and the underlying study guide—is John Mark Comer’s Practicing The Way. If you are not familiar with this work, here is Brad East on why reading Comer is important, and here are helpful resources from Comer’s website and a Right Now Media course. I was also greatly helped by Jonathan Storment’s sermon series at Pleasant Valley in Little Rock on the same book/topic. I hope you will join us this year as we seek to emphasize the calling of Jesus to follow Him.
Two of our shepherds—Jim Shelton and Larry Bankston—are leading a “Dive Deeper” course on Sunday mornings at 10:30 on the same topic. Come join us!
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My name is Nathan Guy. I serve as associate professor of philosophy, theology, and ethics and as the director of the David E. Smith Healthcare Ethics and Human Dignity Initiative at Harding University (Searcy, Arkansas). I am also privileged to serve as preaching minister for the West Side Church of Christ in Searcy. I joyfully adjunct courses for the School for Professional Studies at St. Louis University and enthusiastically serve as chairman of the board for the Center for Christian Studies. I am happily married to Katie and am the proud father of Grace (who is 3) and Henry (who is wee). You can find more resources on my website over at nathanguy.com. You can follow me (@nathanpguy) on social media: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (X), Threads, Bluesky, and YouTube.