Recently, I was behind a tractor-trailer that had a graphic on the back representing what most evangelicals perceive as the gospel.
It depicted a road that forked at a crossroads. The narrow road on the left had signs that read “Life!”, “Peace!”, and “Jesus!” The wider road on the right had signs that read “Money!”, “Pleasure!”, and “Death!” Below the graphic were the words from Joshua 24:15: “Choose ye this day whom ye will serve.”
Before I confront the idea of this somehow being a presentation of the gospel, I want to lay out my purpose in doing so.
We live in contentious times, and when people contradict one another’s beliefs, it is usually done with animosity and pride. The goal is often to humiliate another “side” rather than to seek truth. Unfortunately, this attitude has also infiltrated theological discussions.
That, I trust, is not my purpose here. However, I do believe that this poor understanding of the gospel is a fruit of man-centered, self-righteous, false religion—a deception ultimately rooted in Satan and propagated by false teachers who lead simple sheep astray. But I also believe that many of Christ’s sheep are immersed in this pervasive misunderstanding of the gospel, simply because they have not been helped to fully rest in the work of Christ. The law and the gospel are mixed together by either ignorant or false teachers. These sheep might rightly be warned by Paul:
“Who has bewitched you?”
My purpose, then, is not to win a debate but to lift up Christ—the One who has spoken in these last days. As the better Adam, better Noah, better Moses, better Joshua, true Israel, and Righteous Branch, He has fulfilled all righteousness for those who believe.
Through this feeble attempt at addressing the false teaching of “free will,” my desire is that Christ’s sheep will be strengthened in their assurance and bear more fruit through the work of the Spirit.
Misusing Joshua 24:15
First, I must address the misuse of Joshua 24:15 as a presentation of the gospel.
When Adam joined Satan in his rebellion against the Creator, he brought death into the world:
“Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned—”
— Romans 5:12
Since then, all of Adam’s children have been born with a will enslaved to sin and death—none of them seek after God. In other words, none of them will choose God:
“As it is written, ‘There is none righteous, not even one; There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless; There is none who does good, There is not even one.’”
— Romans 3:10-12
But God, who is rich in mercy, made a promise to Satan in the garden—even as Adam and Eve tried to hide their shame with the works of their hands:
“Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they knew that they were naked; and they sewed fig leaves together and made themselves loin coverings. They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.”
— Genesis 3:7-8
God’s promise was that He would raise up a “seed”—a Son—who would be bruised but not crushed by Satan and would then crush Satan, restoring man to his original walk with God in perfect obedience, rest, and harmony:
“And I will put enmity between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.”
— Genesis 3:15
From this point forward, the entire biblical narrative is about this redemption—the fulfillment of God’s promise in Genesis 3:15.
“Saying, ‘I will proclaim Your name to My brethren, In the midst of the congregation I will sing Your praise.’ And again, ‘I will put My trust in Him.’ And again, ‘Behold, I and the children whom God has given Me.’”
— Hebrews 2:12-13
Every story in Scripture points to this redemptive plan—not just in writing but in God’s sovereign decree of the events themselves:
“And He said to them, ‘O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.”
— Luke 24:25-27
After making His promise in Genesis 3:15, God immediately began pointing to the Son—starting with Abel, the first to believe God’s promise.
The Law Cannot Save
Joshua 24:15, when rightly understood, is not an invitation to salvation but rather a repetition of the law—a standard that Israel could not meet:
“The people answered together and said, ‘All that the LORD has spoken we will do!’”
— Exodus 19:8
Yet, God has now spoken through Christ in these last days, and we know that the law was given not as a means of salvation, but to bring all men guilty before God:
“Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God; because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight, for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.”
— Romans 3:19-20
Thus, Joshua 24:15 is law, not gospel. The Israelites promised to serve the Lord—and they failed.
Are you any different?
As your Hobby Lobby sign hangs in your foyer announcing, “As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord,” are you any different from the well-meaning Israelites who made the same vow?
Or is your boast in Christ alone?
“Who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.”
— John 1:13
“For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.”
— Ephesians 2:10
If you believe, it is because God is at work in you:
“For it is God who is at work in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.”
— Philippians 2:13
Rest, my believing friend, in the perfect Lamb by whom God has spoken in these last days. Do not be deceived by those who teach free will choices for salvation, for such a belief will either lead to self-righteousness or despair.
Instead, Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!