An Ultimatum

An Ultimatum

What if God gave you an ultimatum today? An eternal ultimatum with no second chances and no more time to make your decision?

ul·ti·ma·tum /ˌəltəˈmādəm/

A final demand or statement of terms, the rejection of which will result in retaliation or a breakdown in relations.

This is how I view Joshua 24:15. Once you hear it, you are held completely responsible and He demands an immediate answer!! 15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

In this verse the ultimatum was presented and Joshua‘s choice was clearly defined!

Many people will get downright ugly if forced to make a decision, or if any expectation is put forth to them. They feel they are being picked on or that somehow whoever is forcing the decision or has a legitimate expectation is being unfair and singling them out in an act of spite.

I have seen this first hand. As a program manager, if you stated the expectation of a person performing their duties, you may hear things like “stop yelling at me” when a voice was never raised.

I once had an employee go to Human Resources because I  asked why the employee had not done their job. This lashing out is nothing more than an emotional response to being removed from the place of comfort they had built for themselves.

Woe to those of you who try to remove another from their imagined comfort zone because you will be attacked in some form or another.

Often when this happens you will be hated. When it comes to spiritual matters this applies even more so. Remember the Scripture “no man can serve two masters”? This is absolutely true, because he will love the one and hate the other or hold to one and despise the other!

If a so-called man is preaching or teaching on a subject that convicts someone of having a sinful place in their life which they are comfortable in, the opposition is almost a forgone conclusion!

Why do we build walls to try and keep God out? It’s because the desires of the flesh—things we gain temporary pleasure from (pet sins)—can have an addictive effect if fed long enough.

In some false way, we convince ourselves these pet sins are okay and will be overlooked, but they will not be! If our heart is to serve and be pleasing to God then we'll feel conviction, but if we find ourselves in a place where we experience no convincing thoughts or feelings, we have some serious prayer we need to send up to God. Back to the Ultimatum.

Many, or even most, go through their daily lives as if they will always have time—time to get around to things, time to turn to God when it is convenient, time to actually give it enough thought so a decision can be made.

“Time” When I hear someone say they’ll get around to something, the first thing that comes to my mind is, “Show me your guarantee for tomorrow, for the day, the next hour, or the next minute.”

Where is that guarantee? The belief that there will always be time is a fool’s thought. We have no promise of time.

“Choose this day whom you will serve.” God may very well demand your answer this very instant! But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!

I pray in the name of Jesus that this writing might speak to your hearts and minds, and that you too may make the commitment to serve the Lord God!