The Valley of Decision

 

Read Joel 3

Half a league, half a league,

Half a league onward,

All in the valley of Death

   Rode the six hundred.

“Forward, the Light Brigade!

Charge for the guns!” he said.

Into the valley of Death

   Rode the six hundred.

“Forward, the Light Brigade!”

Was there a man dismayed?

Not though the soldier knew

   Someone had blundered.

   Theirs not to make reply,

   Theirs not to reason why,

   Theirs but to do and die.

   Into the valley of Death

   Rode the six hundred.

Cannon to right of them,

Cannon to left of them,

Cannon in front of them

   Volleyed and thundered;

Stormed at with shot and shell,

Boldly they rode and well,

Into the jaws of Death,

Into the mouth of hell

   Rode the six hundred.

Alfred Lord Tennyson continued for another 3 stanzas but the outcome was clear.  The decision to attack when and where they did was a blunder, but the brigade rode on.

The decision to continue the attack was not made in the ranks.  Theirs was but to do or die.

This poem reflected upon one brigade that would be eternally known for its courage in a hopeless cause.  It was in Crimea not Kidron or Megiddo.  It was not the Valley of Jehoshaphat.

But it was the Valley of Decision.

Multitudes, multitudes

    in the valley of decision!

For the day of the Lord is near

    in the valley of decision.

 The sun and moon will be darkened,

    and the stars no longer shine.

 The Lord will roar from Zion

    and thunder from Jerusalem;

    the earth and the heavens will tremble.

But the Lord will be a refuge for his people,

    a stronghold for the people of Israel.

Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved, but you must call upon the name of the Lord.

The ultimate battle of good and evil is on the horizon.  We know God has already won, but some remain in rebellion. Some avoid the decision to accept God through Jesus Christ.

I meet with many people whose lives are a mess but their excuses are in order.  They have so many reasons and justifications for living in their own understanding instead of living God’s way.

Their lives are a mess but their excuses are in order.  This is a defense mechanism to avoid making real-life decisions.

There are so many that live under the umbrella of what is often called determinism.  That is their circumstances determine their outcome.

I spent many hours in conversation with inmate clients who had years to go on their sentences who still wrestled with, I didn’t have a choice.

Only when they realize that we always have a choice can we move beyond our circumstances into real decisions.  Yes, many decisions are difficult to make and harder to live by, but they are our decisions

They take us out of the victim mentality and put us in the more than conquerors category.

The decision that I speak of is the decision for life in Christ.  The decision is to profess Jesus as Lord and serve him as Lord, Master, and Savior.

The decision is to take his yoke and learn from him.

The decision is to obey his commands with joy in our hearts not as burdens on our backs.

I feel for many of you as you minister to those who pay lip service to the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords and diligently serve the god of their own understanding.

You, like the prophets, often minister to deaf ears and are not well received.  I get it. 

But we are not allowed to throw in the towel.  We reveal God’s grace and mercy every chance that we get.  One day, time will be up.  The battle in the Valley of Decision will be consummated in God’s victory and those who held onto their own understanding will go the way of the 600, without the human glory.

Joel is a wake-up call for all generations.  God wins.  That means that love wins.  Why would anyone decide to play for the wrong team in the battle of eternal outcomes?

The Lord will roar from Zion

    and thunder from Jerusalem;

    the earth and the heavens will tremble.

But the Lord will be a refuge for his people,

    a stronghold for the people of Israel.

He is our Rock and Stronghold as well.  Our salvation is secure but the nations of the world are in peril.  So many are at risk of being eternally separated from God.  It may seem comfortable now to not deal with this God stuff, but is that really the eternal condition that some want to choose in their valley of decision?

The world is gathering for war in the Valley of Decision.  The only winning decision is to receive Jesus as Lord and serve only God.  We go forth into battle armed with the Sword of Truth—the Sword of the Spirit—that we know as the word of God.

God wins.  We know that part, but how many must lose.  We have a part in keeping that number low.  It’s a target-rich environment.  Everywhere we look there is someone who needs the Lord.

Everywhere we look we see people with their excuses in order but their lives are a mess.

Everywhere we look we see people living in their own understanding and rejecting God.

Multitudes, multitudes

    in the valley of decision!

For the day of the Lord is near

    in the valley of decision.

Joel is a wake-up call for this generation of apathy and ambivalence that lives entrenched in its own understanding.  For many, the time for decision is already upon them.

For us, the message of hope and love and grace and mercy must be delivered with more urgency now than ever before.

We all are entering the Valley of Decision.

Amen.