Joshua 24:19-20, "And Joshua said unto the people, Ye cannot serve the LORD: for he is an holy God; he is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions nor your sins. If ye forsake the LORD, and serve strange gods, then he will turn and do you hurt, and consume you, after that he hath done you good."
God said He wouldn't forgive their sins if they worshipped other gods. God is jealous! You cannot be a devout Roman Catholic, worshipped statues of Mary, and be forgiven by God at the same time. That is what repentance means in the Bible. Hebrews 6:1 speaks of "repentance from DEAD WORKS." Dead works include ALL WORKS that someone relies upon to get them to Heaven. We must change our mind from dead works, to trust the Savior. I believe that is what Joshua 24:19-20 means. Joshua was telling them that they cannot serve God and idols at the same time.
That is what the Bible means in Ezekiel 18:22 and Ezekiel 33:13, "When I shall say to the righteous, that he shall surely live; if he trust to his own righteousness, and commit iniquity, all his righteousnesses shall not be remembered; but for his iniquity that he hath committed, he shall die for it." The Bible says if a man trusts in his OWN RIGHTEOUSNESS, then God will not pardon him. Romans 10:3-4, "For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth." We are saved by submitting to God's righteousness by faith. Matthew 6:33 says to seek "HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS."
Joshua wasn't telling the people to live righteously to get saved, he was telling them that God would not forgive them if they followed after other strange gods. Joshua 24:23, "Now therefore put away, said he, the strange gods which are among you, and incline your heart unto the LORD God of Israel." There we see repentance and faith (Acts 20:21).
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