THE FAITH OF RAHAB

Hebrews 11:31 (Reference: Joshua 2:1-24)

 31By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.

Today's passage is about God's judgement. The Bible says, "It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."  Last week we heard from Charles about the Israelites defeating the city of Jericho by marching around 13 times over the course of 7 days. But really it wasn't the Israelites who defeated Jericho, it was God who demolished their walls and sent the Israelites in to put the entire city to the sword. Today we are going to face head-on a view of God that is highly unpopular. We are going to look at how God brings unflinching judgement on wicked people who refuse to repent. But we are also going to balance this view with a story of faith and mercy. We need to get a reality check today because no one can afford to make an error concerning judgment. May God have mercy on us to understand his judgements. 

GOD's COMING JUDGEMENT

Like I said, last week we learned about the Israelites crushing victory over the city of Jericho. We saw things from the side of the Israelites who were on the outside of the walls. But today we are rewinding the tape and will look at the event from the view of the people inside  Jericho. Let me give a little background to this passage to put it into context. The people living in the city of Jericho had a looming problem. A foreign people were living on the outskirts of their territory. Over in the desert on the other side of the Jordan river a people called the Israelites were wreaking havoc on neighboring kingdoms. King Og and King Sihon both were decisively defeated in battle and both lost their territory to these Israelites. What’s worse is that this invading army was on the move and they were coming the direction of Jericho. Invasions were common in the land so Jericho over a long time had built up huge walls to protect themselves from a variety of enemies. The problem was that the Israelites were not your typical invaders; rumors and witness said that the Israelites had a God who fought their battles for them. Praying the gods before battle was common place among the inhabitants of Jericho but what freaked them out was that the God of the Israelites actually showed up to fight. And from what they heard: the God of the Israelites was a force to be reckoned with.

Why was God coming after them? Why did he want to bring judgement on them? The answer is sin. The sins of the people in all of the region had been piling up for centuries and it had reached its full measure. For a long time God had been patient and relented his judgement. His judgement didn't come quickly and it didn't spring up so fast that the people didn't see it coming. Eventually, God's judgement showed up at their door step. Therefor, the people of Jericho had one major concern to tackle: what were they going to do about the invading Israelites? Could they just ignore them and hope to be passed over? Would they lock their doors and yell through them, “Go away! No one’s home!” Would they plea for mercy and hope to be spared? What were they going to do about the sea of armed soldiers who fought for a God Almighty? That was the question of the century: what to do about the judgement of God.

RAHAB'S SAVING FAITH

(Faith that is Tested, Faith that is Confessed, Faith that Labors)

The Bible tells us that the “fear of God is the beginning of wisdom” and Rahab’s actions are the perfect illustration of this principle. Rahab the prostitute ran a house of harlotry but who also became convinced that the LORD was the true and living God. Rahab’s clear cut conversion gives hope to the vilest of sinners that God will reach out to anyone with faith. But what was her faith? What ingredients did she have to produce this striking conversion: changing a woman from a prostitute of this world to a daughter of God?

(FAITH THAT IS TESTED)

An interesting event took place inside the walls of Jericho. Verses 1 to 3 tell us that Joshua, the commander of the Israelites sent two spies into Jericho to spy out the land. Maybe these spies were not very good at spying because the same day they entered Jericho they were spotted and found out. The spies had setup lodging at the home of a prostitute named Rahab. The king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: "Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land."

Let’s read Joshua 2:4-7.

4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, "Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. 5 At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, the men left. I don't know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them." 6 (But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.) 7 So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.

The situation with the spies seemed like a random event but it turned out to be a test of her faith. We know from other parts of the passage that Rahab was seeking for truth in her life and she came to the conclusion and faith that the LORD was God. She believed that God was God but her faith hadn’t had a chance to be acted on. So the episode with the spies gave rise to a test of faith: if she believe strongly that the LORD is God then she should of course protect them. If she truly feared God she would never give the spies away. Rahab’s faith was tested and Rahab did pass the test. 

(FAITH THAT IS WILLING TO BE CONFESSED) 

Let’s look at Joshua 2:8-14.

8 Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof 9 and said to them, "I know that the LORD has given this land to you and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. 10 We have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. 11 When we heard of it, our hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. 12 Now then, please swear to me by the LORD that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you will save us from death."

Who told Rahab about God? How did she come to know? How did she come to understand God and how did she come to know how powerful God was? According to the passage she owned a house in the wall, which means she was probably a wealthy woman and that she had a successful business and entertaining great men from throughout the world. But for a long time these men from around the region kept sharing about their fears and it was reported to all the people of a mighty people living in the Sinai region. Year after year Rahab saw the fear and dread in the hearts of strong men and it placed a fear within her own heart that she began searching for the LORD. Stories and eyewitness. A lot of people would say that’s not a lot to go off. But God’s Word would not return without fruit even if heathens were sharing it.

DL Moody said, “Faith is in the whole person: in the emotion, in the will and in the intellect.  Here is a perfect example in Rahab. God spoke to her mind, she had an intellectual experience. She feared God and had an emotional response. Her will was active and real faith was being expressed. All this gave rise to a clear statement of faith: 

11 When we heard of it, our hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.

God got a hold of her mind—”I know your God is real.”, God got a hold of her emotion—”this is tearing me up inside.” God got a hold of her will, “Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my [family] and all who belong to them, and that you will save us from death.”

Therefore, you must be convinced in your mind that Jesus Christ is God. You must know in your heart that Jesus Christ was raised from the dead. Your will must be steadfast so that nothing can move you because you have been called to the work of God. One is not enough. If you just have the intellect  it is not enough. God made us body, soul, spirt; mind, emotion and will. God needs to get a hold of our mind, emotion and will. This very thing happens here in the life of Rahab. When God got a hold of her she made a good confession of faith, “the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.” This confession rang through God’s eternity because it was an authentic statement of Faith. 

(FAITH THAT LABORS) 

But what about her sense of good citizenship and commitment to her friends and family? Did she have people that she cared about? Yes. However when she welcomed the spies she welcomed God’s view that Jericho was a sinful place. But yet she didn’t defend herself or defend her people.

Rahab didn’t defend her past nor did she defend her people. She agreed with God’s judgement upon them and she agreed that they had no defense to make? God was God and he was right. This faith that God was right and Jericho was wrong was the premise for her faith to pray for her family and friends. Let’s look more closely at verses 12-13. 

12 Now then, please swear to me by the LORD that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you will save us from death."

So here is an important question, “Do you agree with God’s coming judgement upon the people of this world who do not acknowledge Jesus as their God?” Do you think God is right to judge them? Do you defend friends or family members who live sinful lives? Do you consider some people “good people” even though they are godless? Many aren’t willing to be this “extreme”. They sit on the fence and try to keep it cool with both God and the World. But this never works. A child of God has to adopt the same uncompromising attitude as the LORD. God is God and he is right to judge sinful, unrepentant people. 

When we have faith that God is right to judge then we have faith to stop making excuses for people and start praying for their salvation. Rahab’s total agreement with God was controversial but it was truthful and it ended up saving the lives of her family members. She had that that worked for others salvation.

JERICHO’S DISOBEDIENCE

Let’s turn back to our key verse and read it once more.

Hebrews 11:31 ”By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.”

The key verses says that the people of Jericho were killed because of their disobedience. Some other Bible translations use the word, “unbelieving”. The point here is that the people of Jericho didn’t share in the life saving faith of Rahab. What happened to them? They were scared by the Israelites but they thought they had a chance. Rahab knew and had faith that they were toasted but not the rest of the citizens. Everyone else thought, “Hey we have some really thick walls! What are we afraid of? They can’t get in here!” This was false optimism and it wouldn’t work. Why did they go this direction when there was so much evidence that said the walls couldn’t hold the Israelites out? They ignored all this evidence because they didn’t want to change their ways of life. If they believed in God’s sure judgment then they would have to believe in God’s holy ways. They didn’t want to give up their metropolis lifestyles. So it was easy for them to be falsely optimistic. They experienced a final reality check when God tore down their walls and his judgement came flooding inside.

May God help us to get serious about God’s judgements. May God help us to build up faith that can be tested and proved. May God help us to make daily confessions of our faith that He is God. And lastly may God help us to have faith that prays for our friends and family members until they come into God’s side.

One Word: Faith in God’s Judgement