The Faith of Rahab
Notes
Transcript
There are only two women mentioned by name in the Hall of Faith (Hebrews 11).
Sarah- Married to Abraham. He was the father of the Jewish nation we might call her the mother. She was the first of the matriarchs to the Jewish people. She is a godly woman. She is faithful to her husband all the days of her life.
Rahab- Not a Jew. Not married. Not godly. Has a radical conversion and God transforms her.
These women could not have been any more different. They are both commended by God for their faith in Him.
Our focus today is Rahab. I want to show you four things about her.
1. Her sin was not hidden.
A. She was a prostitute.
Almost every time she is mentioned in the Bible, she is called a prostitute.
When we first see her- Joshua 2:1 “Rahab the prostitute”
In our text “Rahab the prostitute”
James 2:25 “Rahab the prostitute”
Liberal theologians have tried to cover this up:
-In OT word also meant Innkeeper.
What about the NT references?
-Those who worshipped false gods were often called prostitutes.
These are foolish attempts to cover up what the Bible clearly says.
Why does the Bible remind us of this woman’s profession three times?
So we do not confuse her with another Rahab. We can’t explain it away.
Please understand she was not a Temple prostitute. The Canaanites attached some value to them. They believed they cooperated with the gods to bring blessing on the earth.
Rahab was an independent prostitute who ran her business from her home. It’s how she made a living.
There is no sugar coating this. She was a prostitute.
What do we normally think of when we think of prostitutes?
Drug addiction
Homelessness
Disease
Hopelessness
Ruined- no one would ever want this woman
Embarrassment- Family
When the Bible calls her a prostitute it is not a compliment.
B. She was loved by God.
Prostitutes are often some of the most unloved people in our world.
Abused
Murdered- many serial killers admit they target them because no one misses them or looks for them.
The Bible says, “God shows His love for us in that while we were sinners Christ died for the ungodly.”
While.
Christ died for prostitutes. Why? Because He loves them.
Do you know why it’s hard for us to love a prostitute? Because very few of us know one.
Prostitutes are:
Someone’s child.
Someone’s mother.
Someone’s sister.
God knows them. By name. Every hair on their head.
God loved Rahab. He rescued her from her sinful life.
C. She gives hope to the greatest of sinners.
Don’t miss this. The last individual account of faith in Hebrews 11 is Rahab. Listen to who is mentioned:
Abel- Godly son of Adam murdered by his brother
Enoch- Walked with God
Noah- built the Ark
Abraham- Patriarch
Sarah- Matriarch
Isaac- Promised child
Jacob- Wrestled with God
Joseph- saved his brothers from starving
Moses- leader of the Exodus
That’s a list of Who’s Who.
Imagine a terrible sinner reading this list. They don’t have a lot in common with these folks. Then they see that last name! Rahab the prostitute! She was loved by God too!
In Matthew 21:31 Jesus said that prostitutes would enter the kingdom of God.
2. She demonstrated courageous faith.
A. She hid two of Joshua’s spies in her home.
Jericho would be the first city in the Promised Land to be taken.
Joshua sent two spies to check it out before they invaded.
The spies decided to lodge in the home of a prostitute’s house. Why?
Not to engage in immorality. Strategic.
Would be a place strangers would go
Filled with people
Easy to hide/blend in
Place people didn’t ask a lot of questions
Her home was probably a place of lodging, entertainment, drinking, food, etc. A strategic place to hide.
Also, her house was built into the wall of the city. That meant it was a place they could easily escape from if they needed to do so quickly.
The spies were noticed.
The king sent people to Rahab’s home to inquire.
When the King’s men arrived, Rahab hid the spies.
She told them the men had been there but had already left. The soldiers believed her, and they left the city looking for the two spies.
It’s likely the King had used her before for information. Using prostitutes for information during war has always been a common practice. In lying to the King she risked her life.
Some people get hung up here because Rahab lied. For those who do that let me remind you of something- she’s a prostitute. We shouldn’t be surprised she lied. Covering up for men was second nature to her.
The Bible doesn’t commend her for lying about the men. It commends her for her faith.
When the soldiers left looking for the spies, it was dark. They locked the gate behind them. Now they are still in trouble because they are locked in the city and people are looking for them.
What would they have done to Rahab had the men been discovered? They would have killed her.
She just committed treason. Her city is about to be invaded by an army and she hid the enemy in her own home. Why would she do such a thing?
B. She believed what she heard about Israel’s God.
Word had spread that the Jewish people believed God had given the land of Canaan to them. People were talking. Rahab heard the talk. She told the spies:
I know the LORD has given you the land.
People around here are scared to death of you all.
We have heard the stories:
Deliverance from Egypt
Parting of the Red Sea
Your God has defeated other Kings for you
Listen: Anyone who had heard what Rahab heard could have responded in the same way. They chose not to change sides. Rahab decided to change teams.
What we see here is her turning away from her old gods. She does not trust them anymore.
Interesting that God uses fear to save Rahab. She said
“Our hearts melted”
“there was no spirit in any man”
“fear of you has fallen upon us”
Some folks have never read the bible, but they have heard the stories.
An army is coming folks!
Angelic!
Led by Christ!
The walls are going to fall!
Will you believe?
C. She made a confession of faith.
She said “The LORD your God, He is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.” (Joshua 2:11)
She turned from her old way of living- treason against the Canaanites
She believed what was told her about God.
She confessed with her mouth the One True God.
Instead of fearing man she chose to fear God.
3. She was saved from destruction.
A. She bargained with the spies.
I dealt kindly with you.
Please deal kindly with me.
When you invade this city spare me and my family.
She told them to give her an oath.
They did. They swore by their own lives. They did give her some stipulations though:
You can’t tell anyone about this.
You must mark your house with a scarlet rope hanging out the window.
You must gather all your family into your home.
This is war folks.
No time to sift through the people. They can’t ask if they are kin to Rahab. When the walls of Jericho fall the army of Israel is coming through that city.
B. She helped the spies escape.
She let them out of her window with a rope. Remember her house was in a part of the wall. They hid in the hills for three days and then returned to Joshua. They told him about this great woman of faith.
What a story they had!
Almost caught!
Almost killed!
Saved by a prostitute!
These men appreciated her. They could have forgotten all about it. Wasn’t a story that made them look good. It made them look bad.
They were detected.
They were defenseless.
They were dependent on a Canaanite prostitute.
She’s the hero of this story!
Don’t forget the people in your life who have helped you! It says a lot about us when we recognize our victories are not accomplished by ourselves.
We too often put our attention on the one who scored the touchdown.
What about the coach who drew up the play?
What about the line who blocked the would-be tacklers?
What about the decoy who diverted the attention of the defense?
What about the person who threw the ball?
The spies didn’t take the glory. They were humble enough to admit if it were not for Rahab they would have been caught and killed.
C. Her life was spared.
When the day of invasion arrived the army marched seven times around the city and the walls fell. Joshua’s army overtook Jericho with ease.
I want to mention a few things about Rahab and her family.
1) Her home did not collapse when the walls fell. That would have made her home obvious. Providence of God.
2) She did convince her family to take refuge.
Her home was marked by a red cord.
Much like Passover in Egypt:
People had to be in their homes.
Their homes were marked with the color red.
3) The spies she saved came in and rescued her and her family (Joshua 6:23).
If I told you one person in that city was a child of God Rahab would probably be the last person you would pick. God saved her. God rescued her family through her.
Like Noah convincing his family to get on the Ark.
When they were removed, the city was burned to the ground. Imagine the relief her family felt.
Rahab had not let down the family this time! They owed their lives to her.
One of these days the Lord is going to snatch us out of this world!
He’s going to burn this thing down!
What a joy it will be to know we have been rescued!
4. She was given a wonderful place in history.
A. She is recognized for her children.
She left the lifestyle of a prostitute.
She married a man named Salmon
She had a son named Boaz. He would marry a Gentile woman as well- Ruth.
She had a grandson named Obed.
She had a great grandson named Jesse
She had a great great grandson named David
She had another great grandson down further named Jesus.
What an honor!
God put her in the family tree of Jesus.
B. She is an example of saving faith.
She had a lot against her:
Her nationality- A Canaanite.
Her immorality- a prostitute.
But God!
When God saves you, He changes your:
Morality- Makes you holy!
Identity- Makes you a citizen of heaven.
Faith can transform a person completely. We see that here with Rahab.
Do you love people who are sinful even by the world’s standards. Look at Rahab and take heart.
God can save them.
God can make them a brand-new person.
Pray for them!
Tell them the truth about God!
Tell them the Lord is going to judge this world.
That’s what changed Rahab.
She heard the army of God was coming and she put her faith in Him!
Maybe you are Rahab. Come to Christ! Perhaps the Lord will save your entire family through you!
C. She embraced the family of God.
“Gave a friendly welcome to the spies”
How we treat the people of God reveals a lot. We can hate the church, or we can join the church. If Rahab had not been willing to be friends with these spies she would have perished.
It’s not always the church’s fault sinners won’t come to Christ.
Sometimes sinners want nothing to do with the people of God.
Illustration: Rita in Mayo.
How I met her.
How we related as years past.
The funeral.
The letter.
God is still saving prostitutes.
Rahab is a reminder.