Unexpected Faith

Prayer

A Spy Thriller

Today, as we continue to dive into the book of Joshua, we’ve got a spy story - and it’s a great story, a true spy thriller. As a reminder, the Israelites are in the Transjordan, east side of the Jordan River, camped out and primed to enter into the land God has long promised to them. That’s what we looked at last week, God’s command to them to be strong and courageous as they engage the fight to take the land.

But before they take the land, it’s good to know exactly who you’ll be fighting, so Joshua decides to send two spies into the land to check it out - the various kingdoms (city-states), the fortifications of their walled cities, size of those cites, all of it (after all, they’ve never been in this land before).

Story plays out like a little bit like a James Bond movie - the spy (or spies, in this case), encounter a woman who’s aligned with the bad guys, but somehow the spies manage to win the woman over to their side. Bond, of course, made a regular habit of that, charming the woman over to work with him. These spies don’t use charm - they have the fear of the Lord on their side.

Here’s the story: Joshua 2:1-24...Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. 2 The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” 3 So 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.” 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, they 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. 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 you this land 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 in fear 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.” 14 “Our lives for your lives!” the men assured her. “If you don’t tell what we are doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land.” 15 So she let them down by a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part of the city wall. 16 She said to them, “Go to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there three days until they return, and then go on your way.” 17 Now the men had said to her, “This oath you made us swear will not be binding on us 18 unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers and all your family into your house. 19 If any of them go outside your house into the street, their blood will be on their own heads; we will not be responsible. As for those who are in the house with you, their blood will be on our head if a hand is laid on them. 20 But if you tell what we are doing, we will be released from the oath you made us swear.” 21 “Agreed,” she replied. “Let it be as you say.” So she sent them away, and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window. 22 When they left, they went into the hills and stayed there three days, until the pursuers had searched all along the road and returned without finding them. 23 Then the two men started back. They went down out of the hills, forded the river and came to Joshua son of Nun and told him everything that had happened to them. 24 They said to Joshua, “The Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands; all the people are melting in fear because of us.”

As we see in the story, Joshua sends two spies (notice this is done covertly, not like last time the Israelites sent spies into the land 40 years ago) to Jericho, which is about five miles west of the Jordan River, the first main city, and it sits at a strategically important location.

Jericho is a fortified city, it has an inner and an outer wall. City gate closes every night. Somehow the two Israelites are discovered, it becomes known that spies are in the city, at the home of the prostitute, Rahab. So the king of Jericho sends men to her home.

But Rahab lies to the soldiers - she hides the men up on the roof, under stalks of flax that would have been laid out, drying, and tells the soldiers, that yes, the men were there, she had no idea who they were (gets a lot of men, a lot of foreigners coming through her home, I’m sure). But they left - if you hurry you may be able to catch them.

Then we learn why Rahab was willing to hide the spies - notice what she says here: “I know that the Lord has given you this land 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.” They’ve heard the stories - story of the Israelites crossing over the Sea of Reeds, escaping Egypt, the story of their destroying two of the Amorite kingdoms, Sihon & Og. The people in this land are afraid - “our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you” - and catch this, “for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.”

That’s a huge statement. These people were polytheistic - they believed in multiple gods. In that case, Yahweh would have just been another god, a local god, Israelite’s god. For her to affirm the Yahweh as the god above all others - truly sovereign, over all creation - as she puts it, in heaven above and on earth below. He reigns over all.

The very thing that should spur strength and courage in the Israelites - the presence of the Lord Almighty with them - is now causing fear, a failure of courage in the seven nations that occupy the land. They know the Lord God is making all this happen. By the way, God had promised the Israelites all the way back in Exodus, before the 40 years wandering, that he would cause the hearts of the people in the land to melt in fear - another promise kept.

This story does give us a great example of having strength and courage, both for the two spies and for Rahab (it’s interesting to note that we don’t know the names of our two spies, but we do know the name of the woman who helped them, Rahab).

These two men were in greater danger than they realized - we don’t know how, but it became known that they were in the land. Jericho as on high alert. The king finds out - he’s sent troops to search for them. They only escape because of quick thinking and courageous action of Rahab.

And Rahab was taking a great risk here - she is going against her city, her people, her king, defying them. She is putting herself and her whole family at risk by hiding the spies - I’m guessing they would have been put to death if her ruse didn’t work and the spies had been discovered.

Even at the end, she’s taking a great risk. She works out a deal with the spies - I showed you kindness, now return the favor to me and my family. Promise that we’ll live when you come and conquer the city. The spies agree to the deal, she enables them to escape by lowering them out of the window. Her house, as others, was built between the two city walls, so the back side of her house was on the outer city wall. She tells them to hide in the hills for three days until the soldiers searching give up the pursuit.

Then the final part of the agreement - the scarlet cord she used to lower them down, she must put in the window (remember that detail) to mark her home as untouchable, and all her family members must stay inside the house when the attack comes. Here’s the risky part - she has to trust their word on this, as soon as they escape, she has no more leverage against them, she has to trust they will keep their end of the bargain.

Story ends with the spies returning and relaying to Joshua the information - especially the news that the people living in the land are melting in fear because Israelites are coming to take the land.

Unexpected Faith

Now let’s talk about Rahab - because this is really her story. You might think, she’s bright enough to see what’s going on and the only reason she’s doing all this to save her own skin (and that of her family’s). It’s just self preservation.

We should remember that there’s almost always self interest involved when we place our faith in Jesus, when we confess our sinfulness and trust in Jesus’ gift of grace. Lord, save me! Help me - I need you. There’s absolutely self interest involved here - I want life!

Point of the story is that this unlikely woman - a pagan, a Canaanite, a worshipper of many gods, a prostitute - this unlikely woman is trusting Yahweh. She is trusting that he is the truly sovereign Lord, he is the God in heaven above and on earth below, over and above the gods of her people.

Here’s the thing - she knows very little about Yahweh. Really, just the stories she’s heard - crossing through the Sea of Reeds, defeat of Sihon & Og. That’s all she knows. She doesn’t know all the other things the Israelites have experienced and what they’ve been taught - all the other miracles (manna every day in the desert, water coming from the rocks, the Ten Commandments, and all the other laws and instructions. All the things that would have helped her know the goodness and faithfulness, the grace and compassion, of the Lord.

And that makes her faith even more impressive - because the little she knows, she trusts. And she acts out of that faith. This is why Rahab - this unlikely heroine - is held up as an example of faith throughout the Bible:

Rahab is listed in the “Faith Hall of Fame” in Hebrews 11, By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.

From James, 2:24-25, where James is writing about the idea that it is our actions that demonstrate our faith (therefore, faith without deeds is dead, it’s not truly dependence, trust): You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. 25 In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction?

Finally, here’s the one that be the most surprising - Matthew begins his Gospel with the genealogy of Jesus, in his words: the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham. In the middle of the list of Jesus’ descendants, we find this (Matthew 1:5-6): Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of King David…Side note, Rahab is one of only three women mentioned in Jesus’ genealogy.

So we have these spies who receive unexpected grace (their lives are saved!) in an unlikely place (the home of a prostitute), all because of the faith that comes from a very unlikely source - Rahab, the pagan prostitute.

It makes me reflect on how easily I can judge others, based purely on appearance. Maybe their dressed slovenly or provocatively or look like they’ve had a lifetime of drug use - whatever the case might be. And so often, I get that prick of conscience, conviction of the Holy Spirit reminding me that I don’t know anything about them, I don’t know their heart.

They might have a wondrously generous spirit. They might be a person of remarkable resilience, strength, having endured great trials with grace. They might, like Rahab, have a beautiful faith, a courageous faith, one that would put mine to shame.

It seems to me that one of the lessons God is trying to teach us from this story - why numerous times throughout the Bible, the writers point to Rahab, the pagan prostitute, as a model of faith, of risk-taking faith. It’s because she’s such an unlikely candidate - she’s not the person we’d expect. And yet, here she is, playing a pivotal role in the story of God’s people. In fact, she become one of God’s people - she becomes part of Jesus’ lineage!, Jesus is descended from a prostitute.

It reminds us that God’s grace is truly open to all. We can’t put believers - or who we might think are believers or can’t believe that they are - into a neat little box. We can’t know based on appearance - or even more so, based on their history. God’s redemptive work is broad and deep.

I think about the story of Joshua Broome, a man who spent five years in the porn industry, made over 1,000 adult films. Not exactly candidate number one to become a follower of Jesus. But that’s exactly what he is today - he also serves as a pastor, a speaker and an author - he’s just written a book entitled, “7 Lies That Will Ruin Your Life.” He knows a thing or two about lies that ruin lives.

Or the story of Katherine von Drachenberg, better known as Kat Von D, who owned her own tattoo shop. She became famous by starring in a reality TV show about tattoo artists called LA Ink. Kat, among other things, got involved in the occult, in witchcraft (paganism) - but ditched it all and became a believer in Jesus Christ. There’s a fun video of her baptism. At one point, the camera pans across the congregation, it’s an amazing mix of folks - half the people would look a lot like our congregation (you know, sharply dressed, good-looking), and the other half, very different - lots of black, dark clothing and tattoos, lots of tattoos. Not a group you’d normally expect, but they are rejoicing in what God is doing in Kat Von D’s life.

But the best part of the video is seeing the joy and delight of Kat Von D being baptized, this sacrament celebrating her new life in Jesus Christ. A beautiful, unexpected faith.

All these stories can be such a great encouragement to us. When we stop and take a moment to see them, it’s just another reason that we can be in awe of who God is - his sovereignty - that God really is “Lord of all” that his grace stretches far wider and broader then we could ever hope for. The transforming power of his grace - lives changed.

It’s a reminder not to dismiss others because we assume they’d never be interested in who God is - because we wrongly make judgments based on their appearance, or even their behavior - and we think to ourselves, “no way”. But we don’t know their hearts. We don’t know what they’ve been thinking, struggling with. But God does. He knew Rahab’s heart. Out of all the homes in Jericho, it’s no accident that the two spies ended up at her house. In doing so, he saved the lives of the two spies - and Rahab and her family, as we’ll see.

This story reminds us that It’s far more important that we know God’s heart - know his desire that all people, no matter their appearance or their history, or their current situation - would belong to him. Would experience his goodness, his salvation, would experience life in him!

Spiritual Disciplines

This week, as you go about your day, and encounter others, be attentive to thoughts that go through your mind as you see others. How do you tend to think of others - does it lean towards being more judgmental or more generous? If you find yourself thinking judgmental thoughts, confess them, and make it your prayer that you would see others as Jesus does.

Live with Gospel Intentionality - the two spies had no idea how God would use the person of the home they ended up in. To live with Gospel Intentionality is to live with the conviction that the great story of reality is God reconciling the world to himself through Jesus Christ. And we get to be a part of that story. Who knows how God might use you on any given day, in any given conversation, to help draw someone towards knowing and following Jesus. To live with Gospel Intentionality is to live with an openness to that, a readiness for it, an expectation. Pray through your day.

Close by rejoicing in God’s unbelievable grace spurring such an unexpected faith from such an unlikely person.