Joshua 2

Intro

Good, bad, or ugly about your week

Pray

last week

we talked about How God reminded Joshua

I am with you

and because I am with you

you do not have to be afraid…..

We have this same promise in Christ.

God is with us and we do not have to be afraid

the same way God promised Joshua

every place you put your foot

will be yours

we can be encouraged

that God has prepared a place for us as well

in eternity

and it is a secure promise

therefore do not be afraid

now

Since God has given us this promise

does that mean we just curl up in a ball

and wait for him to come ?

no we take action and trust that He is with us

and that is exactly what Joshua does

He does not become cocky

and concieted

He doesnt march into the promise land

willie nilly

He sends forth spies to

check out the land

and thats where we are going to start

Joshua 2:1–2 “Now Joshua the son of Nun sent out two men from Acacia Grove to spy secretly, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” So they went, and came to the house of a harlot named Rahab, and lodged there. And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, “Behold, men have come here tonight from the children of Israel to search out the country.””

now I want to just

stop here for a minute

q. When was the last time we saw this when Israel had just crossed over the red sea

Yes, Joshua and caleb were sent to spy out the land once before

except it was more than just 2 spies that went ,

it was 12

and I will bet

Joshua remembered what had happpened when 12 men went out

10 of the 12 came back afraid

and those 10 cowards

scared the rest of the flock by saying there is no way

guys, do not be cowards

and when people around you are acting out of fear

dont allow that to influence you

2 Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.”

this is the spirit that Joshua and caleb had

and we will find out

this is the same spirit these two spies had

as they secretly crossed over the jordan

as a secret mission like a navy seals type mission

maybe they swam

maybe the went north to find fords to cross

but these 2 spies make their way into Jherico

and what they are looking for is military inteligence

they are scouting out their defenses, their terrain, and morale of the city

and as they are in the city,

something happens

and they find themselves

in the house of a woman named Rahab

This woman is a Harlot- prostitute

and

these 2 men find refuge in her home

and word gets out to the king of Jericho

that men from Israel are in enemy territory

then we pick up in verse 3

Joshua 2:3 “So the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who have entered your house, for they have come to search out all the country.””

Somehow the king gets word, the spies may be in Rahabs house

he sends his men to her house

and demands rahab to send out the men?

now why are they in a prostitutes house?

many reasons could be true, but I dont think they would jeprodize their mission to visit prostitutes

or dishonor God with so much on the line…

many scenerios could have led them to her house

she may have befriended them, they may have tried to blend in with other forign travelers, or it could have been a last ditch effort to evade pursueors

however God got those spies there

He got them to the perfect house

in verse 4

Joshua 2:4–7 “Then the woman took the two men and hid them. So she said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. And it happened as the gate was being shut, when it was dark, that the men went out. Where the men went I do not know; pursue them quickly, for you may overtake them.” (But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order on the roof.) Then the men pursued them by the road to the Jordan, to the fords. And as soon as those who pursued them had gone out, they shut the gate.”

so Rahab Hides the men

on the roof,

under flax stalks

and when she is questioned about them

she lies

she exclaims that they did come to my house

but they left

and you had better hurry if your going to catch them

now guys, we have a moral dilema

Q. Was it ok for her to lie?

Was it a sin for people to sneak runaway slaves

over the ohio river to the underground railroad?

(refrence good, law about hebrew slaves escaping)

What about

hiding jews from concentration camps

was bonhoffer a sinful liar?

always remember the heart of a situation

both situations were technically sin

lie

or give up Gods people to be killed

she made the right choice in lying to the guards

Q. Now we have to ask ourselves, Why would Rahab commit treason against her people?

and we will answer that in the next verses

Joshua 2:8–13 “Now before they lay down, she came up to them on the roof, and said to the men: “I know that the Lord has given you the land, that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted because of you. For 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 the two kings of the Amorites who were on the other side of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. And as soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted; neither did there remain any more courage in anyone because of you, for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath. Now therefore, I beg you, swear to me by the Lord, since I have shown you kindness, that you also will show kindness to my father’s house, and give me a true token, and spare my father, my mother, my brothers, my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from death.””

so before they slept ,

Rahab comes up

and gives her confession of faith

and this is what gets her placed in the hall of faith

in

Hebrews 11:31 “By faith the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe, when she had received the spies with peace.”

no mind you Rahab is a gentile cannanite

she is in this city with evil

and wicked pagans who worship false Gods

yet she has faith

and this is a theme throughout scripture that

God is God even over the gentiles

He loves gentiles

and would have desired all of Jericho

to come to repentance and faith like

sweet Rahab

she tells the spies

I KNOW the Lord is with you guys

We have heard all the stories

We heard about the exodus and

how your God dried up the red sea

40 years ago

We heard about your military

victories over the great Ammorite kings

word has come to this town

and everyone is terrified of you

She heard of the great t hings God has done

and she recognized

That Yahweh

the God of Israel

was God over all

she believes In God

and then it leads to the response of faith in action

James describes this

in

James 2:25 “Likewise, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out another way?”

James point is that saving faith always leads to

works of faith

She believed in God

this led her allegience to God

over allegience to her own people

and it produced

works consistent with what she believed

she goes on to tell the spies

since I have spared you

and saved you

and I am a believer in your God

please spare me

and my family

this is a beautiful sentiment

because Rahab wanted her family to be saved

let this be an encouragment

to keep pursuing your family

keep asking God to save your family

and keep telling them in a loving way

Gods judgment is coming

but he has provided a way

of salvation

dont ever give up on your family

Joshua is a hard book about Gods Judgment

but in the response to rahab

we see that God starts it out with mercy

and I believe He would have had mercy on all of Jericho

if they would have had the same response

as rahab

so…

moving on

Joshua 2:14–16 “So the men answered her, “Our lives for yours, if none of you tell this business of ours. And it shall be, when the Lord has given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with you.” Then she let them down by a rope through the window, for her house was on the city wall; she dwelt on the wall. And she said to them, “Get to the mountain, lest the pursuers meet you. Hide there three days, until the pursuers have returned. Afterward you may go your way.””

here we see the men answer of course we will not kill you

your on our side now

and she lets them down from the side of the wall

very similar to the way

peter was led out of a town that was trying to kill him in acts

and she gives them the intell

hide out for three days

Where have we seen that before

Jesus was in the grave 3 days before returning to Israel

now before being let down

the men speak this to Rahab

Joshua 2:17–21 “So the men said to her: “We will be blameless of this oath of yours which you have made us swear, unless, when we come into the land, you bind this line of scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you bring your father, your mother, your brothers, and all your father’s household to your own home. So it shall be that whoever goes outside the doors of your house into the street, his blood shall be on his own head, and we will be guiltless. And whoever is with you in the house, his blood shall be on our head if a hand is laid on him. And if you tell this business of ours, then we will be free from your oath which you made us swear.” Then she said, “According to your words, so be it.” And she sent them away, and they departed. And she bound the scarlet cord in the window.”

So here is the gameplan

you must bind this scarlet cord on your window

and this will let us to know to passover your house

hmmmmmmm sounds familiar doesnt it

Exodus 12:23 “For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians; and when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you.”

guys just like

the blood of the lamb

in egypt was a sign

to passover judgment

so too

the scarlet thread which is the color of blood

was a sign to passover judgment

you see another thing point

to the sacrifice of Jesus

the scarlet thread is a picture of Jesus

and we see that mercy is extended to her whole family

lets finish up

Joshua 2:22–24 “They departed and went to the mountain, and stayed there three days until the pursuers returned. The pursuers sought them all along the way, but did not find them. So the two men returned, descended from the mountain, and crossed over; and they came to Joshua the son of Nun, and told him all that had befallen them. And they said to Joshua, “Truly the Lord has delivered all the land into our hands, for indeed all the inhabitants of the country are fainthearted because of us.””

The spies head out

wait the 3 days

come back to camp in Israel

and they are filled with confidence

God has certainly given jericho into our hands

and I would have loved to hear them explain this story of rahab

to joshua

She goes on to be a major character

in the story of the bible

She is labled as one who had great faith

a gentile , cannanite, prostitute

yes

a woman who was considered to be

cursed was just the one God wanted to use and save

this

along with the samarian woman at the well

and even with Ruth the moabite

should show us that nobody is too far from being saved

God loves to save the lowly and downcast

the bible says He came to seek and save that which was lost

you see rahab

is even more remarkable when you understand she is also in the royal lineage of JEsus Christ

matthew geneology

Matthew 1:5 “Salmon begot Boaz by Rahab, Boaz begot Obed by Ruth, Obed begot Jesse,”

Rahab was Boaz mother

Rahab is King Davids great great grandma

God doesnt only save her

but He puts her in with royalty

now to recap some main themes from this passage

we see

1.God loves to save unexpected people like rahab —came for the nations

2. Faith produces actions consistent with what you believe —-rahab putting her life at risk to protect the spies .

actions - hiding the spies , and putting the scarlet chord in her window

3.Christ is foreshadowed in the scarlet thread —-

Rahab was saved because she showed Joshua the scarlet thread

and he knew to passover judgment from her house

4. in that way Joshua is a type of Christ

who brings judgment over jericho and their sin

but He is a savior to rahab because of her faith

and When he sees the scarlet cord , she is counted as one forgiven

When God sees the scarlet blood of Jesus

on the window of our heart

He passes over judgment and gives salvation…

1- How does Rahab's understanding of God influence her decisions?

2- what do we see about rahabs character? loyal, fearing God

3-Can you identify a moment in your life when you took a risk for your faith, like Rahab did?

4- How did Rahab’s faith impact her future and her family’s future?

5-Discuss how Rahab's story sheds light on the nature of true faith.

6- have you had a situation where you had to choose between obeying orders and doing whats right?

7- What can you learn from Rahab about living in a society that does not acknowledge your faith?

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