Unexpected Faith

Over the next several weeks we will be talking about those moments in the Bible that make you wonder why it is there, or why it is described like it is. Scripture is filled with incredible, awesome, and even odd stories.

Here is what I know, everyone of them is there for a reason. The Bible is not some boring outdated book that teaches you about a religion. It is a book filled with life, real life situations and people doing the work of God, and God revealing himself to them and to us!

Have you realized how much you can connect with the places, people, and events of a couple thousand years ago? Do you realize the only thing that separates us from them is modern technologies, but all the emotions, decisions, egos, and personalities of today are the same as they were then.

Arrogance is nothing new, sexual desires..nothing new, conflict, drama, pride, - yup still here today like they were then.

How about this, people being used, beat, abused, left to fend for themselves - yup still here today.

If you believe humanity will be the answer to peace and a bright future - just look at the history - many thousands of years of people doing terrible things at the expense of other people.

And yet, God still - He still has a plan to redeem His people, and he usually uses some people you would never expect.

People like this lady named Rahab.

Joshua was leading the people of Israel into the land God promised them and he sent spies into Jericho.

Rahab had an interesting line of work, one that was not approved of by many people - including people today. Yet God chose to reveal Himself to her.

Joshua was leading the people of Israel into the land God promised them and he sent spies into Jericho.

Joshua 2:1 CSB

Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two men as spies from the Acacia Grove, saying, “Go and scout the land, especially Jericho.” So they left, and they came to the house of a prostitute named Rahab, and stayed there.

You all understand the importance of reputation, good bad, or otherwise. Many of you struggle with walking out your faith in Jesus in your everyday life because you are not sure how your friends will respond to your reputation.

There are also people you choose to avoid because of their reputation.

It is likely she ran a brothel of sorts - brothel: a building or house where people exchange sex for money or favors.

Several years ago when I was working in Indiana as a cop, I remember there was a local thug who had a nasty reputation. For the sake of the story let’s call him Mike. Mike was known to be a generally bad guy, loved to fight and was good at it.

I had heard lots of stories about this guy, to include one that made my partner look bad. He went to arrest this guy and saw him eating raw chicken and looking crazy, so he turned around and ran form the guy.

One night Mike was all kinds of messed up and fighting people. He was going to jail and I was going to arrest him. When I approached him - all alone - He acted like he was gonna fight me so I drew my gun.

I told him - I wasn’t going to fight him but I would shoot him. He believed me, and I arrested him without any issues. Over the next couple years Mike and I had many encounters and he always showed me respect, as I did him.

It was a couple of years later when he was in a messy stand off situation with the state police that he asked for me - or somehow they decided to call me out. Anyway, I walked up the the truck he was barricaded in and I talked him out of hurting himself and others.

See his reputation and mine affected our relationship.

Before the spies entered into Jericho, God was building a reputation for himself throughout the land. It was causing everyone to panic a little because they knew the God of Israel was strong.

Even in Jericho over 3000 years ago, this was not a noble way to live. Someone living that lifestyle would not be considered a person of faith by any standard - and yet…check this out

Joshua 2:9 CSB

and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and everyone who lives in the land is panicking because of you.

Josh 2:9

Joshua 2:10 CSB

For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings you completely destroyed across the Jordan.

Josh

For Rahab - She heard the stories of YHWH - a name for God in the OT and knew they were true.

Faith comes by hearing

She heard the WORD and knew the city was condemned, so did many of the citizens.

I don’t know about you but there are many things about God that I have heard which helped grow my faith in Jesus.

I have told the story before about miraculous healings still happening today, or people doing extraordinary things in the name of Jesus.

Several years ago I read this book called “The Heavenly Man” a story about brother Yun. Yun is a Chinese man who was imprisoned because of his faith in Jesus.

He was starved and beaten more times that imaginable. He went weeks without food and water - weeks! I was shocked by the book and what God did through Yun. Eventually he was released from prison and fled from China.

His story has sparked hope for many to trust in God even in the hardest times.

For the people of Jericho, they heard the rumors of the Israelites coming into the land promised to them by their God, and they were afraid. They saw them come into the region.

Faith

Faith comes by seeing

Rahab not only heard the stories of the people but saw them move throughout the land.

Joshua 2:9 CSB

and said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and everyone who lives in the land is panicking because of you.

Seeing is believing isn’t it?

How many of you know that God has the ability and the desire to change the lives of people - even people far from God?

To watch God completely transform someone is incredible. I am hopeful, if nothing else, you can all recognize how God is transforming your life to be more like Jesus.

We are all a work in progress, meaning we will not get it right ever moment of every day, but the pattern of our lives is different because we know Jesus!

I know some of you are tired of the label that you have. Some of you are tired of being the bad kid, but you believe the label is who you are and you act that way.

I know some of you are exhausted trying to keep up your public image, the reputation we talked about earlier but you’re not sure how to get out of it.

I am hopeful you will catch this, you do not have to be what the people around you think you are! Jesus is asking you to trust him with your image, reputation, and your story - let your story be His story.

I promise, when you decide to follow Jesus - I am talking all in no turning back follow Jesus, he will use your life’s transformation to encourage others to follow him.

Because once you start to see change - in yourself or others - you realize Jesus is who He says He is. Once you have heard and seen what God will do, your faith leads to action.

Faith leads to Action

Rahab had a reputation of being a prostitute - the Bible doesn’t let us ignore that. Her lifestyle choices are not one that should be celebrated, but everything is about to change for her. One way or another she will never be the same again.

When the king of Jericho sent people to her place to capture the spies from the Israelites, she had a choice to make.

She could either risk her life by staying loyal to the king of Jericho - or choose to be loyal to the God of Israel.

Instead of handing over the spies to the kings guard, she hid them and sent the guards on a wild goose chase. She put her faith in the people of God, not her people.

She believed what she heard - she knew what she saw to be true - and she acted like it.

Think about this for a second. Rahab had limited information. She heard about the tribes of people coming out of the desert claiming the land to be theirs. Claiming their God is with them and gave them the land.

She had some information they were moving into the region, and saw them as they arrived on her doorstep.

That’s all she had to go on, and she decided to put her faith in them and their God over her king.

She was willing to risk everything. She even had to risk her family, as she had no idea how they would respond.

She was an immoral women and the least likely person to express faith in a God!

This is an amazing act of Grace on God’s behalf as well. She and her family would not only survive the destruction of Jericho, but she - this immoral woman - would eventually marry into the people of Israel. Her faith marked her as a person of God’s family.

Not just any family by the way - but the family who would live in infamy

Matthew 1:5–7 CSB

Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered King David. David fathered Solomon by Uriah’s wife, Solomon fathered Rehoboam, Rehoboam fathered Abijah, Abijah fathered Asa,

Matthew 1:5 CSB

Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse,

Salmon fathered Boaz by Rahab, Boaz fathered Obed by Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered King David.

Through this woman, this unlikely woman of Faith would come King David!

Tell me again why you think you are not worthy of God’s grace, mercy, and love?

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