Honoring Mothers
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· 4 viewsRahab's faith in the LORD brought her salvation, a better future and the honor of being used as an example of faith.
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Introduction
(Moms, Portraits of God Video - 2:20)
By a show of hands, how many of us have ever had a mother? That looks like it is fairly common experience among us, so a day that we honor motherhood would be something that applies to all of us to one degree or another, but some of us have been honored to be Mothers. If you are a mother and here with us this morning would just stand right where you are. No matter what stage of motherhood you are in, Expectant Mother, Single Mom, Grandmother, etc. Let’s just give them a round of applause. They have been given such an awesome responsibility and privelage to bring life in to this world and to refect something of the nature of God to their Children. Thank you mom’s, you can go ahead now and be seated.
Happy Mother’s Day!
By a show of hands, how many of us have ever had a mother? That looks like it is fairly common experience among us, so a day that we honor motherhood would be something that applies to all of us to one degree or another, but some of us have been honored to be Mothers. I am not going to ask you to stand today, but I just want every one of the mothers with us to day to know that you are blessed in that God has entrusted you with the life of one of His precious little ones. This is just as true in every stage of motherhood.
Whether you are a mother who is expecting in just heart and mind or already in your body, God has honored you
Whether you are a single mother of one or a grandmother of many, God has honored you
Whether you are a single mom, or you are parenting together with the father
Whether you were able to physically gave birth to your children, or you welcomed them in by adoption, God has honored you.
Whether all your children were born into this world, or some of them were born directly into heaven, God has honored you
Whether you have one child or a football team.
Even if you child was born into heaven like my oldest son James. You are blessed to have cared for that little one in the way to short of a time that you had with him or her.
Mother’s Day can bring out all kinds of emotions and feelings. Everything form great joy, thankfulness, and exuberance to unexpected pain in loss or regrets can be uncovered in a day like today. But what I want us all to remember is that it was God who designed this whole motherhood thing, and no matter what we have experienced of it, God made it to be an honorable and worthy reflections of His character. Because of that, we honor the many forms of motherhood that we have with us today .
Tension
So since we are talking about honoring mothers today, let me ask you how many mothers can you remember by name from the Bible? If you are like me, you have to stop and think about it don’t you.
Well there is Jesus’s mother Mary that comes to mind quickly, but after that you pretty much have to go Old Testament. Which is where we have been for the last 9 months so we should be able to name some. Let’s see...
Starting at the beginning we can come up with Eve pretty quickly, we know she had kids or we wouldn’t be here
Sarah, Isaac’s Mom
Jesus’ mom Mary
Isaac’s Mom Sarah
Rebecca, Jacob’s Mom
Rachel and Leah, who were moms of the 12 tribes of Israel
Who else…hmmm
Oh, yeah I know one that we all know, Rahab the mother…
but...that is not the role that we typically remember her by is it. We typically remember Rahab in the way that we are introduced to her. Instead of it being “Rahab the honored Mother” she is known as “Rahab the pagan prostitute”. I am not sure that we are being very fair to Rahab when we remember her in only those terms. The truth is that, while her story does begin as a Gentile owner of an ancient house or ill repute, God brings her to an entirely new place. In fact, I would argue that as far as mothers go, Rahab may be one of the most honored mothers in the entire Bible.
So open your Bibles with me to the beginning of her story found in our next book, the book of Joshua chapter 2 (p. 178) and as you are going there let me just give you a bit of road map for the next few weeks. We have only a three weeks left in our Gospel Project initiative for this year. Next week, Jesse Taubert, one of the Overseers here will be sharing the message as my family and I will be on vacation and then when I get back we will wrap it all up with one final message on where we have been so far. Then we will tackling the book of Philippians for the Summer, and I am really exited for that.
We have only a couple weeks left in the Gospel Project for this year. My family and I will be on vacation this coming week so next Sunday one of our Overseers, Jesse Taubert, will be sharing the message. You won’t want to miss that. And then we will have one last week in the Gospel Gospel prpeaking, as we are going to take a break from it for the summer and look at the book of Philippians, and for our last three weeks we are going to briefly look at the book of Joshua and it is in Chapter 2 of the book of Joshua that we are introduced to this honored mother named Rahab. I’ll pray and we will dive into our Mother’s day message.
We have only three weeks left in the Gospel Project for this year, as we are going to take a break from it for the summer and look at the book of Philippians, and for our last three weeks we are going to briefly look at the book of Joshua and it is in Chapter 2 of the book of Joshua that we are introduced to this honored mother named Rahab. So open your Bibles with me to the book of Joshua chapter 2 (p. 178) I’ll pray and we will dive into our Mother’s day message.
So with your Bibles open to , will pray for us and we will dive into our Mothers Day message through the story of the honored mother Rahab.
Truth
So last week we finished up our study on the Torah with a look at the book of Deuteronomy and it ended with a very significant leadership transition. The legendary servant of the LORD Moses has passed away and God commissioned Joshua to lead His people into the promised land. Before they enter, however, Joshua sends in spies to gather information on the land.
He is especially interested in knowing about a stronghold of a city called Jericho.
This should make us a little nervous. Remember last time they sent spies into the land it did not go so well. That was that whole “10 were bad and 2 were good” thing. 10 of the spies came back with a conflicted report where the land was good but there was no way that we could beat the people who are there. Well God was so angry that they refused to take the next step with Him that those 10 immediately lost their lives and the rest of the people spent the next 40 years dying off in the wilderness so that only their children remain. The only exception was the 2 were good guys (thumbs up). They have survived to lead the children of the children of Israel into the promised land. This is Joshua, the new leader, and Caleb.
report are back here standing on the border of the promised land again. They were Joshua, the leader who has took Moses’ place and Caleb.
This time Joshua only sends in 2 spies. We are not exactly sure why but maybe he figures that is a better number because only two got it right last time. Or maybe he has learned, as many of us have, that when it comes to leadership there can be “too many cooks in the kitchen”. Or it could have just been a strategic move, as it is certainly easier for a team of two men to sneak into a city like Jericho then it would be for a large team. But whatever his reason, it is on this mission that we are first introduced to this woman Rahab who would become a most honored mother.
1 And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. 2 And it was told to the king of Jericho, “Behold, men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.”
Even with only two men, the spies have been discovered. The mission has been compromised. What will they do? How will the escape? Who can they turn to in this foreign land? God raises up for them a very unexpected ally...
3 Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land.” 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. And she said, “True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. 5 And when the gate was about to be closed at dark, the men went out. I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them.” 6 But she had brought them up to the roof and hid them with the stalks of flax that she had laid in order on the roof. 7 So the men pursued after them on the way to the Jordan as far as the fords. And the gate was shut as soon as the pursuers had gone out.
Joshua 2:3-
1 And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. 2 And it was told to the king of Jericho, “Behold, men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.” 3 Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land.” 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. And she said, “True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. 5 And when the gate was about to be closed at dark, the men went out. I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them.” 6 But she had brought them up to the roof and hid them with the stalks of flax that she had laid in order on the roof. 7 So the men pursued after them on the way to the Jordan as far as the fords. And the gate was shut as soon as the pursuers had gone out.
Rahab chooses to protect these foreign spies. Why would she do this? Why would she hide these spies? She was not an Israelite, She was a Canaanite woman. She was not even a moral person, she was a “prostitute”, which means she was a woman who sold the use of her body.
Considering who Rahab becomes, some people have tried to hide, ignore or explain away the idea that Rahab was in such a morally corrupt line of work. They would prefer to think of her as just an Inn Keeper who rented out a room, not the madam of a brothel. That does make for a cleaner story, but not a truthful one. Some scholars have been able to cast some shadow on the Hebrew word used in Joshua, but Rehab's story echoes loudly into the New Testament where there is little room for any argument that she was anything but a woman of the night.
So we have to accept this truth about Rahab, and more than that it seems that it is this very truth about Rahab that gives her story the power that it has. Rahab did indeed have a dark past, but that did not keep God from having a wonderful plan for her future. That plan begins when she hides the two spies of Israel, and in the next verses we discover why she chose to betray her country and culture in this way...
So we have to accept this truth about Rahab, and more than that, it seems that it is this very truth about Rahab that gives her story the long reaching impact that it has. Rahab did indeed have a dark past, but that did not keep God from having a wonderful plan for her future. That plan begins when she hides the two spies of Israel, and in the next verses we discover why she chose to betray her King and country in this way...
8 Before the men lay down, she came up to them on the roof 9 and said to the men, “I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. 10 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 the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. 11 And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.
as well. There is no room for debate on the delegation You some people have postulated that maybe Rahab was not really a prostitute but simply an inn keeper. The truth is that the Hebrew word that is used here is the same word
Joshua 2:1-
8 Before the men lay down, she came up to them on the roof 9 and said to the men, “I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. 10 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 the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. 11 And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. 12 Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that, as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father’s house, and give me a sure sign 13 that you will save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.” 14 And the men said to her, “Our life for yours even to death! If you do not tell this business of ours, then when the Lord gives us the land we will deal kindly and faithfully with you.”
Joshua 8-
Notice how Rahab keeps talking about “we”. The entire city of Jericho knew of the victories of these people called the Israelites. There was no “fighting” spirit left in any man because of the news that the Israelites have set up camp against them. We knew that this was going to happen because Moses has already told the Israelites this. Right after the LORD called them to go up against the King of Sihon, the one that she mentions, He said...
25 This day I will begin to put the dread and fear of you on the peoples who are under the whole heaven, who shall hear the report of you and shall tremble and be in anguish because of you.’
25 No one shall be able to stand against you. The Lord your God will lay the fear of you and the dread of you on all the land that you shall tread, as he promised you.
This is the tension that Rahab is sensing all around her. Jericho was one of the oldest and most fortified cities in the world. They had this huge wall that was was so thick that people, including Rahab, were able to build their houses right into the wall. But the people knew that a God who could hold back that waters of a great sea was not going to be hindered by a stack of mud bricks. So they were terrified. They had a great fear of the LORD YHWY, but for most of the city of Jericho that fear did not lead them to repentance and submission. Instead it caused them to work even harder in opposition against the LORD.
The Bible teaches us from front to back that this is one of only two optional responses when someone encounters the greatness of the LORD. When a person has an encounter with God that they cannot explain or ignore they respond in one of two ways. They either humbly bow their knee to Him, or they pridefully raise their fist against him. From Genesis to Revelation this is the case, so it bears the question: Which one are we?
Most of the city of the city of Jericho responded with fist raised high, loyal to their earthly King and Kingdom, all except for this one woman. Rahab was able to see what others in her city were not. Rememeber she was scared to. She said over and over “we” and “us”. The difference is that instead of opposing the LORD, she submitted to Him. In that very moment she made a decision that would forever separate her from the life that she had known up to this point. She aligns herself with a new King, a new lord, and puts her life on the line in order to save the lives of these spies. What do you think would have happened in the soldiers of the King had not believed her and instead chose to search her place and then found the spies hidden in her home? She laid everything down at the feet of her new LORD, even her very life.
you” but then I believe Rahab took a step that few others in Jericho were able to take. She seemed to understand that the power of the Israelites had to do with the presence of their powerful God YHWY. She exhibits great faith in this God of a foreign nation, putting her very life on the line for the safety of his people. In contrast to her desire to reach for peace with this God, the King send his soldiers to capture the spies in an act of war.
From what we have learned over the past many months, we can tell that she has come to a place where she understands that the LORD YHWY is not like the “gods” of her nation. They are all out there in the heavens, but the LORD is God of heavens and of earth. He is not just out there, but He is alive and active in this world in such a way that entire nations are trembling in fear.
Not because of the Israelites, they are a bunch of punk kids who have been camping out in the dessert for 40 years. No the power of this nation is in their God who operates on earth just as He does in heaven.
How often do we exhibit a faith like this? A faith like Rahab? She declared that the LORD is “God in the heavens above and the earth below.” God is not just out there somewhere, He is intimately involved in our World and working to bring our world to his intended end. He invites all those who bow the knee to Him to play a part in this, to build His Kingdom, to build the Kingdom of God in our world. But we cannot do it unless we are people of great faith who understand that God is not just out there, but he is active right here.
We are privileged to live in a country where, at least for now, we are free to pray publically, gather together publically, express and teach our values publically, and I praise God that my family and I are so privileged to live in a country like this. This is not the case for many Christians around the world and it might not always be the case for us either. There may come a day when siding with the LORD means rejecting some things that our country says we much accept. Christians around the world are already fighting in this battle, and we should never assume that our lives will forever be free from it. Understand that I firmly believe that we should do everything withing our power to fight to maintain the freedoms that we are blessed with in this country, but we should also recognize that it may be in that fight that God calls us to display the kind of faith that Rahab did.
It might take something like this to see this kind of faith happen in our life.
Rahab understood that “Lord your God, He is God in the heavens above and the earth below.”
Will we have a faith that says that is willing to follow God before can pray We say our prayers. We come to Church. We serve our families and our community and we champion good Christian values… and all of those things are good...
but do we put as much faith in God’s movement in our world as we do ours?
We need to have a faith like Rahab. She declared that the LORD is “God in the heavens above and the earth below.” God is not just out there somewhere, He is intimately involved in our World and working to bring our world into his intended outcome. He invites us to a part of that, to build His Kingdom, the Kingdom of God, in our world. But we cannot do it unless we are people of great faith who understand that God is not just out there, but he is active right here.
We need to have a faith like Rahab. She declared that the LORD is “God in the heavens above and the earth below.” God is not just out there somewhere, He is intimately involved in our World and working to bring our world to his intended end. He invites us to a part of that, to build His Kingdom, to build the Kingdom of God in our world. But we cannot do it unless we are people of great faith who understand that God is not just out there, but he is active right here.
Sometimes even as I pray I relate to God as if He is so away, and I think at times that doesn’t serve me well. Something that occured to me this past week is “God is just as present in my personal space as He is in outer space.” It is right to think that God is so other than, so infinite, so eternal and awesome that even our known universe isn’t vast enough to contain Him, but at the same time God is able to be so tangible, so intimate, so present and so relational that He hears the softest whispers of our thoughts. How could it change the way that we prayed if we truly understood that our God is the “God in the heavens above and in the earth below.” This is the faith of the then prostitute Rahab, and God honored her faith.
12 Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that, as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father’s house, and give me a sure sign 13 that you will save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.” 14 And the men said to her, “Our life for yours even to death! If you do not tell this business of ours, then when the Lord gives us the land we will deal kindly and faithfully with you.”
So our first theme for this week is that
God honored Rahab’s faith with salvation (: )
God honored Rahab’s faith with salvation (: )
The promise of it is here, but later on in Chapter 6 of Joshua we can read about how it came about. The LORD used His people in a miraculous way to defeat the mighty city of Jericho and they put to destruction every single person except for Rahab and her family. It was Rahab’s faith in the LORD that saved her, and our hope for salvation is found there as well.
You might say, well that is a bit of a stretch mean if everyone was so terrified that they were going to be conquered by this incoming nation, then maybe it was more “self-preservation” that led her to hide the spies then her faith. Maybe she was just trying to pay her way onto the winning team at the last moment. We might be making a bigger deal out of this historical event then it deserves. Looks pretty straightforward to me.
You might say, well that is a bit of a stretch mean if everyone knew that they were going to be beaten by this incoming nation, then maybe it was more “self-preservation” that led her to hide the spies then her faith. Maybe she was just trying to sneak onto the winning team at the last moment. We might be making a bigger deal out of this then the story does. Looks pretty straightfoward to me.
If all we had was the book of Joshua to go on then I would be inclined to agree with that, but as I said earlier, Rahab’s story echoes loudly into the New Testament.
The New Testament book of Hebrews chapter 11 is often called the “Hall of Faith” because it talks about the role of faith throughout the Old Testament record and it works it way through legendary Old Testament characters likes Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Moses. And then right in the middle of all these great men, we find Rahab the prostitute. Listen to what it says about why she was saved when the rest of Jericho perished...
31 By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.
3 By faith we understand that the universe was created by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.
9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.
"I cannot tell you how much I owe to the solemn word of my good mother." - Charles Haddon Spurgeon
"I learned more about Christianity from my mother than from all the theologians of England." - John Wesley
"Only God Himself fully appreciates the influence of a Christian mother in the molding of a character in her children." - Billy Graham
It was not simply self-preservation that led her to hide the spies, the writer of Hebrews makes it clear that the active agent in her salvation that day was indeed her faith in the LORD.
And just as we have looked at many of these names in the “Hall of Faith” already this past year we know that they were not always the most moral men. That these great “men of faith” also had some dark things in their pasts. This should encourage us. The Hall of faith is not full of perfect people, but imperfect people whose salvation was not in the greatness of their morality, but in the greatness found in the object of their faith.
This should encourage us. The Hall of faith is not full of perfect people, but imperfect people who were saved by their faith in a perfect God. Some of us may be able to say with Rahab that we have had a dark past, but just like Rahab and the others in the list, we don’t have to clean all that up before God will save us. In fact, we won’t be saved if we try. Salvation cannot be earned like that, it is a gift. Just like it says in
were saved by their faith in a perfect God. Some of us may be able to say with Rahab that we have had a dark past, but just like Rahab and the others in the list, we don’t have to clean all that up before God will save us. In fact, we won’t be saved if we try. Salvation cannot be earned like that, it is a gift. Just like it says in
Some of us may be able to say with Rahab and these other men that we too have dark things in our past, things we are not proud of. But just like them, we don’t have to clean all that up before God will save us. In fact, we won’t be saved if we try to do it that way. Salvation cannot be earned like that, it is a gift. Just like it says in Ephesians 2:8
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God,
God met Rahab right where she was, dark past and all, he extended his gift of grace to Rahab, and she received it in faith and Hebrew tells us that by her faith “she did not perish”. Another clear example of the message of the Gospel in the Old Testament book of Joshua.
Just because God
However, just because God’s meets us right where we are, doesn’t mean that He wants us to stay right where we are. Especially if we are in a dark place like Rahab was. God loves us just the way we are, but He loves us way too much to want us to stay that way. This brings us to our second theme for the week:
But the connections don’t stop there. For just because God’s meets us right where we are, doesn’t mean that He wants us to stay there. Since sin and darkness works to cause us only pain and misery, God wants us to put those things to death. God loves us just the way we are, but He loves us way too much to want us to stay that way. He wants to become the new creations that He made us to be.
This brings us to our second theme for the week:
God honored Rahab’s faith with a future ()
God honored Rahab’s faith with a future ()
Another place that Rahab’s story echoes so loudly in the New Testament is right away at the beginning. In the very first chapter of the very first book of the New Testament: The Gospel of Matthew.
The Gospel writer Matthew was a Jew who was writing primarily to a Jewish audience. His goal was to prove to all his Jewish family and friends that Jesus was the Messiah that they have been waiting for. Much like the ministry “Jews for Jesus” that we had come and share a few weeks back. In order to connect the Old Testament story of God’s People to the New Testament story of Jesus, Matthew opens his book with a genealogy that begins with Abraham, the Father of Israel and works all the way to Jesus, the Son of God.
Anyone else notice a resurgence in the popularity of Ancestries lately? People want to know where their people came from and now with the help of the internet and computer programs we can make connections quicker than ever before on who our great, great, great, great, grandfather was. People are really getting into this, they love feeling connected to their families past in this way.
Well this connection to your past was always a high value to the Jewish people, so that is why Matthew opens his biography of Jesus with this connection to his families past. He starts by working backward with just the big hitters and then moving forwards with all the details. Here is what it says
This genealogy opens by working backward the big hitters and then moving forwards with all the details. Here is what it says
1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. 2 Abraham was the father of Isaac, and Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers, 3 and Judah the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, and Perez the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram, 4 and Ram the father of Amminadab, and Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon, 5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, 6 and Jesse the father of David the king. And David was the father of Solomon by the wife of Uriah,
Matthew 1”1-
Then if you want to keep reading you can work your way all the way from King David to Joseph the adoptive father of Jesus.
There she is again. Not only does her faith bring her salvation, but it also puts her life on an entirely new path. What a transformation has happened in the life of this Biblical character. She has gone from a Gentile, Canaanite, Pagan, Prostitute to a mother who was blessed to be forever honored in the lineage of Jesus Christ.
After Rahab was saved from perishing with the rest of Jericho, she went on to live among the people of Israel. And eventually, it appears that she met a man named Salmon and the two of them got married and raised a son named Boaz. We know that Boaz grew up to be an honorable man because he marries Ruth from the book of Ruth. In that book, Rahab’s son Boaz is shown to be a worthy man in word and deed and he is honored to be one of the elders who sat at the city gate.
Undoubtedly Boaz owed much of his honor to the faith passed on to him through his mother. I would imagine that his mother’s past was influential over his choice of Ruth for a wife. If you remember, Ruth was also a Gentile who was welcomed into God’s people through her declaration of faith in the LORD.
I would
Many great men of God have attributed their Christian growth to the influence of their mothers.
The truth is that many great men of God have attributed much of their Christian growth to the influence of their mothers. Let me encourage you with the words of just a few...
Other mothers...
"I cannot tell you how much I owe to the solemn word of my good mother." - Charles Haddon Spurgeon
"I learned more about Christianity from my mother than from all the theologians of England." - John Wesley
"Only God Himself fully appreciates the influence of a Christian mother in the molding of a character in her children." - Billy Graham
and This e we have this gentile Canaanite former prostitute named Rahab in the lineage of both King David and Jesus Christ himself. If that is not an honor then I don’t know what is. And of course the honor here that Rahab recieved is that she is honored in her role as a mother.
and This e we have this gentile Canaanite former prostitute named Rahab in the lineage of both King David and Jesus Christ himself. If that is not an honor then I don’t know what is. And of course the honor here that Rahab recieved is that she is honored in her role as a mother.
She did a great job raising Boaz - we learn a lot about him from the story of Ruth. He was an honorable man…how many mothers would like to hear these statements about their sons…He married a gentile as well - a Moabite named Ruth
5 and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse,
God honored Rahab’s faith with salvation,
God honored Rahab’s faith with salvation,
She was spared when God judged the rest of her world.
God honored Rahab’s faith with a better future,
God honored Rahab’s faith with a better future,
she married a godly man, raised a godly son and became the great, great, grandmother of King David. And lastly...
She did a great job raising Boaz - we learn a lot about him from the story of Ruth. He was an honorable man…how many mothers would like to hear these statements about their sons...
"I cannot tell you how much I owe to the solemn word of my good mother." - Charles Haddon Spurgeon
"I learned more about Christianity from my mother than from all the theologians of England." - John Wesley
"Only God Himself fully appreciates the influence of a Christian mother in the molding of a character in her children." - Billy Graham
28 Her children rise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praises her:
Proberbs 31:28
She was the great great grandmother of King David.
God honored Rahab’s faith by sharing her faith story as an example ()
God honored Rahab’s faith by sharing her faith story as an example ()
God honored Rahab’s faith
The book of James is often called the “Proverbs” of the New Testament because it is full of very practical advice on how to life the Christian life. One of the themes that James brings out is that while we are saved by faith alone, a saving faith is never alone. In other words, you can never earn your salvation, but when you have been saved by faith then there will be evidence of that salvation in how you life your life. Let me give you an example from...
14 What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? 15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? 17 So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.
James 2:14
A saving faith would never ignore needs like these, you would have to move to meet them.
What a picture of motherhood we can find here too. When a mother sees someone who is hungry, her heart is to feed them. “Is that all you’re having, sit down I will make you some real food...” When she sees someone poorly clothed she orders them inside to grab a sweatshirt. It is just in their nature to care for people in this way. What a great picture of the heart of God that He has given to mothers. And for the rest of us, this is an example of the kind of good works that accompany a saving faith. Mom’s just do this naturally.
From this point, James goes on to talk about the faithful efforts of the great Patriarch Abraham as another example of how good works accompany faith. Then he mentions just one other person. Guess who? Not in a long list of other people, but right after using Abraham as an example James commends to us Rahab.
25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?
James 2:
James also lifts up Rahab’s actions that day in Jericho, seeing them as an example of the kind of works that accompany a saving faith. For that is what Rahab had. Through her faith, she was saved from perishing. Her extended family was also saved that day from perishing. Then she married a godly man and her legacy of faith continued on in Boaz all the way to King David and to the family of Jesus Christ himself.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith and I have works.” Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. 19 You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder!
James 2:18-
This is a powerful verse - it is not en
26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.
it will show in your life. There will be works that happen as a result of your saving faith, not as a cause. One of the examples that James uses is the Patriarch Abraham. In
23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”—and he was called a friend of God. 24 You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. 25 And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? 26 For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead.
So moms, never underestimate the power of your faith as actions
God honored Rahab’s ...
Take this and run with it, beloved: It isn’t who you were that matters God. It is who you are in him. And who you are becoming by the power of his Spirit. Liz Curtiss Bad Girls of the Bible blog
Take this and run with it, beloved: It isn’t who you were that matters God. It is who you are in him. And who you are becoming by the power of his Spirit. Liz Curtiss Bad Girls of the Bible blog
Rahab's story goes like this: Joshua had sent two spies into the land of Canaan and specifically Jericho. Interestingly, those two spies found their way to Rahab's house in Jericho. What is so interesting about this is Rahab was a prostitute.
Even though Rahab had a dark past, God had a powerful plan for her future. I want to bring this into our present time. Though most moms never had the past Rahab had, we all have pasts. Not one of us has lived a perfect sinless life. We all have our glitches and dings, but I want you to think about something. Rahab's past – her glitches and dings – was what made Rahab special. When you think about it, it's often our pasts and glitches and dings making us who we are today. My point is God will take your past and use it to make you special. I talk to so many people and mostly women who have low self-esteem issues. I want to encourage you today. If you will give your life to God and allow his redemptive work to work, he will honor you no matter how dark your past. He will take you from the Old Covenant of bondage to the New Covenant or abundance and peace and liberty just as he did Rahab.
Let me get back to Rahab's story. It was discovered by the enemy how the spies were in Jericho, but Rahab safely hid them. It was because of her assistance she was spared when Jericho was destroyed by the army of God. Rahab, a gentile Canaanite, and her household were redeemed – included into the family of God. Rahab eventually married an Israelite named Salmon and she became the great, great, great grandmother to King David.
It is from this thought Rahab's first New Testament honor was given by God.
Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab, Boaz the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth, Obed the father of Jesse,
Isn't it interesting how the once Gentile prostitute is in the lineage of Jesus Christ? In the midst of people like Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, David, and Solomon, we find Rahab. From Rahab's womb came the lineage of Jesus Christ. Rahab was honored because she continued a godly genealogy.
RAHAB DID A WONDERFUL JOB RAISING HER CHILDREN. She raised them to be used of God. She had a son named Boaz who was a great and respected man in his city. We are told much about Boaz. He was a very blessed man and we must contribute much of his success to his mom Rahab. It was Boaz who is referred in the Bible as the kinsman redeemer. I want to tell you mothers when you allow God's redemption to work in your lives and raise your children to continue a godly lineage, God will honor you. I am so proud of our mothers. You are so diligent to raise your children correctly according to the ways of God. Your children will be great. God will redeem them and they will redeem others. They will bring Christ and his kingdom to the earth.
I DON'T WANT US TO MISS THE INCREDIBLE HONOR God paid to Rahab. It was unheard of in Matthew's day and culture when he wrote the book of Matthew to place a woman's name in a genealogy list of an important person like Jesus. However, Rahab the once prostitute was placed there. God honored Rahab highly because she allowed the redemptive work of God to work in her life and she raised her children to follow God's ways.
WE HONOR OUR MOTHERS TODAY BECAUSE YOU ARE ALLOWING THE REDEMPTIVE WORK OF GOD TO WORK IN YOUR LIVES AND BECAUSE YOU ARE RAISING YOUR CHILDREN FOR GOD.
A SECOND NEW TESTAMENT HONOR OF RAHAB IS FOUND IN THE BOOK OF HEBREWS, but it has a different emphasis. Again Rahab is mentioned among mighty men and women of God such as Noah, Sarah, Joseph, Moses, and Gideon.
By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.
The purpose of the mention in Hebrews is not because of continuing the genealogy as it was in Matthew. Rather, it's because of Rahab's faith. Hebrews chapter eleven is full of people who had tremendous faith. It wasn't they only believed in God. They believed God for great things.
A mother with faith is honored by God. I am not only talking about faith believing there is a God, but faith believing our God can, will, and desires to do great things. Rahab's faith was our God does marvelous things for his people. The gentile prostitute Rahab had more faith in God than did many of the so-called people of God. Here is what Rahab told the spies.
…"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.
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.
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.
Rahab didn't only see God as the God of a future heaven. She saw him as the God of the earth and now! So many people can believe God to go to heaven, but no believe God for great things now. Rahab believed God could and would do anything for his people. Because of this faith, Rahab was honored.
I am proud of our mothers. Some of you have such great faith. You believe God to do great things on the earth today. God is and will continue to honor you.
THERE IS A THIRD MENTION OF RAHAB in the New Testament again showing us God honoring her. However, here it is not about her raising godly children, or believing God for great things. It's about her works.
And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called God's friend.
You see that a person is justified by what he does and not by faith alone.
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?
As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is dead.
God honored Rahab in James because she took her faith and did something for the kingdom. In James chapter two, James is teaching faith without works is dead. He used Abraham who is the great patriarch. Then suddenly, he began talking about Rahab the prostitute. ISN'T IT INTERESTING RAHAB WAS AS IMPORTANT TO GOD'S PLAN AS WAS ABRAHAM? Rahab hid the spies, brought forth godly children, and believed God for great things. She worked for the kingdom.
Moms, I want to tell you how important you are to the kingdom. I get to see this more than any other person in our church. There is no way Life Gate could be Life Gate without you mothers. You not only have faith. You display your faith by your works. We have some moms who relentlessly labor for the kingdom here at Life Gate. I want you to know God is honoring and will honor you. You are so important to God and important to Life Gate. I appreciate you so much! I honor you.
Rahab gave the children of Israel a door into the Promised Land. She didn't only say she believed in God. She did the work showing she believed. GOD HONORS MOTHERS WHO LABOR IN HIS KINGDOM.
I KNOW FOR SOME OF US MOTHER'S DAY ISN'T ESPECIALLY HAPPY. Maybe you didn't have the greatest mom, but don't allow it to stop you from being a great mom. If you don't know how to be, then connect with some moms here at Life Gate. We have some great moms who will teach you. Perhaps your relationship is strained with your mom, but don't let this stop you from honoring her. She gave you birth. Look at your children and grandchildren (if applicable) and see what your mom made possible. Maybe your mom died as did my mom and you could easily be sad today. I encourage you to remember happy things making you smile. Maybe your mom is a long way away and you can't see her. Make sure you call her if possible. Honor her. Tell her thanks because she gave you life and made it possible for you to continue a godly lineage. Maybe you haven't yet been able to become a mother, as your heart desires to be. Keep trusting God. Believe God to do some great things for you. He will.
I want to tell all our mothers today God is honoring you. He honored Rahab. You are important. So many people, especially women, fight low self-esteem. In God's eyes, you are as necessary and important as was Abraham. God appreciates your work. Believe God to do great things for you, your family, and your children. God appreciates your raising your children to continue the kingdom.
It's Mother's Day. God honors mothers. So should we. Let's all give God and our mothers a big handclap.
Gospel Application
So moms, never underestimate the impact of your faith. This is true for all of us. When anyone puts their faith in the LORD Jesus Christ then they can know that will not perish. That promise rings out for us in John 3:16
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.
But saving faith does much more than just take care of things in heaven, it also effects things on earth. It doesn’t matter how dark your past may have been, God has a better future for you. A future where you leave sin and darkness behind in order to participate in building His Kingdom. And of course the first responsibility that every mother, (or father) has in building the Kingdom of God, is to lead their children in it.
It is never too late guys. You might not be able to go back and reverse the dark things in the past, but you can start from the faith you have today, and work to do everything you can to influence your children right now.
Landing
As this is a Mother’s Day message I will end with a quote from a women’s ministry writer. Author Liz Curtiss from her book “Bad girls of the Bible” reflects on the story of Rahab with this encouragement:
Take this and run with it, beloved: It isn’t who you were that matters to God. It is who you are in him. And who you are becoming by the power of his Spirit.
Take this and run with it, beloved: It isn’t who you were that matters God. It is who you are in him. And who you are becoming by the power of his Spirit. Liz Curtiss Bad Girls of the Bible blog
That is a message fit for every season of motherhood, and for all the rest of us as well.
Landing
So let me say it one last time, Happy Mother’s Day!
To honor motherhood this morning our children have potted some flowers that they would like to hand out to all the adult women in the room. Let me invite the worship team to come on up and get ready, and then kids you can come on up as soon as the next song begins and hand out your gifts.
Let’s pray.