Read Joshua 2
Synopsis
In preparation for the conquest, Joshua sent his spies to check out Jericho. Spying was a warfare tactic and moreover, Jericho was very well fortified city. Making this decision must have been difficult for him as his own experience showed that there could be negative reports, just like 39 years ago. But this time, God was in total control as Joshua was in total obedience.
God directed the spies to the house of Rahab, who was a prostitute. Being a prostitute, no one would be too bothered by who went into her house. It was God's perfect plan. In addition, her house was built along the city wall, which eventually made the spies' escape much easier.
Why did God chose a prostitute to be part of His plan? Why was she eventually counted as God's faithful and thus her family was spared of the massacre? Let's see....
Major verses
V4-5 : Rahab lied to protect the spies. Isn't lying a sin that God cannot tolerate? Why then was she commended as God's faithful? In fact, in Heb 11:31, only her good deads were proclaimed and nothing was said about her lying. Bible scholars have offered several explanations;
1) God forgave her because of her faith in the God of the Israelite (she was not a Jew and yet she believed - see v8-11).
2) She was simply deceiving the enemy - this was and still is an accepted practice/tactic in war.
3) Since Rahab was not a Jew, the commandments did not apply to her.
4) Rahab broke a lesser law to keep and uphold a greater cause (ie. protecting God's people).
What I learnt - When Christians are faced with dilemmas and under pressure of the moment, a choice must be made. Many times, there are no perfect solution to the problem at hand. And we may then make the wrong choice. Not that we should disregard God's laws, but let us thank God that He does not demand our perfect judgement in all situation, especially with those difficult ones. He only requires that we simply put our faith in Him. After that, we only need to do our best and let Him do the rest. Rahab did just that and thus her sins were forgiven and her life and that of her family's were spared. Glory to God!
V8-21 : It was amazing that Rahab was prepared to risk her life to save the Jewish spy. She heard about the greatness of the God of the Jews and all that were demonstrated. She recognised and acknowledged that He was not an ordinary "god", but the Almighty and that was enough for her to put her life in the hands of the spies. The spies eventually kept their word to spare Rahab and her household when they destroy Jericho. They became the sole survivors of that city.
What I learnt - God's desire was to destroy all the anti-God pagans in Jericho. Not one was to be let off alive as they represented the deepest of all sins. They had to be destroyed so that they will not "contaminate" the Promised Land. Yet God allowed a prostitute and her family to be saved. That only points to the greatness of our God. He did not judge people by their outward appearances or even by what they were doing at the point in life or their past. He only looks at the heart of people. Rahab may be a sinful prostitute, but she had a heart after God. This is central to God's character and will again be manifested during Jesus' time.
V22-24 - The spies eventually reported positively to Joshua and he reaffirmed that God had indeed given the land to Israel.
What I learnt - We must build our confidence in the Lord always. And we must also help build our brothers' confidence in the Lord by proclaiming His promises.
Summary
God searches the heart of the people. He does not demand that we react perfectly in all situation. We may fall short of His standard of righteousness, but He forgives and keeps those whose heart are close to Him.
By proclaiming the promises of God, we will build our confidence in Him. In the same way, we must proclaim God's promises to those around us, those whom we lead so that they will also have confidence in God.
Next up ....
Chapter 3 tells us of God's continuing miracles upon the Israel. The new generation had heard about the parting of the Red Sea, but they are going to experience it themselves as they cross River Jordon. Watch out for it....11 Dec
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