God sometimes teaches us about faith from the most unlikely sources. Four women are mentioned in the genealogy of Jesus: Tamar, Ruth, Bathsheba, and Rahab. Of the four, Rahab alone is then inducted into “Hebrews-Hall of Faith”.  Surprisingly, Joshua who was Israel’s leader at the time is not mentioned in Hebrews 11, but Rahab is! Now I don’t think it was to demean Joshua, but rather to esteem Rahab and teach us a great lesson about faith. Who would have thought!

“By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days. By faith Rahab the harlot did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace” (Heb. 11:30-31).

As you recall, Joshua took over for Moses as commander in chief and were about to enter Israel. That meant crossing the Jordan River and taking the city of Jericho. It was a city known for its immoral lifestyle and where the people worshipped Baal (a fertility god) and his wife, Asherah. Joshua sent two spies to investigate Jericho and evaluate its strength. They went to the house of a prostitute, Rahab and stayed there. However, the king of Jericho finds out and the Bible says:

“It was told the king of Jericho, saying, ‘Behold, men from the sons of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.’ And the king of Jericho sent word 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 land.’ But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them, and she said, ‘Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. It came about when it was time to shut the gate at dark that the men went out; I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them.’ But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them in the stalks of flax which she had laid in order on the roof. So the men pursued them on the road to the Jordan to the fords; and as soon as those who were pursuing them had gone out, they shut the gate” (Josh. 2:2-7). Keep in mind, the Bible is not condoning her untruthfulness, but rather reporting the events as it happened.

This reminds me of Alex who became a Christian when I was in Hilo. He came from a crass background and when we prayed in a group gathering for the first time, his prayer was sprinkled with expletives to emphasize his joy in the Lord! It’s not to say that God endorses all kinds of behavior, but that He will start right where we’re at.

So God initiated a change of heart in Rahab and she realized that her way of life (even though commonplace) in her culture was not right. How did she know that? “…He has also set eternity in their heart.” (Ecc. 3:11) In other words, He gives us an understanding that tugs on our conscience because He wants so much to pour into our hearts all He has intended for our lives. So He chose Rahab the harlot to be included as one of the heroes of legendary faith. She realizes that the God of Israel was the one true God, so she was willing to place her life on the line by hiding those spies.

Rahab took action because she recognized the God of Israel was the TRUE God. He was real to her and it influenced her decisions and actions. Thus, forgiveness began to seep into her heart. Therefore, we can say that…

1.     FORGIVENESS BEGINS WHEN WE COME TO THE CONCLUSION OF WHO GOD REALLY IS.

“…’I know that the LORD has given you the land, and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land have melted away before you. For we have heard how the LORD dried up the water of the Red Sea ... When we heard it, our hearts melted and no courage remained in any man any longer because of you; for the LORD your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath’” (Josh 2:9-11).

Rahab came to the conclusion of who God really was and was willing to risk everything in order to change her life. That meant giving up her home and moving to live among people of a different culture. 

The same is true for us. There will come a point in our lives when the Lord will instigate a need in us to make a change. And if we refuse to change, we risk falling deeper into sin to a point of no return eating away our future and furthering the damage already done in our lives. However, when God stirs a faith deep within, we know it’s time to let go of that destructive path we’ve been on and take hold of the forgiveness He offers.  That’s why Rahab’s example of faith encourages us to…

2.     MAKE A COVENANT TO IDENTIFY WITH GOD.

Essentially, Rahab said she wanted to leave her old life in Jericho and identify with the God of Israel. So the spies made a deal with her: her life and that of her household would be spared if she did not reveal them to the king’s men and helped them leave Jericho. There was one stipulation though. In order to identify her allegiance on the day Joshua and his men returned to takeover the city, Rahab had to hang the scarlet cord (used by the men to escape) outside her window and she and her household needed to remain in the house. This was her response: “She said, ‘According to your words, so be it.’ So she sent them away... and she tied the scarlet cord in the window” (Josh. 2:21). Sure enough, when the city of Jericho was destroyed, Rahab and her household were spared. It’s reminiscent of the Passover – a time when the Israelites were instructed to place the blood of the lamb on their doorposts and the Angel of Death passed over those homes marked with the blood. So just as they were directed to stay under the covering of that covenant, they offered that same covenant to Rahab. The New Testament says: “…you were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life … but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ” (1Pet. 1:18-19).

Rahab was offered forgiveness and drastically changed her life. Like Rahab, we too must get serious and do something with what God is offering us. Suppose you were dangling off from a cliff and someone throws you a rope. Would you grab hold of it and pull yourself up or just admire it? Of course you would grab hold of it and pull yourself to safety. In the same way, when God gives us a second chance, we must get serious and make those changes…

·       REGARDLESS OF THE COST!

Rahab’s decision to follow the Lord was costly; however, she gained a new life, “They burned the city with fire, and all that was in it … However, Rahab the harlot and her father’s household and all she had, Joshua spared; and she has lived in the midst of Israel to this day...” (Josh. 6:24-25).

The fact is our Lord offers us forgiveness in the midst of difficulty. It involves our willingness and sincerity to change. Forgiveness is not given just to make us feel better and ease our conscience. Rahab took forgiveness seriously and teaches an important lesson about faith. Forgiveness is not complete until it gets us out of where we are and into where we should be.

We are forgiven by God over and over, but many times, we don’t embrace that opportunity to change. For many, we need to leave the place where we’re dangling on the edge and grab a hold of the rope of forgiveness our Lord offers us. Remember forgiveness is not an excuse to stay in a bad situation and feel better about it. It’s a way to…

3.     TAKE YOUR PLACE IN GOD’S PLAN AND MOVE FORWARD.

“In the same way, was not Rahab the harlot also justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so also faith without works is dead” (Jas. 2:25-26). 

Rahab’s example shows us how she took hold of her faith and leveraged it to get to a better place. Rahab got it! Sure we may have a horrible background, but God can issue forgiveness even in the midst of our worst nightmares. The point is that forgiveness is not for the other person, it’s really for us. We need to give forgiveness in order to unleash from things that hinders us from moving forward to where God wants us to be. Whether it is anger, resentment, or bitterness, it prevents God from pouring all that He desires into our lives. 

“Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:21). The devil loves it when we hide our sins and don’t deal with evil because when it’s hidden, he can torture us. However, God is saying we must take action; otherwise, we’ll remain in the same situation and feel better or more religious about it, but we won’t be free. 

Let me close with a story about a mother whose daughter Christina lived in Brazil. One day she discovered her daughter left for the city of Rio De Janeiro. So she quickly gathered her resources to begin a search for her daughter knowing her daughter would probably resort to anything as a means of support and that pride would keep her from returning home.

On the way to the bus stop, she stopped by a photo booth printing out as many photos of herself as she could and posted these signs everywhere. However, after four days, she ran out of money and reluctantly returned home. Meanwhile, Christina found herself caught in a life of abuse being used by others in an effort to make some money.

One night though, she saw a picture of her mother with a message printed on the back that read: “It doesn’t matter what you have done. I will always love you. Please come back home… Your Mother.”

God, our Father offers us that same message. It doesn’t matter where we’ve been or what we’ve done. He loves us and He grants us forgiveness freely. He’s hard on sin because He knows the devastating consequences of sin on our future. God knows that without forgiveness, we don’t have a chance.

So how do we change what we need to change? When we finally realize who God really is, forgiveness begins and we need to grab hold of it. The next step is for us to make a covenant like Rahab did with Joshua’s men to identify with God no matter what the cost. Then we can take our place in God’s plan and move forward. The precious gift of forgiveness is like a rope we need to hang onto where He can lift us up from where we are to where we need to be. There’s no greater gift.

“Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab, Boaz was the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of David, the king.” (Matt. 1:5-6) God used Rahab, a woman of questionable lifestyle to teach us a valuable lesson of faith. He can use us as well. What is He stirring in your heart?

Discussion Questions:

1. Think about the lives of Tamar, Ruth, Bathsheba, and Rahab. How do you feel about their inclusion in the genealogy of Jesus? What does this say about who God chooses to use?
2. What does it mean to be serious about forgiveness?
3. How did Rahab know that her lifestyle was wrong? Why did she come to the conclusion/realization that the God of Israel was the one TRUE God?
4. When you’re dangling off the edge of a cliff, and someone throws you a rope, what do you do with it? Have you ever sung about the rope or just looked at it? How do you move beyond, the “I’m sorry’s” to real change?
5. Read James 2:45-46. Reflect on your relationship with the Lord and with others. Is there something God is asking you to do?
6. What most impacted you about today’s lesson and how will you apply it to your life this week?

Thank you very much to volunteer sermon notes writer, Kristi Murai whose faith is reflected by her willingness to answer His call to serve with dedication and love. Mahalo!