Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: Hide and Seek (08/07/08)
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TITLE: Courage to Blessing | Previous Challenge Entry
By Esther Phillips
08/14/08 -
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The world has always had people who did things that caused us to shake our heads. When you read the Bible, you will find a multitude of stories of depravity.
One such story is about Rahab. You remember that Joshua took over leading the Israelites after Moses died. Joshua sent two men into the Promised Land to act as spies. These two men entered a house of a prostitute and spent the night there. The king of Jericho heard of this and sent orders to her to send the two men out.
Now we are familiar with spying, but on this occasion, Rahab gathered her courage and defied the King. This is in Joshua 2:4 “But the woman took the two men and hid them. Then she said, ‘True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they came from. And when it was time to close the gate at dark the men went out. Where the men went I do not know. Pursue them quickly, for you can overtake them.’”
You will find Rahab mentioned in the New Testament in Matthew 1:5-6 (NSRV). This is what it says “and Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of King David.” Skipping on down to verse 16, it says “and Jacob the father of Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom Jesus was born, who is called the Messiah.”
Now, we may think that Rahab was just a courageous woman, and certainly she was. She also had a motive to hide the men that was stronger than a motive to turn them over to the King’s men. Joshua 2:10 she says, “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 that were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed.” Now, we hear the real confession she delivered, (vs. 11) “As soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no courage left in any of us because of you.”
She tells them no courage was left in any of them, and yet, she did a very courageous act by defying the King.
She asks the men to deal kindly with her family and to give her a sign that they will all be delivered from death. Picking up in vs. 14, “The men said to her, ‘Our life for yours! If you do not tell this business of ours, then we will deal kindly and faithfully with you when the Lord gives us the land.’”
Certainly they all kept their word because our blessed Lord Jesus came out of the lineage that included Rahab. She found for herself and her family the ultimate gift.
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