EP3 - Rehab and the Spies

[00:00:01] Welcome to the Anywhere But Backwards podcast. My name is Soltair Ann Stevenson. I'm your host for today and I'm the creator of the podcast. And today we're going to be continuing with our study of the book of Joshua, and we're going to be looking at Joshua, chapter two, and I'm going to read the text and I'm going to pray. [00:00:21] So Joshua 2, Rahab and the spies and I'm reading from the NIV, verse 1. Then Joshua son of Nun, secretly sent two spies from Shittim. [00:00:31] Go look over the land, he said, especially Jericho. So they went and entered the house of the prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. The king of Jericho was told, look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy up the land. So the king of Jericho sent the message to Rahab. Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land. [00:00:58] But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. [00:01:03] She said, yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don't know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them. [00:01:20] Parentheses but she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flocks she had laid out on the roof. Verse 7. So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan. And as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut. Verse 8. But the spies laid down for the night. She went up to the roof and said to them, I know that the Lord has given you this land, and a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in the 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 and the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. [00:02:12] When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear. And every everyone's courage failed because of you. For the Lord your God is God in heaven above us above and on the earth below. [00:02:26] Verse 12. Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father and my mother and my brothers and my sisters and all who belong to them, and that you will save us from death. [00:02:44] 14 our lives for your lives. The men assured her, if you don't tell what we're doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land. [00:02:57] So she let them down by a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part of the city wall. She said to them, go to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there three days until they return, and then go on your way. [00:03:14] Verse 17. Now the men said to her, this oath you made us swear will not be binding us unless when we enter the land, you have tied the scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down. And unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers and all your family enter into your house, if any of you go outside your house into the streets, their blood will be on their own heads. We will not be responsible. As for those who are in the house with you, their blood will be on our head if a hand is laid on them. But if you tell what we're doing, we will. We will be released from the oath you made us swear. Agreed, she replied, let it be as you say. So she sent them away and they departed, and she tied the scarlet cord in the window. When they left, they went into the hills and stayed there for three days until the pursuers had searched all along the road and returned without finding them. [00:04:16] Then the two men started back. [00:04:19] They went down out the hills, forded the river and came to Joshua, son of nun, and told him everything that happened to them. They said to Joshua, the Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands and the people are melting in fear because of us, Father Lord God, as we read this text, Father, we pray that you will show us the message that you have for us. Father God, we pray that you will do a new thing, Father God. The Bible says you do all things new, Father Lord, I pray that you will give a new message to your people, Lord. Father God, I pray that you can use me as an instrument of your divine blessing. Father God, I pray that you can use me. [00:05:01] And you'll remove. [00:05:03] You will remove all doubt, Father God, for me you remove all of my shortcomings, Father God. Father Lord, I pray that you can just use me, Lord, to speak to your people, Father Lord, I pray out of this a deeper love is gained for the word of God. I pray that the people reading this will be enriched to such an extent that they fall in love with reading the Bible. Father God, I pray that they'll be seekers of wisdom, Father Lord God, seekers of truth, Father God, seekers of your son, Jesus Christ. I pray that their relationship with Jesus will develop and it will grow. Father Lord. Father Lord, I pray all these things and I give you thanks and I say amen. [00:05:46] So we've come to Joshua 2, and in Joshua 1 to give some context, Joshua 1 was the call. It was the call of Joshua and it was a call to him to get ready. A people that had not experienced, fully experienced at their first hand, the awe and the magnitude of the Lord of the God of Israel. He was getting these people ready. But he within himself needed to get himself ready because he was being called into a place of leadership where he had arguably learned leadership from the best place possible. He learned leadership from Moses. He was Moses aide. And then when Moses died, God called him up and made him ready to be a leader. [00:06:39] And now the Israelites are in a place where they're about to go and they're about to try and conquer arguably the hardest task. And as you can, as you've seen in the text, it keeps mentioning this place called Jericho. Jericho keeps coming up. And Jericho is almost the, if you like, the New York of the Canaanites of the land in which that they have to have to move into. Jericho is a very fortified city. Jericho represents the kind of grandeur and the beauty of these pagan Canaanite people that were in, that were occupying the land at the time that the people of God had to evict. Remember that the common theme through Joshua is God is using the Israelites as his way of bringing about justice because the stench of sin was so strong from the Canaanites. They were into child sacrifices. They would build altars, they'd bring statues. [00:07:47] They were into all kinds of idolatry that was offensive to the Lord. And the Lord couldn't have it that the people of Israel were dwelling in the same places as these people. [00:07:58] So we've now, as I said, we've now come to a place where they are just about to enter in to Jericho and they're about to evict the people of Jericho and claim this land. And as I said in my, in my previous podcast, is that what this represents, what Canaan represents is the promises of the Lord. It represents a divine inheritance. And for us, it represents the spiritual blessings that our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, when he went to the cross. It represents the blessings that he left for us and the things he has in store for us. The Bible says he knows how to. [00:08:40] He gives good gifts to us. There's a verse I'm paraphrasing here, which says, you who are evil, you know how to give good gifts to your children. What more so of your father? [00:08:52] So they're about to go into this land, but there's something. [00:08:57] There's a problem. [00:08:59] And the problem is, is there's a soul here that needs to be saved before they can go in and claim and possess the land by faith and put their foot down by faith. There's something that needs to happen. [00:09:14] And the thing that needs to happen is there's someone that needs to be saved. And we're gonna. We're gonna. We're gonna read this. So from verse one, then Joshua, son of nun, secretly sent two spies from Shittim. [00:09:28] Go look over the land. He said, especially Jericho. He said, especially Jericho. Because again, Jericho represented the height of, again, the grandeur and the beauty of the Canaanite people. And this was the. This was the first place that was on their hit list. And this, this really speaks to how sometimes God works, is sometimes God, he'll give you the promise. So he gave them the promise in chapter one, and now in chapter two, he's. He's unveiling more and more of the details. He didn't really give much of the details. As I said in the previous podcast in chapter one, he just said, the land is yours. Go in and possess it. He didn't exactly tell them how they're going to do it. He didn't exactly tell them the names of the leaders that they had to kill. He didn't exactly tell them where exactly these places would be. He just said, the land is yours, it's time to move. And Joshua had enough faith to actually go through and trust blindly on this promise. And yet for all, the first place they have to conquer is Jericho. [00:10:30] They have to. The first mission they're given is arguably the hardest mission. And this is how God is sometimes. Sometimes he'll give you a promise. And in the first place that he wants you to move into is the hardest thing. [00:10:44] If you're in that situation right now, if you're listening and you've been given a promise, and the first thing that you have to do is arguably the hardest. Fear not, but be strong and be courageous, as it says in Joshua 1. Because God is with you, because he's given you this land, and you need to exercise faith. You need to put your foot down, even though the first thing you've been given is the hardest thing. But fear not, because God has a divine plan. So the scripture says, especially Jericho. So the Israelites, they knew the magnitude of the mission that they had to do. They knew that this wasn't going to be an easy kind of task. And Joshua had to have the strength, he had to have the faith to still remain faithful to the promise that he'd been given. [00:11:33] So he says, especially Jericho. So they went and entered the house of the prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. So they've so now. But notice how, notice who God has chosen. He's chosen a lady called Rahab. Now Rahab is a prostitute. [00:11:49] Now she's a prostitute. So she is at the very lowest of the low of the social pecking order. [00:11:57] And this is very classic of God. God isn't sometimes interested in using the richest man in the land or the richest lady in the land. God isn't interested sometimes in choosing the king of the land. He's not interested in title. God, his plan and his purpose are bigger than the titles that we have invented for people within the place that we live in. God will use anyone. And here he's chosen to bring about something through a prostitute named Rahab. And we're going to really explore this lady throughout the duration of this podcast. This lady called Rahab and the faith that she was able to exercise in saving both herself, but also saving her family. So verse two goes on to say, the king of Jericho was told, look out, look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land. So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab, bring out the men who came to you, entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land. [00:13:05] So now you have to realize that this is a city that is in turmoil. [00:13:14] This is a city, this Jericho city is a city that is on high alert. [00:13:20] They know of the reputation of the people of Israel. They know a bit about them. These aren't an unknown group of people. They know who they are. They know what they're about, and they understand the gravity of the situation, and they understand this is a situation that could actually cause them their. Their total downfall. [00:13:41] And this is why the king of Jericho says to Rahab, look, I know you have these people in there and you have to bring them out. So Rahab is given a choice. [00:13:53] She's given a choice of does she give up the location of these people, or does she act in faith and hide the people? And this is what she does. [00:14:07] So verse 4. [00:14:08] But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. [00:14:12] She said, yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they came from. At Dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don't know which way they went. Go off them quickly. You may catch up with them. So what she. What she's done is she's created a diversion. [00:14:34] She's created a diversion. She said, yeah, they did come. It's very clever how she. How she dresses us up. She says, yeah, they did come to me, but I don't know where they went. Maybe if you. If you run ahead, you might be able to catch them. [00:14:49] And this, to me, even though, yes, she's. She's blatantly lying here, but it shows blind faith that she. Even though she, she. She arguably has no real reason to trust these people. Yes, she knows about their God and she knows the reputation that these people have. But yet, for all she doesn't know these people, but there's something about her that she's willing to put her life on the line and by virtue of her, she's willing to put her whole family's life online for the sake of these people, of the people that have entered her house. [00:15:26] And then the scripture goes on to say in verse 6, but she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof. So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on that road that leads to the fords of Jordan. And as soon as the pursuers had gone, the gate was shut. [00:15:49] Then verse eight, before the spies laid down for the night, she went up on the roof and said to them, I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in the country are melted in fear because of you. [00:16:09] Verse 10. 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 Sion and Og and the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, who you completely destroyed. When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone's courage failed because of you. For the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. So again, this highlights the desperation of the people of Jericho. [00:16:41] These are people who are under pressure. They are in a ticking time bomb. There are people who are on high alert. This is a city on high alert. Hence, as soon as these two spies came in, the king knew exactly what happened. It shows to me the urgency of the situation that this was a people who were on very, very high alert. This was a very, very serious time this is a very, very serious occasion that even a little spy like Rahab, they were even checking for a little spy like Rahab. It shows that. It shows the lengths that they had gone to to ensure the security of the city, that as soon as something happened, they knew exactly where it was. [00:17:29] And what's happened here is. So Rahab has sent away the spies, and she's turned to the men and said, look, I know exactly who you guys are. I know exactly where you're from. I know exactly what you've done. [00:17:42] And because of this, the people are melting in fear. And I think this is the same kind of reputation that we ought to have as Christians, that non believers and people who aren't a part of the faith are to understand that there is power, that there is power in our words, there's power in our testimonies, and there is. And most importantly, there's power in the God we serve. [00:18:10] It's my sincere prayer that us as believers, working in our workplaces that maybe aren't Christian or in our homes even, that may not even be filled totally with Christian people or wherever, whichever environment that we're in, that we are to build such a reputation that it affects the way others see us and others will know of the glory of our God. [00:18:36] That is, we aspire to be like these spies that non believers, even people who have nothing to do with the faith, people who are from a foreign land, from foreign. In our times, it would be a foreign religion that even these people recognize that there's something different about us. This is Rahab. Rahab understood that there was something different about these men. These were two ordinary men who probably tried their best to blend in and look like the people of the time because they didn't want to get spotted, because they knew if they got spotted that there would be severe consequences and I. E. They would lose their life. And they would, because they. This is a very risky move as well. From Joshua. This was a move that took great faith because he was willing to. [00:19:21] To. In a sense, it was possible that he could have given up the location of the people of Israel. But he took faith and he trusted in the word of God and on the promises of God and sent these two spies to this land is a very, very risky move. Again, this is a place that is under high scrutiny. [00:19:44] This is a place that is under high alert. These are very desperate times. They are ensuring they're doing everything in their power to make sure that there is no intruders. And the minute what happens, the minute that the intruders entered the place, they. They knew exactly where they were. This could have ended very, very badly for, for the people of Israel. But because Joshua was a man of faith, as we saw in chapter one, because he was a man of great promise and great faith, he followed through and sent these two men into a very, very dangerous situation. [00:20:17] And these two men had the faith as well to go into this dangerous situation. [00:20:22] It again shows the faith and the courage that we are supposed to have. [00:20:27] In Joshua Chapter one, it says, be strong and courageous. This is exactly what they were. They had the faith to go into a place that was under high alert, that they knew that the consequences and the risks of going into this place were high, but their faith was higher than what they knew. And I believe this is what we are called to as believers is we are called to go into the places of high risk. We are called sometimes to go into the places where we are not comfortable. This was a place of where they weren't comfortable. [00:21:02] And when and when Rahab hid them, they were probably wondering, wow, are we going to really make out this situation? But yet for all their God was able to see them through and fulfill his divine promise. The Abrahamic covenant was fulfilled and they were kept safe by virtue of the faith of Rahab. God used this lady Rahab as an insurance for the man of faith. So we have the prostitute hiding faith. We have the prostitute Rahab, the lowest of the low is hiding great faith. And this is, this is how God works, is he's using the prostitute to. [00:21:48] He's using the prostitute of Rahab to hide the men of God. This is how God works. This is how our Lord and Savior works. [00:21:57] So verse 11, when we heard it our mark, our hearts melted in fear and everyone's courage failed because of you. For the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. So she declares it with her mouth. And this is a fantastic, fantastic testament. She says, when we heard it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone's courage failed because of you. For the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth. And notice that she proclaims, she makes an allegiance here. She's changed her nature. She with her mouth confesses that their God is the real God. And this is a statement of great Faith. In verse 11, when we. I'll read again. When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone's courage failed because of you. For the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. This is a fantastic statement. It's A declaration of faith. It's a declaration that she understands that their God is the one true God. And whoever they are worshiping, whichever idols they're worshiping in Jericho, they are not the real God. They are not true. But their God, these men of Israel, they are the one true God. Verse 12. Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show us kindness. You show kindness to my family because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my. Of my father and mother, my brothers and my sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you will save us from death. Notice how she says, you will save us from death. So again, she is. She is 100% convinced that she will die, that she will die if she pledges allegiance to Jericho, to the people of Jericho. [00:23:46] She understands that she is. [00:23:50] She. She is under the same judgment as the people of Jericho if she stays where she is. She can't stay where she is. She needs to move. She needs to move out. [00:24:03] So they say, our lives for your lives. The men assured her, if you don't tell what we are doing, we'll treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land. And they understand also that they are going to inherit the land. It doesn't really matter what's happening in Jericho. They understand that they will inherit the land. [00:24:24] And if I go back to verse 12, it says, now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brother and sisters, and all those that belong to them. So she's not. Only. What she's done is she's not only bought salvation for herself, she's bought salvation for all of her family. And the text goes on to say, for any who belong to them. So she's bought salvation for a whole group of people. Just one lady's act has brought salvation for all that she knows. [00:25:10] Her act of faith, it superseded her situation. [00:25:16] Her act of faith was able to extend itself to a whole group of people. I don't know how big her family, I don't know how many brothers or sisters she had. She obviously had one mother and one father. I don't know also the company that was attributed to all of her brothers and sisters and also to those who belong to them, as the text says. But what I do understand is that she was one lady and she bought faith for more than one person. And this is sometimes what acts of faith do. You might think that you're just. [00:25:52] You might think that your words and what you're doing, your actions are just for you. But you have to understand that sometimes what you say, it has an effect that it will reach others around you, that your act of faith can. Sometimes it can impact those around you. And in her case, it was so impactful that it brought salvation for her whole family. Just one lady's act of faith. A prostitute. [00:26:24] Rahab the most unlikely person to buy in to the covenant of the people of Israel. The most unlikely, most unqualified person, the most unqualified person yet becomes the most qualified person in the whole city. [00:26:44] The most unqualified person in the whole city by, in their eyes, was, in God's eyes, the most qualified person to be saved. [00:26:54] And this is the grace and the salvation of our Lord. [00:26:59] That he doesn't see title. [00:27:01] Notice he doesn't see. He doesn't see title. He doesn't see her situation as it is now. God is God over all, and his grace extends throughout time. And just because she's a prostitute now doesn't mean that she'll always stay a prostitute. [00:27:19] Just because she's a sinner now doesn't mean that she'll always be a sinner. It reminds me of Jesus at the cross and what happened at Jesus at the cross when there was two people beside him. [00:27:37] And one of these men said, lord, Father, remember me when you go into your kingdom. Remember me when you go into your kingdom. And he did the same thing. Him saying that was a declaration of his faith. He said, remember me when you go into your kingdom. He didn't say, remember me when you die. That wouldn't have been enough because he said, your kingdom. He acknowledged the fact that this is a king who has a kingdom and at that had a heavenly kingdom. And just because of his words, he buys himself into the new covenant of faith. [00:28:16] He buys himself into the blessing that Jesus left for us, which is eternal life and a relationship with God. The Bible says, no one goes to the Father except through me. No one can know the Father except through me. So this man bought himself faith. This was the most unqualified person. This was a man on the cross who bought himself salvation. And the juxtaposition of the two people on either side of one person who humbles himself to the point where he says, yes, I am underqualified. Yes, within your eyes, Master, I am but nothing, but yet for all. Please, Father God, if you go into your kingdom, remember me. [00:28:59] Remember me Lord. And this is the same sentiment that we see in Rahab. She says, remember me. [00:29:05] She humbles herself to the point where she says, remember me. I have nothing to give you guys. I'm a prostitute. I have nothing to give you. [00:29:14] But yet I'm going to. I'm going to put my life on the line here, and I'm going to act in faith and acknowledge that you guys are representatives of the people of Israel and their God is real. And I'm going to put my life on the line here and act and walk in faith. And out of that, she brought herself into salvation. She not only brought herself, but she brought her mother, her father, and her brothers and sisters and all who belonged and were associated to them. [00:29:44] The most unqualified person is, in God's eyes, the most qualified person. [00:29:52] It's the same story that we see across time. Jesus at the cross with the man beside him who says, father, remember me when you enter your kingdom. [00:30:02] And then in Rahab we see. Rahab says to the men, remember me. When you guys smite this land, remember me and my family. Is that your heart today? The people who are listening is your heart today saying, remember me, Father, remember me when you. Father, when you go into your kingdom, Father, remember me. If I. If you can use anything, Lord, use me. Do you have a heart of surrender? Do you have a heart of. That is willing to accept the grace of Jesus Christ? [00:30:35] This is what Rahab had. She had. Her heart was in the right place. She said with her mouth, she confessed with her mouth that the God they serve is the one true and living God, which brought her into a covenant she wasn't part of. Now notice this. She wasn't part of the people of Israel. [00:30:55] She didn't fit into that bloodline. [00:30:58] But God still was able to use her. And as I said earlier in this. In this episode is that God is. He's here and he is. [00:31:10] There's something that's not quite right. This is a moment of pause. In this book, Chapter two is a moment of pause. It's a moment that God says, yes, there is a plan. And I'm about to execute this plan. But before I execute this plan, I need. There's something that needs to be done. [00:31:27] There's a soul that needs to be saved. [00:31:31] There's someone who needs to be collected. [00:31:33] There's grace here. I'm reminded of again of when we're in Genesis and when we go to the story of Lot and Abraham. I'm reminded of when I believe it's Abraham who Says, father, if there is but 70 people or something like that, he says, if there's but 70 people, will you spare those 70 people? God says, yes. [00:31:58] And then he says, if there's about 50, will you say yes? [00:32:02] Will you spare them? And he says, yes. [00:32:05] And eventually I think it gets down to, if there is but one person, will you spare the one person? And God says, yes, I will spare the one person. It's the exact same grace that has been exercised here. It's the exact same grace that God shows here where there is but one person. There is one person, Rahab, a prostitute at that. [00:32:30] And he's not willing to burn the whole city down yet because there's one person that needs to be saved. And you, you listen, you might be that one person. [00:32:39] You might be that one person that God is looking for. [00:32:45] You might be that one person who, through your actions, you're going to exercise faith and buy yourself into the new covenant. You might be that one person. [00:32:54] And God is, I think, knocking at the door of your heart and saying, come in. Yes, you can enter into the fullness of my kingdom. Just as the man at the cross who was. Who was being crucified next to Jesus said, father, when you go into your kingdom, will you remember me? [00:33:12] And he. And God remembered him. And his words were an act of submission. They were act of humility. They were an act of faith and allegiance to Jesus Christ and brought him into salvation. You listening right now? [00:33:28] Is your heart one of will you remember me? [00:33:32] So as the text goes on, our lives for your lives. The men assured her, if you don't tell what we are doing, we'll treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land. [00:33:46] So she let down. She let them down by rope through the window. For the house she lived in was part of the city wall. [00:33:55] She said to them, go to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there for three days until they return, and then go on your way. [00:34:06] Now the men, no, even before I go on to 17. [00:34:11] It's amazing the strategy of God. It's amazing the chain of events that he's putting into place. Because by virtue of the fact that Rahab has, in a sense, gave them. [00:34:25] I mean, she's literally denied her own people for the sake of the people that she doesn't even know why, because she has faith. But by virtue of this fact, they're able to almost gain more time because it says, hide there for three days, and then you can go on your merry way. They were Able to actually gain. To do their mission, which is to spy out the land. Because there's two things at play here. [00:34:50] There's a spine out the land, but there's also a soul that needs to be saved. [00:34:55] Despite the land, there's also a soul that needs to be saved. I believe these people probably didn't know that they were going to save Rahab. That probably wasn't part of the initial plan. Joshua probably didn't. He probably didn't say, yeah, you know, spider lamp. There's also going to be this. This lady called Rahab, and you got to save her. It was probably more went like this. It probably went, go inspire the land. We're going to go into Jericho. See what he's saying, go into the land. [00:35:20] But what they didn't realize is that there was a soul that needs to be saved. God knew all the time, because God had a higher purpose and had a higher plan and understanding. But what these people didn't realize is that there was a soul that needed to be saved. [00:35:35] And God is able to line up all these events to make it work in such a way that they were able to stay there for three days in safety. They went from a place of insecurity when the men were pursuing them and they had to hide. And now they've brought themselves into a place of safety, hiding for three days to really spy out, to see the land, to see the state of the land they bought themselves. Rahab brought herself into salvation. They brought themselves into a knowledge of the territory in which that they would acquire. [00:36:13] And then the Bible goes on to say, 21 agreed. She replied, let it be as you say. [00:36:23] So she sent them away and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window when they left. They went into the hills and stayed there for three days until the pursued. [00:36:34] The pursuers had searched all along the roads and returned without finding them. Then the two men started back. They went down out of the hills, forded the river and came to Joshua, son of nun, and told him everything that had happened to them. They said to Joshua, the Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands. All the people are melted in fear because of us. And again, this highlights the depravity and the extreme conditions that the Canaanite people of Jericho were under. They knew that there was a great justice that was about to be passed to them. [00:37:13] God had been. Had given them many, many an opportunity to surrender, to finally turn around and say, yes, we surrender to you, Father God. [00:37:24] And the extreme nature of this is that they knew that something was about to happen. But they had done nothing. And for century and generation and generation and generation, they had done nothing but lived in their sin. And finally, we've come to a place where they're about to be judged. [00:37:43] And the message that this is, in closing, the message that this text is one of them. One of the messages that this text is leaving for us is who do you choose? [00:37:54] Who were you choosing to be like? [00:37:57] Are you choosing to be like Rahab? [00:38:00] Or are you choosing to be like the mass that is the people of Jericho? [00:38:06] Are you willing to humble yourself and proclaim with your mouth that you are but nothing in the sight of the Lord and Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior? Or are you going to stay with the crowd? [00:38:23] Are you going to stay in a place of panic? Are you going to stay in a place of worry, of anguish, maybe of uncertainty, of fear? Or are you going to be like Rahab? Surrender and say, yes, I believe in the Lord your God, and I believe that he will take over this city. And because of this, I have the faith to say, yes, I surrender to your Lord, and will you buy yourself into salvation? [00:38:56] So this is the message that. [00:38:59] This is one of the many messages in the text is who are you choosing? [00:39:04] Are you choosing Rahab, or are you choosing Jericho? [00:39:09] Are you going to choose to stay in Jericho and to face the judgment of the Lord? [00:39:16] Or are you going to choose to listen to the knock of the door from Jesus on your heart and surrender to Jesus? [00:39:25] Who will you serve? You serve the true and living God. Will you stay in Jericho? Jericho represents today. [00:39:34] It represents the depravity and the lack of security that we have today in this world that we live in. It represents the wide road, and Rahab represents the narrow road. Rahab chooses the narrow road. And I'll also say that Rahab then becomes. [00:39:56] She then goes on to become one of the ladies of great faith in the Bible. The Bible continuously mentions Rahab and her actions. And she is described as a lady of great faith. [00:40:13] This is what Rahab brought herself into. Her legacy lived on. And Rahab, her actions were of such magnitude that she is actually related to Jesus Christ. She buys herself into the genealogy of the Lord and the Savior. She then goes on to marry, to marry a man part of the Israelites. And if you look in Matthew at the genealogy of the Lord God of Jesus Christ, you will see Rahab. This is the extent of her actions. Her actions brought her into a royal priesthood. They she is now. Her name has changed. She was originally A prostitute. But yet for all, she became related to Jesus Christ, son of the living God. [00:41:06] This was the, this was what happened out of her faith is she brought herself in to salvation, but she also brought herself into the Bible. She made the Bible a prostitute. The most unqualified, most unlikely person became an heir. Sorry, a. A ancestor of Jesus Christ. [00:41:31] And if we go to the, if we go to the, if you go to the New Testament, she's all over the New Testament. [00:41:38] If I turn to Hebrews now, so I'm reading From Hebrews, chapter 11, verse 31, the NIV version, it says by faith, the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobeyed by faith. Now notice it says by faith. And again, this is what Joshua is. Joshua highlights the importance of faith and faith as almost as a currency to achieving and inheriting the spiritual blessings that God has for you. That this, this wasn't even something that was specifically for Rahab, but because of her faith, it brought her into the same blessing and the same situation as the people of Israel. It transcend. It trans. It transcended race and culture and customs and living customs. This was a lady that was brought up, a pagan, that she was probably brought up worshiping all kinds of false gods. Again, she's the most unqualified person to inherit the same thing as the children of Israel. [00:42:48] But yet for she's given a whole chapter in the Bible and she's mentioned many a time in the Bible, and the cherry on the cake is that she is an ancestor of Jesus Christ. [00:43:00] So who are you choosing to be like? Are you choosing to be like Rahab? Are you willing to surrender and deny the world? To deny your Jericho, that is the price. Are you willing to deny your Jericho? This is another message from the text. Are you willing to deny your Jericho? Do you have enough faith to say no to your Jericho? [00:43:24] To the situation you're in right now, to the living conditions you're in, to the customs that the people around you were doing, to the idolatry that surround you? [00:43:37] Are you willing to say no to your Jericho and say yes to the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ? That's the question. That's one of the central questions in this text. Are you willing? Are you ready? [00:43:52] Are you ready to buy yourself in to eternal life and salvation and the relationship with the true and living God? [00:44:00] Rahab was ready. The other people in Jericho were not ready. [00:44:05] They'd been living in the same depravity, the same idolatry for generations upon generations. [00:44:12] And only one person, well, only one family out of that whole city was spared. [00:44:20] Only one city was spared. Sorry. Only one family was spared. Of one whole city, only one, only one person and her family were spared. [00:44:37] Father Lord, thank you for thank you for this text, Father God. Thank you for the faith, Father God, that I believe and I'm praising you in advance for that. We will gain, we will be inspired to exercise from this text, Lord. Father Lord, I pray that there'll be many Rahabs that we raised up from reading this text, Father God, I pray for Rahab's Father. I pray for people that are not, are not minding their situation, are not concerned with their name, with their title, with their job title, Father Lord, but I pray they are concerned with following you and denying their Jerichos, with denying their situations around them. [00:45:25] Far world. I pray for many, many Rahabs. I pray for a heart, a spirit of Rahab, a spirit of Rahab, a spirit that is willing to say, yes, Father Lord, I pray for humility, Father God, I pray for a humbleness that comes out of reading this text. [00:45:46] Lord, I pray that you that this will be a message, Father God, a seed that will, that will grow, that will germinate in people's hearts. And out of this, something even greater will come to fruition. Father Lord, Father Lord, bless this message, Father God. Bless this text, Father Lord. Bless us as believers, Father, in your name, we pray all these things and we say Amen. [00:46:11] Thank you for listening to the Anywhere But Backwards podcast again. My name is Sultan Stevenson. [00:46:17] It's been a pleasure to speak to you on this text. [00:46:20] This is Joshua chapter two. [00:46:23] And stay tuned for episode three where I'll be talking about Joshua chapter three. [00:46:29] I encourage you to read your Bible. I encourage you to pray. I encourage you to share the Bible message, this Bible message, the Bible specifically, with someone else as an encouragement, maybe to someone that doesn't know the Lord, the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. I encourage you to share with them. [00:46:49] Have a great rest of the day. Take care. Bye.