57 of 365 - Rahab

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. Joshua 2:1
 
Forty years separate the span of time between the initial spies scoping out the promised land and this moment. This time when the Israelites send in spies to assess the situation, they meet Rahab, a prostitute and citizen of Jericho. She lives in the city wall…and what a wall it is! Jericho, the initial land God tells them to conquer and take possession of, is a fortress with a mighty wall and iron gates.
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Rahab fears this God of the Israelites she has heard rumors about, and at the risk of her own life, she hides the spies to help them succeed. She doesn’t have all the answers, but she believes this God is better.

She is rewarded for her faith and loyalty. The spies tell her to tie a scarlet cord from her window, and when they return to invade and destroy the city, anyone in her house will be spared from death.

The scarlet cord in her window was a sign of her faith. Like the lamb’s blood over the Israelites homes in Egypt when the angel of death passed over them and ultimately allowed them to be freed from their slavery, the blood-red cord hanging from Rahab’s window will save her and her family from the destruction that was to come to all of the homes in Jericho.

It is a glimpse into God’s plan to bring all people to Himself if they put their faith in His plan.

In the not too distant future, it will be the scarlet red blood of Jesus that saves us all.

Oh, and by the way…Rahab – the prostitute and non-Israelite who stepped out in faith and chose God over her cultural surroundings– is not only saved, but she will become part of the genealogy of Jesus!

Questions: How hard is it to believe in truth when everyone around you believes otherwise? Do you generally seek truth out, even if it is dangerous, or go with the flow of the world around you?