The Lord shows His holiness to bring us to awe as He gives us His law. Let us hear it carefully and then respond with Psalter 419, 1 and 2 of Psalter 419. And God spoke all these words saying, I am the Lord thy God, which have brought thee out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. Thou shalt have no other gods before me. Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth. Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them. For I, the Lord thy God, am a jealous God. visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me, and showing mercy unto thousands of them that love me and keep my commandments. Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless that takes his name in vain. Remember this Sabbath day to keep it holy, Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work, but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God. In it thou shalt not do any work, thou nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates. For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and resteth the seventh day. Wherefore, the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it. Honor thy father and thy mother, that thy days may be long upon the land which the Lord thy God gives thee. Thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not commit adultery, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's house, thou shalt not covet thy neighbor's wife, nor his manservant, nor his maidservant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is thy neighbor's. I would not give it away you you ♪ And pray the night away ♪ Our scripture reading this morning comes from the book of Joshua. Joshua chapter two. And I remind you that we're pursuing a series of sermons on the four women who are mentioned in the genealogy of the Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew chapter one. And this is the second of the two that we consider a woman named Rahab. So Joshua chapter two. And Joshua the son of Nun sent out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the land, even Jericho. And they went and came into a harlot or prostitute's house named Rahab, and lodged or stayed there. And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in here tonight of the children of Israel to search out the country. And the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the men that are come to thee, which are entered into thy house, for they be come to search out all the country. And the women took the two men, and hid them, and said thus, There came men unto me, but I wist not, meaning I did not know from where they were. And it came to pass, about the time of shutting of the gate, when it was dark, that the men went out. Where the men went I know not. Pursue after them quickly. for ye shall overtake them. But she had brought them up to the roof of the house and hit them with the stalks of flax which she had laid in order upon the roof. And the men pursued after them the way to Jordan unto the forts. And as soon as they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the gate. And before they were laid down, she came up unto them upon the roof. And she said unto the men, I know that the Lord has given you the land. and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land faint because of you. For 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 unto the two kings of the Amorites that were on the other side of Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom he utterly destroyed. And as soon as we had heard these things, our hearts did melt. Neither did there remain any more courage in any man because of you. For the Lord your God, he is God, in heaven above and in earth beneath. Now, therefore, I pray you, swear unto me by the Lord, since I have showed you kindness, that ye will also show kindness unto my father's house and give me a true token, meaning a pledge of faithfulness, and that ye will save alive my father and my mother and my brothers and my sisters and all that they have and deliver our lives from death. And the man answered her, Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business. And it shall be, when the Lord has given us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee. Then she let them down by a cord through the window, for her house was upon the town wall, and she dwelt upon the wall. And she said unto them, Get you to the mountain, lest the pursuers meet you, and hide yourselves there three days, until the pursuers be returned. And afterward may ye go your way. And the men said unto her, We will be blameless of this thine oath which thou hast made us swear. Behold, when we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread, probably better translated here, rope, in the window, which thou didst let us down by, and thou shalt bring thy father and thy mother and thy brothers and all thy father's household home unto thee. And it shall be that whosoever shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless. And whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall be on our head, if any hand be upon him. And if thou utter or speak of this our business, then we will be quit of thy oath, which thou hast made us to swear. And she said, According to your word, so be it. And she sent them away, and they departed. And she bound the scarlet line in the window. And they went and came unto the mountain, and stayed there three days, until the pursuers were returned. And the pursuers sought them throughout all the way, but found them not. So the two men returned, and descended from the mountain, and passed over, and came to Joshua the son of Nun, and told him all things that he fell then. And they said unto Joshua, Truly the Lord has delivered into our hands all the land, for even all the inhabitants of the country do faint because of us. Then in Matthew chapter 1 and verse 5 we read only a couple of words about Rahab. We're simply told this, "...and Salmon begets Boaz of Rahab." A couple of things by way of announcement. If you have a child in the grade 1 or 2 Sunday school class, meet briefly with Mrs. Sinke in the back of the sanctuary after the service. A couple of things by way of announcement, Tony Fanee has come home last night from the hospital, he's resting and recovering further at home. Carter Middlecoop will have surgery this week to have his appendix removed and Yap Fanree injured the muscles on his knee and will need surgery sometime this week. Let's pray. O Lord, our gracious God, who is holy, who is seated on the throne, before whom all the nations of the earth are like dust on the scales, who is great, truly great, immovable, pure, faithful, loving, kind, gracious, What a mercy that we come to a God on the throne, not one who helplessly wrings his hands and wishes he could do something about the world and its evil only to have to be helpless, but one who rules and reigns, who will judge the living and the dead. What a comfort to know that on the throne of heaven, Absolute justice always happens. We live in a world of brokenness, a world where sometimes people are praised and honored and get international reputations for themselves that they do not deserve. Where law courts are sometimes so utterly unjust to find the guilty innocent and the innocent guilty. What a mercy to know that the judge of all will do right. And yet at the same time as we say that, we remember that we too are sinners. We sang that a mighty stream of foul transgressions has prevailed from day to day. And that's the story of this past week. And if we were to be dealt with injustice too, we would have no complaints. And every mouth would be closed and every excuse would evaporate. And yet we think of what we say. The Lord who was enthroned between the cherubim, the cherubim who in the ark in the Old Testament looked down on the mercy seat where the blood of the great day of atonement, the blood representing Jesus Christ's cross was sprinkled. The Lord who sits on the throne of justice and of grace. Lord, we confess our sins. We confess that we have grieved and hurt others, that we've been selfish. short-sighted, foolish, that there is in us so much that cannot pass the inspection of thy holiness. Every single thing we've ever said, done, or thought has been mixed and stained. Lord, we confess the evil that lives in us, and we pray for cleansing and for relief. For a heart that is cleansed, we think of what we have sang. But Thou, O God, in great compassion, wilt purge or cleanse my guilt away. What a blessing to draw near to the Lord and to find a God who forgives with compassion. We pray to give thanks for the many mercies we have enjoyed this past week. We've been showered with blessings And even in the extreme cold, we've been given warmth, shelter, and safety. We give thanks for these things. We pray, giving thanks for health and strength and for joyful things that have happened this week. We rejoice with the Hausmann family, that they were blessed with another healthy daughter. Lord, bless that family. With much of the grace and spirit of Jesus Christ, their girls may grow up to be Hannah's and Esther's, women of God. Like Mary in the New Testament, we pray that Thy grace and Spirit may rest on our daughters, that they may be protected in a world of perverts, people who are eager to take advantage of others, that they may be pure, They may be steadfast. They may be faithful. That our sons may be strong men of conviction and principle and kindness and justice and truth and love and self-sacrificing servanthood. That our homes may be places where the grace and truth of God have a last say. We pray, also rejoicing that Tony van Eek can come home again, that prayers have been answered, that he's recovered from his pneumonia, that the various treatments he had in the hospital were blessed. We bring also our requests and our needs. Think of Jaap van Rey who suffered a serious injury to his muscles on his leg this past week. Lord, give him relief from the pain and we pray that he would speedily be operated on and bless him as it may take a number of months before he can drive truck again and work, grant that it may be a time of spiritual profit for him. We pray for Carter Middlecoop as he goes for surgery this coming week as well. Lord, bless him, strengthen him, guide the hands of the doctors and grant him peace. And Grant that he may discover that the Lord loves to hear and answer prayers and to comfort those in need. Help him through the pain we give thanks for many answered prayers in many ways in our lives. Often, Lord, our prayers have been answered above all that we could ask or think or anticipate, for we serve a God who loves to pour out generous measure of goodness and mercy of faithfulness and truth, even in those times when we have been most unfaithful. The Lord, our God, has been true to himself and his promises, and Lord, we would acknowledge that together as a congregation this morning and praise the Lord for his goodness. We pray for the world in which we live in all its need. Poverty, war, rumors of war, injustice, grief, pain, sorrow, death. This world that groans under the curse because of our sin. Oh, God, have mercy on the nations. And as we hear today about amazing mercy in the life of a Rahab, oh, that our hearts may be filled with anticipation and confidence that God who saved Rahab then still is the same today and still loves to take people and save them, no matter what their story may have been, no matter what kind of sin and evil has been present in their life. Lord, bring people from our neighborhoods and our people we work with and our family circles who now want nothing to do with the Lord our God. Oh, open their eyes and hearts to see how good the Lord is. Bring Rahabs into our congregation as well, that they may be redeemed and be made new and have an honored place now through the generations in the life of thy church. We pray for that person, perhaps a young person, perhaps an older one listening this morning whose life has fallen into sin of whatever kind, who thinks I'll never measure up to anything. I'll always be second class in the church and it's too late and I might as well just continue in sin. Oh, Lord, grant that such this morning may receive so much food from the Word of God. that they may become strong and pure and steadfast and faithful. We pray for all who do not know the Lord. We've all heard many things and yet not all of us have this living faith and confidence in the Lord our God and we ask O come Holy Spirit and open hearts and minds and fill our pastor for the best preparation in is not what produces an unforgettable or life-changing sermon, but it's the presence of thy Holy Spirit to animate the Word of God and to give us tender, receptive hearts that love thy truth. Lord grant that this may be such a service this morning, where the glory and grace of Jesus Christ, who is not ashamed to name Rahab as one of his mothers, may sparkle, and redemption in Christ may be set forth. We pray for people recovering in the Philippines from the disaster of the storm there. We pray, Lord, bless the material relief, but most of all, grant that the church there may, by its service, gain a hearing for the truth and grace of Christ, who saves from a storm far greater than a hurricane or a typhoon, who saves from the storm of the wrath of God. and who brings redemption and mercy. We think of the words of the psalmist, I love the Lord, the fount of life and grace, who hears my prayer, my voice, my supplication. We give thanks that we come to a God who hears and answers prayer before we ask it. In Jesus' name, Amen. After the preaching of the Word of God, we'll sing Psalter 238. 238. Beloved congregation of the Lord, the Bible is a bloodthirsty book that's violent and cruel. No civilized, decent person can take it seriously because it promotes genocide. If you're wondering, genocide is the systematic killing off of a whole tribe or nation just because they're different than you are or they're in your way. These are not my words, not my opinion. but they are parroted by most secular professors in our universities. They are repeated in our news media and they are believed by many an average person. After I moved to my second church in B.C., I met a man in the store once and we chatted for a moment and I told him I had just moved and he asked me why and I said I was a pastor of a church and he said to me and I quote, I can't stand you people. You religious people are the cause of all the troubles and wars in the world." And another average Joe citizen once told me this, every war in the history of the human race has been religiously motivated. Well, that's a thundering lie, but that's beside the point. You've heard many similar things, I'm sure. And the book of Joshua is especially singled out as the worst book in a bloodthirsty volume of sacred scripture. And people will also argue sometimes in the church that the New Testament and the Old Testament are really two different religions. In the New Testament, they say we read about peace on earth, goodwill towards men, and in the Old Testament we read about the war on earth towards men, about death and an angry God. There's much that could be said in answer to this as well. One of the best ways to answer these charges is simply listening to what Joshua chapter two has to say to us. And then you discover that although not all of our questions are answered in one chapter. There's beautiful gospel light that shines over these so-called killing fields of Canaan. This light comes simply because the events of this chapter set on display Jesus Christ in his glory and mercy. For we see Jesus Christ's grace shining in the city of Jericho, enabling us to understand God's purposes in wrath and in mercy. This is why he is not ashamed to name Rahab as one of his mothers. Let us explore the advent gospel in our text using this theme. The Lord redeems Rahab by the gift of saving faith. We see the focus of this saving faith and then the encouragement in this saving faith. The congregation, why is Joshua chapter two in your Bible? If you would leave it out, unless you knew it was there, you would never realize if something was missing. Take a look, for example, at the connection between chapter one, verse 18 and chapter three, verse one. Chapter one, verse 18 ends like this only be strong and have a good courage. And then in chapter three, verse one, we read and Joshua rose early in the morning and they moved from Shittim and came to Jordan and they passed over the Jordan. It could flow seamlessly from chapter one to three. Why do we get this seeming interruption of chapter two sandwiched in between there? Why do we hear about this rehab? Let's consider what's happening in this chapter. Joshua has been told by God to be courageous as he goes and leads Israel in battle to capture the fortified stronghold city of Jericho. Jericho was a city with strong walls right by the Jordan. In fact, it was more of a fortress than a city. It blocked entry into the land of Canaan at a vital point where the land was vulnerable to conquering armies in other parts of Canaan, the sea or the mountains guarded the land. But here in this Jericho River Valley, this strong fortress city was needed to stand guard. And now God has liberated a group of slaves. with no experience in weaponry or warfare, who have been desert nomads for some years. And he has appointed them as the tools by which he will execute judgment on the Canaanites for their wickedness. And that wickedness included sexual perversion of every kind and sacrificing of children alive in horrible rituals that are so gruesome that they're Too graphic to describe from this pulpit. These weren't nice, innocent people minding their own business. These were criminals for the law of God. They were violent, bloodthirsty people. And God is the judge of all, has the right not only to judge the nations on the great day of judgment, but to give the world foretastes and glimpses of his justice ahead of time. And in this case, God uses Israel. Now, many people during the Crusades or racist purges have tried to take these passages as God's permission for them to go and do likewise. But that is to misrepresent and twist these scriptures out of their context. It is an act of disobedience of God. God has commanded the New Testament church and even primarily the Old Testament church to conquer with the sword of the word of God and not with a physical sword. And all uses of the sword to drive out tribes or nations by those calling themselves Christians or claiming Christian motives is sin. And the same was true in the Old Testament. Israel did not have blanket permission to go and wipe out any nation they felt like fighting. They had a limited, one-time task to do so with the Canaanites because, to use the words of God in another place, The iniquity of the Amorites was now full. These Canaanites are corrupt in their sin and cursed by the living God and devoted to destruction as an act of justice. What does this have to say to us? No, we may not kill others in the name of God. But we do need to know that each of us and everyone in the world faces the judgment of God for our sins. God's justice is not sleeping. He delays in patience. He delays to give an opportunity for mercy and repentance. But he's preparing a court case for the greatest day in world history when he judges the living and the dead. And every person on earth is born corrupt. The Bible says over and over again, not just about Canaanites, but about me and about you. There is none good. No, not one. They are all gone out of the way. They have all turned aside. They have all become unprofitable, Romans 3. Every sinner in and of himself and herself is condemned by God. And all protesters of God's judgments in the Old Testament are really doing so because deep down their conscience tells them that the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all the unrighteousness of men, Romans one. And the apostle goes on there to say that knowing the judgment of God, sinners still say to each other, yeah, but we're good and there's nothing wrong with how we're living our lives. Has that ever hit home to you? Has the realization of being condemned and corrupt before God ever broken your heart, made you feel helpless and hopeless? The terror of the Lord had fallen on this city of Jericho. Do you and I, not by nature, have every reason to feel that same terrified, being besieged by an angry God? Perhaps you don't realize it, but all fear in life is the terror of the Lord until you're saved by His grace. When someone is afraid of anything slipping in your car off the road in this weather, getting hit in traffic, getting sick, that is the terror of the Lord. For fear only entered the world as God's response to sin. The sinless are not afraid. They cannot be afraid. To the unrepentant person listening, just remember this next time you're afraid of slipping on the ice outside. Whatever it is, it's the terror of the Lord. that you feel. It's a foretaste of judgment. Tremble, O Earth, at the presence of the Lord. But the miracle is this, that God loves to show grace and mercy also to such people. Israel's very existence is a testimony to this fact. For we saw last time when we considered the history of Tamar and Judah, that Israel was no different than the Canaanites. Judah was living like a Canaanite. There was no difference, but God made a difference by his grace. God made his covenant and kept his covenant by converting, by changing the sons of Jacob to know and love and serve him. And God embraced him in mercy, and he separated them and their children down through the generations to belong to him. And though many among Israel also remained unbelieving, God had his people in every generation. That is the triumph of God's grace. over our sins. But now, wonder of wonders, God extends that same mercy to a woman by the name of Rahab, one of the people living in the city of Jericho. God had already said to Joshua, not one person there was allowed to remain alive. But in light of this passage, we should add not one unbelieving, unrepentant person was to remain alive. God gave Rahab a saving knowledge of himself, saving faith, in him. How did this develop and come to light? Well, Joshua appointed two spies to go and check out the city. Why did he do that? Didn't he remember the disastrous result of sending 12 spies 40 years earlier? Was Joshua right to send spies? God himself had commanded the original sending of the 12. He doesn't do so now. And yet he also does not say that it's sin to send them now. And how many does Joshua send to children? You remember how many spies the first time brought back a good report. And so Joshua is giving a hint of what kind of report he wants to hear. And it's important that these spies go, because through them, the Lord will tell Israel something and tell us something now, even many years later. These two chosen men were given the dangerous task of entering an enemy occupied city and spies then were executed immediately. They were very careful. They tried to blend in, but they were not careful enough because the king somehow heard that two spies from Israel were in the city and Rahab also knew right away who they were, perhaps by their dress or by their accents. What did these spies see as they walked around? Humanly speaking, they saw strong, thick walls. Walls of stone so thick that you could build a whole house on top. They saw barred, heavy iron gates, armed guards. What did they see of the promise of God and the power of God? Nothing! At least not right away. And the Lord lets them take a good look around. But then since they timed their arrival to blend in with the crowds that entered the city at the end of the day, returning from their work in the fields to safety, they had to spend the night in the city. And verse one tells us that they chose to enter the home of a prostitute named Rahab. Now you may say, well, why did they enter that house? Why didn't they pick something else? Well, it was probably the local hotel. It was common practice among Canaanites to combine prostitution with running a hotel or inn, and the sick logic of it was that travelers could have all their needs and wants met in the same building. How did these men know that it was a hotel? given that they didn't have the neon signs then that we have today. Well, often a hotel slash brothel would have red cord hanging by the door or by the lamp by the door or by the windows. And today we also speak of the red light district, don't we, as the place of prostitution. Well, that's a very ancient custom. So these men came in and they were appointed a room or a section of a room to lay down in to go to sleep at night. But before they can do that, Rahab recognizes who they are. And either she realized that herself or she heard about someone scurrying off to report these two to the king. And she realizes the first place that the king will look for these two spies is in her home, the hotel. And so she quickly takes them to the top of a flat roof that was common in buildings of those days. And she's drying some thick stalks of flax to be prepared for making cloth and clothing. And so she tells those men to lay down and she covers them over with those bundles of flax so that they're invisible. And then when the soldiers come bursting into the hotel in the name of the king and demand to know where these two men were, Rahab knows that they won't believe her if she tells them they never came to her home. So she just tells them where they were here, but they left. You can be sure the soldiers searched the house and when they came to the roof, they saw nothing but the usual sight of drying flax. And Rahab told them, those men slipped out of the gate just before you came. If you hurry, you can catch them before they cross the river. And these men assumed that as a good citizen of Jericho, Rahab would never take the side of Israelite spies. Now, was Rahab right to lie? Many a heated discussion has been held about this, down through the centuries, most recently by Dutch people during the Second World War, debating the morality of lying to Nazis about hiding Jews. However, the writer of Joshua is not interested in scratching the itch of our curiosity or in priming the pumps of our speculation. Rahab is not praised for lying. She is praised for hiding the spies. Hebrews 11 mentions her like this. By faith, the harlot Rahab did not perish with those who did not believe when she received the spies with peace. She did the right thing. Whether or not she did it without sin is beside the point. And the reason we won't spend any more time on that today is because doing so would distract from the real meat and glory and focus of this passage. One commentator uses this example. He says, spending your time on Rahab's lie here is like a husband coming home from work. Your wife meets you at the door and she says, opens the fridge and says, look at the nice salad and the dessert I made for our guests tonight. And his only reaction is to run his finger over the top of the fridge and say, there's some dust up here. We're not going to do that this morning. For we need to look at the glory and grace of God in this passage, not at the dust on the people who we find here. And this is why the writer leaves us hanging when the city gates are locked. And instead of telling us first what happened to the spies or to the soldiers chasing them, we're left sitting on the edge of our chairs and we're told there's something far more important that you need to focus on. Rahab goes up to the housetop after the soldiers are gone. to talk to the hiding spies in a quiet whisper. She explains why she's doing this for them in words that are full of faith in the living God of Israel. And what can we notice from her confession of faith here? What does the Holy Spirit want to teach you and me this morning about true saving faith? Well, we need to see, first of all, the focus of this faith. That focus is God himself. Rehab whispers her confession of faith, and she says this to the spies, I know that the Lord has given you the land. She's not saying this because she's lost faith in the army of Jericho, but because she's come to realize that the God of Israel is fighting for them. How important to learn this lesson. Biblical faith is not focused on people or even on our own needs. It is Not focused, first of all, on what God can do for me or what God can rescue me from. It is focused on who God is. Believing in God to the salvation of your soul means becoming overwhelmed with standing in awe of Him. From time to time you meet people, usually young people especially, who will eagerly tell you, I've got such a strong faith. And actually, people who say that show not strong faith, but at the best, very weak and immature faith, wrongly focused faith. Believing does not mean you're impressed with yourself or your own faith. It means being impressed with a great God. What is it about Israel's God that impressed Rahab? Several things. First, we see she's impressed with the power of God. Notice verses 9 and 10. In verse 10 especially, Rahab tells them the Canaanites have heard about everything God has done for Israel. God came to a group of helpless, weak, oppressed slaves held captive by the world's superpower of that day, Egypt. And God came and redeemed them with plagues that shattered the power of Egypt. And every single plague was singling out one of the gods of Egypt for mockery by the living God of Israel. God even dried up the waters of the Red Sea so they could pass through on dry ground. And the armies of Egypt were drowned. And God enabled inexperienced peasant slaves to defeat warlike kings of the Amorites, whose armies included giants. of ten to twelve feet tall. And these giants were helpless before the Lord. Because of Israel's past, the people of Canaan were very well aware that it was not Israel's power that had won the victory. To use the words of our Psalter, Jehovah reigns supreme. Let nations tremble now, and Rahab tells the men in verse nine, that the terror of the Lord has fallen. upon the Canaanites. They are fainting with dread because they know Israel is coming to claim Canaan as their new homeland and their courage has melted away. Israel's spies had complained 40 years earlier that they felt like grasshoppers next to the giants of Canaan. But now these very same Canaanites complain that they feel like grasshoppers in the presence of Israel's God. These two men must have suddenly felt 10 feet tall themselves when they saw how God had prepared the way for Israel. to enter the land. Do you believe in the living God who has revealed himself in so many ways down through the centuries in history? Are you impressed with his power? Do you realize that the most powerful armies on earth are no match for God? To use the words of Isaiah 40, all the nations of the earth are like grasshoppers, like dust on your scale. You put a piece of dust on the scale of your bathroom children and it doesn't even weigh. But notice also that his faith comes by hearing. Rahab says in verse 9, I know. How could she say that? Because she can say in verse 10, we have heard. It's as God's wonderful works were reported on that she could say, I know because I have heard. That was the form that the word of God came to her in Jericho. Faith is impossible without hearing what the Lord has done. to receive faith and to strengthen receive faith. The work of God is of utmost importance in the Word of God. Are you reading about the works of God till you become impressed? You see, faith involves knowledge. It's not simply a matter of some warm, cozy feelings. It's not about ripping people's emotions up. It's knowledge, the kind that enables you to say, I know. There's no wishy-washy language here, no probably, no maybe, no perhaps. That sounds humble, but it's not. It's never humble to say maybe when God has said enough that you can say, I know. And someone may say, yeah, but I haven't heard what Rahab did. I haven't seen the same evidences of the power of God that Rahab did. You haven't? Can't you read in your Bible the very same thing she heard? Can you not explore the stories of what God has done down through the centuries, even up till today? God is working in the world as much today as he did in Rahab's day. God has shown his power supremely in giving his son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to be the Savior. Do you realize the power it took for Jesus Christ to live and then to go to the cross, that he had to set his face like a flint in order to face Jerusalem? Do you think having eternal hell squeezed into three hours on a cross was easy? An endless eternity in hell would be hard enough for anyone to take. How much more the hell that all the people of God saved down through the millennia deserve compressed into three hours? It took an act of almighty power from God for Jesus Christ to endure the wrath of God that you and I deserve. You have every reason to be impressed with the power of God, and every conversion is an act of God's power. But the second thing we learn about saving faith is that Rahab focuses on the glory of God, the glory of God. That's the point of verse 11, especially the last sentence. Because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in heaven above and in earth beneath. Rahab, born and raised in a culture with temples and gods on every street corner is saying that Israel's God is the only real God. Unlike these Canaanite idols who supposedly divided up their territory so that one was the God of the seas and one of the hills and another of the valleys and another of the sky, she's saying Israel's God is God everywhere. He is the only God. What a confession to make. You know what the surprising thing is? This is exactly what Israel was supposed to conclude as they watched God drive the peoples out of the land before them. Notice Deuteronomy chapter 4, verse 39, the farewell sermon of Moses. Moses reminds the people here before his death of all the mighty acts of power and redeeming love that God has shown to bring them out of bondage, to liberate them into the freedom of life with him. And all the things that Rahab mentions are reported there and other things Rahab didn't even know about yet. And notice in Deuteronomy 4.39, the conclusion they're supposed to come to. Know therefore this day and consider it in thy heart that the Lord, he is God. In heaven above and upon the earth beneath, there is none else. And Rahab has come to this conclusion too, not because she had read the book of Deuteronomy, but because she looked at the evidence she had heard and came to the conclusion, only one who really is God can do these things. Sea, dry land, wherever. Why did she come to this conclusion? because she knew that the gods of Canaan were helpless. None of them had ever done such things. No one in Jericho could tell about Baal or Ashtoreth parting the sea and raining down plagues. No other group of inexperienced slaves and nomads had ever toppled fortified cities in the land of Canaan before. The glory of Israel's God is that there is no one like him. He is one of a kind. He alone deserves the name God. And if she came to that conclusion, how much more should you and I? For God has shown you His glory supremely in His Son. No other religion on earth teaches this, that God sent His own Son to die for sinners. In all other religions, you either have to make up for your sins on your own, pay for your own sins somehow, or told your sins can be removed by good karma and better performance tomorrow. And it is only biblical Christianity, with its focus on the cross, that can speak of the glory of a God who saves. But the third thing to notice about this focus of Rahab's faith is that she speaks of the mercy of God. Notice verse 12. She makes application for refugee status in Israel. I pray you, she says, swear unto me by the Lord, since I have showed you kindness, that you will also show kindness unto my father's house and give me a true token or something. That word kindness here is really covenant, loving kindness and mercy. She's asking to share the same loving kindness that Israel shares in from her God. How did she know there was such a thing as mercy from God? Didn't she tremble along with everyone else in Jericho at the power and glory of Israel's God? She wasn't sure if it was for her or not, but she did know this. I want to belong to them and to their God. That's why she says to them, you swear to me in the name of your God. She uses the name Lord, that covenant name of Israel's God. She says, I hid your spies. And I helped them escape because my heart has been one by the glory of the God of Israel. There's so much she doesn't know yet, but she does know this. I want to belong to him and to his people. And the spies don't shrug their shoulders. And they don't say to her, well, God's mercy is not for a sinner like you. And they don't say, well, maybe if you go through the right experiences for five years, maybe you can start using the word maybe. And they don't say, well, who do you think you are? Why do you think you're welcome among us? That happens sometimes, doesn't it? People are attracted to the people of God and the God of the people only to find a cold shoulder and stares because of their sinful past. Have you ever looked down your nose at someone else because of their sin, giving them the impression that God himself would not receive such people? The spies do not do this. The Lord gives them the right words for the moment. They swear to her. And they give her the sign she was requesting, and she is to take that strong scarlet rope. And as she grabbed it to let them out of the window, because her wall was built on the city walls, the spies have an idea. Now, why this red rope? Remember the red light district she works in? The spies say to her, when we come to capture the city, make sure that this rope is tied in the window and at the entrances to the house. And then our armies will know when they come which home. despair. Why a red rope? Well, in the first place, it's in a sense a confession of guilt. The badge of her trade is hung out of the window for all to see. And according to the customs of those days, that scarlet rope is an advertisement for Rahab's work. But more importantly, it became a sign of God's mercy. Why a red cord? Do you remember the significance I've read to the Israelites' children? Remember the angel of death coming through Egypt to destroy all firstborn sons, Israelite people at risk too. They too were sinners deserving God's judgment, but God had them kill a lamb and sprinkle that red blood on the doorposts of their houses. And now the angel of death is going to stalk the streets of Jericho in the form of armed Israelite warriors. There is one house marked out by red. Rahab shares in the mercy that God has already shown to His covenant people. And as she later learned the histories of Israel, of the Passover with its red by the doorway, it had to have struck her in God's providence that she too was saved by wrath through the blood of the sacrifice. And with New Testament eyes, does this not remind you that the shed blood of Jesus Christ cleanses from all and any sin and is not the red wine of the Lord's Supper meant to point back to the very same thing that this red cord pointed to? Yes, congregation, there is mercy for the greatest of sinners. Even Canaanites can be saved. By the blood of Jesus Christ, there is no sinner who can say, I've done too much, I've gone too far, it's too late for me. As long as you live in the day of grace, you can be saved just like Rahab was. And if you put your trust in the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, His red blood will mark you on the day of judgment and you will be passed over and you will receive the very kindness and mercy that He has loved to show to His people. What a trophy of mercy Rahab became. We see this later in the New Testament. Rahab is mentioned not only in Hebrews chapter 11, but also in James chapter 2. Do you know who she's put side by side there with? Abraham. James is teaching the churches there what true faith is like. And he mentions two people as illustrations, Abraham and Rahab. Imagine it. Abraham, the friend of God, the father of Israel, so honored by all the later generations, and Rahab the prostitute. Do you see what God is saying here? It's not what you've done that matters, but confidence in him and in his mercy. Rahab wasn't sure when she asked if there was mercy for her or not, but we can say with New Testament reassurance. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever should believe in him will not perish, but have everlasting life. One last thing that true saving faith involves before we move to our second point. It's not just what you think, but it's what you do. If faith becomes visible in your actions, that's the whole point of James 2, isn't it? Rahab showed she believed by what she did. She hit the spot. She risked her life. She said, I'm all in for Israel's God. My whole life is at his service. Isn't that always the case? It's not those who say I believe with their lips who have saving faith, but it's those whose actions demonstrate what they believe. It's easy to say, I believe. But it's hard to counterfeit living, I believe. Faith without works is dead, James 2 tells us. You always do what you do because of what you believe. You either believe the truth and honor God, or you believe the lie and sin. What about your faith? Is it dead or alive? Where did she find the courage to risk her life for God's people? Remember what she said? She was impressed with the power of God. She was impressed with the glory of God as the one true living God. She longed for the mercy of God, and she entrusted herself to this God to take care of her. And she acted on what she now believed that this glorious God would also take care of her. And it's this wonderful gift of saving faith to Rahab that was recorded so thoroughly in your Bible, because it is a wonderful message to the Church of God down through the centuries in all times and places, an encouraging message. And that's our last point. Here we need to notice that God himself took great care that Rahab's name and story would be recorded in the Bible, in Joshua, in Matthew, in James and in Hebrews. Why so many times? First of all, as a witness to Israel. Israel has heard the message of God's justice, grace and truth so often. Moses spelled it out for them in Deuteronomy. But it's not an Israelite who makes this confession. It's a Canaanite, and down through the centuries the pattern would develop. Name of the Syrian leper is healed rather than an Israelite. Elijah stays with and blesses the home of a Canaanite during God's judgment of Israel, and her boy was raised from the dead. Jesus Christ would later on in his own ministry say this rebuked the unbelief of Israel. He would say of a Roman centurion, I have not found such faith in Israel. And he would say to a Canaanite woman, O woman, great is thy faith. You know what the danger is for most of us as gospel hardened people? That the glory and the wonder of the gospel no longer pierces through the calluses of familiarity. And that's why God saves Rahab's and Naaman's to rebuke and yet also to help us. I remember one young man in my first congregation who was saved out of the world, no church background at all. Every church needs those. It's great. And he said with grief and enthusiasm to me once, you people have the best news in the world, he said. Everyone has to know this. And this young man read all of Calvin's Institutes, all 2,000 pages in a month. Because he said to me, well, everyone here has read it, right? And I said to him, why don't you go ask everyone? God uses stories like that to stir us gospel-saturated people up at the glory and wonder of his redemption. There's another reason why the Church of Christ needs such witness. It's a lesson every generation must learn. We are a people set apart by God, not because we are more worthy and not because we are more deserving and not because we are better than the big bad world out there that is somehow unworthy of us. No, because God and mercy has made a difference between people who are equally children of his wrath. and yet equally candidates for God's saving mercy. Abraham was set apart so that all the nations of the world would be blessed in him and in his greatest son, Jesus Christ. But it's also a witness to the church not to receive blatant sinners who repent as second-class members, but to embrace them warmly and wholeheartedly. You see, Rahab did not become a nun She was not quarantined from the people of God and kept at a distance. She is mentioned side by side with Abraham in the great hall of faith in Hebrews 11, alongside Moses, Noah, Abel, and Jacob. She married a prince of the tribe of Israel. She became a mother in Israel, ultimately one of the mothers of Jesus Christ himself. There is no such thing as second best at the foot of the cross. Yes, a cursed Canaanite was given every blessing of the Gospel. But then since we are all by nature under the curse of God, your salvation, child of God, is no less amazing. It's amazing grace. Every time. Perhaps there's someone listening. And you've heard the stress on sexual purity. And maybe as a young person or maybe a little older, you've fallen into sin in this regard. And now you keep telling yourself the lie. that you might as well keep doing it because it's too late now anyway. And you'll always be second best. And you'll never have much of a story to tell and never have a stable home or a happy marriage. Don't tell yourself that. It's not true. There is redemption in God to cleanse from every and any sin. And you too can become, with the blessing of God, stable, purified, redeemed, and have a family life to tell down through the generations. That is amazing. This story is also a witness to the Church to be free and promiscuous with the Gospel. The most unlikely people, humanly speaking, are targets of God's saving work through His Holy Spirit. Don't look at someone and say, he's a hopeless cause and she's a loser. God's work bypasses all human prejudice and all human sin and all human need to save the most unlikely and unexpected people. Be promiscuous with the gospel. That's a good use of that word. And watch and hope to see what God will do and whom he will redeem. But then this wonderful conversion story is a witness to the world that always grumbles about the judgment of God and slanders the judgments of God. Why? Because deep down we sinners want God to be our servant rather than us wanting to be his. And he's good if he stays out of our way, makes our personal happiness his highest goal, doesn't tell us what to do, and allows us to do our own thing. But if he declares right from wrong, and if he enforces it, and if he's the judge, then somehow he's vicious and bloodthirsty and the terrorist in chief. And right here in the book most often grumbled at in the world. is found a chapter that cannot be missed. The heart of what God was doing in giving the land of Canaan to Israel. God delights in mercy. And every Canaanite who willingly repented and believed the same gospel God gave to Israel was embraced. This was not genocide. This was righteous judgment and sovereign mercy. The Canaanites who died died because of their sinful unbelief and their rebellious refusal to repent. All the Canaanites have the same set of facts and information as Rahab did, but they refused and rejected the message in this. The world today also grumbles and acts like when a church talks about sin, it's somehow engaged in spiritual abuse. And yet the gospel of God's grace and mercy in Jesus Christ is promiscuously to be proclaimed to a grumbling world. But it falls on deaf ears too often that God still gives such amazing opportunities, for repentance and faith is amazing grace. That God receives all who believe in Him, even those with the worst of records, shows His kindness. And that God judges those who refuse Him, shows his righteousness. And in every way, God is clear from the slander that sinners speak against him. But then lastly, the conversion of Rahab was a tremendous encouragement to Israel about the faithfulness of God. God knew what happened the first time 10 spies came back with a bad report. God knew Joshua needed fresh courage. He had said to him in chapter one, be strong and of good courage. And now God gives Joshua powerful proof that he is with Israel. Rahab's testimony of trembling Canaanites emboldens Israelites. Rahab's confession of faith in Israel's God is a triumph of mercy in the seemingly most unlikely of places. God said to Joshua and Israel, be of good courage. And now God gives what he demands through this testimony of Rahab. God is like this. He requires much. But he also gives all that he requires. He asks the impossible, humanly speaking, but by his grace, he makes the impossible possible. He turns the fearful and uncertain hearts of his children into courageous boldness to do all that he requires. People of God, behold your God faithful, remembering we are dust. And the gift of Jesus Christ is simply God's generous provision. to give us what we need to obey Him and the gift of the Holy Spirit is the same. Who would not want to serve, love, believe in and praise such a God?