Thought from today’s Bible reading from Joshua 1-4.
When Joshua sent spies to Jericho, they received help from an unlikely ally – a harlot named Rahab. Despite her past, she would prove to be a valuable and faithful friend to God and the Israelites.
But why did she help the spies? It was because of the things she knew about God and His aid for the Israelites.
“Now before they lay down, she came up to them on the roof, and said to the men, ‘I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land have melted away before you. For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. When we heard it, our hearts melted and no courage remained in any man any longer because of you; for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath’” (Joshua 2:8-11).
Rahab is listed among the great characters of faith (Hebrews 11:31). She knew that the Lord was God of heaven and earth. She knew that God had powerfully demonstrated that He was with the Israelites every step of the way. She knew that God would lead the Israelites to victory.
The interesting thing about Rahab and her faith is that she had seen nothing. She had only heard these things. But she accepted the testimony about God such that it led her to have this great faith.
We must have this same type of faith today. The apostles were Christ’s witnesses and proclaimed His message throughout the world (Acts 1:8; Colossians 1:23). We have their testimony today. Though we may not be able to say we have seen for ourselves all the great things which Christ has done, we know these things are true because we believe the testimony of the witnesses that has been preserved for us today.
If we wish to have faith today, we do not need to wait to see some great miracle; we simply need to look to the word of God, for it is what leads to faith in us (Romans 10:17).
Tomorrow’s reading: Joshua 5-8
[I’m using the Chronological reading plan on the Bible Gateway website if you’d like to follow along, too.]
Daily Notes & Observations contains all 365 articles from this series and is available in paperback from Gospel Armory.
I always thought it was interesting and encouraging that Rahab had heard about God and believed – but never thought to compare it like this. Thank you! :)
Thanks, April. Glad you found it helpful.