Title Rahab's Faith (Hebrews 11:30-31)
Contents Rahab is a prostitute living in Jericho, but she was saved from the destruction of Jericho through faith. In Joshua chapter 2, Rahab's actions are recorded. Rahab later became an important figure in the history of Israel's founding. He begot Boaz, Boaz fathered Obed through Ruth, Obed fathered Jesse, and Jesse fathered King David.
1. She believed in the one and only God, Jehovah. Rahab was a Gentile and believed in the true God, Jehovah. Rahab knew that Moses believed in the Lord and dried up the Red Sea and destroyed the two kings of the Amorites across the Jordan, Sihon and Og. Thus, Rahab was saved because she believed in the one and only God, the Great Sovereign. Babylon was destroyed because it believed in the golden god, Japan was defeated because it believed in the gods of heaven and earth, and Germany was defeated because it was super-recognizing Hitler. But Rahab was saved because she trusted God.
2. It is a faith that puts love into action. In Luke 10, “The Lord says, do not imitate the faith of the Jewish high priest, but do not imitate the practice of the Samaritan. Also in 1 Peter 4:8, “… … Love covers a multitude of sins.” Rahab had Joshua’s two spies go up to the roof and hid it. It was through this act of love that he was saved. Noah's two sons, Shem and Japheth, were blessed by covering their father's nakedness, while Ham was cursed for criticizing them. By practicing love, Rahab not only made the two spies live, but she and her entire family survived.
3. It is the faith of obedience. As a symbol of the blood, the red line tied to the window of Rahab's house is a symbol of the blood of Christ. Hebrews 9:22 says, “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” Romans 3:25 says, “God set Jesus up as a sacrifice for atonement, and people believed in his blood.” Christ accepted the curse of God that we cannot escape from on the cross (Genesis 3:13). The ram for Isaac on Mount Moriah and the Passover lamb are both shadows of the blood of Jesus Christ. Like the famous writer Tolsto, we must not only have an ethical faith in the teachings of Jesus and do not have faith in the atonement, but accept Jesus as our Savior and the Savior of mankind's atonement. Paul was moved by the grace of the cross and exclaimed, "There is nothing to boast about except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ." This belief was what Rahab had.