Series: Unusual Persons in the Bible
Sermon: Rahab – The First Gentile Convert to Judaism
Bible Passage: Joshua 2:1-13; 2 Corinthians 5:17
I. Observations on Joshua 2:1-13:
1. Negative
a. Rahab was a prostitute by profession (she sold her body for money)
b. A trade of immorality and thereby she remained one of the worst kind of sinners (verse 1)
c. She was a low-living citizen of Jericho, living in the fringes (2:15 exterior wall)
d. Consequently, she probably was not easily accepted in the mainstream society
e. Rahab carries with her the stigma “prostitute” even after she was integrated in to the family of God
2. Positive (her faith is at work)
a. Rahab believed Jehovah even before the invasion of the city took place (verse 10)—The Lord has given to you this land
b. Rahab boldly confesses her faith (verse 11): “The Lord your God is God above and on earth below”
c. She acknowledges that Yahweh is the Only Supreme God and the future of Canaan was in His hands (verse 12-13)
d. Her knowledge of the truth that Yahweh is the God of the universe made her surrender completely to Him which is demonstrated in her action
e. She did not stand in the ways of Yahweh; instead, she joined the mission of God
f. Rahab shields and conceals the spies (vv. 4-6)
g. She was willing to put her life, family, and future in line because of her faith (vv. 2-3)
h. Rahab had to make a decision between the representatives of the king of Canaan and Jehovah (the King of Heaven). Her choice determined her future (vv. 2-3)
3. Result
a. Rahab’s action not only saved her, but also saved her extended family (6:17, 23)
b. She became the great grandmother of King David (Matt 1:5)—Jesus’ family tree
c. She takes a place in the list of heroes of faith (Heb 11:31)
d. For the writer of the book of James, she is a model of faith, next to Abraham (James 2:25)
4. Lessons from Rahab
a. She becomes a prototype of people who embrace the Living God from pagan faith—an example for divine grace flowing through an unworthy person
b. Rahab’s story demonstrates that one’s ugly past need not prevent having a beautiful present (Joshua 6:25) and glorious future
c. [People called Jesus “a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (Matt 11:18)]
5. 2 Corinthians 5:17
a. Jesus Christ is the divider of one’s history
b. “new creation” means “nothing from the past, a completely new order”
c. “the old” means “everything that belongs to the old order before meeting Christ”
d. Romans 6:11 “Count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus”
e. “behold, the new has come” means “a new order of living has begun” in which a believer is reconciled to God and is not judged based on a person’s past but is based on one’s relationship with Christ
Take Away
1. Confess your faith publicly and demonstrate it in your action
2. Do not judge a person based on his/her life before, but look at the person now in Christ (do not be surprised by what they have now been made in Christ)
3. Operate on your new identity
