Tuesday May 21
God’s Divine Providence
Joshua 2:1-7
1 Now Joshua the son of Nun sent out two men from Acacia Grove to spy secretly, saying, "Go, view the land, especially Jericho." So they went, and came to the house of a harlot named Rahab, and lodged there.
2 And it was told the king of Jericho, saying, "Behold, men have come here tonight from the children of Israel to search out the country."
3 So the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, "Bring out the men who have come to you, who have entered your house, for they have come to search out all the country."
4 Then the woman took the two men and hid them. So she said, "Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from.
5 And it happened as the gate was being shut, when it was dark, that the men went out. Where the men went I do not know; pursue them quickly, for you may overtake them."
6 (But she had brought them up to the roof and hidden them with the stalks of flax, which she had laid in order on the roof.)
7 Then the men pursued them by the road to the Jordan, to the fords. And as soon as those who pursued them had gone out, they shut the gate.
The story of Rahab the harlot ought to be a great source of encouragement to many of us who have so many regrets in our past. We participated in activities and have done things that we really would not like for anyone to know and that we would like to forget. The devil then convinces us that we are so bad that God would never forgive us and if He did, there is still no way that He would ever use us to in any capacity in His kingdom work. Well, Rahab’s story should prove the devil wrong and give you hope to be greatly use of God for whatever He might call you to do!
I love the words of the Apostle Paul that he wrote to the members of the Corinthian Church who were saved out of a very corrupt and evil culture. “For consider your calling, brothers: not many of you were wise according to worldly standards, not many were powerful, not many were of noble birth. But God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption, so that, as it is written, “Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.” (1 Corinthians 1:26-31)
God called Abraham who was an idol worshipper and chose him to become the father of the Hebrew nation, Israel, who would give us the Bible and the Messiah, Jesus Christ to save us from our sins. God chose Ruth, a Moabitess Gentile pagan to become the wife of Boaz and to be in the line of Christ. God called David from following smelly sheep to lead His nation, Israel.
God was already at work in the wicked city of Jericho speaking to a prostitute’s heart about her only hope of salvation before the spies ever showed up. Despite her past, when Rahab hears about the God of Israel and His great wonders that He did for Israel in delivering them from Egypt and the miracle of the crossing of the Red Sea, she chose to trust Him by faith! Both Hebrews 11:31 and James 2:25 indicate that Rahab had put her faith in Jehovah God before the spies ever arrived in Jericho. Like the people in Thessalonica, she had "turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God" (1 Thess. 1:9).
What also really amazes me about the story of Rahab is seeing God’s providence at work. God sees Rahab’s heart and knows that she will have a courageous faith and divinely directs the two spies to her house of all the places in the City of Jericho. How did the two spies make their way through the city without being immediately recognized as strangers? How did they meet Rahab? We certainly have to believe in the providence of God as we watch this drama taking place. Rahab was the only person in Jericho who trusted the God of Israel, and God brought the spies to her.
Rahab took her life in her hands when she welcomed the spies and hid them, but that in itself was evidence of her faith in the Lord. True saving faith can't be hidden for long. Since these two men represented God's people, she was not afraid to assist them in their cause. Had the king discovered her deception, he would have slain her as a traitor.
It might be that God has a divine appointment for you today with someone who is just waiting to hear about God’s love, mercy, and grace!
God bless!
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