Living by Faith

This week we will be discussing chapter 6 of Joshua which is well known for the battle of Jericho, the walls coming down, Joshua's victory and most everything but what the main point is about. Truth is it is a completion to chapter two. Yes Joshua has victory and yes Rahab is safely brought out, but what about God and what about Rahab and Joshua's faith? Seems like we overlook it pretty quickly with the focus on the physical. Remember the preincarnate Christ with sword drawn in chapter 5, encouraging Joshua that He would win the battle for Israel not any tricky military strategy. And have you ever "wondered" why the red cord isn't mentioned when Joshua sends the spies to get Rahab out? (o.k., I'll give you this one early this one time. It was the only part of the wall that did not collapse. makes it pretty easy to figure out which house was hers huh?) Chapter 6 is full of faith, but did you realize that the word faith is only found four times in the O.T. and each time is a different Hebrew word, and none are found in Joshua, let alone chapter 6? This seems to defy the rules of Bible study. Normally you look for repeated words to get an idea of what is important and I would still encourage you to do just that, but in this case if that were all we did, we may miss the point altogether. This week read through Joshua 6 and come back again for the extra points for deeper study.
Till then keep in the Word!!
PM

How strong is your faith?

It's been a while since I have posted and have many changes coming. As we get settled in we are teaching through the book of Joshua. We will begin to put extra info for deeper study on this blog from our morning worship services.
We will also have a forum for questions that you would like to see answered and common questions I get. Should be fun, so submit your questions and maybe we'll see yours here!

We are in the second chapter of Joshua and just want to make a couple of points. Rahab is mentioned three times in the N.T. and one of those times is found in the genealogy in Matthew chapter one. She meets the spies sent secretly by Joshua, although they were found out, and negotiates here safety with them when they return. She acknowledges the God of Israel and in Hebrews her faith is accounted as righteousness. Here are a few of the questions that would be well worth your additional study.

1. Is it ok to lie if it is for a good reason, like saving two spies lives?
2. We know that Rahab faced the same consequences as all Jericho, so why did God choose her?
3. When Rahab was questioned by the guards, she responded, "yes, the men came to me," which indited her to knowing these men and confirmed that the kings report was accurate and precise. Why is this significant?
4. When the spies tell Rahab to hang a scarlet cord, thread, in her window what similarities do we see from the death angel in Egypt during passover? Also the parting of the sea and the parting of the Jordan coming up in the next couple chapters. 

That should be enough for now, and I will help you out with the first one. Deceit and lying is an abomination to the Lord. there are no "qualifiers" or "exceptions" we see in scripture. (proverbs is full of supporting scripture.) We are also in the process of becoming more Christ like and in order to do that we are to take on His characteristics. According to Titus 1:2 God cannot lie and therefore we shouldn't either. Do you believe God is sovern and can control the outcome regardless of our actions? I do to and for that reason Rahabs deceit and lies are sinful. The focus and reason she is mentioned in Hebrews 11 is for her faith. Part of that reason is because there was a law code of Hammurabi that specifically addressed a harlot hiding people without reporting them to the palace. They were to be put to death. Also look at all the examples of those in scripture who have lied or deceived. We may be able to understand why someone would lie to save these two lives, but that does not make it acceptable before a Holy God who is already in control. Keep digging and you'll find out even more. In the mean time lets trust God to move us through each day and rely on Him not on our own devices.
Catch ya soon.
PM