Reading: Joshua 2
“According to your words, so be it.” Joshua 2: 21
Have you ever been thrown into a new responsibility with
almost no warning and no ‘to do’ list of guidelines? You have no idea what your
reception will be but are expecting hostility, so you approach with caution. Or
perhaps barrel on it taking a firm grip of authority.
Joshua sent two spies across the Jordan river into hostile
territory with a brief mandate, “Go, view
the land, especially Jericho.” That’s all they had. To them fell the
responsibility to gather critical information. So they took lodgings in the
house of a harlot, probably hoping to stay under the radar and unnoticed.
Instead, because she had heard, she immediately witnessed to
them her belief in God and His intent to take the land. And boldly asked for
refuge for herself, her family and their kin. “Swear to me by the Lord,” she said.
Perhaps the spies expected a possible confrontation with the
men in the city, or perhaps captivity, but did they expect a woman, a harlot, to
demand confirmation that God not only was who she believed He was, but were
these two spies were confidant enough as well to trust His words for themselves
and for this foreigner. Did they wonder if they could make that promise?
All three of them had to choose to accept whether they
believed God’s words would bring hope and life or destruction. The decision
required concrete action and not a generic maybe. And the spies gave their word
in the middle of enemy territory. And Rahab accepted with trust. “So be it.”
With so little history they all agreed with confidence
Rahab’s affirmation that. “The Lord your
God is indeed God in heaven above and on earth below.”
Lord, we have both Your spoken words and Your written words
and too often we forget to stand on Your protection in enemy territory and/or
forget to share that trust when in the midst of a conflict. Whether confronting
a misunderstanding or facing down a monumental challenge, please help us to
listen and act upon Your truth in faith.
Psalm of Worship: Psalm 122: 7-8
“Peace be within your walls, and security within your
towers.
For the sake of my relatives and friends, I will say, ‘Peace
be within you’.”
