Spies, Lies And A Harlot Saved!

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Spies, Lies And A Harlot Saved! Series

Contributed by Todd Martin on Dec 23, 2018 (message contributor)

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Scripture: Joshua 2

Summary: Part 2 of Joshua

Spies, Lies and a Harlot saved!

Welcome back to our series from the break thru book of Joshua where we learn to pursue the promises of God that He has for us. This is a new book that I’ve never preached from before but am finding it a powerful encouragement and I hope you do too! Last week was chapter 1 where we learned Moses, the legendary leader of the Exodus was dead and God’s people are to be led into the promise land by a new leader. A man who is ready for a break thru that has been 40 years in the making.

I hope this past week you asked God where you needed a break thru or who you need to help with a break thru-to get to your promise land that God has given you, as last weeks sermon title implored you, to put your foot! So where has God asked you to put your foot?

However, in chapter 2 I must tell you, that along the way to your break thru, there may be others that will need to help you and at the same time pursue God’s promises for them as well. But they may be a little strange. Not who you’d expect-but still undoubtedly a part of God’s plan, and now a part of yours too!

? While pursuing God’s promises some strange and sinful people could get saved in the process.

Now open your Bibles to Chapter 2 of this break thru book pg. 228 in your student Bibles…

2Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. "Go, look over the land," he said, "especially Jericho." So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.

2The king of Jericho was told, "Look! Some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land."

3So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: "Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land."

4But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, "Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from.

5At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, the men left. I don't know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them."

6(But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.)

7So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.

? God really can use anybody to fulfil his purposes

Do you believe that? (I struggle with this…)

Joshua is pursuing the promise with the military tactic of recon. Send in the spies, we don’t even know these spies names-they were so top secret. They infiltrate the city and go to a place we scratch our heads about-really guys?- the harlots house? Harlot means prostitute, which means someone who sells their body for sexual contact.

On one hand, it does make perfect sense. Lots of men, who probably would rather not be noticed went in and out of there. What’s done in Rahab’s house, stays in Rahab’s house. Not to mention why would anyone look for God’s people there? We have no reason to believe they went there for any other reasons but perhaps this; maybe God had prompted them to go to this house because God wanted to save someone in there. Jesus himself ministered to prostitutes as noted in the gospels (Matt.21:32, Luke 7:36)

And still today an organization called XXXchurch.org reaches out to those in the sex industry with the love of Jesus that offers freedom from the bondage they are in. It’s also an excellent resource for those who have a problem with porn-and if you have viewed porn twice in the last year you have a problem with porn. This is what these spies do for Rahab, they offer her a way out and she takes it, as we will soon see in our next section but first we need to wrestle with the other elephant in the room; namely Rahab’s big fat lies in v.4 and 5!

We all know God can’t use liars right? Really? Remember Abraham-lying about Sarah being his sister? Remember Jacob lying to Isaac to steal his brother’s blessing? Please understand I’m not here to justify anybody’s lie-rather I would simply say 2 things:

#1, God can and will use anybody-flawed as they are-to fulfil His purpose. That night his purpose was to see these men not get caught-if Rahab would not have lied I believe God would have kept them safe another way (struck the searchers with blindness, miracle them off the roof-whatever). I firmly believe her lie was not part of God’s plan but it still achieved His purpose.

#2, The fact that she lied only highlights the fact this woman needs saved!

I don’t know if you know a person who struggles with lying but I will tell you it’s harder to quit than smoking. Practiced liars will lie and not even think about it. It won’t even register as wrong b/c it’s just a part of the language. Liars often believe their lies completely even when no one else does.

Do you think in Raheb’s line of work she ever had to lie-uh I’m gonna say yes. She lived a lie as a prostitute, that selling her body was OK-it was a lie she lived with every day-are there lies you live with?

But let’s look a little closer still-prostitution really hasn’t changed much over 3,000 years-the women caught up in it are usually forced by others or believe they have no other options. Rahab was wrong to have lied, but I believe she saw no other way to be saved at least from this pending doom (as we will see) and she would do or say anything to get and keep God’s people in her life.

Again, #1 God can use anybody and #2 this woman needed saved in the worst sort of way!

So can I just apply this gently, do you believe that God can use anybody? Can you give grace to those who are messed up or who mess up but are at last now, moving toward God? Can you see the rotten life situations of people not as a hinderance but a help for them to realize they need Jesus! And that we, when given the chance, can and should help them be saved-physically and spiritually. But first we need to hear her heart-we need to hear Rahab tell the truth and does she ever-just listen!

8Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof

9and said to them, "I know that the Lord has given this land to you and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you.

10We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed.

11When we heard of it, our hearts melted and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.

12Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign

13that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and that you will save us from death."

14"Our lives for your lives!" the men assured her. "If you don't tell what we are doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land."

15So she let them down by a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part of the city wall.

? God can get to anyone and then we can bless them.

Do you believe this too?

This woman knows her Bible history! You know about the Red sea but who is Sihon and Og? These are the kings of the people east of the Jordan-at least one was a giant too (Og had a huge 13x6 foot iron bed that was put on display after he was conquered. You can look it up in Deut 3:11.

She had been a side line spectator on the west side of the Jordan river who has now found herself in the game! And she was on the losing team-but not for long. Look at v.11-this is a powerful testimony of truth from a lying lady of the night-who has now seen the light. Rahab reminds me of the sinful woman who was likely a prostitute that came to Jesus (again in Luke 7:36) and wept at his feet, then washed them with her tears and dried them with her hair-she needed him to save her and she knew he was the only one who could. And He did! That’s Jesus aka Yeshua/Joshua!

Have you ever been there? Where you are facing a situation that all you can do is throw yourself on the mercy of God and ask to be saved. The truth is, we all are there before we are saved whether we are on Rahab’s roof in Jericho or sitting in a nicely padded pew in Smithville-you need God to save you from the coming wrath!

Do you know Jesus is coming back to take over this world? That he will unstoppably storm the cities of this earth and destroy all unbelievers? But you and I just like Rahab can chose to be on His side before He comes-and be saved by a red rope we’ll talk about in just a little bit, let’s finish up…

16Now she had said to them, "Go to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there three days until they return, and then go on your way."

17The men said to her, "This oath you made us swear will not be binding on us

18unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers and all your family into your house.

19If anyone goes outside your house into the street, his blood will be on his own head; we will not be responsible. As for anyone who is in the house with you, his blood will be on our head if a hand is laid on him.

20But if you tell what we are doing, we will be released from the oath you made us swear."

21"Agreed," she replied. "Let it be as you say." So she sent them away and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window.

22When they left, they went into the hills and stayed there three days, until the pursuers had searched all along the road and returned without finding them.

23Then the two men started back. They went down out of the hills, forded the river and came to Joshua son of Nun and told him everything that had happened to them.

24They said to Joshua, "The Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands; all the people are melting in fear because of us."

? The testimony of unbelievers is a powerful witness (and profound inspiration!)

What do those people say about you?

Here is the agreement I was kind to you now be kind to me too, what will be the signal of salvation? The scarlet cord I like to call Rahab’s red rope! Why was it red? I believe again we see here foreshadowing to the NT, that this symbolically represents the blood of Jesus that saves us-just like it saved the spies and provided a way out of danger and later was a signal of salvation for Rahab’s family, so was the red blood of the Passover lamb on the doorposts of the Hebrews in Egypt that saved their first born, and for us it was the blood of Jesus that ran down the cross that saves us! Just like that dear old hymn “what can wash away my sin…”

1. What can wash away my sin?

Nothing but the blood of Jesus;

What can make me whole again?