Joshua instructed them, “Scout out the land on the other side of the Jordan River, especially around Jericho.” So the two men set out and came to the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there that night.
Joshua 2:1
If I’m guessing correctly, this might be the first time you have noticed in scripture that God values a “Scout.” I find humorous that God compares “Scouts” with “Spies.” However, as a professional baseball scout that’s a topic for a another time.God sent these two men to “scout out the land” that He had given them, and God used a known “prostitute.” Yes - a known prostitute in the city of Jericho named Rahab to hide them, protect them, house them, feed them and help them accomplish what they were sent there to do by God. Did you catch that? Don’t simply brush over it. God used a woman who many in our culture today would shame, ridicule, judge, and deem worthless. Now, before we judge these two “scouts” and a known “prostitute,” allow me to ask you the following questions.
- If it meant your life, would you have stayed in a “brothel” owned by a known prostitute had you been one of the spies?
- Would you have trusted this woman, Rahab, to protect you from harm, danger and even death?
- Would you have trusted Rahab when she called your God the “supreme God of heaven and earth?”
- When Rahab spelled out your plan of escape, would you have followed it?
- When Rahab hid you upstairs in a secret dwelling place from those hunting you down, would you have trusted her and gone along with the plan of escape without any resistance?
Here is the reality. We live in a culture and society today that doesn’t extend grace and mercy. If anything, it heaps condemnation. It’s all around us every day and Rahab was no different. In that city, she was a known prostitute, a harlot, a “woman of the night,” if you will. However, something happened in the heart of Rahab concerning the God of heaven. Read it for yourself in the Old and New Testaments:“I know the Lord has given you this land,” she told them.” “For the Lord your God is the supreme God of the heavens above and the earth below.”Joshua 2:9, 11“Rahab was shown to be right with God by her actions when she hid the two spies and sent them safely away by a different road.”James 2:25Listen very closely! If you trace the lineage of Rahab, she is included in the family tree of Jesus. (Matthew 1:5) We are not told when or how—but Rahab was a changed woman, and she had become a servant of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.Here is the take away. I’m not sure what moral failures, hideous sins, shameful acts or sinful lifestyles that were once a part of your past. However, the blood of Jesus Christ, and God’s amazing grace and mercy has covered you, forgiven you, redeemed you and set you free—just as He did for Rahab. He is writing your story, and your past is part of your story until the day God takes you home to be with Him. Don’t run from it. Don’t hide from it. Don’t be embarrassed by it. Rather, embrace it! He will take your greatest “mess” and turn it into your greatest “message” — if you’ll submit to Him. If God can use a donkey and a prostitute to accomplish His will, He can certainly use you.Pause and thank God today for His amazing Grace and Mercy in your life, and allow Him to use you to impact the lives of others to accomplish His will, just as He did with Rahab.Be the “Scout” God has called you to be.Be Worth Being,KevinSUBSCRIBE TO "OVER THE HUMP" DEVOTIONALKevin Burrell has worked in professional baseball as both a player and MLB scout for the past 40 years, and currently serves as an area scouting supervisor. Kevin was drafted in the 1st round of the 1981 free agent amateur draft (25th selection overall), and played ten years of professional baseball with four different organizations. He and his wife, Valerie, live in Sharpsburg, Ga.
Imagine that you could sit down and pick the brains of some of the top leaders in the country! That's the premise behind the Linch with a Leader podcast. Learn how these leaders - all among the best in their respective field - have risen to the top, while continuing to grow spiritually and chase after the Lord.
