Be Brave

Rahab. She’s a real outlier. How can a prostitute be in Jesus’ genealogy (Matthew 1) and be listed as a hero in the “Hall of Faith” (Hebrews 11)? Why do you think the Israelites would include her story in Scripture? Rahab was not an Israelite, but she had heard of God and chose to align with Him and His people at risk to her own life. She acted courageously when she decided to take the spies up to the roof and hide them Her bold choice saved her family and gave her a better future. Isaiah reports that God’s ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55). God uses the insignificant, the small, the rejected, the marginalized, the forgotten, the lost, the overlooked and the despised for His kingdom purposes. If God can use Rahab, no one can be discounted in God’s plan. Redemption can happen to anyone, no matter his or her background.

Why was Rahab included? She had faith in God and the courage to act on it. James 2:24-25 insists that faith has a witness. Faith is not simply an internal belief; it is something we do. Faith and action are bound together. Rahab believed. Rahab acted. Rahab was brave.