Read Joshua 1 -- 3
In Today 's Reading:
God speaks to Joshua; spies sent to Jericho; pledge between the spies and Rahab; Israel crosses the Jordan River
Joshua was born into Egyptian slavery. While the majority were complaining and finding fault with Moses during their desert trials, Joshua became a faithful coworker with Moses.
Israel's first encounter with the Canaanites in the promised land was at the powerful walled city of Jericho. The people of Jericho had heard how the LORD dried up the waters of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to . . . the two Amorite kings . . . whom you completely destroyed (Joshua 2:10). Rahab turned from her false gods, left her life as a prostitute, and trusted in the mercy of the one true God. It was no accident that the spies came to her home to bring God's protection upon her and her family. She had said to them, I know that the LORD has given you this land. . . . for the LORD your God?He is God in heaven above and on earth below (2:9,11).
Because of her faith in the Lord, Rahab gave birth to Boaz, David's great-grandfather in the messianic line of Jesus Christ (Matthew 1:5; Luke 3:32), and she is listed in the Faith Hall of Fame (Hebrews 11:31).
Moses gave up life in the palace and possibly his right to be a Pharaoh of Egypt, and chose to suffer with the people of God rather than to enjoy the short-lived pleasure of sin. For he considered reproach for the sake of the Messiah to be greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt (11:25-26). Joshua, remained faithful to God when the majority threatened to kill him (Numbers 14:6-10). A prostitute, Rahab, forsook her sin and lived to please the Lord. Each of these three forsook the world and its pleasures and made themselves available for God to accomplish His will through them.
All of us have faced, or will face, choices similar to those of Moses, Joshua and Rahab. Let us not be like the majority, but: Let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us, and run with endurance the race that lies before us (Hebrews 12:1).
Christ Revealed:
Through the scarlet line in the window that saved Rahab and her household ? symbolic of the blood of Christ (Joshua 2:21; Hebrews 11:31; James 2:25). The blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all unrighteousness (I John 1:7).
Prayer Needs:
Government Official: Gov. John Hoeven (ND) · Country: Sudan (34 million) at the eastern end of the Sahara Desert · Major languages: Arabic and Nubian · Limited religious freedom · 74% Muslim; 15% king worship, spirit-possession cults, and ancestral spirit worship; 5% Roman Catholic; 3% Protestant · Prayer Suggestion: Pray for your adversaries (Psalms 109:4).
Optional Reading: John 4
Memory Verse for the Week: Matthew 5:14