Well, we're gonna do things the
old way today. We're gonna have to look in our Bibles at these
verses. Sometimes we don't do that, but
today we are. There's a Bible in your pew there,
if you didn't bring one, but turn with me, if you will, to
the book of Joshua. As those of you who are here
most of the time, you know I'm preaching a series through this
book. So we're in chapter two now. And I'm going to cover most
of this chapter today, Lord willing. Joshua chapter 2. The title of
this message is God Prepares His People for Deliverance. We're not going to be zeroing
in on the deliverance itself. We're going to cover that in
chapter 6, the deliverance of Rahab. Rahab the harlot from
the city of Jericho. Today, I want to talk to you
about God preparing her for that deliverance, because that's what
this chapter is all about. We have two main characters here.
We have two spies from Israel, and we have Rahab. That's the
main characters in this whole chapter. So look with the, well,
let me talk about the deliverance here. The deliverance of God's
people, their deliverance in Christ. their deliverance by
his imputed righteousness alone. That deliverance is set. It was
set in eternity. It was set when God made him
the surety of that people. That deliverance is set, and
Christ came and obtained it by his death on the cross. It's
fixed. It can't be altered. It came about exactly as God
had ordained it. The final glory of every sinner
God has chosen in Christ is redeemed. That's certain. It can't fail
to come about. But before final glory comes,
God will prepare every sinner that he is predestined to that
glory. He will, without fail, prepare his chosen elect people
in time in their appointed generation. And today we're gonna answer
one question. Who has God prepared for deliverance? And we'll answer
it under three points. He's prepared those who receive
his messengers with peace. He's prepared those who renounce
their former safety. He's prepared those who rest
in God's provision. That's who God's prepared. We're
going to answer that question throughout this chapter. The
setting for our lesson today is Jericho, as I said. Israel
is about to begin their conquest of Canaan, the promised land,
that land that had already been given to them way back to Abraham,
years before this. But they're about to take possession
of it. And Jericho is the first city standing in the way of their
conquest there. So we're going to look here at
our first seven verses, and I'll just make a few comments as we
go down through here. Look with me here in Joshua chapter
2, starting in verse 1. And Joshua the son of Nun sent
out of Shittim two men to spy secretly, saying, Go view the
land, even Jericho. And they went and came into an
harlot's house, named Rahab, and lodged there. And it was
told the king of Jericho, saying, Behold, there came men in hither
tonight of the children of Israel to search out the country, and
the king of Jericho sent unto Rahab, saying, Bring forth the
men that are come to thee, which are entered into thine house,
for they be come to search out all the country. It says here
that Joshua sent two spies to Jericho. Now we don't know who
these men were. There's speculation they could
be Caleb or Phinehas or some outstanding citizens of the nation
Israel. We don't know. God doesn't reveal
it and so let's just leave it there. He sent two men. That's
all we need to know. They came to the house of Rahab.
Rahab is listed here as a harlot. That's also an innkeeper. I mean,
she may or may not have been what a harlot is in our view,
but she was an innkeeper. So these men would naturally
come to a lady like Rahab. She provided lodging for men
from out of Jericho who would be visiting or something. And
the king of Jericho learned of their presence here, and they
learned that she had come to Rahab's house, and he commanded
Rahab to deliver them into his hand. That's what we saw in those
verses. Look on with me to Joshua 2, verses 4, 4 and 5. He said,
and the woman, that's Rahab, took the two men and hid them
and said thus, there came men unto me, she's talking to these
two men, these men that the king sent, there came men unto me,
but I wist not or knew not whence they were. And it came to pass
about the time of the shutting of the gate, when it was dark,
that the men went out. Whither the men went, I know
not. Pursue after them quickly, for
you shall overtake them." Now, Rahab is not exactly truthful
here about her knowledge of these men. She said she don't know
who they were. She certainly knew they were
from Israel, and she certainly knew where they were. She had
hid them on a roof. So she's not exactly honest here,
is she? She's told a little lie there.
But rather than expose these men, Rahab, she encouraged those
sent by the king to go on a wild goose chase looking for them.
She said, they went that way. If you'll hurry, you can catch
them before they get back to Israel. Look on with me. I'm going to talk a little more
here, but let's go on through these first seven verses. Look
at Joshua 2 and verse 6 now. But she had brought them up to
the roof of the house and hid them with the stalks of the flax,
which she had laid in order upon the roof. And the men pursued
after them the way to Jordan unto the fords. And as soon as
they which pursued after them were gone out, they shut the
gate. Joshua sent these two men to spy out the land. Now that
was Joshua's intention here. The men he sent did that. When
they returned to the camp of Israel, they were able to report
that the heart of these people, it waxed faint, it melted. They
were afraid for their lives because they had heard what Israel had
done to, well, they heard how he dried up the Red Sea for these
people, and they heard how these two powerful kings, Sion and
Og, were just utterly destroyed by this nation. So they were
shaking in their boots, so to speak. They were afraid, afraid
for their lives. Joshua sent these men to that
inn. He wanted to find out what the
attitude of these people were. But it's obvious from the context
of Joshua 2 that God had a very different reason for sending
these two spies to Jericho. As I've already told you, this
message is about God preparing His people for deliverance. We're
answering this question, who has God prepared And the first
point of this message is this, God has prepared for deliverance
those who receive his messengers with peace. In this chapter of
scripture, we have some facts. Jericho is the first city that
Israel will come to in its conquest of Canaan. That makes Jericho
the first obstacle standing in the way of the children of Israel
actually taking possession of that land that they've already
been given. So, what does that mean? That means Jericho is doomed
for destruction. Very soon, back in about three
days to be exact, very soon this city is not just gonna be destroyed,
it's going to be utterly destroyed. There won't be a stone left on
top of a stone. There won't be a person left
alive. They're gonna kill man, woman, child, beast, everything
that breathes is gonna be destroyed here. But living in this city
is one of God's elect people. Her name is Rahab. She's the
harlot of Jericho. And although Jericho is doomed
for utter destruction, Rahab is not to be a part of that destruction.
She's going to be delivered from that destruction. Rahab has been
predestined for deliverance. And God sent these two men here
to prepare Rahab for that deliverance. That's why he sent them. Joshua
sent them to spy out the land. God sent them to prepare Rahab
for deliverance. In this point, we see God preparing
Rahab for deliverance from the impending doom of Jericho's destruction.
And the first way he prepared her was by giving her true faith.
The king of Jericho wanted Rahab to deliver the spies into his
hand. No doubt he meant to kill them, put them to death. But
by faith, Rahab received them instead. By faith, Rahab stood
with these men and the God who sent them. She took sides with
these men and against those who would harm them. The writer of
Hebrews tells us that what Rahab did was an act of true faith.
You don't have to take my word that this was an act of faith.
We have recorded, inspired testimony that she acted in faith here.
Listen to Hebrews chapter 11 and verse 31. Now this is a hall
of fame of faith. They've been talking about Abel,
they've been talking about Abraham, they've been talking about Sarah,
David, many others. But Hebrews 11 and verse 31 says,
By faith Rahab perished not with them that believed not, when
she had received the spies with peace. By faith. In Rahab's mind,
she had already come out from among her people. She had already
separated herself from their thinking. She had already taken
sides with these men of Israel and with the God of Israel. Spiritually,
Rahab had already done what Paul commands all believers to do
in 2 Corinthians. Listen to 2 Corinthians 6, 14
through 16 here. He said, unequally yoked together with
unbelievers? For what fellowship hath righteousness
with unrighteousness? And what communion hath light
with darkness? And what concord hath Christ
with Belial? Or what part hath he that believeth
with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple
of God with idols? or you are the temple of the
living God, as God has said, I will dwell in them and walk
in them and will be their God and they shall be my people.
And here's what I want us to understand from this context
in verse 2 Corinthians 6, 17. He said, wherefore, come out
from among them and be separate, saith the Lord, and touch not
the unclean thing, and I will receive you and will be a father
unto you, and you shall be my sons and daughters, saith the
Lord Almighty. Now in Rahab's mind, she had
done that. She had separated herself from
her people. She was no longer working with the king of Jericho.
Now these men who came to do harm to these spies, she had
already in her mind moved by faith to hide these spies and
conceal them. Although Rahab still lived in
Jericho, her faith was in the God of Israel. God had chosen
her to be a vessel of his sovereign mercy, and he had given her true
faith. We saw that from the book of Hebrews. Like I said, you
don't have to take my word for it. There's no verse in Scripture
that says he gave Mark Peniel faith, but there's a verse in
Scripture that says that Rahab moved by faith. She gave her
faith. We know that from God's testimony. And having given her
true faith, it says, and believing, she perished not with them that
believed not. Think with me for a moment here, how impossible
it would have been for Rahab to be delivered here without
God's intervention. What could Rahab have done? She
couldn't move a hand. What could she do to deliver
herself from the impending doom of this city? She couldn't do
anything. Joshua didn't even know Rahab lived in this city.
And these two men he sent, they didn't know that she was one
of God's elect, destined to be delivered from the destruction
of Jericho, and certainly from final destruction. And if they
had, they wouldn't have known what to do. Rahab is without
ability or hope from delivering herself from a destruction that
is imminent here. Rahab is a picture of what God
does with each of His elect in each successive generation. What
could you and I have done? We didn't even know which way
to turn. We didn't even know which way
to go to get to the true and living God. We were perfectly
content worshiping the God of our imagination. But Rahab's
a picture of what God does for his elect and each successive
generation. He prepares them for deliverance from the utter
destruction of this world, as well as the eternal destruction
that will fall on those left unprepared. In themselves, the
elect are without help and without hope, but God is their hope.
Listen to what Paul said to the Ephesians here in Ephesians 2
in verse 11 and 12. He said, wherefore remember that
you being in time past Gentiles in the flesh who are called uncircumcision
by that which is called the circumcision in the flesh made by hands, that
at that time you were without Christ, being aliens from the
commonwealth of Israel and strangers from the covenants of promise,
having no hope and without God in the world. And that's how
we look to ourselves, to the world, but Not to God, never
to God. Rahab is a Gentile woman living
in a city bound for utter destruction without any apparent means of
deliverance. But God, God prepared her. God sent her these men to show
her the way, the way to be delivered. And how does God prepare his
elect? He prepares them by sending them messengers of his gospel
of peace. He sends them ambassadors to
declare his free and sovereign grace in Christ, that God has
chosen a multitude, that Christ has redeemed that multitude by
his obedience unto death, that the final glory of that multitude
is certain because of the work of Christ alone. He prepares
each of his elect in each generation for deliverance. And the first
way he prepares them is by giving them faith, faith in Him, faith
in Christ. Next, who has God prepared for
deliverance? He's prepared those who renounce their former safety.
Having diverted those that were sent from the king of Jericho,
Rahab confronts these two men of Israel. She's hidden them
on the roof. She goes up to talk to them.
She wants to find out some things and to learn some things of them.
Look at Joshua 2 in verse 8. And before the two spies were
laid down, Rahab came up unto them upon the roof, and she said
unto the men, I know that the Lord hath given you the land,
and that your terror is fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants
of the land faint because of you. For we 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 unto the two kings of the Amorites
that were on the other side of Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you
utterly destroyed. The inheritance of Jericho were
not unaware of Israel's presence in the world. They knew about
Israel. They had heard about Israel.
God had promised that the inhabitants of this entire land would fear,
that is, be afraid of Israel. And Rahab is just describing
that fear here. Listen to what Moses wrote in
Deuteronomy 11, 25. There shall no man be able to
stand before you, for the Lord your God shall lay the fear of
you and the dread of you upon all the land that you shall tread
upon, as he has said unto you." So they weren't unaware of that,
and they were afraid. By God's design, the inhabitants
of Jericho are afraid of Israel. They have heard what God has
done to those who stand in their way of them possessing the land
that they had been given. And they naturally fear for their
own safety. That's a legal fear. That's fear
of wrath. But Rahab displays a different
kind of fear. She displays a reverence for
the God of Israel. Look at Joshua 2.11 now. And Rahab carries on with her
conversation with these men, and she says, As soon as we had
heard these things, our hearts did melt. Neither did there remain
any more courage in any man because of you. For the Lord your God,
He is God in heaven above and in earth beneath. Rahab declares the God of Israel,
not the God she once worshipped, not the God who would be the
God over Jericho, but the God of Israel, the God she'd heard
about, and obviously had heard about His eternal deliverance
for those that are in Christ. I don't know where she heard
that from, from God himself, but I know she'd heard it because
he'd given her faith. Having declared Israel's God
to be God, Rahab pleads for his mercy. She sees what God has
done for those that he delights in, those who found favor in
his sight. So she acts as one whose only
hope is to be found in the favor or under the mercy of that God. She acts as one who understands
that if she would be delivered from the impending doom of her
city, it will be because the God of Israel has determined
to show her mercy, and for no other reason. That's the only
reason any sinner ever finds their deliverance, is because
God determined to show us mercy. Look at Joshua 2 in verse 12. Rahab is still talking to these
two men, and she says, Rahab is not demanding here. You see, her tone is pleading.
I pray you, she said. I beg you. And she's not just
seeking the help of these men. She's invoking the help of their
God. Swearing to me by the Lord. That's the Lord Jehovah. That's
the way it reads in the scriptures. Rahab demonstrates the attitude
of one who is no longer looking for safety in those things she
once looked to for safety. She had a God in her mind before
she knew Israel's God. But she's obviously forsaken
that God, or the God of Israel, the true and living God. She
lived in a walled city, one that she obviously found safety in
up to now. One that had provided her safety,
but she's no longer looking for safety in Jericho. Rahab is demonstrating the attitude
here of a repentant sinner. She's renouncing what she once
found her assurance and comfort in. And in that, in doing that,
renouncing what she once found assurance and comfort in, she's
proving her faith to be genuine. It's not just words. It's not
just agreement. It's true faith. Having given
Rahab faith, God then gave her an opportunity to demonstrate
or to prove that faith to be of God. He sent these two men
to her. He sent them to Rahab. They came
to Jericho, but it's obvious that God has sent these men to
one of His elect. It's obvious that God has sent
these men to prepare Rahab for deliverance from the impending
doom of Jericho. In Hebrews, as we already looked,
we saw that Rahab moved by faith. And James, in his little epistle,
tells us that her faith, her movement, her actions proved
that her faith was genuine. Listen to James chapter 225.
Now he's just got through talking here about Abraham's faith being
proved by his works. And he's also talking about Rahab
in the same context. He said, likewise, also was not
Rahab the harlot justified by works, that her faith was proved
to be genuine by the works which she performed. Was she not justified
by works when she had received the messengers that had sent
them out another way? Rahab didn't just say that her
hope was in the God of Israel. Her actions proved that her hope
was in the God of Israel. God prepared Rahab for deliverance. He showed her what he does for
those in whom he delights. He showed her what he did to
the Red Sea. He showed her what he did to the kings who stood
in the way of Israel's possession of the Promised Land. He brought
her to see that her only hope was to be found an object of
his sovereign mercy. Rahab renounced what she once
sought safety in. She sought mercy from the true
and living God. She pleaded with these men. spare
me, spare my family, and invoke their God to do so. And that's
where God brings each of his elect in each generation. Every
unregenerate sinner is seeking favor and acceptance with God
in a lot of different things, in our confession, in our profession
of faith, in our religious zeal, somewhere other than in the imputed
righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ. And every regenerate
sinner, that is every sinner that the Spirit of God visits
in regeneration and gives them life and faith and repentance,
every regenerate sinner admits to that. Every regenerate sinner
renounces what they once had confidence in. Every regenerate
sinner repents of what they once had confidence in. Every regenerate
sinner seeks all acceptance and favor of God in the imputed righteousness
of Christ alone. Paul expressed this attitude
of every Regenerant sinner in a very familiar passage, Philippians
3 and verse 7. He said, but what things were
gained to me, those things that I was counting on for acceptance
before God showed me Christ and what he had done for his people
in working out that righteousness by which I'm just in God's sight.
He said, those things that were gained to me, those I counted
lost for Christ. Every Regenerant sinner admits
that I once thought what was That what I once thought was
gaining me God's favor, that was just presumption in the light
of the righteousness that Christ worked out and God imputes to
his elect. Who has God prepared for deliverance?
Those who receive his messengers with peace and those who renounce
their former safety. He's prepared those who have
repented of all that they once looked to in the light of the
doing and dying of Christ alone. Now, the last point of the message.
Who has God prepared for deliverance? He's prepared those who rest
in his provision. The two spies respond to Rahab's
plea for mercy here. Look at Joshua 2.14. And the
man answered her, our life for yours if you utter not this our
business. And it shall be when the Lord
hath given us the land that we will deal kindly and truly with
thee. Not if the Lord gives us the
land, when he does. And we'll deal with you as you've
dealt with us. We'll deal with you in kindness. And Rahab provides more proof,
more evidence that her allegiance is with these men of Israel and
their God. She gives more evidence that
she has renounced her former king and former God. Look at
Joshua 2.15 with me. It says in Rahab, then Rahab
let them down by a cord through the window. Her house was upon
the town wall and she built, she had dwelt upon the wall.
Apparently this was a tall wall. It was taller than a man could
just jump out the window of. They had to be let down to safety. And that's what she did. She
let these men down to safety, proving again that she had given
up her allegiance to her king, because she's letting these men
go. The king wanted them delivered into his hand, but she's letting
them go. And then in verse 16, and she said unto these men,
Get you to the mountain unless the pursuers meet you and hide
yourself there three days until the pursuers be returned. And
afterward, may you go your way." In other words, she explained
to them the way to stay safe, to be safe. The pursuers went
toward the ford. She said, you go to the mountain,
you stay there three days till they come back and you'll be
safe. So she's helping them, continuing
to help these men. Now these two spies have promised
safety for Rahab and her family, and they've sworn by the Lord
to do that, to show her kindness when they overtake this land.
But Rahab is not without accountability in this matter. They give her
some accountability. Look at Joshua 2, 17. It says,
and the men said unto her, we will be blameless of this thine
oath which thou hast made us swear. The spies gave Rahab here, they
gave her some accountability. They gave her three stipulations
she must meet if she and her family are to be safe when they
come in and destroy this city. Now I want you to understand
these stipulations are not conditions that Rahab has to meet in order
to be safe. their evidence is that she's
looking to the God of Israel. If she does these things, it's
proof that she's looking to their God, the God of Israel, for deliverance
and not safety in Jericho. Now, we'll see two of these stipulations
that they gave her here in verses 18 and 19. Look at Joshua 2.18. The man said, and behold, when
we come into the land, thou shalt bind this line of scarlet thread
in the window which thou didst let us down by, and thou shalt
bring thy father and thy mother and thy brethren and all thy
father's household home unto thee. And it shall be that whosoever
shall go out of the doors of thy house into the street, his
blood shall be upon his head, and we will be guiltless. And
whosoever shall be with thee in the house, his blood shall
be on our head, if any hand be upon him. The first stipulation
she was given, bind this scarlet thread, this cord, this rope.
She let them down by this rope. They said, bind this rope in
your window. And then the second stipulation
was gather your family into your house. They got to be in your
house. If they go out of your house
and get killed, we're not responsible. We're guiltless. If they get
killed while in your house, that'll be on us. That'll be our guilt.
The scarlet thread mentioned in verse 18 was probably a rope,
as I said, plaited together. It had to be strong enough to
support the weight of these men when she let them down. Back
in verse 12 of our text, Rahab asked these two men for a true
token. She said, give me a true token. She wanted something to verify
the promise and the oath that they had sworn to her. Give me
something, she said. I want to know this is going
to happen. That same scarlet thread that had brought them
to safety would be the same one that would keep her safe when
Jericho was overthrown. That's the true token they gave
her. That thread would be the common bond between these men
of Israel, between Rahab and the Lord they both served. The
scarlet thread, of course, is typical of Christ. It's typical
of his blood and righteousness as the common bond binding all
of his elect together. We're all brought to Christ in
time in our successive generation. There's but one place of safety,
and that's in the doing and dying of Christ alone. It's like the
ark was in Noah's day. There was one place of safety
when God sent a flood upon this earth. That place of safety was
the ark. That's a picture of Christ. It's
like the, it's like the, the blood on the lintel and doorpost
when God sent his wrath upon Egypt. That last plague that
he brought out on Egypt was to kill the firstborn in every household. But none of Israel's firstborn
were killed. Why? Because they had the blood
on the doorpost and on the lintel. God had prepared them for deliverance.
When Israel came into Jericho, there would be one place of safety,
just one. It would be the house marked
by the scarlet thread. They'd be around this wall of
Jericho. There would be one obvious place
to Israel that's not to be bothered, not to be touched, not to be
harmed. The one that had that scarlet thread running out the
window. Rahab was responsible to gather
all of her family into that place. Every other place, every other
person in Jericho would be utterly destroyed. There's one means
of safety, one means of deliverance from eternal destruction. That
means it's the righteousness that Christ worked out by his
obedience unto death. It's that righteousness freely
imputed by God to the account of the sinner. That's the only
place of safety there is in this world from the eternal wrath
of God. There's one more stipulation
given to Rahab and we see that in verse 20. Look at Joshua 2
in verse 20 with me. These spies said, and if thou
utter this our business, then we will be quit of thine oath
which thou has made us to swear. This our business is speaking
of the business of providing deliverance, safety for Rahab
and her family. What they're saying here is this.
If you tell others that we have sworn to give you safety, we'll
no longer be bound by the oath that we gave you. We'll be quit
of our oath. The point is this. The safety
these men have promised and sworn to is only to those who have
been prepared for deliverance. It's not to the whole city. It's
just to those that have been prepared. In this case, it's
only to Rahab and her family. Rahab is the only one who demonstrated
true faith in God. She alone took sides with these
men against her former God and her former king. She alone sought
the mercy of the only true God. The rest of Jericho remained
enemies of Israel. The rest remained unprepared. And those who remain unprepared
in every generation, no matter who you are, what city you live
in, those who remain unprepared in every generation are facing
utter destruction. Rahab agreed to these stipulations
of the two spies. Look at Joshua 2 and 21. This
is the last verse I'm going to cover today. Joshua 2.21, and
she said, according to your words, so be it. And she sent them away,
and they departed, and she bound the scarlet line in the window.
Rahab sent the spies away in peace. She received them in peace,
she sent them away in peace. She rested her hope in the promise
and the oath that she'd been given. She bound the scarlet
thread in her window. In other words, she rested her
safety and the safety of that of her family in the promise
and oath of the God of Israel. She acted as one whom God had
prepared for deliverance. Let me summarize what I've said
in just a few brief sentences here, and I'll be done. I believe
that Rahab's actions that I've been talking about here today,
that she's a type of God's elect. God prepared the deliverance,
the salvation of His elect in eternity. He chose them in Christ. He made Christ their surety.
In other words, He placed all the conditions for their salvation
on Christ and Christ alone. He sent Christ in time to work
out the righteousness that would bring them to eternal safety. According to the prophecy of
Daniel 9.24, Christ would come in time for a specific work.
to finish the transgression, to make an end of sins, to make
reconciliation for iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness
for his sheep. According to Christ's resurrection
from the dead, he finished that work. That's what God declared.
God the Father declared when he raised him from the dead.
Actually, it's the Spirit of God, but it's that triune God
working in three persons. According to Christ's resurrection
from the dead, he finished that work by his obedience unto death. He had done what the angel told Joseph he would do. He had saved
his people from their sins. So the deliverance of each sinner
God has chosen was prepared in eternity. Their deliverance,
their final glory will happen. It can't fail to happen. It must
happen. God has ordered it. He's purposed
it. He's predetermined it. And by
his obedience unto death, Christ has obtained that deliverance.
But in time, In time, in each generation, God must, and he
does, prepare each sinner that he's chosen for deliverance.
He brings them to the knowledge of a deliverance that's already
theirs in Christ. It's just waiting to be possessed
by the elect in each generation. That's what he did with Rahab
here in the book of Joshua. That's what he does with each
of his elect in their appointed time. Listen to Jeremiah 23.3. God said, and I will gather the
remnant of my flock out of all countries whither I have driven
them, and will bring them again to their folds, and they shall
be fruitful and increase. They'll be fruitful and increase.
The prepared in each generation will bear the fruits of the imputed
righteousness of Christ. Faith, repentance, rest in Christ
alone. In each generation, God prepares
his elect for final glory. He brings each of them to receive
his messengers, his gospel, with peace. He brings each of them
to renounce what they once sought safety and acceptance in. He
brings each of them to rest in His provision, the imputed righteousness
of the Lord Jesus Christ. Well, are you one? Am I one whom
God has prepared for deliverance? Are you one who's received and
repented and are resting in Christ alone? I pray that God will bring
his people to that end and to act as those that he has prepared
for deliverance.