Now this evening we're looking
at Joshua chapter 6. Joshua chapter 6, I'm taking
the title for the message from what is said in verse 25. Joshua
saved Rahab. Joshua saved a sinner. She was a harlot. And Joshua,
the Savior, saves sinners, and we know that Joshua is a picture
of Christ. Rahab is a picture of those who
were saved by God's grace. Now, when Joshua and Israel passed
through the Jordan River, the first business at hand was to
take the great city of Jericho. They came across that river right
there in front of Jericho and the first thing that was in their
way to march into Canaan was that great walled city of Jericho. It was the largest, greatest,
biggest, strongest city in that land. If they could take that
city, the rest of the country would fall into their hands.
It was a massive city, fortified with a huge stone wall. This is not like those stone
walls you see down in Lexington. They're about three or four feet
high. This stone wall was probably 15, 20 feet thick, 25, 30 feet
high. It was a massive, massive structure
built of stone, built over many, many years. You know, it had
to have a good foundation to hold that weight. The taking
and destruction of that city was impossible with the army
that Joshua had. It was just impossible. But with
the Lord, nothing is too hard. With the Lord, nothing is impossible. God gave Joshua detailed instructions,
what they were to do, and naturally speaking, what the Lord said
that would lead to the destruction of the city made no sense. March around that city, blow
the trumpets, and on the seventh day, march around that city seven
times and blow the trumpet and shout and the wall will come
down. Now, any general would tell you that that strategy would
never work. That's not going to, you know,
we need to load the cannons or the bulwarks and shoot the stones
and rocks and bombs and everything else. No, just listen to the
word of the Lord. They marched around that city,
as we read, six days, one time a day, with the priest blowing
the trumpets with the ark of the Lord, and then on the seventh
day they marched around that city seven times, And then the
trumpet sounded with a long, long sound as it says there in
verse 5. It was a long distinctive sound
with the ram's horn. And then they were to shout.
And then the Lord said, the wall will fall down flat and collapse,
collapse down into the ground. The wall just didn't topple over,
it actually sunk down into the ground. Now, how can that happen? With God, all things are possible. Remember, remember whose house
was on that wall. Rahab's house was on that wall. Look back at chapter two. Chapter
two, verse 15. Rahab's house was on that wall. Verse 15, then she let them down,
that is the two spies, by a cord through the window, for her house
was upon the town wall and she dwelt upon the wall. Now if that
wall collapses and her house is on the wall, She's going to
be in peril. Naturally thinking, that's what
we think. But listen to this, the whole
wall collapsed all the way around the city, but that one section
of that wall where Rahab lived with that cord out that window,
and here it stands. The rest of the wall What a miracle of mercy and what
a miracle of God's power. She was instructed, remember,
to tie that scarlet line in the window to mark her house. And she did so, she did so. She secured, she knew, I bet
she tied that knot a double knot to make sure that scarlet line
just didn't fall down. It marked out her house. What
a miracle how the Lord delivered the city into the hand of Joshua,
and how the Lord made the wall to collapse. But the greater
miracle is the fact that all the wall was brought to complete
destruction with the exemption of the wall that was marked by
that scarlet line. Now, how long a section? I don't
know. How big her house was? I don't
know. That scarlet line we know is a type and picture of the
blood atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. Like the blood on the
door in Egypt that we read about on Sunday in Exodus 12, God said,
when I see the blood, I'll pass over you. Everybody inside that
house with the blood on the door, God passed over that house. And we know too that that is
a picture of Christ. God spared Rahab and all her
house because they were in the house. Look at verse 17. And the city shall be accursed,
even it, and all that are therein to the Lord, only Rahab the harlot
shall live, she and all that are within her house, in the
house, because she hid the messengers that were sent. God spared Rahab
and all her household because they were in the house. That
house was a refuge of safety that God marked out by that scarlet
line, and all that's a picture of Christ. It's very evident,
is it not? We know that this is the only
reason she was saved from destruction. And the only reason that we're
saved from the wrath of God is that blood atonement. She was
under the blood of Christ and her house was under the blood
of Christ. And the only reason she was spared
was because of the blood atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. And
the only reason that we are spared the wrath and judgment of God
is because of the blood atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ. Now,
great miracle that that wall collapsed, a greater miracle
all the wall collapsed except for the one section that Rahab
lived in. But the greater miracle than
both those is the fact that God saved Rahab as it says in verse
25, Joshua saved Rahab the harlot alive. and her family by his
mighty and sovereign grace. Now all of this story is given
unto us as all the scripture is given to us to show us one
lesson, to teach us one lesson, not how to build a wall, not
how walls fall down, all this is given to teach us one lesson.
What is that one lesson? How God saves sinners. How God is a just God and Savior
in Christ. How God saves sinners by His
grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, to His glory,
the glory of His grace. You remember Ephesians chapter
one, to the praise of the glory of His grace all the way through. Now everything the Lord told
Joshua to do, is a picture of the gospel of Christ. The ram's
horn was to be sounded by the seven priests, the priests of
God before the ark of the Lord. The ram's horn speaks of the
power of Christ to save. That horn is a symbol of God's
power. He is the priest of God, the
almighty priest of God that has all power to save. He prayed,
Father, you've given me power over all flesh that I should
give eternal life to as many as thou hast given to me. Psalm
18 verse two, David said, he praised the Lord for the horn
of his salvation. What is the horn of his salvation?
The power of his salvation. So there's a picture even in
the ram's horn that blowed one distinctive note God's preachers have one note,
Christ, Christ, Christ. We blow and we sound just one
note, the Lord Jesus Christ and him crucified. The Ark of the
Covenant carried by the seventh priest also speak of Christ,
our great high priest. Now, seven we know is a special
number, is it not? Six is a number of man, Seven
is a number of God. It's the number that in that
doctrine of numerology, whatever that is, seven is a perfect number. Seven is a complete number. So
there are seven ram horn, seven priests, with ram's horn and
seven priests carrying the ark of the Lord. All this speaks
of completion. And it speaks of Christ, our
complete and perfect priest, who made perfect and complete
atonement for us on the mercy seat in glory. I thought of this
scripture over in Revelation 5, where it talks about the lamb,
the lion of the tribe of Judah, as it had been slain, newly slain,
having seven horns, complete perfect power, seven eyes, all
seeing, all knowing, and seven spirits of God. You see that
number seven is the number of perfection. And everything regarding
God and his gospel, his word, is perfect, holy, and complete. Now notice something else, too.
The people were to remain silent until the appointed time. Joshua
made it very clear to them, in verse 10, Joshua commanded the
people saying, you shall not shout nor make any noise with
your voice, neither shall any word proceed out of your mouth
until the day I bid you shout, then, then, then shall you shout. Down in verse 16, and it came
to pass, at the seventh time when the priest blew the trumpets,
that long special note, singular note, Joshua said to the people,
now it's time. Now shout, for the Lord has given
you the city, and we know. The people shouted when the priest
blew the trumpet, verse 20, and it came to pass when the people
heard the sound of the trumpet and the people shouted with a
great shout that the wall fell down under it and the people
went in and there was a great victory for Israel. Now, they were to remain silent
until the appointed time and then they were to speak. They
were to speak the appointed message. It's not given here in Joshua
6, the word they shouted, but I believe we know what they are.
I wonder, did you wonder what did they shout? I think we know. In Psalm 96 verse 10, it says,
say among the heathen that the Lord reigneth. That's what they
shouted. Jehovah reigns. Jehovah is sovereign. And then you remember Isaiah
52, 7, where the preacher says, Behold thy God reigneth. That's
our message. That's what we shouted from the
housetop. quietly talk about the sovereignty
of God amongst us, and then we get in public, don't mention
the sovereignty of God. We shout the sovereignty of God. We're not ashamed of the sovereignty
of God. We shout the sovereignty of God
in creation, providence, and in salvation. We're not ashamed
of the gospel of Christ, are we? Absolutely not. And then I read this scripture
in Revelation 19, six. You know, this is what we're
going to be shouting forever. We shout it now, the Lord reigneth,
and this is the message we'll shout forever. It says this in
Revelation 19, 6, I heard, as it were, the voice of a great
multitude, as the voice of many waters, as a voice of mighty
thundering saying, hallelujah for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. That's our message now and that
will be our message throughout eternity. And we're not ashamed
of it now and they certainly won't be ashamed of it then.
Now, I want to consider from this
story We know it's a gospel story, but it presents to us a beautiful,
beautiful story, how the Lord saves sinners. Two or three things
here. First of all is this. We know
that salvation is not for good people. Over and over in this
book, when you read about Rahab, you read what Rahab was. A harlot. Salvation is not for
good people. There are no good people saved
by grace. Those who are whole don't need
a doctor. Remember our Lord said to those
Pharisees who justified themselves, they who are whole do not need
a doctor. Go learn what that means. And
then he said, I didn't come to call the righteous. I came to
call sinners unto repentance." There are no good people saved
by God's grace. God saved sinners. God saved
sinners. Rahab was a harlot. She sold
her body, abused her body as a prostitute. She was a sinner
by birth and she was a sinner by practice. She practiced prostitution. Remember what the Lord said to
the Pharisees in Matthew 21. He said, the publican and harlots
go into the kingdom of God before you. Salvation's for sinners. God came to save sinners. This
is a faithful saying, worthy of all exception that the Lord
Jesus Christ came to save sinners. We know from Romans five, when
we were yet without strength, the Lord Jesus Christ died for
the ungodly. You see, Rahab's story is our
story. She was a sinner by birth, practice,
and choice. That's true of us. Born in sin,
shaping in iniquity. We are born sinners and we practice
sin. That's what we are. Sinful. Mercy, we know salvation is for
sinners. We know mercy is for sinners.
The miserable. We know grace is for the guilty.
We know redemption is for ruined folks. We know righteousness
is for who? Rotten people. That's so, isn't
it? That encourages me because I'm
rotten, I'm ruined, I'm guilty, I'm miserable. That's me. That's me through and through
and worse. Rahab was a cursed woman in a cursed profession,
dwelling in a cursed city. From a cursed race, she was an
Amorite. And yet she obtained mercy. It
is of the Lord's mercies that we are not concerned. Why did
this cursed woman obtain mercy? It was not because of anything
in her or anything done by her, but because the Lord loved her
and chose her as an object of His grace and He did so from
the foundation of the world. It is true that she hid, that
she and her house were saved because she received the spies
and hid them and sent them out another way, but that was an
act of faith. Faith which God gave her, not
to get mercy, but because she had obtained mercy already. Got the first point? God saves
sinners. Christ came to seek and to save
the lost. If I can ever find a sinner,
if I can ever find a lost man, I've got good news for him. I
remember years ago one time when my office was downstairs, and
I didn't used to lock the front door, But oftentimes people would
stumble in here, and they would stumble in my office downstairs.
And one man stumbled in my study one day and got talking with
him. He said, I feel like I'm cursed. I looked him straight in the
face and said, you are. You are. You're cursed with sin. You're
guilty. You're guilty. You're guilty. He didn't want
to hear that. He thought I'd pat him on the
back and say, oh, no, it's OK. It's OK. No, you are cursed.
You're under the curse of God's judgment, under the curse of
the law. Cursing is everyone that continues not at all things
which are written in the book of the law to do them. The second
thing is this. Rahab the harlot obtained mercy
by the sovereign reign of God's sovereign elective grace. Is that so? You know it is. You know it is. The children
being not yet born, neither having done any good or any evil, that
the purpose of God according to election might stand. It's
not of him that willeth, Jacob have I loved, Esau have I hated.
It's not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but
of God that showeth mercy. There's no such thing as sinners
being saved by their free will. How obnoxious is that? Man does have a will, but it's
in bondage to his nature. Of his own will begat he us with
the word of truth. Rahab the harlot was not saved
by accident, was she? But rather by purpose. It was
not an accident that the spies stopped by her house. We read
that the Lord sent those spies to her house. Why didn't they
go to some of the prominent good people in the folk, some of the
upstanding people in that city? There weren't any. Rahab was
a sinner living among sinners, but she was one chosen by God's
grace. Who makes you to differ from
another? What do you have that you didn't receive? It's grace
who has made us to differ. It was not an accident that those
two men stopped by her house. The Lord sent them there. The Lord had purpose from eternity
to save this woman and not only her, but her whole house. God
has loved his people with an everlasting love, therefore with
love and kindness he does draw us to himself. When she heard
of the God of Israel, her heart, it says in Joshua chapter 2,
her heart melted with repentance and she was given that precious
gift of faith. Everybody else in that city also
heard of the mighty army of Israel, how God brought them out of Egypt,
how they crossed through the Red Sea, and how they destroyed
all those kings. And they heard and maybe even
saw the Jordan River part, and Israel marched clean over, over
clean, passing over, Rahab's heart was broken with repentance
while everybody else was hardened in their sin. When she heard
of the God of Israel, her heart melted with repentance. She was
given the precious gift of faith. It says in Hebrews 11, 31, By
faith she perished not. All the others in the city heard
what she heard, but only Rahab and her family were granted faith
in Christ to the saving of their soul. Now, our radio message
goes out from here, and there's a lot of people who hear our
radio program, and our sermon over sermon audio go all the
way around the world, and I hear back from a few of the Lord's
people, and a few of the Lord's people, and all of the Lord's
people one day will be granted saving faith, faith in Christ. Remember, faith comes by hearing
the true report of the gospel. The true report of the gospel.
God doesn't save sinners by them listening to lies, the lies of
men. Truth is not learned by lies,
is it? You'll never learn the truth
by listening to lies. You'll never learn the truth
of God's character by listening to people lie about who God really
is. God must grant faith. It is his
precious gift. You remember in the parable of
the sower, in Matthew 13, when the Lord gives those examples
of a sower going forth to sow among the stony ground and the
thorny ground, and then that wayward ground, and then the
sower went forth and sowed that seed in the good ground, that
ground that was prepared by God, and it brought forth fruit, 60,
30, 40, 100 fold. The disciples said, Lord, tell
us what that means. And he told them what it meant.
And then he said, blessed are your ears for they hear and blessed
are your eyes for they see. For a lot of people, they don't
hear and they don't see. God must grant us faith in Christ
or we'll never believe the truth. The third thing is this, Rahab
could not perish with the rest of the city because of that scarlet
line that marked out her house. If you look back in chapter 2
verse 18, behold the men said to her, Joshua 2.18, 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, thy mother, and thy brethren, and all thy
father's household home unto thee. And it shall be that whosoever
goeth out of the doors of thy house into the street, his blood
shall be upon his own head, and 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." Get in the house, the house marked
by the blood, that's the true refuge. Rahab's house, we know,
was marked out by the distinguishing scarlet line, which is the type
and picture of the blood atonement of Christ. Thy only was Rahab,
an object of God's amazing free and sovereign grace. Her household
could not fall under the wrath of God, because it was under
the refuge and protection of the precious blood of Christ.
That is what was symbolized by the scarlet line, scarlet cord
hanging out that window. And don't you know that Rahab
made sure that that line stayed tied right there, safe and secure. This scarlet cord which Rahab
dropped from her window was like the blood of Abel's lamb. that
God had respect into, like the blood of the Passover lamb, when
God said, I see the blood all passed over you. We know that
Christ is the fulfillment of Abel's lamb, and Christ is our
Passover who was sacrificed for us. Like the blood of the sin
offering upon the mercy seat in the tabernacle, all that is
a picture of the blood atonement that puts away our sin. We know
we have obtained mercy because of that redeeming blood of Christ
that was shed for us. As Peter said, for as much as
you know, and we know this, don't we? We know this because he's
taught us. For as much as you know that
we are not redeemed with the corruptible thing, but with the
precious blood of Christ as of a lamb without blemish and without
spot that was foreordained before the foundation of the world.
We have obtained redemption because the Lord Jesus Christ brought
as our great high priest, not the blood of bulls and goats,
He brought his own blood and put away our sin by the sacrifice
of himself. It is a blood atonement of Christ
whereby we have the forgiveness of sin. Ephesians chapter one
says, in whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness
of sin according to the riches of his grace, to the praise of
the glory of his grace, wherein he chose us in Christ before
the foundation of the world. Lastly is this. Rahab could not
perish because she believed God. She believed God. Rahab is held
forth in Faith's Hall of Fame in Hebrews 11 alongside Abraham,
alongside Moses, alongside Joshua as an eminent, preeminent eminent
example of faith. James the Apostle uses her and
puts her side by side with Abraham as an example of what it means
to prove our faith by our work. That is she proved she believed
God and demonstrated that she believed God when she hid those
spies and it could have cost her her life Yet she believed
God and acted on the promise of God. We read in James 2.25,
likewise also was not Rahab the harlot justified by works, that
is her faith, when she had received the spies, likewise also was
not Rahab the harlot justified by works, when she had received
the messengers and sent them out another way? Yes, her faith
was justified before men. Her family. She was the means
that God used to be a blessing to her family. Was she not? Her father, her mother, her family
was blessed because she believed and they were granted faith as
well. Rahab the hearted, believing
God, obtained a place in the family tree of the incarnate
Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ. From Matthew chapter 1, Verse
1 through 5, Matthew identifies her as the wife of Salmon, who
was the prince in the tribe of Judah, mother of Boaz, you remember
Boaz and Ruth, Boaz the kinsman redeemer, as the great, great
grandmother of David. The son of God came through the
line of David. That's amazing, is it not? What
a precious, precious gift of God that faith is. We read in Hebrews 11, 6, without
faith, without faith, it's impossible to please God. Our faith does
not produce salvation or purchase salvation, does it? But faith,
the faith of God the elect, lays hold upon every promise of God,
the exceeding great and precious promises of God in the gospel. Saving faith lays hold upon the
Lord Jesus Christ, who accomplished salvation for us. The Lord said,
John 5, He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent
me, everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation, but
is passed from death unto life." Believing the gospel, the true
gospel of Christ, is the evidence that regeneration has taken place
in your heart. The faith of God the elect acknowledges
the truth and loves the truth. Man says, well, I believe God,
Do you? And when he's presented the gospel
of God, of God's electing grace, man's total depravity and sinfulness,
the blessed atonement of the Lord Jesus Christ, the effectual
call of grace, the perseverance of the saints, when a man's confronted
with those precious, precious doctrinal truths of the gospel,
And he says, well, I believe God. And then when he's dead
faced with the gospel truth, says, I won't have that. It's
evident, is it not? He's not born of God. Now that's just plain and simple.
Those who are born of God, Believe all things written in the Scriptures. That's what it means to call
yourself a believer. Does it not? What do you believe?
Right there. Genesis all the way to the Revelation. We believe every word of God
as He's been pleased to give it to us.