Tuesday, October 13, 2009 - Joshua 2:1-13, Matthew 2:1-2

[Tek7]

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of King Herod, wise men from the east arrived unexpectedly in Jerusalem, saying, "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him."

Source: Matthew 2:1-2, HCSB

Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two men as spies from Acacia Grove, saying, "Go and scout the land, especially Jericho." So they left, and they came to the house of a woman, a prostitute named Rahab, and stayed there.

The king of Jericho was told, "Look, some of the Israelite men have come here tonight to investigate the land." Then the king of Jericho sent [word] to Rahab and said, "Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, for they came to investigate the entire land."

But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. So she said, "Yes, the men did come to me, but I didn't know where they were from. At nightfall, when the gate was about to close, the men went out, and I don't know where they were going. Chase after them quickly, and you can catch up with them!" But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them among the stalks of flax that she had arranged on the roof. The men pursued them along the road to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as they left to pursue them, the gate was shut.

Before the men fell asleep, she went up on the roof and said to them, "I know that the LORD has given you this land and that dread of you has fallen on us, and everyone who lives in the land is panicking because of you. For we have 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 Sihon and Og, the two Amorite kings you completely destroyed across the Jordan. When we heard this, we lost heart, and everyone's courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on earth below. Now please swear to me by the LORD that you will also show kindness to my family, because I showed kindness to you. Give me a sure sign that you will spare the lives of my father, mother, brothers, sisters, and all who belong to them, and save us from death."

Source: Joshua 2:1-13, HCSB

As a teenager attending a local Christian church in the Midwest, I noticed that many American Christians had a dangerous habit of oversimplifying cultural issues into an "us v. them" battle. Put another way, "If you're not for us, you're against us." While we will assuredly meet resistance from others while trying to live out true Christian faith (likely more often from "good, moral" people than from "wicked sinners"), there are some people who are actively seeking God but have not yet arrived at the truth.

It is my sincere hope that these two passages will remind readers that there are people ready to hear the Truth from Christians, even though they come from different backgrounds or cultures.

In the Old Testament passage, Rahab observed military and political events and recognized the supernatural force behind Israel's victories. Whoever Rahab was before meeting the Israeli spies, she was not stupid. She saw Israel's strength and made a shrewd bargain with the spies to protect herself and her family.

In the New Testament passage, scholars from the East showed up unexpectedly in Jerusalem seeking Jesus, "King of the Jews," after observing the stars. The scholars, who were very likely not Jewish themselves, undertook a long journey to worship Jesus. Here is a group of men--outsiders--who recognized natural phenomena pointing to Jesus Christ and came prepared with gifts to worship as a child.

These passages have important and sobering implications, not the least of which is that we, as Christians, need to exhibit an attitude of agape love toward non-Christians and be ready to give an account of our faith at a moment's notice.