Protect

12 Now, please swear to me by the Lord that you will also show kindness to my family because I showed kindness to you. u Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father, mother, brothers, sisters, and all who belong to them, and save us from death.” 
Joshua 2:8-13 (HCSB)

It was finally time for the Israelites to move forward into the promised land. They’d been stuck in the desert for forty years because of their doubt and fear. Moses had died, Joshua was the new leader, and it was time for a new generation to learn to fear the Lord and follow His commands. In the first chapter of Joshua, God commanded the Israelite people to be strong and courageous. In doing so, they were promised that His presence would be with them as they moved forward to take the promised land. Sunday, we will be discussing the Israelites’ first step toward that goal, how the Lord revealed Himself to them, and how He does the same for us. In Chapter 2, we will see that Rahab’s knowledge of the true God was meager, but she acted on what she knew. That limited expertise, along with her obedience, was more than enough for the Lord to save her.

In mid-chapter, there is a mention of a scarlet cord that was to be hung on the outer wall. The spies instructed her to hang a scarlet rope out of the window of her house since her home was built into the Jericho wall. Josh. 2:18). This scarlet rope would identify the “house of safety” to the army of Israel when they came to take the city. The color would have been significant to the military. It could have been a possible reminder connection with the blood on the doorposts in Egypt. That blood has to mark a house that the angel of death was to pass over (Ex. 12:1–13), so the scarlet rope marked home on the Jericho wall whose occupants the Jewish soldiers were to protect. Rahab let the men down from the window, and the rope stayed in the window from that hour. This was the “sure sign” of the covenant she had asked for (Josh. 2:12–23). She sought protection for her family. It’s important to note that Rahab and her family were saved by faith in the God of Israel and not by faith in the rope hanging out the window. The fact that she hung the rope from the window was proof that she had faith, just as the blood of the slain lamb put on the doorposts in Egypt proved that the Jews believed God’s Word.

Friends, So where is your faith? Faith in the living God means salvation, and faith in His covenant gives assurance. Still, faith in the token of the covenant is religious superstition and can give neither salvation nor security.