Remember that Mitt Romney family photo debacle from a few weeks back? On an episode of the Melissa Harris-Perry show a beloved Sesame Street sketch was used for no good to either (1) make fun of the Romneys, (2) poke fun at the GOP for its lack of diversity, or (3) both. We can never know true intentions, but it was ill-advised, resulted in a huge blow-up and…who cares? Right?
Well, I thought of the MHP blow up, because I also seek to draw on the magic of Sesame Street for my next blog in the Hebrews 11 series:
Can you hurriedly, before the song ends, read Hebrews 11:1-34 and figure out which one of those things is not like the other? And which one doesn't belong? No? Keep reading…you will.
By faith Rahab the harlot did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace. - Hebrews 11:31
Rahab, in my opinion, is the most important person listed in the Hall of Faith. She is the most unlikely person to "obtain a good report." Up to this point in the chapter, every person (in every scripture) was already a follower of God. Every single person on this list had a relationship with God prior to performing their feat of faith. But Rahab…who is this chick?
Per Hebrews 11, she was:
- A harlot (i.e. a prostitue)
- With those who were disobedient
She was in one group. A really bad group. She was a part of the people who were supposed to be "utterly destroyed."And then suddenly she's in another group…listed right after Moses (the rock star of the Hebrew bible).
How did she get there?! How did she go from being "not like the others" to being "just like the others"? How did she go from as-good-as-dead to as-good-as-Abraham?
This is how the story goes in a nutshell:
 |
| Rahab hides the spies |
- The Israelites want to attack and conquer the city of Jericho, but it's hidden behind a wall
- They send 2 spies to scope the place out, and they hide at an inn built into the wall that belongs to a prostitute named Rahab
- The king finds out there are spies there and sends for Rahab to hook him up with info
- Rahab LIES to her king and country in order to hide the spies
How…unpatriotic. Why did she do this?
…and [Rahab] said to the men, “I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land have melted away before you. For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. When we heard it, our hearts melted and no courage remained in any man any longer because of you; for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath.
- Joshua 2:9-11
Rahab believed in a God that wasn't her God, and through that belief He became her God. Read that again. This right here is the GOSPEL.
“For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. - John 3:16
All Rahab wanted in return for hiding the spies was for her and her family's lives to be spared when they invaded. That happened and more!
The record of the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David, the son of Abraham:
Abraham was the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, and Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah was the father of Perez and Zerah by Tamar, Perez was the father of Hezron, and Hezron the father of Ram. Ram was the father of Amminadab, Amminadab the father of Nahshon, and Nahshon the father of Salmon. Salmon was the father of Boaz by Rahab, Boaz was the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of David the king.
For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus - Galatians 3:26
**Update** If you click on the Melissa Harris-Perry link at the beginning of the blog, you can watch the video that started all the drama. But beware of the comments to the YouTube video. Some of them are downright evil.
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