Faithful women. Faithful God.
Faith moves us beyond belief to action—but what does that look like? We see many people in Scripture who put their trust in a God they couldn’t see and the God who made Himself flesh and dwelt among us.
Women, of course, also had encounters with God that moved them forward in their faith with courage and conviction. In this study, we’ll meet several of these women. We’ll discover women who showed wisdom in difficult situations and marginalized women who often went unnoticed in their culture. Each of them has a faith story to share, just as you and I have a faith story that is worth sharing.
Dive into the next six weeks and take a journey with faithful women whose personal stories may show them to be heroes in their day. Better yet, join a journey with a faithful God who is always the Hero of our gospel-centered faith.
Living by Faith: Women Who Trusted God
1 Rahab: Courageous Faith Joshua 2:1-14
2 Deborah: Encouraging Faith Judges 4:1-9; 5:1-5
3 Hannah: Faith That Prays 1 Samuel 1:1-2,9-11,17-18,26-28; 2:1-3
4 Abigail: Intervening Faith 1 Samuel 25:2-3,14-17,23-28,32-35
5 The Poor Widow: Faith That Gives Luke 12:13-21; 21:1-4
6 The Samaritan Woman: Faith Worth Sharing John 4:10-18,28-30
THE BIBLE MEETS LIFE
Courage comes in many shapes and sizes. We readily think of the soldiers who volunteer to go into harm’s way. But courage can also be far less obvious—even hidden.
Every summer as we celebrate America’s independence, we think of the over ninety-six thousand who fought for the cause of freedom during the Revolutionary War—and some twenty-five thousand who never came home. Another brave group fought too—Washington’s spies—but they had to keep their courageous acts to themselves.1
The cause of American independence was carried out with the help of ordinary people who kept up appearances as farmers, merchants, and homemakers. Yet nothing was ordinary about what they did in secret. An unlikely group dubbed the Culper Ring, their courage and brave actions were key to Washington’s military success.2
The Bible also tells us of spies and one woman who courageously aided these spies. Rahab was a prostitute and an unlikely hero, but her courage was fueled by the same faith you and I can apply when facing opposition.
WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?
Joshua 2:1-7
1 Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there. 2 The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” 3 So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.” 4 But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. 5 At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don’t know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.” 6 (But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.) 7 So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.
I grew up with parents who gave me two warnings: (1) nothing good happens after midnight; and (2) always be careful of where and with whom I hung out. I had a healthy fear of my parents that drove me to obey them, as well as a fear of those who might harm me. But Joshua 2 points to a different type of fear: a fear of God that fueled the courage of the spies and of their accomplice, a prostitute named Rahab.
The spies had legitimate concerns as they scouted Jericho. The city was a part of the Amorite kingdom, a kingdom whose destiny was determined as far back as Genesis 15:16 when God told Abram that his descendants would return to the land now possessed by the Amorites. Their fate was confirmed in Deuteronomy 20:17 when the Israelites were commanded to wipe out the Amorites because their sin would influence their own culture.
The spies knew they faced a formidable enemy, yet they also knew this was a no-fail mission. The Israelites had already lost forty years due to their own lack of faith. But now that the time had come to cross over the Jordan River into the promised land, the two spies sought refuge in the home of a prostitute—their first encounter with an inhabitant of the promised land.
Rahab’s home was prime real estate, situated near the wall or within the wall, so she was prosperous. She would have welcomed the spies without question because she knew how to play the game of confidentiality. It’s also possible she welcomed the spies because they didn’t take advantage of her, but showed her respect and value—something she probably didn’t receive often.
Have you ever befriended a Rahab? Do you see people beyond their sin and see them as image-bearers of God? For me, it happened when I met Barbara. A victim of rape, Barbara ended up in prostitution, drug addiction, and ultimately, prison. Through a prison ministry, another woman met Barbara in her brokenness and led her to a personal relationship with Christ. The day I met Barbara was the beginning of a friendship. Her story of redemption and recovery continues to remind me salvation is available to anyone.
Joshua 2:8-11
8 Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof 9 and said to them, “I know that the LORD has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you. 10 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 to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. 11 When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the LORD your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below. “
Knowing who God is can be the first step toward recognizing how He acts in our lives. We begin to trust God more as we experience His work in our lives. Rahab made several statements that revealed she had a pretty good idea of who God is and what He is capable of.
- God had given the land to the Israelites. The actual mission hadn’t yet occurred, yet Rahab knew the Israelites would conquer Jericho.
Jericho was in a panic. Rahab sensed the fear and had heard how all the people were panicking throughout the city. It was no secret the Israelites were camped outside the walls of Jericho.
- God’s protection of His people was well known. God’s reputation had reached the ears of those in Jericho. The people of Jericho may have trusted in their fortified wall, but they also knew how God had empowered the Israelites to defeat the Egyptians and two Amorite kings.
- God is God over all. This was Rahab’s confession. She knew who God is, and she was ready to follow Him. God had already been working in the heart of Rahab, and she wasn’t following God out of fear but with courageous faith.
God’s providence was never more apparent than when my husband and I left one state and moved to another to pursue a new ministry assignment. We had confidence because we knew God’s script for our lives is better than anything we could write on our own.
Joshua 2:12-14
12 “Now then, please swear to me by the LORD that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.” 14 “Our lives for your lives!” the men assured her. “If you don’t tell what we are doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the LORD gives us the land.”
- God was at work. Joshua and the army didn’t spare Rahab’s life and her house—God did. While the spies promised their protection and honored their promise, ultimately the Lord saved and preserved Rahab and her family.
- Belief leads to faith, which leads to action. Rahab believed. Because of this faith, her works and actions followed. Our faith is the same. We not only place our faith in God by what we believe, but our faith is made alive through the way we act each day and by our actions toward others.
- Trust in God affects future generations. Rahab became the wife of Salmon, who fathered Boaz in the Book of Ruth. That means she was the great-grandmother of David. Ultimately, Rahab’s trust and faithfulness allowed her to be listed in the genealogy of Jesus (Matt. 1:5-6), and she is listed among Scripture’s heroes of faith in Hebrews 11:31.
- Walking in faith is a daily process. We are to turn daily from our past and trust God with our future. Rahab left her past lifestyle and aligned herself with the people of God. With God, our lives are not about our past, but about who we are becoming in Christ.
Rahab’s cunning bravery wasn’t fueled by her fear of men, but a courageous fear of the God of Israel. Just as God wanted the Israelites to conquer the wall of Jericho, He wants to break down the walls that keep us from walking in courageous faith.
LIVE IT OUT
Courageous fear of God results in faithful actions for Him. How can you move forward in your faith with courage? Choose one of the following applications:
- Express thanks. Pray and thank God for His faithfulness and His promises. Remember that your past does not determine your future.
- Tackle the wall. Is there a “wall” in your life that you need God to tear down? Trust Him to do so. Journal your fears and write out Scriptures that remind you of God’s faithfulness.
- Leave a legacy. Ask God to guide you in leaving the right kind of spiritual legacy to those who follow you. It begins with sharing your faith in Christ. Seek opportunities to talk and pray with someone who needs to trust in Christ.
Just as soldiers must take a courageous stand for what they believe in, we are often called upon to exhibit courageous faith in the Lord. With God’s help, we can be victorious.
Hope to see each of you this Sunday!
In His Love,
David & Susan
Hope to see each of you this Sunday!
In His Love,
David & Susan
