After the Israelites crossed the Jordan River, the Lord wanted them to circumcise themselves. Crossing the Red Sea symbolizes salvation, while crossing the Jordan River symbolizes victory. We must seek not only to be saved, but also to live victoriously. Salvation is by faith, victory is also through faith.

Romans 1:17 “a righteousness that is by faith, from first to last.” We are to walk by faith all our life. Some Christians begin with faith, but continue by works. They want to rely on their own good works to gain victory, but in the end, they fail. We do not rely on our own strength, but on God, to live a life of victory. Let us reflect on three matters regarding circumcision:
1. What is circumcision?
2. Why circumcision?
3. The blessings of circumcision.

I. What is circumcision?

The first time circumcision occurred in the Bible is in Genesis 17:1-2 “When Abraham was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said, ‘I am God Almighty, walk before me and be blameless. I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.”

V. 10-11 “This is my covenant with you and your descendants after you, the covenant you are to keep: Every male among you shall be circumcised. You are to undergo circumcision, and it will be a sign of the covenant between me and you.”

The Lord wanted to establish a covenant with Abraham and his descendants, to make his descendants as numerous as the stars in the heavens and the dust of the earth. The sign for this covenant was for every male child to be circumcised on the eighth day after birth, a testimony that he belongs to God’s people. Circumcision is the removal of the foreskin of the male sexual organ. Why did God require circumcision? During Abraham’s lifetime, there were 13 years wherein God did not speak to him. After these 13 years, the Lord spoke to him and said, “I am God Almighty, walk before me and be blameless. I will confirm my covenant between me and you and will greatly increase your numbers.” This statement carried three important meaning:

1. I am God Almighty, nothing is too difficult for me; you did not have to use your own way to have a child.

2. Walk before me and be blameless and I will bless you and greatly increase your numbers. Relying on your own strength, you can only have, at most, one child; but I can make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the heavens and as the sand on the seashore.

3. I will make the covenant of circumcision with you as a sign, so that you and your descendants will walk blameless before me and no longer walk according to the desires of your flesh.

Colossians 2:11 “In him you were also circumcised, in the putting off of the sinful nature, not with a circumcision done by the hands of men but with the circumcision done by Christ.”

Every Christian, whether male or female, must be circumcised spiritually; meaning our sinful nature must be cut off. Jesus said in Matthew 5:29 – 30: “If your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to go into hell.” Jesus meant that we must cut off with utmost determination our sinful desires, allow the flesh and its desires no opportunity at all. This is the true meaning of circumcision.

II. Why Circumcision?

1. The Older Generation Did Not Obey the Lord’s Commands

According to Israelite regulations, a male child must be circumcised on the eighth day after he is born. It was the parents’ responsibility to perform circumcision on their child. But the Israelites did not fulfill this duty. Verse 5, “All the people that came out had been circumcised, but all the people born in the desert during the journey from Egypt had not.”

Verse 7, “So he raised up their sons in their place, and these were the ones Joshua circumcised.” The new generation born in the wilderness were uncircumcised because their parents did not obey God’s command. Verse 6, “The Israelites had moved about in the desert forty years until all the men who were of military age when they left Egypt had died, since they had not obeyed the Lord.” This is a warning for all of us who are parents — we must fulfill our responsibilities as parents. Are we training up our children according to the Lord’s commands?

2. The New Generation Obeyed the Lord’s Commands

After crossing the Jordan River, the new generation under Joshua’s leadership camped at Gilgal. Then, the Lord commanded Joshua to circumcise them. At that time, there were six hundred thousand male who were twenty years old and above. These six hundred thousand men had not been circumcised before. They obeyed the Lord and underwent circumcision. There were six hundred thousand foreskins removed from six hundred thousand men; the foreskins piled up to make a hill, that is why the place is called hill of foreskins. This is a sign of their obedience to the Lord.

III. The Blessings after Circumcision

1. The Lord Rolled Away their Reproach

The Lord said, “Today I have rolled away the reproach of Egypt from you.” The Israelites thus called the place Gilgal, meaning roll away. When God created man, man was without a sense of shame. But after man sinned, Genesis 3:7 “Then the eyes of both of them were opened, and they realized they were naked; so they sewed fig leaves together and made coverings for themselves.”

They felt shame. Shame came about as a result of sin and sin is disobedience to God’s Word. There is only one way to roll away our shame. Gen 3:21 “The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them.” Putting on garments rolled away their shame. Ephesians 4:22- 24 “You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” In this passage, there are two verbs, “put off” and “put on”. We must put off the sinful nature, and put on the new self. The new self is created like God in true righteousness and holiness. Circumcision is putting off the sinful nature, and putting on the new self.

2. They Enjoyed the Produce of the Land of Canaan

Possessing Canaan and enjoying Canaan are two different matters. We may possess it, but we may not necessarily enjoy it. V. 10 – 12 records that not only did the Israelites possessed Canaan but they also enjoyed Canaan’s produce. From that day on, the manna from heaven stopped, for there was no longer a need for it. After the Israelites underwent circumcision, they started to enjoy the Lord’s blessings. Is it because we haven’t dealt away with our shameful deeds that we are not enjoying God’s blessings, that the Lord’s blessings are not forthcoming?

3. The Commander of the Lord’s Army Appeared

Verse 13 – 15 “Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?” The commander of the Lord’s army appeared. He was going to lead the six hundred-man army to battle seven tribes of people. After the six hundred thousand had undergone circumcision, the commander of the Lord’s army appeared. This is of course not a coincidence. The commander of the Lord’s army is holy, he cannot lead an unclean army into battle. This is truly a challenge for us, if we want to be soldiers of Christ, we must put off our sinful nature; if not, we are but an army without a commander, we are but relying on ourselves to face difficulties and temptations; we will not be truly victorious, we will keep failing. When we obey the Lord’ s will, rely on the power of the Holy Spirit, undergo circumcision of our sinful nature, make a clean break from sin, then the Lord’s blessings will come upon us.

The post Have You Been Circumcised – Joshua 5 appeared first on Christian Bible Church of the Philippines.

In Joshua chapter 4, we can see two piles of stones. Each pile is composed of 12 pieces of stones. God had commanded Joshua, when they crossed the Jordan River, that twelve men chosen from each of the twelve tribes were to take up twelve stones from the river and put them down at the place where they were to stay that night. The second pile of stones was set up in the middle of the Jordan at the spot where the priests who carried the ark of the covenant had stood. These two piles of stones had the same purpose, they were both a testimony to the same thing – how the Lord cut off the flow of the Jordan and allowed the Israelites to cross the river on dry ground. The only difference is that one is under the river and cannot be seen, the other pile is on dry ground and can be seen.

The pile on the ground is a testimony which can be seen. Which among these two piles of stones is more important? The pile under the Jordan River is more important, because without the one under the river, the one on the ground would be a false testimony. This reminds us that real testimony is unseen, not the external, but the internal. The unseen pile of stones testifies to the pile that can be seen.

2Cor 4:18 “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.” What can be seen are all temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. The unseen are truly more important than what can be seen. Joshua set up two piles of stones, the unseen pile of 12 stones testifies three important truths:

I. The Twelve Stones are a Testimony of the Twelve Tribes’ Unity

The twelve stones were picked by twelve people. These twelve represented the twelve tribes of Israel. These 12 stones are a testimony to the unity of the 12 tribes. But remember, the tribes of Reuben and Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh had decided not to cross the Jordan River. They wanted to reside east of the river, so, in reality, only 9 tribes crossed the Jordan River. But verses 12-13 tell us ‘The men of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Manasseh crossed over, armed, in front of the Israelites, as Moses had directed them. About forty thousand armed for battle crossed over before the Lord to the plains of Jericho for war.’ These two and a half tribes sent out forty thousand warriors to help the 9 tribes in battle.

The Book of Numbers, chapter 26, records that the tribes of Reuben, Gad and the half-tribe of Manasseh together numbered approximately a hundred thousand warriors. Now they had sent forty thousand to help in fighting, that would be about 40%; 60 percent remained to protect the women and the children. Imagine a nation sending 40% of its troops to help another nation fight its battle, this is not an easy thing to do. But if the two and a half-tribes did not go, Joshua would not have set up 12 stones, he would have only set up 9 and a half stones, then, this would not be a testimony of unity, it would be a testimony of disunity.

This is a generation of disunity. People and nations find it hard to cooperate with each other, even churches find it hard to cooperate with each other. But the Lord wants us to establish a testimony of unity. Psalm 133:1 “How good and pleasant it is when brothers live together in unity!” In an age of disunity, we can learn an important principle for cooperation, from the pile of stones, that is, maintaining unity in principle.

The twelve tribes had been slaves in Egypt, they had no freedom there, the Lord brought them out of Egypt and into the Promised Land. There, they were no longer slaves, they had true freedom. These twelve tribes had the same goal, and under this great cause, although they had different views, they were willing to unite in battle. What is unity? Unity is acknowledging our differences; yet seeking similarities amidst them , so that we can cooperate with each other for the bigger cause.

II. The Twelve Stones is a Testimony of God’s Faithfulness

Four hundred years before, God promised Abraham his descendants will inherit the land of Canaan; four hundred years later, because of unbelief, the Israelites wandered 40 years in the wilderness. After 40 years, Joshua led them across the Jordan River and they stepped into the Promised Land. As they set up that pile of 12 stones in Canaan, they set up a testimony of God’s faithfulness. The Lord is faithful, he will never fail us. Four hundred years ago, the Lord promised them the land of Canaan, four hundred years after, God’s promise came true.

Psalm 37:3 “Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture.” The Lord wants us to enjoy his safe pasture. The Chinese have a saying, “For the people, food is of the utmost importance.” Nothing is more important than food. Without food to eat, the people will riot. Having food, the people will dwell in peace and security. When a nation is impoverished, it becomes unstable, there will be turmoil within. When a man is hungry, he is capable of anything. God wants us to trust in his faithfulness, and enjoy safe pasture, because when we have spiritual food, we will not be restless, but thrive in abundance.

God is faithful but men are not. There are three reasons why men are unfaithful:

• Forgetfulness. Sometimes, we promised to do something, but we forget.
• Unwillingness. Sometimes it is not because we forget, but because we are unwilling; maybe, because it is difficult or inconvenient, so we fail to do what we promised to do.
• Powerlessness. Maybe, at the start, we did not know that the task would be so difficult, so we make promises; but when we find ourselves unable to complete the task, we have no recourse but to apologize and beg off.

But our God is faithful, He is omniscient, He will never forget. He is omnipotent, He will not be powerless to accomplish anything. He can never be unfaithful. He will forever be faithful.

III. The Twelve Stones is a Testimony of God’s Power

Verses 21- 24 “In the future when your descendants ask their fathers, ‘What do these stones mean?’ tell them, ‘Israel crossed the Jordan on dry ground. For the Lord your God dried up the Jordan before you until you had crossed over. The Lord your God did to the Jordan just what he had done to the Red Sea when he dried it up before us until we had crossed over. He did this so that all the peoples of the earth might know that the hand of the Lord is powerful and so that you might always fear the Lord your God.”

The Israelites crossed the Jordan on dry ground. For the Israelites then, this was a great matter, because that generation of Israelites was born in the wilderness. They had never seen a vast river, do not know how to swim, so, for them, crossing the Jordan River was a big problem. When the Lord divided the Jordan River, their hearts must have shouted within, “God, how great you are!” Isaiah 43:2 promised “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze.” Can this be possible?

The Lord divided the Red Sea and the Jordan River, so that the Israelites could cross over. When they pass through the waters, the waters did not sweep over them. Daniel’s three friends were thrown into the fiery furnace because they refused to bow down to the gold image set up by Babylon’s king. They were walking around in the fire, the fire did not burn them. And then, the king saw that there were four men in the furnace. The fourth man looked like a son of the gods. This is Jesus in the Old Testament. Jesus was walking around with Daniel’s three friends. When you go through fiery trials, do not forget the Lord is with you, he is beside you, he goes through the waters with you, he goes through the fire with you. As long as we acknowledge God’s power, we can face all difficulties with faith. The Lord causes us to know Him through many different situations, and His goal is so that we may revere Him. In the original text, the meaning of the word “revere” is “to fear.” Psalm 33:8 “Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the people of the world revere him.” There are two reasons we fear God:

1. We are afraid of God’s punishment – Sometimes we revere God because we are afraid of Him. God is a consuming fire, God will pursue us for our sins. A man who reveres God will not easily give in to sin, because He is afraid of God’s punishment. Just like a son who fears his father’s spanking.

2. We are afraid of grieving God’s heart – There is another reason we revere God, it is because we love Him, we do not want to sin against Him, we are afraid of grieving His heart. Joseph told Potiphar’s wife, “How can I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” Logically, Joseph could have argued in three ways 1. How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against my master? My master trusts me so much, how can I do such an unfaithful and wicked thing? 2. How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against you, turning you into an immoral woman? You are my master’s wife, it would ruin your reputation, you would become an adulteress! 3.How could I do such a wicked thing and sin against myself? This is a holy body, how can I defile it and sin against myself? But Joseph said, “How can I do such a wicked thing and sin against God?” We see, therefore that Joseph was afraid of grieving God’s heart. A man who truly reveres God is one who truly loves God. Love is a special force. When you love someone, you will not do anything to hurt your loved one.

The twelve stones Joshua set up is a testimony to the unity of the 12 tribes of Israel; it also testified of God’s faithfulness and power. Like this pile of stones, may our lives hold such beautiful testimonies.

The post The Testimony of the Stones – Joshua 4 appeared first on Christian Bible Church of the Philippines.

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According to the explanation in 1Corinthians 10, crossing the Red Sea indicates baptism into Christ, symbolizing salvation. After forty years, God through Joshua, the leader of the new generation, performed another great miracle, dividing the Jordan River, allowing the Israelites to cross it on dry ground. Crossing the Red Sea symbolizes salvation, and crossing the Jordan River symbolizes victory. Once we are saved, we must become victorious Christians. We must cross the Jordan River, and enter into the Promised Land, enjoy the abundance God has for us. But how can we be victorious? Joshua chapter 3 tells us how.

I. Follow the Ark of the Covenant 1-4

Following the Ark of the Covenant means three things:

1. Not Taking the Path I Want to Take

Every person has his own dreams and direction in life; but if the path we want to take and what the Lord wants for us differ, are we willing to let go of our own life dreams? Following the ark means choosing not to follow your own path.

2. Not Taking the Path Others Want You to Take

If you do not follow the ark, sooner or later there will be people who would want you to follow the path they want you to take. A famous author said, “I do not know the way to success, but I do know the way to failure, that is, to try to please everyone.”

Paul also understood this very well, he said in Galatians 1:10 “Am I now trying to win the approval of men, or of God? Or am I trying to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a servant of Christ.” May the Lord help us, if we ourselves are without direction, others will insist their directions on us, as a result, we will not be taking God’s path, but the path others want us to take.

3. Taking the Path God Wants Me to Take

Following the ark means obeying God’s will. In our ministries, in our daily life, we will sooner or later meet a situation wherein we do not know which way to take. Following the ark is like having a lifesaving device. When we are about to drown, we grab tightly to the life-saving device, and only in that way will our life truly have a way out.

II. Live a Consecrated Life

Joshua told the Israelites, “Consecrate yourselves, for tomorrow the Lord will do amazing things among you.” On the Sermon on the Mount, the sixth blessing is “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they will see God.” Hebrews 12:14 “Without holiness, no one will see the Lord.”

The pure will see God, therefore, the impure will not see God. Pure means holy and pure. Joshua told the Israelites they will cross the Jordan River and the Lord will do amazing things among them, but they must consecrate themselves.

If we want to enjoy the victorious life, we must keep ourselves pure, because the Lord is holy. When we are not holy, the Lord cannot be with us; the Lord’s grace and power cannot come upon us. Jesus said, “I come to give life, and life more abundantly.” Abundant life is a holy life. When our lives are filled with filth, we will never enjoy the abundant life.

III. Take the First Step of Faith

Joshua told the Israelites to follow the Ark of the Covenant and consecrate themselves. But if they had just stopped there and did not step out in faith, they would have remained on the west of the Jordan, unable to enter Canaan. This is the importance of action. Our problem is that our knowledge increase more and more, but our actions do not. As a result Christians have been called a half-hearted people, people who only talk but fail to act. We must take action. Taking the first step of faith is very important. Are you willing to take the first step of faith? However, this path is not easy, because:

1. This is a path that has not been taken before.

It is not easy to take a path one has never taken before, thus, without faith, one cannot step out on it.

2. This is a seemingly impossible path

We do not enjoy the abundance of God because we are afraid of failure. We dare not step out in faith. A person who fears failure will never succeed. Some people need us to help them, to push them, so that they will be able to make the first step. Do you want others to push you? Or are you willing to bravely take the first step into life?

In the recent ten years, society, business, and even the church often use the term `paradigm shift’. What is paradigm shift? It is the way you are used to thinking and doing things. Swiss watches in the 1950 dominated more than 65% of the world market. But in 1980, Japan became the king of watch makers in the world, because Japan came out with the quartz watch. But the quartz watch was not invented by the Japanese. It was a Swiss who invented it. However, when he showed the quartz watch to Swiss watch- makers, they rejected it. They reasoned that it was not a watch at all; for them, a traditional watch is not like that, they criticized that it didn’t even have a wheel in it, so they rejected it. In the end, Japan took it and grabbed away the watch market and the Swiss watch industry collapsed.

To take the first step of faith, we must make a paradigm shift, or else we will forever be stuck in the same place. We will never make any progress. Yes, you may never meet any difficulties and obstacles, but your life will be very boring. And when you are 80, you will regret why you never took the step when you were young. I do not want to regret how I lived my life, because I only have one life. There is no take two with this life! How about you?

The post From Jordan to the Abundant Land – Joshua 3 appeared first on Christian Bible Church of the Philippines.

In the whole Bible, the name Rahab appeared eight times. Five times, she was called Rahab the prostitute. This is an unpleasant name. Prostitution was what she did for a living, a very lowly and disgraceful occupation. But the Bible in referring to her as such was not belittling her, on the contrary, the Bible tells us that even a prostitute, a woman looked down upon by others, may be saved by the grace of God as long as she has faith. The identity, position, occupation of a person has nothing to do with his becoming saved by grace. While Jesus was on earth, he was called the friends of sinners, tax collectors and prostitutes; because Jesus did not reject any sinner, tax collector or prostitute who came to him. Jesus accepted and saved each one of them.

Rahab was a prostitute in the city of Jericho. We do not know what kind of person she had been, why she became a prostitute, whether it because of circumstances or economics, we do not know. We only know that she was a prostitute who had faith. Because of her faith, her whole family was saved.

Later, she married Salmon, and they had a son, Boaz, who with Ruth had Obed, who in turn was the father of Jesse. Jesse was the father of King David. Thus, Rahab became the great, great grandmother of King David. A Gentile prostitute from Jericho eventually became the great, great grandmother of Israel’s greatest king, David. Of course, Rahab became a grandmother of David because of the grace of God. But we have to ask, why was it in the whole city of Jericho, she was the only one who was saved?

I. She had a perspective different from the rest of the people

Although Rahab was a prostitute, she had a perspective different from all the rest of the people. In the city of Jericho, only she realized that the God Israel worships is God in heaven above and the earth below. Only she saw that the Lord is the only true God who created heaven and earth. Only she saw that no nation can fight against Israel and win, that this was not a battle between men, but between men and God. She saw that the only way to be saved was to seek refuge in the true and living God. In fact, she seemed to have betrayed her country and helped the enemy’s spies, but she was not helping the Israelites, she was seeking refuge in God. That is because she already realized that the Lord is the true God and that all those she had worshipped before were false gods. She was not betraying her country, she was turning to the true God. We must let people who worship other gods know that we are not asking them to betray their gods, we are telling them to turn to the true God. For, if we seek to worship, then, why not simply worship the only true God?

Each of us has a pair of eyes, but not every one of us has perspective. Our eyes allow us to see, while perspective allows us to make the right decisions. Our Lord Jesus had such kind of perspective. When Andrew brought Peter to him, Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon son of John, you will be called Peter.” Simon means ‘heard’, while, Peter means rock. You are… You will be. The Lord Jesus looked at Simon, which in the original text meant he looked at him intently, and then said, “You will be called Peter, a rock. The Lord Jesus saw that Simon will one day become the rock of the church, and true enough, Peter became the rock of the church.

Moses sent the 12 spies to Canaan. Ten of them came back and said, “That land truly flowed with milk and honey, but the people there are giants, we are like grasshoppers in their eyes. We cannot enter that land.” Joshua and Caleb said, “Do not be afraid. We may enter the land, their protection is gone, but as long as the Lord is with us, we can go in and take possession of the land.” Twelve people went in together to explore the land, yet they came out with two totally different opinion, why? The ten saw the circumstances, while Joshua and Caleb saw the sovereign Lord. Joshua and Caleb did not see the Canaanites as giants, they saw them as their food, they were siomai, siao long pao, peking duck… for them to devour. May the Lord grant us perspective, that we may see God’s sovereignty in all things, that way, we can make right decisions.

II. She had a faith different from the rest of the people

James 2:25 “In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction.” James used the story of Rahab giving lodging to the spies as a testimony that true faith must be coupled by deeds. Rahab proved her faith by her actions. She had a faith different from the rest of the people. God will never fail his people. Isaiah 51:2 “When I called him he was but one, and I blessed him and made him many.”

When Abraham was still in Ur in Chaldea, everyone there worshipped idols, only he sought the true God. At the time, God called him, Abraham did not know yet the name of the true God. The first time the name `The Lord’ appeared was during Moses’ time. At that time, Moses asked God, “What is your name?” and God answered, “I am the Lord.” Before Moses, no one knew the name of God as the Lord. In Genesis 14, when Abraham returned from fighting the four kings, the priest of God Most High, Melchizedek came to meet him and told him, “Blessed be Abram by God Most High, Creator of heaven and earth.” Then, Abram gave him a tenth of everything. The God Abram believed in was the God of heaven and earth, Most High God. Although Abram lived in an idol-worshipping land, he worshipped the God of heaven and earth. Although Rahab lived in idol-worshipping Jericho, she sought the God of heaven and earth. As a result, she and her whole household were saved. Both Abram and Rahab had a faith different from the rest – while everyone worshipped idols, they sought the true and living God.

In verse 9, Rahab told the two spies, “I know that the Lord has given this land to you”, and in verses 10 -11, “We have heard how the Lord dried up 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. When we heard of it, our hearts melted and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.” We find out here that Rahab’s faith came from hearing about the works of God. But we must note that, Rahab was not the only one who heard about this, the people in Jericho, the Canaanites all heard, that is why their hearts melted in fear. But only Rahab decided to seek the God of heaven and earth. Why? Because the others only heard, but they did not do anything with what they heard.

Rahab however acted on what she heard. Hebrews 4:2 “ For we also have had the gospel preached to us, just as they did, but the message they heard was of no value to them, because those who heard did not combine it with faith.” The only way hearing the Truth will benefit us is when we combine it with faith. Today, if any word or statement I preached touched you, you must apply that word with faith into your life, only in this way will our spiritual life grow. Do we combine faith with hearing the word? We have heard countless testimonies of God’s works, but how much of them have we applied into our lives? Do you desire a faith that is different from the rest? Then, live out your faith with action!

III. She had a love different from the rest of the people

When Rahab helped the two spies, she made a request. She asked that the lives of her parents, brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them be spared. The two spies agreed but with one condition – her parents, brothers and sisters and all who belonged to them must be brought into her house; they will not be responsible for anyone who goes outside into the street. Joshua 6:23 “So the young men who had done the spying went in and brought out Rahab, her father and mother and brothers and all who belonged to her. They brought out her entire family and put them in a place outside the camp of Israel.” We do not know how many people were there in Rahab’s house; but we are certain there were many as her parents, brothers and sisters and relatives were there, the whole clan seemed to be there! She had brought the whole clan to the Lord!

Is it easy to bring one’s relatives to the Lord? We know that it is not easy, because they do not want to listen to us, what they do is look at our lives, how we live. If you say, “When you believe in the Lord, your life will be transformed.” They will ask,” How about you?” You try to say, “When you believe in the Lord you will have peace and joy.” They will ask, “How about you?”

But we have reason to believe that Rahab had shared the gospel to her whole clan (parents, siblings, relatives). She must have told them about the true and living God Israel worships, that ‘we must believe in Him or else we will be destroyed.’ Then she must have invited them to go to her house, because the two spies agreed to spare only those who were inside her house. Rahab was the first missionary of the city of Jericho, her whole clan believed her and went to her house. Have you ever considered, that if only one of them refused to believe her, that person could have gone to the authorities in Jericho and told on them, about the spies and Rahab’s involvement and that would be the end of them! Had Rahab not been afraid? She must have certainly been afraid, but love is not selfish. Rahab was willing to risk her life in sharing the gospel to her family.

From Rahab, we can learn three things:

1. Do not reject the Lord’s grace just because you had done shameful things before. But after believing in the Lord, then turn from those shameful deeds.

2. We must not only have eyes, more so, we must have perspective. We must not allow ourselves to be deceived by only what the eyes can see.

3. We must have faith and love. We must exercise our faith in God and our love for our fellowmen. May the Lord be gracious to us as He was with Rahab.

The post The Harlot Rahab’s Unique Faith (Joshua 2/Hebrews 11:31/James 2:25) appeared first on Christian Bible Church of the Philippines.

Through Moses, God wanted to lead the Israelites out of Egypt and into the Promised Land, Canaan. However Moses was only able to do half the task. He led the Israelites out of Egypt but was unable to lead the Israelites into Canaan. After Moses died, the Lord called Joshua and told him, “Moses my servant is dead. Now then, you and all these people, get ready to cross the Jordan River into the land I am about to give to them … to the Israelites.”

Joshua became Moses’ successor, the leader of the new generation of Israelites. Today, let us learn from Joshua how to become a leader God chooses:

I. A good leader is willing to be second fiddle 1:1

Joshua 1:1 “After the death of Moses, the servant of the Lord, the Lord said to Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ aide.”

Who wrote these words? These were written by Joshua himself; he described Moses as the Lord’s servant and himself as Moses’ aide. In the whole book of Joshua, he never referred to himself as the Lord’s servant. In Joshua 24:29 “After these things, Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died at the age of a hundred and ten.” This verse was not written by Joshua. At that time, Joshua had already died, and this was appended by someone who came after him. During Joshua’s entire life, he always referred to himself as Moses’ aide. After he died, people referred to him as the servant of the Lord. This is one characteristic of a good leader: a willingness to be second fiddle.

What does it mean to be willing to play second fiddle? Does this mean one has no ambitions? Christians must have noble ambitions and not selfish ambitions. What is the difference between noble and selfish ambitions? Noble ambition means seeking to do great things for God, selfish ambition is to seek to do great things for oneself. Willingness to be second fiddle does not mean you are without ambition, it just means that you are willing to submit to God’s plans, to await God’s time. If the Lord wants me to be second in rank all my life, then I am willing to be second all my life.

It is the same in ministry. John the Baptist said, “He must become greater, I must become less.” This is what everyone in ministry must keep in mind – He must forever be number one. No matter where, we must lift Jesus up. He must become greater, I must become less. John 12:32 “If I am lifted up from the earth, I will draw all men to myself.” We must lift Jesus up, not ourselves; we must draw all men to Jesus Christ, not to ourselves.

II. A good leader is a strong and courageous person 1:-6-7, 9

Three times the Lord told Joshua in Joshua chapter 1, “Be strong and take courage.” The first was in verse 6, the second was in verse 7 and the third was in verse 9. As leaders, many are the difficulties and discouraging situations we face and there are two primary reasons why:

1. We had really made some mistakes

Is there any leader in this world who had never made mistakes? When we make mistakes, people will use a magnifying glass to look at us, especially those who harbour malicious intentions, they will seize the opportunity to attack us. In fact, sometimes we find ourselves stunned and speechless in the ruthless way they attack us.

2. Satan attacks us

Satan will never stop attacking us. The Bible refers to Satan as the one who accuses us day and night before God. He is truly evil. Have we ever realized that Satan will never dare lie to God? Satan knows that God is all-knowing. He cannot lie to God even though he seeks to accuse us. Satan’s accusations are true.

In Zechariah 3:1-5, the prophet Zechariah saw in a vision Joshua the high priest standing before the Lord, and Satan standing at his right to accuse him. Satan accused the high priest Joshua, but praise the Lord, although the high priest was dressed in filthy clothes, the Lord told the angel, “Take off his filthy clothes.” Then he said to Joshua, “See, I have taken away your sin, and I will put rich garments on you.”

We must take courage in serving the Lord, not because we are perfect, but because of His grace upon us. Three times, the Lord told Joshua to take courage, and the Lord also told Joshua, “I am with you” in verses 5, 9 and 17. The Lord’s presence is the reason we are able to take courage. The Lord with us means power is with us, grace is with us. Three times, the Lord told Joshua, “Do not be afraid”, because the Lord knew that Joshua was afraid. It was not easy to lead the Israelites into Canaan. Inside Canaan were seven tribes of people waiting for them, to fight them. Joshua was afraid, thus the Lord told him, “Do not be afraid, because I am with you.” A good leader is not someone who is not afraid. But because he knows God is with him, he courageously stands firm. Have you taken your stand?

III. A good leader is someone who leads courageously 16 -18

Three times, the Lord told Joshua, “Be strong and take courage.” The Lord knew Joshua was afraid. When Joshua heard the Lord’s words, he stood up and gave the people instructions (v.12-15). Joshua stood up as a leader and instructed the Israelites. He told the Reubenites and the Gadites and the half-tribe of Manasseh to cross the Jordan River with their brothers, to fight with them before they return to their own land. The Israelites responded positively.

They told Joshua in Joshua 1:16-18 “Whatever you have commanded us we will do, and wherever you send us we will go. Just as we fully obeyed Moses, so we will obey you. Only may the Lord your God be with you as he was with Moses. Whoever rebels against your word and does not obey your words, whatever you may command them will be put to death. Only be strong and courageous!” This tells us an important principle – a leader must lead courageously.

Many times, problems are not as difficult as we imagine them to be. We often use a magnifying glass to look at our problems, as a result, the problem grows larger and larger. We must face our problems courageously. If you are not willing to face it, they will not disappear, they will become more difficult to resolve.

Frank Bettger, a famous salesman, said, “While you hesitate and remain undecided, the problem could become irreparable.” This is truly a good reminder. A good leader will not wait for things to happen, he will take the initiative to make things happen. Furthermore, a good leader is someone who dare to make decisions. Making decisions is the most difficult thing for a leader to do, because, every decision will have either of two possibilities, that is, it could be right or wrong. But, whether right or wrong, a leader must learn to take the responsibility for the results.

As followers, we must learn to support and encourage our leaders. Sometimes, leaders are afraid to make decisions and it has to do with the people following them. Is there a good leader in your home, in your church? Do you encourage or criticize him? Leaders, however, must not forget the principle of “looking out the window vs. looking in the mirror”. When everything goes well, you must look out the window, and give the credit to other factors (other people or other things); when everything is going wrong, we must look into the mirror, examine yourself, and be willing to take the responsibility. If not, when you succeed, you will give all the credit to yourself, becoming more and more arrogant. When you fail, you will blame others. May the Lord teach us how to be a person willing to submit to His arrangements and courageously lead.

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