By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.

Hebrews 11:31

It is surprising to see Rahab appear in this pantheon of faith heroes in verses 17-31. Which of these is not like the others…. Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Rahab? She sticks out as not being even remotely in the same league as the others in terms of her status amongst the important figures of Israel’s history. Therefore, she must be a particularly good example of the living by faith that the author of Hebrews is preaching.

So what did she do that is an example of living by faith? She acted on her belief that the tribes of Israel would be victorious in defeating Jericho. She was convinced of a future in which the welfare of her family would be best served by her aiding the spies and securing a promise that her family would be spared when the Lord gave the Israelites the land. This action was risky because she was currently under the rule of the King of Jericho. She would surely have been put to death as a traitor if he had discovered that she was lying to him about the spies. Even though she was a resident of Jericho, she acted as if she was a stranger or exile in Jericho, aligning her welfare to the welfare of Israel.

This action was fueled by her belief that the God of the Israelites was God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. (Joshua 2:11) This God was going to enable His people to overthrow Jericho. This was faith as defined in Hebrews 11:1 because even though it was not happening at the time. she believed that it was going to happen. She did not see it, but she was convinced that it was a reality and she acted according to her conviction.

And it was her action of hiding the spies and misdirecting the King of Jericho that secured the saving of her family. Had she simply believed in the power of Yahweh, but not taken that action with the spies, that faith or belief would not have saved her. This is why James cites her as an example of the need for faith that is expressed in action (James 2:25).

So Rahab is a clear example of living your life according to a reality that you are anticipating but not yet experiencing. The application for living by faith in our work lives is to work anticipating the kingdom of God. This would be work that is valued in the kingdom of God, but maybe not valued in your present reality.

Rahab’s present reality was a kingdom that was an enemy to God’s kingdom. I do not think you need to see your workplace in that light. But, it is likely that your workplace (even a Christian or faith based organization) is operating according to principles and values that are more aligned with worldly values than the kingdom of God. Living by faith would mean discerning those areas and living your life as if the kingdom of God was the reality that mattered.

Rahab is also not like the others in that she cannot be included with those who died in the faith, not having received the things promised (Heb 11:13). She did receive what was promised to her, the sparing of her family. So her faith gamble paid off in her lifetime. Significantly, the author of Hebrews does not allow for this to be the motivating factor for a call to live by faith. I think there is another motivating factor here in Hebrews 11 that I will write about next week.

I would love to connect with you about these posts if they have stirred any thoughts or questions. Take a minute, shoot me an email at bo@leavenedlives.org, and let’s see where that takes us.