March 16 I Wednesday
Deuteronomy 28-29
Mark 14:54-72
“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…” —Joshua 2:12
Rahab’s faith in Yahweh had her risk her own life to hide two Israelite spies in her home. She believed that the Lord would hand Jericho to the Israelites, so she asked for her life and the lives of her family to be spared. The spies responded, “Our lives for your lives! If you don’t tell what we are doing, we will treat you kindly and faithfully when the LORD gives us the land.” She then let them down by a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part of the city wall, and told them, “Go to the hills so that the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there for three days until they return, and then go on your way” (Joshua 2:14-16).
As for a sure sign that Rahab and her family would be spared, the spies told her, “This oath you made us swear will not be binding on us unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers and all your family into your house....But if you tell what we are doing, we will be released from the oath you made us swear” (Joshua 2:17-20). Rahab agreed and sent the spies away. She had given them all the confidence they needed. She had staked her whole life on the trustworthiness of the name of the Lord, and trusted that these men would retain this oath in His name.
The spies returned to Joshua brimming with confidence, echoing Rahab’s words to him, “The LORD has surely given the whole land into our hands; all the people are melting in fear because of us” (Joshua 2:24). This confirmation marked the beginning of the Israelites entrance into the Promised Land. Although there was a period of time before the Israelites conquered Jericho, Rahab waited patiently with the scarlet cord in her window, believing in the name of Yahweh to protect her.
Do we share the same assurance of salvation as Rahab? As she stayed under the protection of the scarlet cord, we too hide under the aegis of the scarlet blood of the Lamb. If we keep our hearts closed, resisting God’s grace and His activity among us, we face a monumental, biblical collapse in our lives. But for those who have placed their faith in Him, for those who have tied the scarlet cord over their hearts, God has made an oath of deliverance that cannot be broken.
Prayer: Sovereign Lord, I choose to tie the “scarlet cord” over my heart. Thank You for the sure salvation that I have through Jesus Christ. Praise You!
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