Of Rahab, Rehab And The Lord's Radar!!!

Of Rahab, Rehab and the Lord’s Radar

Perhaps, there is not a single media-savvy soul, who is not concerned about the fate of the missing Malaysian plane that lost its contact with ground control on the early hours of March 8th 2014. Eleven days later (at the time of this Message) there has been minimal progress in determining precisely what happened or where the plane with its 239 passengers and crew aboard ended up.

As of March 18th 2014, Malaysia said the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines passenger jet now encompassed an area slightly larger than the entire land mass of Australia. "The entire search area is now 2.24 million square nautical miles (7.7 million square km)," acting transport minister Hishammuddin Hussein said in a press briefing on Tuesday. Australia has a land mass of around 7.6 million square km. The search area extends north into south central Asia, passing across far western China, including Xinjiang and Tibet, as well as south deep into the Indian Ocean west of Australia.

"This is an enormous search area. And it is something that Malaysia cannot possibly search on its own," Hishammuddin said. "I am therefore very pleased that so many countries have come forward to offer assistance and support to the search and rescue operation." Twenty-six countries have deployed dozens of aircraft to search for the missing Beijing-bound jet.

While many of us are keeping their fingers crossed, there comes a comforting Scripture portion which applies as much to a righteous soul treading the Lunar surface high up on Moon or the one plumbing the depths of a pacific ocean which reads thus:

“For the eyes of the Lord search back and forth across the whole earth, looking for people whose hearts are perfect toward him, so that he can show his great power in helping them….” 2 Chro 16:9

All of the dismayed passengers of the missing jet and their relatives whose “hearts are perfect toward Him” can hold fast to this promise. That brings me to the ever-edifying Rahab rehab story which is a perfect lesson on how those of unwavering faith can never go missing on the Lord’s radar. More simply put, right from the start (in Joshua 2:1) till the end, Rahab’s saga, if anything proves the fact that the omniscient God was orchestrating the entire sequence of events in order the name of this woman of faith should forever be etched in the annals of Biblical history.

Risk I

“Then Joshua sent two spies from the Israeli camp at Acacia to cross the river and check out the situation on the other side, especially at Jericho. Then Joshua sent two spies from the Israeli camp at Acacia to cross the river and check out the situation on the other side, especially at Jericho...”-Joshua 2:1

If there was no Divine compulsion, why would the Leader of Israeli army –Joshua-send two spies on a special mission “to check out the situation” inside that walled city of Jericho. Doubtless this was a step fraught with risk, as the only earlier spying mission had boomeranged (Numbers 13 and 14) with tragic consequences resulting in Jacob’s descendents wandering in the desert for 40 years from the time of their departure from Egypt. We see the Sovereign hand in this move of Joshua, for how else would the two spies encounter this woman of faith without first stepping into that City noted for its Palm trees (Deu 34:3)!!!

Revelation

“For we have HEARD how the Lord made a path through the Red Sea for you when you left Egypt!... your God is the supreme God of heaven, not just an ordinary god. –Joshua 2:10-11

Imagine the reaction of the two Jewish spies, when they heard a Gentile woman of questionable character speaking with conviction borne out of reverence and awe of the Almighty God. Her faith had been moulded not so much by “seeing” awe-inspiring acts of might of the Supreme One but by mere “hearing” of the same. Talk of walking by faith and not by sight (2 Cor 5:7)…

The spies no doubt listened with their eye-brows raised in admiration. For right before them had not their fathers perished for displaying singular lack of trust in their Redeemer God despite “seeing” many a miracle with their own two eyes, right from the time, He had “softened up” the hard-hearted Egyptian Pharoah with ten woes (Hebrews 3:16-19)?

Now this distinctive faith of Rahab did not escape the “radar” of the ALL SEEING ONE whose eyes (I reiterate) search back and forth across the whole earth, looking for people whose hearts are perfect toward him, so that he can show his great power in helping them….” No wonder, He put the escape plan for Rahab in place and started executing it with precision. In God’s lexicon, the words coincidence or accident would be conspicuous by their absence, for everything happens in the lives of His elected ones’ by His fore-ordained will. The steps of the two spies once they entered Jericho were led to the house of Rahab and NOT to any other house…by His Sovereign will. Many years later, that of her would be daughter-in-law-Ruth- too would be led to her son’s field by Divine direction (Ruth 2:1-3). Hey, how many of us know that Rahab was Ruth’s second mother in law (Matt 1:6)!!!