A Life Redeemed by Extraordinary Grace
“Salmon the father of Boaz by Rahab, and Boaz the father of Obed by Ruth, and Obed the father of Jesse, and Jesse the father of David the king.”
The life of Rahab shows how God transforms ordinary, flawed people who trust Him, regardless of their past. Rahab heard about the powerful things God had done for the Israelites. Although she had little knowledge of the truth, her heart was drawn to the one true God and her faith produced action. When the King of Jericho looked for the Israeli spies, she hid them on her roof and protected them. Rahab trusted God and His promise. When the walls of Jericho fell, she and her family were rescued not only from destruction, but also from a life held captive to sin.
The name Rahab appears again unexpectedly in the New Testament in the very first chapter of the first Gospel, where her name is listed in the genealogy of Jesus. It is unusual for women to be named in Hebrew genealogies, but Matthew named five of them, who had a negative reputation as foreigners and outcasts with low social status. Yet God is able to work all things together for His good, and these women found a place in God’s plan to bring His Son into the world.
Mark 2:17 says that Jesus came to call not the righteous, but sinners to repentance. Rahab is a living reminder that even the worst of sinners can be redeemed by divine grace through faith. She was welcomed into God’s family for her faith, not because of any good works she had done. Her identity was no longer found in her past livelihood, but as a child of God who was redeemed from a life of sin.
I often say that serving the youth at Orton Park has been both the greatest blessing and heartache of my life. It has been a joy to walk alongside them over the past 5 years and to watch them grow in their faith and knowledge of God. Many are questioning the existence of God and the relevance He has in their lives as they seek their identity and purpose in this world. I have had the privilege of seeing some of my youth accept Jesus as their Lord and Saviour, but have also cried over the ones who have gone astray and embraced a life of sin. I have learned to be in a posture of surrender, to continue teaching the word of God to those who are still with us and to pray for those who are not. I trust that every one of our youth is in the loving hands of our Creator, who cares for them so much more than I can.
Praise God for His extraordinary grace to redeem not only Rahab, but all those who believe, regardless of our past. Today, everyone who puts their faith in Jesus can become part of God's family. At TCM, we pray that our youth will no longer be defined by their past mistakes, social standing or personal failures, but will one day find their identity in Christ as a child of God.
