james 2:2-26
"you foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? 21 Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. 24 You see that people are justified by what they do and not by faith alone.
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? 26 As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead."
so, this verse has recently been taunting me. i read it about 3 weeks ago and can't shake it. it struck me how odd and almost out of place it seemed. james was talking about faith and works & how they go hand in hand. you don't get faith by works but rather works are evidence of your faith. he literally says (2:14) "what good is it, my brothers and sisters, if people have faith but no deeds?"
but here's where it gets odd to me. he then, all of a sudden, offers an example of how faith and works go hand in hand... and he uses Abraham and Rahab to prove this point. these 2 examples couldn't be more different. one is a man, and one is a woman. one is the forefather of our faith, and one is a prostitute. one has about 13 chapters where they are mentioned, and the other maybe 2.
i always ask a lot of questions when reading the Bible. like why did James chose these 2 examples? couldn't he have chosen Abraham and Moses? or Joshua? or David? these are all people....well men, that have lived extraordinary lives of faith. but instead James chooses Rahab, a women AND a prostitute, to be an example of faith. she is even mentioned in Hebrews 11 (the hall of fame chapter) for her great faith.
the fact that Rahab is even mentioned in the Bible is highly significant (topic for another day)... but the fact that she is mentioned along with Abraham is huge. i would like my name to be mentioned along with Abraham's. that would be pretty cool if someone said that i lived out my faith like Abraham did.
but this got me thinking. we know these 2 examples of faith are very different, but how are they similar? that is when it hit me. they both did something extremely risky and scary for God. Abraham almost sacrificed his son truly believing God could raise him from the dead & Rahab was almost killed for hiding spies.
but if you really think about it, what Rahab did seems kind of small. she lied to some people about knowing where the Israelites were hiding. but in reality it was actually pretty huge. she risked her life (and her family's) for a group of people and a God she hardly knew. and not to mention if she hadn't, who knows how the whole entering the promise land deal would have worked out. it was because of what Rahab did, the israelites were able to finally enter the promise land. this is huge. she was a part of a monumental turning point for the nation of Israel.
funny how sometimes the little things or decisions we make in life can actually end up being the ones that change lives or alter ours. i tend to look over the small stuff. i am a big picture, big plan, big vision person. but i am realizing that it is the small stuff, the small everyday decisions that actually shape my character and who i become.
now i want my name to be mentioned next to Rahab's as well. i hope that one day people can say i had a faith like Rahab's... now that would be pretty cool.
