THOUGHTS

May 17, 2020

A reprint from 2014

SKELETONS IN YOUR CLOSET

We all have them.   In fact under our skin, we are bad to the bone.   We can't point a finger bone at anyone else.  But there is good news!  The more flagrant the sin, the greater the grace.  We've been washed, cleansed and sanitized by sanctification, until we are pure once again.  Old impurities are not counted against us.  Amazing grace!  Let those skeletons out of the closet to do the dry bones dance!  "O Dem Bones, Dem Dry Bones..."

The Bible makes no bones about skeletons in Christ's closet.  Exhibit A in the ol'curiosity shop of extraordinary finds is Rahab the Harlot.  A whole nation of young bucks - God had not let any of the older generation enter the promise land except Joshua and Caleb - were about to cross over to take the totally depraved pagan city of Jericho.  God wanted the sin wiped out so it would not pollute his children.  Just think, if it was a whole city full of smallpox or the plague, would they go in?   Sin does, however, infect every single one of us unless a sacrifice is given.  So, who does He pick to save the two Hebrew spies?  A prostitute.  Hmm.  Does God have a sense of humor or what?  In fact, the irony was that even though the spies were trying to ascertain whether they could take Jericho-ites in a fight, God promised He was going to fight the battle for them: "'Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit,' says the Lord of hosts." (Zecharia 4:6)  God actually didn't need the spies because He already had a plan, but He did need to save one harlot and her family who knew who the true God was.  Do you think she might have been a little tired of her sin enough to turn away from it given the chance God was offering.

In pagan cultures, prostitution was accepted as part of their religious service.  In that sense, they were a very religious people because prostitution was rampant.  It very well could have been that Rahab was given over to it by her family, not her choice, as was a very common practice: "Look how spiritual I am!  I'm giving my sweet little girl over to prostitution!" By the way, "Porne" means harlot in Hebrew, the same root word as pornography.  

In by the door and out through the window now became her plan.  What was extraordinary about this young woman was that she believed: "I know that the Lord has given you this land, that the terror of you has fallen on us, and that all the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted because of you (she said to the two men who were hiding). As soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted; neither did there remain any more courage in anyone because of you, (said a woman who was doing a very courageous act of treason against her own people), for the Lord your God, He is God in heaven above and on earth beneath."  (Joshua 2:8ff.)

"Joshua fit the battle of Jericho and the walls came tumbling down," goes the old spiritual.  Isn't it interesting that speaking of the walls, that's exactly where Rahab lived, where she hid the two spies before she let them down by a rope to help them escape after sending the officials on a wild goose chase in a different direction.  Then she saved her family by hanging a scarlet cord out her window so that she and her family could be spared in the coming battle.  Do ya think that perhaps they could tell anyway by that part of the wall still standing that it might just be where she lived even without the colorful dangly thing?  

Anyway, it was an amazing story of faith and redemption and being adopted into the family and even into the genealogy of Jesus.  "Solomon begot Boaz by Rahab (the prostitute and foreigner), Boaz begot Obed by Ruth (a foreigner), Obed begot Jesse, and Jesse begot David the king." (Matthew 1:5-6)  God was making a point that these two foreign women were a part of Christ's lineage as He usually didn't bother to mention the good girls of good Jewish lineage.  

Ancestry.com has uncovered a lot of skeletons in my closet, but that doesn't determine my destiny.  I have the blood of Christ and have been adopted into His family.