The Courage of RahabSýnishorn

Our Past Doesn’t Determine Our Future

James and the author of Hebrews mentioned Rahab’s past for the same reason people share their testimonies today—to demonstrate the “before and after” power of knowing the Lord. Stories of how God has changed lives aren’t intended to glorify sin; they are meant to glorify God’s grace. Even so, some people have a hard time getting past their past.

When I share my story—candidly, not trying to make it pretty because it wasn’t— I watch some of the dear women in my audience emotionally, even physically, pull back. The room grows very quiet, and their eyes reveal their thoughts: “Oh, you were that kind of woman.” It’s not judgment so much as it is a foreign concept. Women who’ve grown up in the church don’t always know what to do with a Rahab. Especially in a smaller fellowship, Rahabs may feel they don’t fit in, that no one “gets it.” Beloved, if that’s you, listen to me: There are thousands of us. After I share my own story, women track me down and pour their hearts out. “No one in my church knows.” “I can’t tell a soul.” “I always thought I was the only one.”

We remember Rahab not for her harlotry but for her bravery. Not for loving men but for trusting God. She was blessed with a good husband in Salmon, an honorable son in Boaz, and a useful place in God’s kingdom— not because she “deserved it” but because God was faithful and extended grace to her. In the same way, we need to get past our past and stop telling ourselves we don’t “deserve” forgiveness. No one does. It’s a gift…with our names on the tag!

Thank the Lord we’re finding our way back to the cross, nailing our sinful pasts to the foot of it, and pressing on. If God can turn a harlot into a holy vessel, entrusting her with the very genes that would one day produce the King of kings, surely those of us with a past can leave our shame in the rubble and walk away, fixing our eyes on the One who washes us white as snow.

Pray: “Lord, you have redeemed every sin of my past. I accept your gift with gratitude and love and look to you now with great hope for the future you have in store for me.”