But Rahab the prostitute and her father’s household and all who belonged to her, Joshua saved alive. And she has lived in Israel to this day, because she hid the messengers whom Joshua sent to spy out Jericho. (25)
Your life does not have to be defined by your past. Many of us live under the burden of past trauma or a string of failures that end up paralyzing us in our present. However, our God is a God of second chances. One of the most amazing things about grace is that it is always new and always available. Consider Rahab for instance; she was someone who was defined by her “profession” over and over again in the bible. She was a prostitute, and the entire community knew her this way. Yet, when she was given the chance to do the right thing and trust God, she took it. That choice to hide the spies and throw her lot in with the children of Israel forever changed her life. Not only was she saved from the coming destruction, her entire family was rescued because of her faithfulness. Additionally, if you look further in the Scripture, you will find that this Canaanite convert with the sordid past is included in the lineage of Jesus. The point is that regardless of your past failures, no one has done so many bad things that they cannot repent and be forgiven today.
What happened to you yesterday does not define your tomorrow; only God knows tomorrow and today can be that one defining moment in your life that changes the course of everything. That morning the spies arrived, Rahab woke up as a prostitute, yet by the time she chose to side with them, she was no longer a prostitute but the protector of Israel. In one decisive moment, God did a work in her life and included in her the redemptive history of the world. This was not based on anything good or bad in her past, but on the grace of God in her present. That same God stands ready to act in your life as well today. The choices you make today can change everything. Stop living in the failures of yesterday and embrace the possibilities of tomorrow. Repent, cling to Him, follow Him in obedience and walk into tomorrow defined by His truth in your life. As Paul says, “Forget what lies behind, and strain forward to what lies ahead.” In this new year, it only takes one courageous decision to forever change the course of your life. Jump headlong into it with both feet and trust Him to redefine your life and future.
