Every year, the Christmas story gets told the same way — angels, shepherds, a manger in Bethlehem. But this year, Pastor Josh White took us somewhere unexpected: back about 1,400 years before Christmas, to a fortified city called Jericho, and a woman most people would rather forget.
Her name was Rahab. And she saw clearly what everyone else refused to see.
The Tsunami Nobody Noticed
Pastor Josh opened with a haunting comparison. In 2004, a massive tsunami struck Southeast Asia — 230,000 people killed in a matter of hours. Most never saw it coming. But he asked a pointed question: what if they had known 20 minutes in advance?
Three options. Ignore the warning. Go watch it come in. Or drop everything and run for high ground.
Here’s the thing — we can see what’s coming too. Not a wave of water, but an eternal reckoning. And like the people of Jericho, we get to choose how we respond.
Rahab Saw the Evidence
When Joshua sent two spies into Canaan, they ended up at the house of Rahab — a prostitute living in the walls of Jericho. When the king of Jericho came looking for them, Rahab lied to protect them. Why?
“I know that the Lord has given you the land, and that the fear of you has fallen upon us, and that all the inhabitants of the land melt away before you. For we have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea before you when you came up out of Egypt… the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath.”
— Joshua 2:9-11
Rahab had heard the stories. She knew what God had done for Israel. And unlike everyone else in Jericho — who closed the city gates and pretended the problem would go away — she weighed the evidence and made a decision.
She wasn’t ignorant of the danger. She saw clearly what was coming. And she acted.
Faith That Protected Her Family
Before the spies left, they made a promise: when Israel returns, she and her family would be spared. All she had to do was tie a scarlet cord in the window and stay inside when the fighting began.
“Our life for yours, even to death, if you do not tell this business of ours… You shall tie this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and you shall gather into your house your father and mother, your brothers, and all your father’s household.”
— Joshua 2:14, 18
When the walls of Jericho came down, her household was the only one left standing. Not because she was powerful. Not because she was well-connected. But because she had faith in the God of Israel — and she acted on it before anyone else did.
God Honored Her Faith
Rahab’s story doesn’t end in the book of Joshua. She’s mentioned three times in the New Testament — and every mention highlights her faith, not her past.
“By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.”
— Hebrews 11:31
But here’s where the Christmas connection hits. Go to Matthew chapter 1, the genealogy of Jesus Christ. Rahab is there — listed as the great-great-grandmother of King David. A Canaanite prostitute, grafted into the lineage of the Messiah.
“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.”
— Matthew 1:5-6
God doesn’t just forgive sin — He redeems it. He takes a woman with a shameful past and makes her part of the greatest story ever told. That’s what Christmas is all about.
See Clearly This Christmas
Pastor Josh’s message on this Christmas Sunday was clear: Rahab didn’t have special intelligence or unusual strength. She had faith enough to see what God was doing — and courage to respond.
The same choice faces us today. We know what’s coming — death, judgment, eternity. And God has made the way plain: Jesus Christ, born in a manger, died on a cross, risen from the grave. Salvation is found in no one else.
“There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
— Acts 4:12
If you’ve never placed your faith in Jesus, today is the day. Don’t let culture tell you what to believe about God. Don’t wait until it’s too late. See clearly what God has done for you in Christ — and respond while there is still time.
If you’re already a believer, Rahab’s story is a reminder: God honors faith, not perfection. He uses people the world overlooks. And His work throughout history — from Jericho to Bethlehem to today — is still moving forward.
Scripture References
- Joshua 2:1-24 — Rahab and the spies
- Joshua 6:1-25 — The fall of Jericho and Rahab’s salvation
- Matthew 1:1-6 — Rahab in the genealogy of Jesus
- Hebrews 11:30-31 — Rahab’s faith commended
- Acts 4:12 — Salvation in no other name