Scripture
Joshua 6:25
Matthew 1:5
Psalm 103
1 John 1:7
Salmon is a minor character in the story we’re looking at this week, the one of Rahab. The only thing we really see about him is that he married Rahab and together, they had a son, Boaz, and all three of them are in the genealogy, family, of Jesus. Despite his seemingly minor role, there is quite a bit we can learn from this man.
The main lesson we can learn from Salmon is he didn’t let Rahab’s past prevent him from loving her. Rahab was a prostitute in Jericho. She not only was a Canaanite woman, not an Israelite, but she also had a job that was, and still is, often looked down on. However, Rahab also demonstrated great faith when she hid the spies, saving their lives. She told them that she knew the Lord has given them this land. She heard the stories about what he did for the Israelites, and she believed he was the one true God.
So Salmon, instead of judging Rahab for her past, chose to love her for who she really is, a woman of faith. He saw her faith, bravery, boldness, and he loved her for it. He didn’t judge her for her past, but loved her for her faith. We too are called to love others, no matter what their past looks like, or even their present. We are to love and not judge. It is not our job to judge others, that is Jesus’s job. Our job is to love others no matter what—love our neighbor as ourselves, which Jesus said is the 2nd greatest commandment, right after loving God. There are no exceptions to that either. We are called to love everyone.
In that way, Salmon points to Jesus. Jesus loves us, no matter what our past looks like. When you are in Christ, meaning you have a relationship with him and trust in him as your Lord and Savior, he forgives all of your sins, past, present, and future sins. Psalm 103 talks about how he removes our sins, or transgressions, as far as the east is from the west. If you were to go outside and look out to the east, and then look to the west, can you quantify how far apart they are? No, because it’s impossible, they are opposite directions. You can’t measure that. And God is saying, that’s how far I remove your sins from you, farther than you can measure or imagine.
God doesn’t hold our past over us, he doesn’t judge us for our past, but he chooses to love us no matter what. And there is nothing we can ever do to make him love us any less once we are in a relationship with him. He is a good Father, and he loves his children unconditionally, more than you can fathom. The blood of Jesus cleanses us from all of our sins, as we see in 1 John. That is a gift that seems too good to be true, but it is true and it is so, so good.
Prayer
God, thank you for the forgiveness and love you offer me. You wash my sins away as far as the east is from the west and you love me despite what my past looks like. Help me to offer that same love and forgiveness to those around me. Help me to love and not judge others.
Questions/Journal Prompts
Feel free to use these questions as a guide as you journal and/or pray.
1. Is it difficult for you to believe that God removes your sins as far as the east is from the west? Why or why not?
2. Does judging or loving others come more naturally to you?
3. Who in your life is God calling you to love instead of judge?
4. Take some time to thank God for the forgiveness and love he offers you, despite what your past looks like.
Songs to listen to
Spend some time listening to these songs, reflecting on the words, and sitting with Jesus.
“East to West” by Casting Crowns https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TnkkZLdjf9Y
“O Come to the Altar” by Elevation Worship https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rYQ5yXCc_CA
Comments