Scripture
Joshua 2:1-16
Jeremiah 29:12-14
When Joshua sent two spies into the land of Canaan, the promised land, he told them to make sure to check out Jericho. When they got to Jericho, they went into a house, which happened to be the house of a prostitute named Rahab. Word got to the king about this and he told her to bring them out. She lied to him and said they already left, but really, she just hid them on her roof.
Once the coast was clear, she went up to the roof to speak to the spies. She said to them, “I know that the Lord has given you this land and that a great fear of you has fallen on us, so that all who live in this country are melting in fear because of you.” “I know…” She knew that the Lord had given the Israelites this land. Everyone there knows about the Israelites and their God. Rahab goes on to explain how they have heard about how he dried up the water of the Red Sea so they could cross on dry land, and how they’ve been able to defeat all of their powerful enemies. They all responded with fear. She said that their hearts melted in fear because of them.
So, they all have heard these stories, but Rahab took what she heard and it became something she knew. She went from hearing about God and knowing about him, to knowing who he is. She said, “I know that the Lord has given you this land.” This was something she was sure of. She also said later that, “the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.” Even though she may have limited knowledge of God and at that time didn’t have a relationship with him, she knew that he is the one true God, the God of heaven and earth, and the God that is going to give the Israelites that land.
As a result of her faith and her belief and her bravery in saving the spies’ lives, her life and the lives of those in her family were spared when the Israelites took down Jericho. She was then brought out to the Israelite camp and she later married an Israelite man, Salmon, and was brought into the family.
There is a difference between knowing about God and knowing God. Rahab was just at the beginning of the switch. Everyone around her knew about God, they had heard these great, and to them, terrifying, stories. But she was different because she declared that she knew who God was and what he was doing, giving them that land.
We can know a lot about God, study him and his word for years, but that doesn’t mean we truly know God. Knowing God comes with having a relationship with him. Think of someone famous you may know a lot about. You wouldn’t say you actually know them, even though you know a lot of facts about them and their life, that’s all it is—facts. Until you meet them and get to know them on a personal level, have a relationship with them, you cannot truly know them.
That is the same for God. You can know fact after fact about God, but that doesn’t mean you know him. To truly know him, you need to spend time with him, talk to him, listen to him, build a relationship with him, love him, be loved by him, know him and be known by him. He desires for you to know him, not just know about him. Let the truths of God transform your whole life. God says in Jeremiah 29 that when we seek him, we will find him when we seek him with all of our heart. Spend some time seeking God today.
Prayer
God, I want to truly know you. I don’t want to just know a lot about you, but I want those truths to move from my head to my heart and to transform my life. Thank you for inviting me in to a relationship with you, one where I can know and be known.
Questions/Journal Prompts
Feel free to use these questions as a guide as you journal and/or pray.
1. Do you know God, or do you just know about God?
2. What do you think knowing God looks like?
3. What things can you do to move the truths about God from your head to your heart?
Songs to listen to
Spend some time listening to these songs, reflecting on the words, and sitting with Jesus.
“Know You More” by Chris August https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ThMtSGKoa9Q
“The God I Know” by Chris Tomlin https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLHvHRR_ZB4
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