Wednesday, December 25, 2013

New Hope High School – Lesson 2 - The Great Commission - A Study of Matthew – Rahab

New Hope High School – Lesson 2 - The Great Commission - A Study of Matthew – Rahab


Matthew 28:18-20 - New International Version (NIV) – The Great Commission
18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
  
Matthew 1:1-5a New International Version (NIV)
 This is the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah the son of David, the son of Abraham:
Abraham was the father of Isaac,
Isaac the father of Jacob,
Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers,
Judah the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar,
Perez the father of Hezron,
Hezron the father of Ram,
Ram the father of Amminadab,
Amminadab the father of Nahshon,
Nahshon the father of Salmon,
Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab,

Who is Rahab (verse 5)?

In your opinion why, in the first ten generations listed of the genealogy of Jesus are there only two women listed?

In your opinion, what does this passage at the beginning of Matthew show us about the Great Commission?


Hebrews 11:31 New International Version (NIV)
“31 By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.

What was Rahab?

What did she do by faith?

What was she protected from because of her action?

What were those in Jericho called?

In your opinion, is it harder to have faith in God if you are among people who believe in other gods?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Hebrews show us about Matthew 1:1-5a?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Hebrews show us about the Great Commission?

James 2:25 New International Version (NIV)
“25 In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction?”

What was Rahab considered because she gave lodging and guidance to the spies?

In your opinion, is this similar to Abraham being considered righteous in the previous lesson?

In your opinion, what does this passage from James show us about Matthew 1:1-5a?

In your opinion, what does this passage from James show us about the Great Commission?

Joshua 2 New International Version (NIV)
Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he                   said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab                 and stayed there.
The king of Jericho was told, “Look, some of the Israelites have come here tonight to spy out the land.” So the king of Jericho sent this message to Rahab: “Bring out the men who came to you and entered your house, because they have come to spy out the whole land.”
But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. She said, “Yes, the men came to me, but I did not know where they had come from. At dusk, when it was time to close the city gate, they left. I don’t know which way they went. Go after them quickly. You may catch up with them.” (But she had taken them up to the roof and hidden them under the stalks of flax she had laid out on the roof.) So the men set out in pursuit of the spies on the road that leads to the fords of the Jordan, and as soon as the pursuers had gone out, the gate was shut.
Before the spies lay down for the night, she went up on the roof and 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. 10 We have heard how the Lord dried up the water of the Red Sea for you when you came out of Egypt, and what you did to Sihon and Og, the two kings of the Amorites east of the Jordan, whom you completely destroyed. 11 When we heard of it, our hearts melted in fear and everyone’s courage failed because of you, for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below.
12 “Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that you will show kindness to my family, because I have shown kindness to you. Give me a sure sign 13 that you will spare the lives of my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them—and that you will save us from death.”
14 “Our lives for your lives!” the men assured her. “If you don’t tell what we are doing, we                 will treat you kindly and faithfully when the Lord gives us the land.”
15 So she let them down by a rope through the window, for the house she lived in was part of the city wall. 16 She said to them, “Go to the hills so the pursuers will not find you. Hide yourselves there three days until they return, and then go on your way.”
17 Now the men had said to her, “This oath you made us swear will not be binding on us 18 unless, when we enter the land, you have tied this scarlet cord in the window through which you let us down, and unless you have brought your father and mother, your brothers and all your family into your house. 19 If any of them go outside your house into the street, their blood will be on their own heads; we will not be responsible. As for those who are in the house with you, their blood will be on our head if a hand is laid on them. 20 But if you tell what we are doing, we will be released from the oath you made us swear.”
21 “Agreed,” she replied. “Let it be as you say.”
So she sent them away, and they departed. And she tied the scarlet cord in the window.
22 When they left, they went into the hills and stayed there three days, until the pursuers had searched all along the road and returned without finding them. 23 Then the two men started back. They went down out of the hills, forded the river and came to Joshua son of Nun and told him everything that had happened to them. 24 They said to Joshua, “The Lord has surely given the whole land into our hands; all the people are melting in fear because of us.”

Who went to the house of Rahab (verse 1)?

In your opinion, why did the king of Jericho want them?

In your opinion, what would have happened to the spies if the king of Jericho got them?

In your opinion, what would happen to Rahab if the king of Jericho found out that she was protecting the spies?

What did Rahab tell the king’s representatives (verses 4 & 5)?

What advice did she give the king’s representatives (verse 5)?

Where were the spies when the king’s representatives ask about them (verse 6)?

In the conversation that Rahab had with the spies:
            What did she say about the Lord and the land (verse 9)?

            How do the people of the country feel about the nation of Israel (verse 9)?

            What miracles does she reference (verse 10)?

            How did the people of Jericho respond to the miracles (verse 11)?

            What does she say about God (verse 11)?

            What does she ask for (verses 12 & 13)?

How do the spies respond (verse 14)?

How does Rahab continue to assist the spies (verses 15 & 16)?

What do the men say to Rahab (verses 17 through 20)?

What do Rahab and her family have to do to stay safe (verses 17 through 20)?

In your opinion, is there a similarity between the scarlet cord and the blood above the doors at the Passover in Egypt?

In your opinion, is there a similarity between the scarlet cord and the blood of Jesus at Calvary?

Did the spies follow Rahab’s advice (verse 22)?

In your opinion, was her advice good?

How did Joshua respond to the news that the spies gave (verse 24)?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Joshua show us about Matthew 1:1-5a?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Joshua show us about the Great Commission?

James 2:14-26 New International Version (NIV)
14 What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15 Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16 If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17 In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.
18 But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”
Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 19 You believe                 that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.
20 You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless? 21 Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23 And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,” and he was called God’s friend. 24 You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.
25 In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did               when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? 26 As the body               without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

What is faith without action (verse 17)?

Who, in addition to Rahab, is presented in this as an example by James (verses 21 through 23)?

In your opinion, what is the similarity between Rahab and Abraham?

In your opinion, was Rahab a good person who deserved to be considered righteous before she helped the spies?

In your opinion, was it Rahab’s helping the spies that caused her to be considered righteous or her helping the spies because she believed “for the Lord your God is God in heaven above and on the earth below” and she helped the spies (see Hebrews 11:31)?

In your opinion, what does Matthew including Rahab in the ancestry of Jesus lead us in understanding Jesus?

In your opinion, what does this passage from James show us about Matthew 1:1-5a?

In your opinion, what does this passage from Romans show us about the Great Commission?


Next, back to Matthew 5:1-3 - (sprucewhispers.blogspot.com)

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