The Prostitutes’ Faith
“‘Your daughter-in-law Tamar has played the whore.’”
Too often, we Christians believe we are not good enough to be called by God. If that were the criterion, none of us would be worthy of participation in God’s ministry. God desires for all people, the good, the bad, and the lost, to participate in God’s divine ministry. Look at how God uses even the oldest profession to bring blessings to the world. Wait, perhaps I need to rephrase, look at how God allows the Biblical prostitutes to participate in God’s plan in human history. Let’s look at Tamar, Rahab, and Delilah, for example.
In the book of Genesis, chapter 38, the prostitute Tamar is introduced. Not only was she a prostitute, but she probably wasn’t even Jewish. Without having to retell the entire story, Tamar saves God’s people, doing so at great risk and pain, but willingly. Along with prostitution, Rahab was a madam in charge of a brothel. Yet, as Jewish spies enter, it is Rahab, again, at great personal risk, who reaches out and helps provide protection. Finally, Delilah, whose name in Hebrew means “darkness,” binds Samson to the pillars and cuts his hair. She is often portrayed as a manipulative temptress. Yet, Delilah was part of God’s plan for the destruction of the Philistine temple.
Each of these women is willing to risk their lives for the faithful, even when the faith is not their own. They are very human, fallible individuals who seem weak and vulnerable on the surface but prove themselves brave and even wise. Once again, God picks the least of us to do the greatest good. I’ve always believed that God does this to show that it was a divine moment. If the person were talented or worthy, the human would get the credit and adulation. When the individual is considered flawed, like a prostitute, it is easier to see the hand of God at work.
Today, ask God to give you the courage and faithfulness to respond as Tamar, Rahab, and Delilah did. If God called and loved three prostitutes, then there is even room for you and me in God’s ministry. Ask God to guide you in your moment of challenge. Ask God to give you the dedication of Tamar, Rahab, and Delilah so you, too, can make a lasting difference!
