Rahab of Jericho.

Before the men lay down, she came up to them on the roof and said to the men, “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 out of Egypt, and what you did to the two kings of the Amorites who were beyond the Jordan, to Sihon and Og, whom you devoted to destruction. And as soon as we heard it, our hearts melted, and there was no spirit left in any man because of you, for the Lord your God, he is God in the heavens above and on the earth beneath. Now then, please swear to me by the Lord that, as I have dealt kindly with you, you also will deal kindly with my father's house, and give me a sure sign that you will save alive my father and mother, my brothers and sisters, and all who belong to them, and deliver our lives from death.” And the men said to her, “Our life for yours even to death! If you do not tell this business of ours, then when the Lord gives us the land we will deal kindly and faithfully with you.” (Joshua 2: 8 to 14)

Jericho was one of the oldest cities in the world. From the ruins, archeologists determined it was built more than 10000 years ago and famous for having some of the oldest stone defensive walls and monumental towers in the world. Yet, Joshua was determined to enter Canaan through Jericho. He secretly sent two men to spy the land and Jericho. The two men met Rahab in Jericho. When the king of Jericho found out, he demanded Rehab to hand out the men. Then Rehab made a deal with the two spies to deliver the lives of her whole household when the attack took place in return for their safe return. Rehab indeed did what she had promised to hide the men and guide them to avoid the pursuers.

Yet, the whole operation seemed to be redundant. God had already promised Joshua to deliver Canaan to his hand and no man shall be able to stand before him all the days of his life. Why did Joshua still send the two men to spy on Jericho? Especially, the information that the men brought back was described as below.

And they said to Joshua, “Truly the Lord has given all the land into our hands. And also, all the inhabitants of the land melt away because of us.” (Joshua 2: 24)

It's the same as God had already promised Joshua. Yet it is described in the Bible as below.

What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead. (James 2: 14 to 17)

So, it matches with what Joshua had done. He didn't send the men to Jericho to reassure God's promise but for the sake of Rehab. He might not know it but God knows that Rehab of Jericho was crying out for help, not for food or clothes but for the lives of her own and her whole household. It might seem that the whole episode was triggered by Joshua's own work. It was indeed triggered by God to show that faith was not just an attitude of mind but a work toward God's love and mercy to whomever turned to Him for help. 

As for Rehab, she needed to do some work too to fulfill her faith. The whole city of Jericho had heard what God had done and their hearts melted but only Rehab took the action. She might fail and get herself in danger, or not get what she was promised. Yet, her faith told her that if God was the same God who performed all of the miracles and wonders as she had heard then that God surely was trustworthy to deliver what she had been promised. That's faith. Because of her action, not only her whole household was delivered, but her name was listed in the genealogy of Jesus Christ. Just as described in the Bible as below.

You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone. And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way? For as the body apart from the spirit is dead, so also faith apart from works is dead. (James 2: 24 to 26)

That's the difference between faith with work and without. The journey for the people of Israel to enter Canaan had just begun. Yet the faith derived from God's promises had already shown a profound effect. If we read the whole Book of Joshua with faith then we will understand how the Holy Spirit uses it to enhance our faith. Immanuel.