By: Dale Weckbacher
Josh 2:8-13
8 Now before they lay
down, she came up to them on the roof, 9 and said to the men:"I know that
the LORD has given you the land, that the terror of you has fallen on us, and
that all the inhabitants of the land are fainthearted because of you. 10 For 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 the two kings of the Amorites who were on the
other side of the Jordan, Sihon and Og, whom you utterly destroyed. 11 And as
soon as we heard these things, our hearts melted; neither did there remain any
more courage in anyone because of you, for the LORD your God, He is God in
heaven above and on earth beneath. 12 Now therefore, I beg you, swear to me by
the LORD, since I have shown you kindness, that you also will show kindness to
my father's house, and give me a true token, 13 and spare my father, my mother,
my brothers, my sisters, and all that they have, and deliver our lives from
death."
NKJV
As Joshua prepared to lead the Israelites into the Promised
Land after forty years of wondering in the wilderness, He decided to send some
spies into the land. He most likely
remembered the disaster that resulted from the last time spies went into the land,
which would explain why he sent them secretly into the land this time (Joshua
2:1). I find it interesting that the
place the spies chose to go was the home of a Harlot. However, as we read on we soon discover that
Rahab was no ordinary harlot and actually was a person with great faith and
fear of the God of Israel.
Perhaps she had heard of the reputation of Israel from the
men she had been with and no doubt sensed the great fear these men, some of
whom may have been soldiers in the army of Jericho, and feared for the safety
of her own family and household. We may
never know why the spies chose to visit Rahab or how she specifically developed
her great faith but we do see in this passage that the Nation of Israel had a
reputation as a fierce and mighty army and that the people currently living in
the Promised Land had great fear and respect for them.
During the Presidency of Ronald Reagan, the U.S. military
was expanded. (1) Reagan continually spoke of his intention to
bring down the former Soviet Union and end the Cold War. Even though the Cold War did not end until
after Reagan left office, his policies led to its end without the firing of a
shot. This is because the massive
economic expansion during the Reagan Administration led to an increase in
revenue to the government, in spite of the tax cuts. This funded an expansion of our military that
the Soviet Union was unable to keep pace with.
Reagan also exhibited strong leadership in his willingness
to walk away from the table in negotiations with the Soviet Union when asked to
curtail his Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) during nuclear arms discussions
in Reykjavik. (2) This walking out on negotiations threatening
the strength of the nation should not have surprised anyone for Reagan hinted
at doing such in a speech to conservatives in November 1987. (3)
During Reagan’s administration the United States had the
respect of the world due to its position of strength. Unfortunately, the Obama Administration has
weakened our position in the world and emboldened countries like Iran and
Russia who now feel unencumbered in fulfilling their agenda. With Iran, the agenda is nuclear weapons development,
which they will undoubtedly use to rid themselves infidels like Israel and the
United States, and to usher in the twelfth Imam. (4) With Russia, the intention is restoring the
Soviet Union to its position of power. (5)
Through Ronald Reagan’s visionary leadership, we were able
to end the Cold War without even firing a shot.
Unfortunately, our world today is much different. Radical terrorism will not show the same
restraint the former Soviet Union showed if they obtain nuclear weapons and
Russia is now a petroleum producer with ample cash it can use to build up its
military while the United States dismantles it’s military and incurs massive
debt due to its out of control spending and growing welfare state. This is why a sequel to the Cold War is not
something we want to see for this time we may find ourselves in a shooting war
or worse yet, the victim of a nuclear attack by radical terrorists or a revived
Soviet Union.
We must strengthen not dismantle our military so we can deal
with radical terrorists and a renewed Soviet Union from a position of strength
not weakness. As we seek leaders for our
country in the next elections it is imperative that we elect leaders that love
our country and are interested in strengthening, not weakening our position in
the world. In next Wednesday’s post I
will be looking at the connection between the events in the Ukraine and global
energy production.
1. University of Texas. The Reagan Presidency. www.reagan.utexas.edu.
[Online] [Cited: March 3, 2014.]
http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/reference/pressketch.html.
2. Perle, Kim R.
Holmes Ph.D. and Richard. On Arms Control, Learn from Reagan. www.heritage.org.
[Online] The Heritage Foundation, December 20, 2010. [Cited: March 4,
2014.]
http://www.heritage.org/research/commentary/2010/12/on-arms-control-learn-from-reagan.
3. Associated Press.
U.S. Would 'Walk Away From' Bad Soviet Deal, Reagan Says : 'Historic Results'
Near in Missile Pact, He Declares. articles.latimes.com. [Online] The LA
Times, November 30, 1987. [Cited: March 4, 2014.]
http://articles.latimes.com/1987-11-30/news/mn-17079_1_historic-results.
4. Rubinstein,
Daniel. Op-Ed: 20 Threats Made by Iran Against Israel in 2013. www.israelnationalnews.com.
[Online] Arutz Sheva 7, January 3, 2014. [Cited: March 4, 2014.]
http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/14336#.Uxaua_lSbko.
5. Once Upon a Time
in the West. onceuponatimeinthewest1.wordpress.com. Restoring the Soviet
Union. [Online] [Cited: March 4, 2014.]
http://onceuponatimeinthewest1.wordpress.com/restoring-the-soviet-union/.
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