As a pastor, I come back to the question of motivation often. Why should someone give up their Sunday morning and come to church? Why should someone be baptized? After all, if we did not know about baptism, is not the picture of someone being drenched in water a bit strange? Why do it?
A good place to begin answering such questions is the story of Rahab in Joshua 2. If you do not know that account, Rahab was a prostitute who decided to betray her country of Jericho. Later, in a spectacular victory, Israel totally destroyed Jericho. Why would Rahab turn her back on her own people?
It certainly was not because Israel or her leaders were perfect. Moses’ temper, his struggles with Aaron and Miriam were well documented and the Bible hints that his home life was at times stormy. As for the rest of Israel, God severely judged Israel on numerous occasions for their willful disobedience.
At the end of the day, Rahab tells us in her own words in Joshua 2 why she joined Israel. She said that when she heard that the God of Israel was the one true God, her heart melted in fear. She knew that she and her family would be giving an account to God, and she did not want to oppose Him.
If you are looking for motivation for pursuing a relationship with God, then fear is a good place to start. God is awesome and incredible and we will give an account to Him. Proverbs 9:10 says that the “fear of the Lord” is the beginning of wisdom – – reverential awe of God is the first step towards being motivated to make good choices.
Amen!