Robert Smith, Jr.

In this brilliant sermon on Rahab the prostitute, the master preacher Dr. Robert Smith offers a new twist to our series on R-rated preaching. He rates his sermon as an "R" not for sex or violence, but for redemption in the midst of mess. Dr. Smith says, "We are modern day Marcionites. We embrace the New Testament. We do not deny the Old Testament, we just ignore it and don't preach from it." But then he plows into the bowels of Joshua 2 and pulls out some incredible gems from God's grand redemption story.

Joshua Butler

"Show no mercy." "Utterly destroy them." "Do not leave alive anything that breathes." Is all that in the Bible? Why does God call for the destruction of the Canaanites? As we've been exploring throughout our R-rated preaching series, these passages leave Christians confused and unbelievers even more skeptical. Fortunately Joshua Ryan Butler once again serves as a capable guide (see his other article on R-rated preaching) as he walks us through how to preach on these tough texts.

Also, check out these new resources:

• Featured Illustration: Young Doctors Trained at an Art Gallery
• Featured Video: Radiant Dawn: This video is a powerful spoken word poem by Tim Palmer about the power of God that lives inside each of us.
• Featured Sermon: "Rated R for Redemption" by Robert Smith Jr.
• Featured Skills Article: "Preaching Holy War" by Joshua Ryan Butler

Matt Woodley
Editor, PreachingToday.com
mwoodley@christianitytoday.com

P.S. Don't miss the opportunity to download our free eBook: The Preacher's Complete Skills Guide

Matt Woodley is the pastor of compassion ministries at Church of the Resurrection in Wheaton, Illinois.