Judges 16
I include the entire 16th chapter of Judges because it would do us all good to read it a time or two. It encompasses the story of Samson and Delilah, which shows the sad fall of a great man of power. Samson was not a man of high morals, nor did he show a real heart for the things of God. He was raised up by God for a certain purpose of delivering Israel from the oppressive might of the Philistines. His strength did not lie in his ability to walk holy or live right, but in one single obedient act. He was to take a vow of a Nazarite, “from the womb to the day of his death” (Judges 13:7). He could neither drink liquor nor put a razor to his head. If he was faithful in this, God would use him mightily.
For this cause, Samson was probably no bigger or more intimidating than you or I, for had he been, no one would have questioned his strength. His power was a mystery to those around him, with the exception of his parents, and that is not unlike the believer under the New Covenant. We look no different than anyone around us, but the power that resides within us due to the finished work of the cross is so marvelous that words cannot explain it. There is no act of holiness or righteousness that we can perform to increase that power; it simply comes from hearing and knowing of the loveliness of our Jesus.
After Samson became infatuated with Delilah, she revealed her true colors and deceived him into telling her the secret of his strength. Somewhere along the way, Samson had forgotten how loved and favored that he was by the Lord. Had he kept his heart focused on God’s favor and covenant with him, he would not have turned for love and affection into the lap of the world (Judges 16:19). Believers that do not focus on the Father’s love for them usually end up trying to explain what happened to them and why they fell into sin.
When Samson’s seven locks of hair were cut off, he became as any other man, and the Philistines captured him and “put out his eyes” (Judges 16:21). The seven locks are representative of God’s perfect rest, for seven always indicates either rest or completion. Since Samson’s life was not complete, nor was his work, the hair had always indicated that he was at rest in the promise of God. When he lost the hair, he lost the rest, and the only place for us to go when we are not resting in the finished work of Christ is to the millhouse of our own works.
The time came when Samson was brought to a large gathering of Philistines for a sacrifice to their god. They rejoiced when they saw Samson in chains, and they all desired for him to come before them so that they could mock him. Samson spoke to a “lad that held him by the hand” to lead him to the main pillars that held up the house. The lad led him to the pillars and Samson, whose hair had begun to grow back while in the prison house, pushed the building down in one final, victorious act.
A new generation is going to take the church by the hand and lead her to the pillars of this world. The bride has lost her rest and her spiritual vision, but God is raising up voices to bring her back to her glory, where she takes her rightful place as the victor that she is. Will you be the restless, blind church, or the lad that leads?
I include the entire 16th chapter of Judges because it would do us all good to read it a time or two. It encompasses the story of Samson and Delilah, which shows the sad fall of a great man of power. Samson was not a man of high morals, nor did he show a real heart for the things of God. He was raised up by God for a certain purpose of delivering Israel from the oppressive might of the Philistines. His strength did not lie in his ability to walk holy or live right, but in one single obedient act. He was to take a vow of a Nazarite, “from the womb to the day of his death” (Judges 13:7). He could neither drink liquor nor put a razor to his head. If he was faithful in this, God would use him mightily.
For this cause, Samson was probably no bigger or more intimidating than you or I, for had he been, no one would have questioned his strength. His power was a mystery to those around him, with the exception of his parents, and that is not unlike the believer under the New Covenant. We look no different than anyone around us, but the power that resides within us due to the finished work of the cross is so marvelous that words cannot explain it. There is no act of holiness or righteousness that we can perform to increase that power; it simply comes from hearing and knowing of the loveliness of our Jesus.
After Samson became infatuated with Delilah, she revealed her true colors and deceived him into telling her the secret of his strength. Somewhere along the way, Samson had forgotten how loved and favored that he was by the Lord. Had he kept his heart focused on God’s favor and covenant with him, he would not have turned for love and affection into the lap of the world (Judges 16:19). Believers that do not focus on the Father’s love for them usually end up trying to explain what happened to them and why they fell into sin.
When Samson’s seven locks of hair were cut off, he became as any other man, and the Philistines captured him and “put out his eyes” (Judges 16:21). The seven locks are representative of God’s perfect rest, for seven always indicates either rest or completion. Since Samson’s life was not complete, nor was his work, the hair had always indicated that he was at rest in the promise of God. When he lost the hair, he lost the rest, and the only place for us to go when we are not resting in the finished work of Christ is to the millhouse of our own works.
The time came when Samson was brought to a large gathering of Philistines for a sacrifice to their god. They rejoiced when they saw Samson in chains, and they all desired for him to come before them so that they could mock him. Samson spoke to a “lad that held him by the hand” to lead him to the main pillars that held up the house. The lad led him to the pillars and Samson, whose hair had begun to grow back while in the prison house, pushed the building down in one final, victorious act.
A new generation is going to take the church by the hand and lead her to the pillars of this world. The bride has lost her rest and her spiritual vision, but God is raising up voices to bring her back to her glory, where she takes her rightful place as the victor that she is. Will you be the restless, blind church, or the lad that leads?
