Samson was a Judge of Israel during that time before Israel had a king. Judges were tribal leaders, who had the responsibility to guide God’s people. Samson was a Nazarite, a special servant of the Lord, from the time of his birth. His outstanding quality is his amazing physical strength. But, while Samson was blessed with great physical strength and above average intelligence, he was morally weak.
Samson was woman crazy. From his youth, he had an unusual desire for as many women as he could get. Lack of control leads to excess. One of the most important things we can learn in life is the difference between enough and too much. Many things are good for us when we have enough. But those same things can do us great harm when we have too much.
There is a danger for all of us that we are so wrapped up in ourselves that we try to take advantage of God’s goodness for our personal comfort. Any theology that puts more emphasis on what God wants us to have than on what God wants us to do is false.
Samson didn’t realize that the Lord had left him. The Lord didn’t initiate the leaving, but He did not prevent what Samson had done. The Source of Samson’s strength was God, and God was no longer with him. And in the same way, if we misuse God’s blessing, if we refuse God’s guidance, if we decide to try to make it on our own, God won’t undo our choice. But then, we are left to deal with the consequences of our choice.
Samson refused to follow God’s guidance, and it led to a loss of strength; it led to blindness and torture and slavery and humiliation. Ultimately, it led to death. And all of it was avoidable if Samson had made better choices.
Our problems today are avoidable if we make better choices. The solution to our problem is to come back to God. If we humble ourselves, if we pray about our weaknesses and shortcomings, if we seek His face and make better choices, then God will forgive our sin and bring healing to our lives (II Chronicles 7:14). The choice is ours.
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