TGP: When the Deliverer Needs Deliverance

All of the characters in Scripture are sinners in need of a Savior: Abraham the doubter, Jacob the deceiver, Moses the murderer, David the adulterer, and Rahab the prostitute. We could go person by person through the entire Bible and see this pattern throughout redemptive history. God doesn’t blush at working through imperfect people.

All of the characters in Scripture are sinners in need of a Savior: Abraham the doubter, Jacob the deceiver, Moses the murderer, David the adulterer, and Rahab the prostitute. We could go person by person through the entire Bible and see this pattern throughout redemptive history. God doesn’t blush at working through imperfect people.

Why do you think the Bible’s storyline consistently highlights the flaws and failures of its heroes?

What significance does this theme have for us today?

The reality is that we walk in the footsteps of our fathers. Israel’s story is our story. Like them, we are prone to chase after empty, lifeless things. God tells us how to find life and freedom, but still we do what is right in our own eyes (see ). None of the judges in these stories solved Israel’s ultimate problem—sinful, wayward hearts. The judges are but a shadow pointing to the final Judge—Jesus Christ.

In this session, we see how God sent Samson to rescue the people of Israel from the Philistines, even when they didn’t cry out for deliverance. God, in His extravagant mercy, chose a deliverer for them. In the life of Samson, we see God working through a flawed and sinful man for the good of His people and the glory of His name.

Before Samson’s birth, an angel came to his barren mother and told her she would conceive a son. God had chosen her child to be the one who would begin delivering His people from the Philistines. The angel also told her that the child should observe the Nazirite vow from birth (and she should observe the Nazirite diet until his birth) because of God’s promise to work through her son. The Nazirite vow typically was a voluntary commitment that the people of Israel could enter into in order to pursue God.

Nazirites dedicated themselves to God by keeping three vows:

1. Never defiling themselves by touching a dead body.

2. Never drinking alcohol or eating fermented foods.

3. Never cutting their hair.

Unfortunately, as he grew up, Samson wavered in his commitment to worship and love the God of his ancestors. Samson was a distracted judge. From women, to power, to having a good time, he consistently demonstrated a tendency to go astray and reject his special identity. Nevertheless, God chose to work through him. In , we see how he impulsively pursued a Philistine woman as his wife and then how he allowed his impulses to lead him to break his vow to never touch a dead body.

Nazirites dedicated themselves to God by keeping three vows:

“Samson went down to Timnah, and at Timnah he saw one of the daughters of the Philistines. Then he came up and told his father and mother, “I saw one of the daughters of the Philistines at Timnah. Now get her for me as my wife.” But his father and mother said to him, “Is there not a woman among the daughters of your relatives, or among all our people, that you must go to take a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?” But Samson said to his father, “Get her for me, for she is right in my eyes.” His father and mother did not know that it was from the Lord, for he was seeking an opportunity against the Philistines. At that time the Philistines ruled over Israel. Then Samson went down with his father and mother to Timnah, and they came to the vineyards of Timnah. And behold, a young lion came toward him roaring. Then the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him, and although he had nothing in his hand, he tore the lion in pieces as one tears a young goat. But he did not tell his father or his mother what he had done. Then he went down and talked with the woman, and she was right in Samson’s eyes. After some days he returned to take her. And he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion, and behold, there was a swarm of bees in the body of the lion, and honey. He scraped it out into his hands and went on, eating as he went. And he came to his father and mother and gave some to them, and they ate. But he did not tell them that he had scraped the honey from the carcass of the lion.” (, ESV)

A few miles from where Samson lived was the town of Timnah, where Samson found a Philistine woman whom he wanted to marry. By pursuing this woman, Samson abandoned the clear teaching of God () and said, “She is right in my eyes.” The problem with this relationship wasn’t because of racial or ethnic differences but because of the difference in their faith. Samson was not “missionary dating” and trying to convert this girl; he just wanted what he wanted.

Isn’t this exactly what sin does to us? Sin appeals to our desires and then beckons us to pursue the fulfillment of sinful desires rather than righteousness. The most dangerous lies of our time encourage us to do what seems right for us or to follow our heart or to find our own truth. “It is right in my eyes,” we say.

But the Bible teaches that what matters isn’t what we think is right but what God says is right. God’s Word is final, and He determines right from wrong. So to “follow your arrow” or to “do what is right for you” is not the message of the Bible. This is merely our culture striving to be god. The mantra is “We decide what is right in our own eyes,” and this is pure idolatry.

What are some desires that we appeal to in order to justify our disobedience to God’s commands?

Samson’s flirtation with sin is a lesson for us. As Christians, we should not ask, “How far can we go?” or, “How close can I get to the world without sinning?” The real question we should ask instead is “How can we be holy as an expression of love for Jesus?” Samson’s heart was set on finding the line and jumping over it.

The story of Samson’s encounter with the lion reveals the level of his strength. He was impulsive and powerful, and the strength that led him to sin was also the strength that could protect him. Samson tore this lion apart like a sheet of paper! His incredible strength came from his obedience to the Nazirite vow. His strength came from God.

Once the lion was dead, to keep his vow, Samson should have gone and washed his hands with a ceremony, but he didn’t. He didn’t tell his parents what happened. Instead, on his way back home, he followed his impulses yet again and chose to eat honey out of the lion’s carcass. He then shared it with his mom and dad, even making them unclean with his actions!

Samson’s story is showing what Israel’s heart was at the time. His life was a microcosm of the people walking in rebellion and lusting after things other than God. When we read this account, God is speaking to us, warning us as we look at these compromises, challenging us not to “do what is right in our own eyes.”

Like Samson, compromise creeps into our hearts. The story of Samson is not given to us so that we can feel more or less righteous than he was. Samson’s story is showing what Israel’s heart was at the time. His life was a microcosm of the people walking in rebellion and lusting after things other than God. When we read this account, God is speaking to us, warning us as we look at these compromises, challenging us not to “do what is right in our own eyes.”

Why is it not right just to “do what comes naturally” in every situation?

What are some consequences of living this way?

By the time we get to , Samson has shown indifference to his vows, he has rejected the advice of his parents (14:3), slept with a prostitute (16:1), and continued a downward spiral of impulsiveness. He once tied 300 foxes together and lit their tails on fire in order to burn some Philistine fields (15:4). He once killed 1,000 Philistines with the jawbone of a donkey in one of the greatest battle stories in the entire Bible (15:15). But he did these things not to honor God but to vindicate himself. Samson’s successes led him to forget his identity. He trusted in his own strength instead of in God who supplied it to him.

Let’s read ...

“After this he loved a woman in the Valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came up to her and said to her, “Seduce him, and see where his great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him, that we may bind him to humble him. And we will each give you 1,100 pieces of silver.”” (, ESV)

Here we find God’s chosen deliverer with yet another woman he should be nowhere near.

Maybe you want to defend poor Samson and blame mean, old Delilah for deceiving him, but we see that both these characters wanted the same thing—their own glory. Delilah wanted power and wealth. The Philistine leaders were powerful and would give her wealth and power if she helped them. Samson wanted the thrill of the chase and sexual fulfillment.

So Delilah and Samson played this cat-and-mouse game. Three times she asked him where his strength came from, and he lied to her, defeating his would-be captors each time.

At this point it’s like watching a horror movie where you know if the girl opens that door, she’s going to be killed. The music is creepy and getting louder, you’re sweating and biting your nails, you want to say, “Samson, STOP!” But Samson is about to open that door. Let’s read ...

“And she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and you have not told me where your great strength lies.” And when she pressed him hard with her words day after day, and urged him, his soul was vexed to death. And he told her all his heart, and said to her, “A razor has never come upon my head, for I have been a Nazirite to God from my mother’s womb. If my head is shaved, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak and be like any other man.” When Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called the lords of the Philistines, saying, “Come up again, for he has told me all his heart.” Then the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hands. She made him sleep on her knees. And she called a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to torment him, and his strength left him. And she said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he awoke from his sleep and said, “I will go out as at other times and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.” (, ESV)

There was weakness in the strength of Samson. In the midst of his triumphs, Samson forgot that “the victory belongs to the Lord” (). Samson’s personal strength became the basis of his trust rather than trusting in the source of that strength.

It’s the same way with us. We tend to forget the Lord when things are going well. We become so comfortable that we fail to remember that every good gift and every perfect gift comes from above, coming down from the Father of lights ().

One benefit of church small groups is knowing people and being known well enough to warn each other when we see these patterns. We call people who feel defeated by sin to turn to God in repentance. We help each other wrestle against self-sufficiency. It is in biblical community that we remember there are no self-reliant Christians.

Samson’s story is a classic tragedy. As his life came to an end, Samson experienced true faith and repentance. He stopped trusting in his own strength and put his hope in God. Look at ...

“And the Philistines seized him and gouged out his eyes and brought him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze shackles. And he ground at the mill in the prison. But the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaved. Now the lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to rejoice, and they said, “Our god has given Samson our enemy into our hand.” And when the people saw him, they praised their god. For they said, “Our god has given our enemy into our hand, the ravager of our country, who has killed many of us.” And when their hearts were merry, they said, “Call Samson, that he may entertain us.” So they called Samson out of the prison, and he entertained them. They made him stand between the pillars. And Samson said to the young man who held him by the hand, “Let me feel the pillars on which the house rests, that I may lean against them.” Now the house was full of men and women. All the lords of the Philistines were there, and on the roof there were about 3,000 men and women, who looked on while Samson entertained. Then Samson called to the Lord and said, “O Lord God, please remember me and please strengthen me only this once, O God, that I may be avenged on the Philistines for my two eyes.” And Samson grasped the two middle pillars on which the house rested, and he leaned his weight against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other. And Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines.” Then he bowed with all his strength, and the house fell upon the lords and upon all the people who were in it. So the dead whom he killed at his death were more than those whom he had killed during his life. Then his brothers and all his family came down and took him and brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtaol in the tomb of Manoah his father. He had judged Israel twenty years.” (, ESV)

Here we find strength in Samson’s weakness. It is through man’s brokenness that God puts His glory on display. This is the only time in Samson’s life we see him praying. He has run after sexual conquests, he has walked in violence and vengeance, he has been foolish, he disobeyed his parents, and he has done everything he has known to be wrong.

Now he’s a different man. Samson is at the end of himself. The Philistines captured him, plucked out his eyes, and turned him into a slave that ground grain.

It took humiliation and weakness to finally get Samson’s attention. What are some circumstances God can use to get our attention and draw us back to Him?

At the end of his life, Samson cried out to God for enough strength to defeat the enemies of God’s people who were present. God reached down into the brokenness of the judge who was chosen before his birth, and for the good of His people, He answered Samson’s prayer. He rescued His people despite their total unbelief. Samson’s downfall was the result of his own disobedience, and yet God used his death to begin the deliverance of His people.

You might wonder if Samson actually believed in the Lord. I think if this were the only account of Samson we had in the Bible, we might have reason to wonder. But guess who shows up in Hebrews chapter 11? Samson (). Along with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David is the name of Samson, who walked by faith in God.

Centuries later, another baby would come after the announcement of an angel. The angel told a young girl named Mary that she would carry the Deliverer of God’s people in her womb. She should call the boy Jesus. This time the deliverer would not need deliverance but would bring deliverance to the whole world. Jesus’ death was the result of both His perfect obedience and our disobedience. And God used His death to bring deliverance “once for all” for His people.

Jesus is greater than Samson. He is the Judge who never breaks His Word, the Judge who never operates out of impulse or for self-gratification. He only does the works of the Father, and in His death, many—including us—become sons and daughters of God.

To our friends who are not Christians: look at the life of Samson. Look at how God loved the womanizing, angry killer. Look at His mercy on display. There is no sin that God cannot forgive. There is no end to His mercy. But today, choose to believe in God, and trust Jesus to forgive all of your sins.

1. Never defiling themselves by touching a dead body.

2. Never drinking alcohol or eating fermented foods.

3. Never cutting their hair.