## Life of Samson: #3 - Results of God's Blessings

## Judges 14:5-14

Over the last couple of weeks we have been looking at the life of Samson. Our goal is never just to gain historical knowledge, but it is to gain spiritual truth. The apostle Paul explained that the things that happened in the O.T. were to be examples for us. Not necessarily examples to follow, but certainly examples from which to learn.

1Co 10:11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.

Read: Judges 14:5-14

I. Details Omitted

A. This is the nature of God's Word

1. Never intended to be a moment by moment accounting of events in the lives of characters.

2. If it were, we would need a semi truck to haul it back and forth to church.

3. God selectively chooses what He desires to reveal to us.

4. After all, it is God's Word!

B. There will always be some questions about certain events that we will not fully understand until we get to heaven!

C. What I would like to know in this passage.

1. Why Samson's parents went down with him to Timnath when he was going to take a wife from the daughters of the Philistines.

2. It is clear from v3 that they were opposed to this marriage, and rightly so.

3. But here they are in v5 on their way down to this heathen city.

4. Also, how did they get separated from Samson along the way?

5. They apparently started the trip together, but when the lion came, they weren't around. v6

D. Our focus should be upon what God chose to reveal to us.

1. Someone rightly said that he was more troubled over what he knew about the Bible, than what he didn't know.

2. Tonight let's focus on what God has revealed to us in this passage about Samson, and let's learn from it.

II. The Results of God's Blessings

A. Blessings Should Bring Us Closer to God

1. The lion that came roaring toward Samson was no accident!

2. God had a reason for allowing that lion to be in that vineyard at that particular time.

Ro 8:28 And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

3. The shock of this event should have caused Samson to stop and evaluate what he was doing and where he was going.

a. Shocking situations have a way of doing that, don't they?

b. In fact, most of us have experienced similar situations. Ex. 9/11/01

c. They cause us to evaluate the seriousness of the event, and to re-evaluate what we are doing.

d. Very often, they will draw us much closer to God.

e. This event along with the incredible victory God gave him should have drawn him closer to the Lord…but it didn't!

4. Samson violated the Nazarite vow.

a. Remember when the angel appeared to Samson's parents? (13:5)

b. The angel had told them that Samson was to live an unusual kind of life.

c. He was to be a Nazarite unto God.

d. The word "Nazarite" means "to separate, or consecrate"

e. So Samson had been consecrated unto God from birth for a special purpose.

f. The book of Numbers explains what that meant for the individual.

1) No drinking of wine

2) No contact with anything that is dead

3) No cutting of their hair

4) All of these things were simply an outward manifestation of the vow made unto God.

g. The point is this; Samson was supposed to be a separated man (literally = set apart for a purpose).

1) But he took the honey out of the dead lion's carcass knowing that it was wrong, he hid it from his parents. (Note: When you hide the truth of matter, you know it is wrong!) v9

2) He then went to a drunken feast…the word used here literally means to drink! v10

3) Instead of drawing him closer to God, he was becoming less and less holy!

5. The application for us tonight.

a. When God blesses us, it should draw us closer to Him.

b. It should remind us that we belong to Him and our lives are to be lived for His glory, not our own!

c. The closer we walk with God, the less likely we are to get involved in sin.

d. 2 Corinthians 6:14-17

B. Blessings Should Also Make Us Humble.

1. There's no indication anywhere in this text that Samson, even for a moment, thought about the fact that it was God who gave him the strength to do what he did in the first place.

a. There's no worship

b. There's no praise

c. There's no thanksgiving

2. This was a tremendous opportunity for God to get the glory He deserves because He is the true God of heaven.

a. That is exactly what the nation of Israel needed to see.

b. They needed to see someone who would stand for God and God alone

c. That is also what the heathen nations around needed to see.

3. Unfortunately Samson's focus wasn't upon God and acknowledging Him.

4. Samson failed to see God at work, because he was full of himself…pride is destructive in the life of a believer!

C. Blessings Should Make Us Careful

1. Years later, David would learn this lesson the hard way!

a. At a time when he should have been watchful of the attacks of the enemy…

b. The man after God's own heart let his guard down and failed miserably!

c. There is a difference between being pessimistic and being careful and watchful for the attacks of the enemy.

2. Samson continued his downward slide in sin.

a. He got together with 30 ungodly men for his bachelor party.

b. Instead of being ashamed of the drunken feast he was at, and ashamed of the drunken people he was around Samson was treating them like his good friends.

c. Instead of being ashamed of what he had done with the lion and the honey, he made a joke out of it.

d. He turned his sin into a riddle.

3. The lesson for us this evening is to learn not to be so casual about sin.

4. We need to be careful do not take God's grace and His goodness for granted!

Ro 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

5. Certainly God has forgiven our sins and the eternal consequences of hell…

6. But we must not presume upon God's grace and live our lives recklessly!

7. That is a dangerous place to find ourselves!

Heb 10:26 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,

8. The law of sowing and reaping is not canceled out by salvation!

9. Willful sin against God will result in His chastisement upon us.

God's Blessings Upon Us Should:

- Bring us closer to God
- Make us humble
- Cause us to be careful

What about it tonight? Do we need to re-evaluate our walk with God? Has His blessings upon us brought us closer to Him…made us humble…and caused us to be careful in our walk?