Samson

Sunday I'm preaching a sermon on Samson and as of now I am not anywhere close to being prepared. In fact, I've spent all day just trying to get started, which I haven't really succeeded as of now. But I thought it might be helpful for me to write some of my thoughts down as I work through them. So forgive me if this post is a bit scattered and poorly written - it may not make sense or it may just be obvious observations.

I plan on touching on the entire story of Samson's life, but specifically dealing with the most famous section of Samson and Delilah. The first thing to strike me about Samson is just how unheroic he really was. Samson was tremendously violent and vengeful man. He was more or less a sexaholic (why do we tell this story to children?) who especially had a thing for Philistine women (i.e. "non-Christians). He was proud, he completely abandoned God and God's laws. He was shallow in his relationships, and he falsely believed himself to be indestructible. I guess I would put it this way: Samson was trying to be his own savior. This is very apparent in v. 20-22,

And [Delilah] 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. 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.

I mean, Samson had to have known his head had been shaved! Why did he tell Delilah his secret in the first place? Because he thought it wouldn't matter. Samson had already disobeyed all the other Nazarite vows. He had touched the dead carcase of a lion and a donkey's skull. Even though we're not specifically told, we can assume he drank alcohol when he got married to his pagan wife, seeing how marriage ceremonies in that culture would have been 9 parts partying and 1 part ceremony. You see, Samson didn't care if his head was shaved. He didn't think it would make any difference. He truly believed that he could take the Philistines without his hair and without God. And isn't this what sin is? Sin is being your own savior instead of looking to Jesus. It's relying in your own strength to be good and moral to save yourself. Or it's relying in your own strength of being popular and cool and accepted. It's attempting to find acceptance and comfort and happiness on our own, instead of though Christ.

And, isn't it amazing how patient and gracious God is though all of this! Samson breaks every one of God's rules except the hair cutting one, and God stays with him - blessing him through his strength. Then, even when God allows Samson to be captured by the Philistines, he quickly forgives Samson in the end of the chapter. Even God's seeming abandonment of Samson was a gracious act, causing Samson to turn to God in repentance and thus saving his soul.

So the moral of the story is don't be like Samson. Find your strength in God. But even if you mess that up, God is quick to forgive. Wait. No. We can't end it like that. How do we do all that? How do we fight sin and temptation? How do we rely on the Lord instead of our own strengths? Ed Clowney writes,

God had shown that He could deliver Israel with an army of willing volunteers; He had also shown that He could save with as few as three hundred...But when the Spirit of God came upon Samson, the Lord showed that He had no need for even three hundred. He could deliver by one. (The Unfolding Mystery, p.137)

But Samson only delivered Israel from Palestinian rule. Israel's troubles were far from over, even after this victory. But there was a greater Samson to come who like Samson dies alone to save his people.

• Samson dies with the Philistines;
  
• Jesus dies with thieves.

• Samson’s greatest victory came when he was at his weakest - eyes gouged out, a prisoner with all of his strength gone, ridiculed, and surrounded by people who hated him.
  
• And like Samson, Jesus also won through losing - won by becoming despised and rejected.
  

• Samson triumphed over his enemies through his death.
  
• Jesus defeated sin and the devil through physical, emotional, psychological and spiritual death.

• Samson was crushed by the temple because of his iniquities.
  
• Jesus was crushed by God for our iniquities.

• Samson calls out to God to remember him in his time of need and God answers to show that he is with him again.
  
• Jesus calls out on the cross and the Father ignores him, so that we might, like the thief on the cross next to him, be remembered.

The way to stop being my own savior is not trying hard - it's to look to Jesus - the real Samson - the real hero of this story.

Outside the Camp

Have you noticed how many obstacles God must overcome to accomplish his purposes in the first few books of the Bible? Abraham is an old man and Sarah is barren. Jacob is a cheat and a liar. Joseph's brothers hate him and want him dead. A little later the nation of Israel is miles from the promised land and enslaved to a foreign power. Yet God, time and again, demonstrates his sovereignty by ordering events in such a way that his purposes are accomplished. Abraham and Sarah give birth to Isaac. Jacob finds out first hand what being cheated feels like and has a wrestling match that changes his life. Joseph, through adversity, ends up saving the family from starvation. And Israel is miraculously delivered from Egyptian slavery.

When we come to Exodus 25, however, we face a far greater challenge. In Ex 19:21-22 God instructs Moses saying, "Go down and warn the people so they do not force their way through to see the LORD and many of them perish. Even the priests, who approach the LORD, must consecrate themselves, or the LORD will break out against them." The Lord's point is clear. He is holy and if we entered the presence of that holiness we would be consumed. This doesn't pose a problem until the Holy decides to take up residence among you! In chapter 25 of Exodus God reveals to Israel his intentions to "dwell among them." Now this is a problem. Gary Schnittjer articulates their dilemma well. "How could [Israel] avoid the fate of Pharaoh when they shared his foremost characteristic?" (Torah Story, 260)

In this context, God orders the tabernacle to be constructed which will separate him from the people. He also organizes the nation into what is called the camp, thus separating Israel from the rest of the world. In other words... he draws lines in the sand.

Now, look at Numbers 5:3. "The LORD said to Moses, Command the Israelites to send away from the camp anyone who has an infectious skin disease or a discharge of any kind, or who is ceremonially unclean because of a dead body. Send away male and female alike; send them outside the camp so that they will not defile their camp, where I dwell among them." The remains of a bull that was sacrificed were taken outside the camp as well, to be disposed of. When Aaron's sons, Nadab and Abihu, were killed in the sanctuary by fire, Moses instructed two of Aaron's nephews to carry the bodies outside the camp. The picture painted of the world outside the camp, then, is one of disease, death, and refuse. As a Jew, outside the camp is the last place in the world you want to be.

Recently in chapel a guest speaker spoke about this idea of being "outside the camp" and I simply have not been able to shake it. His main text that morning was Hebrews 13:11-14. Bearing in mind what we have already established about the biblical description of "outside the camp" lets read the passage.

"For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy places by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. " Heb 13:11-14

This passage displays so powerfully what the redemptive work of Christ accomplished on our behalf. In Exodus 19 God's command is 'Come no further or I will break out against you.' This is followed by a plethora of regulations meant to protect the Jews from the wrath of God. Suddenly, in Hebrews we see the incarnate God walking, not among the tribes in the midst of the camp, which would have been miraculous enough. Rather, we find him outside the camp. He is with the lepers, the prostitutes, and the other socailly unwanted.

Christ's work outside the camp is a devotion by itself. However, I do not want to stop there. My focus is verses 13-14. "Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come." The author of Hebrews was writing to encourage Jewish believers who were being tempted to forsake Christ and return to a sacerdotal form of worship. His heart cry to them is that they would turn their back on anything that was less than Christ. Gentlemen, is this not our calling? I do not speak of the office of pastor. Rather, I am speaking of the call placed on every single believer. God has asked us to reject this world and its promises, and to willingly take upon ourselves the reproach of joining Christ outside. This means rejecting the worlds view of success. We are not called to have a well balanced portfolio. We are not called to attain positions or status. We are called to RECKLESSLY abandon everything in the camp, take upon ourselves the shame and disgrace of being outside, and join Christ is doing the will of the Father.

That image hit me with such force that I have simply been unable to shake it. In my average day how often am I among those outside the camp? How willing am I to reject the approval and applause of man (O how attractive that is to me at times) and follow Christ into the dark places where I will be mocked, ridiculed, and abused? How willing am I to lead my family there? How willing am I to pour out my life there for God's glory?

The author of Hebrews follows this challenge by providing our motivation. "For here we have no lasting city..." Oh that I could find a way to let that seep into my soul!!! This is not it. We have not arrived. I get so frustrated sometimes with the things of this world. Alyssa and I have not been able to repair the walls in our living room so I sit here typing this in a room closely resembling a WWII bomb shelter. Our carpet is "sea foam green", my car's windshield wipers only work when it is not raining, and I have yet to acquire my Ducati dream. Yet I must daily reprimand this flesh of mine for its insatiable appetite. There is no city here for me. This is not my home, "but we seek the city that is to come." Father God, enable me to set my affections on the home that you have prepared for me. "For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

Our Motivation: He rejoices over us with gladness

I, too, want to bounce off the previous posts since we are all writing roughly on the same subject this week. Let me refresh your mind on what the others spoke about:

Troy spoke of the Christian's duty to be transparent within the body of Christ, for the purpose of Christians interceding for one another in prayer. After all, how can we really pray for our friends if we only know about their physical or economic problems? Or better yet, how can our friends - our brothers in Christ - pray for us if they don't know the deep spiritual struggles we wrestle with personally.

Josh continued this theme of "iron sharpening iron" by pointing out that Christian fellowship is rooted in honoring and loving God. If we love God, we will love one another. Josh points out that this isn't some kind of sissy homo-erotic kind of love between two men. It is a serious love - a deep love that confronts and corrects. It is a love that does not fear rejections, but that is concerned about the other's soul - an unselfish love.

Then Scalise nicely ties these two together, saying while it is true that we can never rightly love one another until we love God, we can never love God without the help, encouragement, and accountability of loving friends.

My question is how do we do it? I am Christian man who is currently in seminary, and there are sins and struggles that I have that I, quite frankly, don't want anyone else to know about. How do I over come those fears? How do I get to the point that I want my Christian friends to share my burdens? And in the same way I ask, how do I get to the point that I am willing to confront my friends over their sins? To be perfectly honest, I would much rather not risk my friends being upset with. I would much rather let them deal with their sin and me deal with mine. How, then, do I come to the place that not only am I willing to open up to others, but I am willing to confront others even in fear their disapproval? In other words, how do I love God wholeheartedly? How do I love Him so much that I have no fears of opening up and or being rejected?

We can't. Not without Jesus. You see, I will never have the desire to become transparent - to take off all the different masks I wear which hide the real me - to strip down to the bare naked Drew whose sins are hanging out unless I know that Jesus literally became naked - stripped down bare and hung on a cross for all the world to see - for my sins, so that I could be clothed in the righteousness of God. He became the one who was covered in blood and was naked, and no one pitied. He was the one who was cast into an open field and adored (see Ez. 16:1-5). And He did this for me and for you. He did this so that we could be beautiful in His eyes. He describes it like this,

"I spread the corner of my garment over you and covered your nakedness; I made my vow to you and entered into a covenant with you, declares the Lord God, and you became mine. Then I bathed you with water and washed off your blood from you and anointed you with oil. I clothed you also with embroidered cloth and shod you with fine leather. I wrapped you in fine linen and covered you with silk. And I adorned you with ornaments and put bracelets on your wrists and a chain on your neck. And I put a ring on your nose and earrings in your ears and a beautiful crown on your head. Thus you were adorned with gold and silver, and your clothing was of fine linen and silk and embroidered cloth. You ate fine flour and honey and oil. You grew exceedingly beautiful and advanced to royalty. And your renown went forth among the nations because of your beauty, for it was perfect through the splendor that I had bestowed on you, declares the Lord God" (Ez. 16:8b-14).

When we know that God looks at us and sees absolute beauty, then, and only then, are we going to have the courage to be transparent. In Zephaniah it says that God, "will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing" (3:17). Do you believe that? Can you even fathom that when God looks at you he so much likes what he sees (because of Christ) that he dances, and he sings with gladness!? To the extent that we see this, and understand this, and believe this, is the extent that we will be willing to become transparent and share our burdens with our fellow Christians.

And in the same way, I am not going to have the courage to confront my brothers and sisters in Christ unless I know that no matter how mad they may get at me, Jesus looks over me and rejoices at what he sees! To have the courage to confront a friend in his sin is the greatest act of humility. It is not me thinking about myself - worried about what my friend will say, or the sins he will find in me - it is be thinking entirely of him and being interested in his life and being concerned about his spiritual wellbeing. The only way we can possess such humility is if we first have our hearts changed by Jesus' ultimate humility: a humility that left the glory of heaven; a humility that lived the life we should have lived and died the death we deserved to die; a humility that left him naked and cursed; a humility that took on our sins and went through the torments of hell; a humility that now shares the glory of the only begotten Son with unworthy servants - with us. May we look to Christ, for it is only when we believe his Gospel with all our being that we can become true friends to one another, true iron that sharpens, does not dull.

Concerning the Law: The Second Greatest Commandment

Leviticus 19:17-18 You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but you shall reason frankly with your neighbor, lest you incur sin because of him. You shall not take vengeance or bear a grudge against the sons of your own people, but you shall love your neighbor as yourself: I am the LORD.

Leviticus 25:17 You shall not wrong one another, but you shall fear your God, for I am the LORD your God.

I wasn’t planning on discussing what I am about to discuss but I want to bounce off Josh’s post a little bit in the OT. I love how the Law here in Leviticus states so plainly the interconnectedness of Divine doctrine and acceptable worship (I am stating worship here as practically living life according to the Lord’s ways); or in other words, orthodoxy and orthopraxy. All pretense (consider Josh’s post) and non-transparency (consider Troy’s post) in our everyday dealing with people exhibits some level of hate. “You shall not hate your brother in your heart, but”… The “but” here is to show contrast so if you are not hating your brother in your heart then you will be frank with them; or in other words if you are loving your neighbor then you will be frank with them. Now this can definitely be messy as Josh stated. Then the Law directly ties our offense of “pretense with our neighbor” directly to the Lord, “lest you incur sin because of him.” All sin is first and for-most against the Lord (Ps 51:4). Now we have great need of accountability in our lives when we understand our sin before the Holy Righteous Judge. Yes our sin hurts ourselves and it hurts others, yet how disgusting it is cannot be seen until a clear picture of the Most High is plain (or at least clearer knowing that we are always looking through a glass dimly lit).
I wanted to bring Lev 25:17 in because of the clarity it offers. The context is dealing primarily with financial interactions between people and not only that but with the year of Jubilee and many social considerations (land, slaves, etc). Therefore, do not wrong one another…why? Because of the Lord. Our righteous (right) interactions with people are rooted in the very existence and character of God just as our offenses of people are offenses towards God. No wonder Jesus said “ So if you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” As Josh stated relating rightly with God will render right relationship with people. But brothers, oh how we need one another in these endeavors…the complexity of life with all the thousands of interactions that take place daily should push us to the Lord and to one another.

Scalise

Accountability and the High Priest

I love the Old Testament. I think it is the kid in me who likes action movies and super heroes. The vivid scenes recorded there, like the first Passover and the three Hebrew children in the fiery furnace, seem to lodge in my brain and remain long after. The description of the High Priest is one such scene. On the tenth day of the seventh month (the Day of Atonement) Aaron was to bathe and put on his priestly garb. His robe was blue. Upon its hem were pomegranates of blue and purple and bells of gold between them. He wore a sash embroidered with needlework, a coat of fine linen, and a turban upon which hung a golden plate declaring to the world “Holy to the LORD”. Aaron must have been a stunning sight to the people of Israel. My favorite part, however, is the breastpiece of judgment. It was made of gold, blue, purple, and scarlet yarns and bore upon it twelve stones. A name of one of the tribes of Israel was engraved on each stone. Likewise, upon the shoulder straps were two stones, one on each side. Six tribes were engraved on one and six on the other. Every time Aaron entered God’s presence on behalf of the nation of Israel he bore the names of the tribes upon his chest and shoulders.

I realize our topic to kick off this ‘blog-arama’ is accountability and what Proverbs 27:17 contributes to that idea. “As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another.” As luck would have it, we were working our way through 1 John 5 in class last week. As we sauntered along we suddenly ran smack into verse 16. “If anyone sees his brother commit a sin that does not lead to death, he should pray and God will give him life…” Now if you are like me, you will read that, completely ignore the point of the passage, and immediately go straight to the phrase “a sin that does not lead to death”. My professor, however, wise beyond his years, simply asked us to ignore the phrase for a minute. “If anyone sees his brother commit a sin… he should pray and God will give him life…” Wow! What an incredible statement. There are several questions pertaining to the sin that leads to death. However, don’t allow those questions to take away from the force of John’s statement. John’s point is crystal clear. If we see a brother sin we are to bring our concerns to God. In response to our prayers God will give life to our struggling brother.

One essential element of accountability is immediately apparent in verse 16. John assumes we are aware of the sin our brother is falling into. In our present culture, and especially among men, this couldn’t be further from the truth. I had been praying for an accountability partner for over 3 years without any results. Then one Sunday morning last year, we ended our bible study time by pairing up and sharing prayer concerns. To be honest, it is normally a huge waste of time. People get together and share only those concerns they deem socially acceptable. This Sunday, however, my partner was a good friend of mine. He opened up and shared some serious issues he was wrestling with. I simply sat there and wept. They were the very things that I had been dealing with. I had found my accountability partner.

If we are not willing to risk being transparent with another believer, we will never know the joy of Christian fellowship. We are not a social club. We are a fellowship of the diseased. There is not one among us untouched by the plague of sin. There is, therefore, no need for pretension.

A second element of accountability we see in verse 16 is more obvious. We must take our brotherly concerns to God in prayer. It was Catherine Marshall who said, “One can believe intellectually in the efficacy of prayer and never do any praying.” I think she had me in mind. I do not doubt that God answers prayers. I simply struggle with the idea that he will answer mine. If we take verse 16 seriously, however, we must recognize that it contains both a promise and a responsibility. God is promising to give life to struggling Christians in response to prayer. At the same time, he is laying on us the responsibility to offer up those prayers.

Speaking of prayer…

I am reminded of a wonderful scene in the Old Testament. It is the Day of Atonement and the High Priest, in his priestly garb, is entering the presence of God with twelve names on his chest and twelve on his shoulders. In like manner, let us “approach the throne of grace with confidence” bearing the names of our brothers.