Hard Questions to Answer

July 31, 2008

I believe every word of the Bible and hold to it as the absolute authority of truth in my life. That does not mean, however, that I have all the answers. The Bible is divinely-inspired and, as such, is a book that is infinite in its depth. I’m not. Intelligent, thinking people often disappear from churches and Bible studies where the preacher or teacher gives the impression that he or she knows it all and has all of God’s truth neatly tucked away in little plastic containers. Face it. There are some tough things to understand in the Bible — and in life.

Reading through Judges the past few days has reminded me of these hard questions. Today I was looking at Judges 14, part of Samson’s story. You probably remember that Samson is a pretty despicable character. From his youth he was rebellious and disrespectful toward his parents, friends and society in general. He was a hot head, a womanizer and a murderer. Definitely not Sunday school teacher material.

In spite of his nasty temperament, between Judges 13 and 15 it is said five times that the Spirit of God came upon Samson. In today’s reading I found Samson killing a lion and then 30 men in a fit of anger. Yet it says that he did this as the Spirit of the Lord came on him. How can we possible reconcile these two apparently contradictory aspects of Samson’s life?

If you don’t find this story troubling for a number of reasons, you probably need some sensitivity training – either that or just some basic honesty. I certainly don’t pretend to have all the answers as to what God is doing in and through this sad and messy story, but I do offer a couple of observations as I reflected on this today over a nice skinny latte.

God can and does use whoever and whatever to do whatever and whenever he wants. After all, he is God. God used Baalam’s ass and even uses you and me. This is a place to speak of God’s providence and sovereignty. God has a plan and he will see it through. He will do this in ways that sometimes confuse and amaze us and at times using people that we find repulsive. It’s the message, not the messenger. If you are still wondering why in the world God would use someone as vile as Samson, it’s probably just because you weren’t available at the time.
There is a major difference between God’s Spirit coming upon someone for a specific purpose and someone who is filled with or controlled by the Spirit. God wanted to accomplish some things in Samson’s day and chose him to do them regardless of his carnality and pride. One who is filled with the Spirit is one whose life is totally filled with God, is in complete submission to him and who gives evidence of a transformed life as characterized by the fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22-23).

There is no doubt that God can use me anytime and any way he wants. After all he has done for me, I don’t want to be just his blunt object. I want to be his sharp instrument to perform his soul surgery in the lives of those he loves. I want to be filled with the Spirit in every part of my life, not just one upon whom the Spirit falls for a moment in time.

Damon Ferrell

the spirit of the lord did come on samson, but it was up to samson what he did with the strength. samson was supposed to have been a nazarite for life, but he had trouble living up to the nazarite vow. he wasn’t supposed to eat anything unclean, but he ate honey from the carcass of the dead lion obviously unclean. he broke a vow. he kills the thirty men of ashkelon so he could pay the philistines at the party. ashkelon is a philistine city. why was samson wrong? he was wrong because he used the strength to accomplish his own means and not GODS. He uses his strength for revenge, when they burn his wife and her father with fire, he uses it to pay up for the bet he made,thats whats wrong with that picture. samson should not have been messing around with the philistine women at all. It brought him nothing but trouble. He was supposed to be saving isreal from these people not partying with them, not marrying them.
the last thing he does is flirt with fate by telling delilah his secret. It said samson loved delilah, but delilah loved money.
eventually his hair was shaven and God departs from him. why? he completely destroyed the nazarite vow with his final actions.

http://www.kcbt.org Jeff Adams

Thanks for the comments, Damon. Yes, Samson was wrong for all those reasons and more. The question, though, is why God’s Spirit would come upon someone who was already despicable. Yes, he was a nazarite, but it is apparent that though he kept the outward requirements of the vow for a period of time, he never lived by the internal character they supposedly symbolized.

http://www.kcbt.org Jeff Adams

Duck, Thanks for the comments. There are some amazing stories about Francis of Assisi. He lived quite a life!
http://www.kcbt.org Jeff Adams

Dick, Good to hear from you! Happy Anniversary to you and Mary, too!
Dick Bradley

Jeff,
I read your blog from time to time and enjoy keeping up on your world. Trust all is well with you and your family. I hope you and Cheryl have a happy anniversary…Dick
http://coffeewithaduck.com Aaron Duckworth

“If you are still wondering why in the world God would use someone as vile as Samson, it’s probably just because you weren’t available at the time.”

Best comment of the whole post. It made me laugh because it drips with truth if, as you point out, we’re honest with ourselves. To your main point and as a contrasting example of someone who was filled with God’s spirit vs. having the spirit come upon them, it also reminded me of a famous story about St. Francis of Assisi:

Once St. Francis of Assisi was confronted by a brother who asked him repeatedly, “Why you? Why you?”

Francis responded, in today’s terms, “Why me what?”

“Why does everyone want to see you? Hear you? Obey you? You are not all so handsome, nor learned, nor from a noble family. Yet the world seems to want to follow you,” the brother said.

Then Francis raised his eyes to heaven, knelt in praise to God, and turned to his interrogator:

“You want to know? It is because the eyes of the Most High have willed it so. He continually watches the good and the wicked, and as His most holy eyes have not found among sinners any smaller man, nor any more insufficient and sinful, therefore He has chosen me to accomplish the marvelous work which God has undertaken; He chose me because He could find none more worthless, and He wished to confound the nobility and grandeur, the strength, the beauty, and the learning of this world.”

I think it makes a great illustration of the blunt object vs. the sharp instrument. Thanks for this post.

Jeff Adams

Hard Questions to Answer