A Prayer That Shapes the Church ("An Ode to Joy" A series on Philippians)

A PRAYER THAT SHAPES THE CHURCH

**Note: This series is entitled "Ode to Joy" based on Beethoven's music and Henry Van Dyke's lyrics. Paul wrote this letter from prison where he languished for two years. Yet, even while in chains, Paul rejoiced and found reasons for joy because of his faith in Christ Jesus and God's assurances to which he clung. The themes of Philippians are appropriate for our times when new crises on the world stage keep emerging and old ones flaunt their effects on us in rising costs and persistent anxieties. Paul will teach us that the Christian can find joy in the midst of trouble through Christ who strengthens him.

 

When a church opens itself completely to Jesus and makes him the center of its life, it finds itself overwhelmed by grace in the love of God. A church that seeks Jesus finds a new way to live together and more reasons to love one another, even when there are no natural connections to do so. 

            The Church at Philippi was a mystery in this way. Acts 16 tells us how the church began. The founding members were a rich fashionista, Lydia, a young girl who had once been possessed by a fortune-telling demon, and a hardened prison guard and his whole family. Nothing would bring these three people together in normal circumstances. They were from different social circles and interests. All they had in common was the gospel of Jesus Christ, but they had allowed this gospel to transform them – Jesus changed them! Even though they were different people from different cultures, Jesus gave them a new culture to unite them – a gospel culture. 

            Paul loved this church. He loved all the churches, but I believe he felt a special kinship with Philippi. With most churches, Paul had to defend his apostleship. In writing to Philippi, he opens with, “Paul and Timothy, slaves of Christ Jesus…” Not servants. Not apostles. Slaves! A slave, they knew, had no freedom apart from what the owner allowed them. Paul joyfully gave himself to Jesus as a slave to God’s will. 

            In these opening verses, we also see a focus on “Christ Jesus.” “Slaves of Christ Jesus…To all God’s holy people (saints) in Christ Jesus…” To refer to Jesus as “Christ Jesus” is a way of saying “King Jesus.” He is the Anointed One, the Son of God, the promised King in David’s line. You ‘re going to see that this is revolutionary and dangerous for Christians; you will also see it is the foundation for the gospel culture of the church.

            Paul prays for this church. It’s this opening prayer we want to focus on this morning, for it is a prayer for the gospel culture to shape the church. It is a prayer we also want to pray. 

 

1. Thank God for YOU! (1:3-6)

 

Paul’s prayer is a model I often follow. I am thankful for this church for so many reasons. Paul puts into words what is so important to him. 

            First, he says, “I thank my God every time I remember you,” (3). You can imagine that when someone mentions Philippi, Paul smiles and has warm fuzzies. With some congregations, Paul may have to think harder as to why he is thankful for them. Philippi is easy.

            There is more to this sentiment though. The Greek will leave you wondering. For Paul may be saying, “I thank God that you remember me.” And that makes more sense in some ways because this letter is a “thank you” to the church for their financial and prayer support for Paul’s ministry. Most commentators can’t decide which it is – it could go either way. It will make more sense in our next point to be sure.

            Skipping to verse 6 for a moment, we see a second reason for Paul’s joy over this church. If we consider that Paul is thankful for their remembrance of him financially and prayerfully, it is because it is evidence of God’s work in them. He prays with this assurance, “…being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus,” (6).

            Memorize this verse. When you feel like you are not progressing in your faith-walk, when you feel like you are not doing enough or good enough, remember this. Paul is confident of this: God started the work in you. God took the initiative to give us Jesus and to demonstrate his love for us in his cross. Think of Lydia (Acts 16:14) where it says that the Lord opened her heart to respond to Paul’s message. If God did not begin the work in you, you would never have come to him. God continues his work in you. He did not call you to know Jesus and said, “good enough.” God is at work in you, making you to be like his Son continually. Even when you can’t see him, he’s working. Even in our suffering and in our pain and our trials, God is working in us. And we know that God will complete his work in you. Nothing will keep God from completing his work in you, even if you mess up. On the Day of Christ Jesus when we stand before his throne, what we are and who we are will be finished, an extreme makeover.

            What a thing to say: I am confident of this; God is doing a great work in you. Isn’t that an awesome thing to say to a sister or brother in the Lord? And I say this to you now, I am thankful for you RFC, and I am confident that God is working something amazing in us all.

 

2. The Joy of Partnering with You (1:7-8)

 

What makes this prayer so meaningful is Paul’s attitude towards the Philippians. He is not condescending to them like an “owner” of the church to his renters; he calls them partners.

            Let’s return to verse 5 and link it with 7-8. Paul says, “I thank my God…because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now…” That theme continues in 7-8 when he says, “…all of you share in God’s grace with me.” 

            The word he uses in both instances is a word I would like you to get used to: koinonia. It is a Greek word that means “fellowship” (but not coffee and donuts). Koinonia (fellowship) means “to partner together.” 

            Ray Pritchard said that the word “fellowship” originally held commercial overtones. If two men bought a boat and started a fishing business, they were said to be in koinonia – a formal business partnership. They shared a common vision, and each put their money into the venture to make it a reality. 

            True Christian fellowship or koinonia means sharing the same vision of Jesus, of sharing the good news with the world, and investing in this kingdom venture to make it a reality. When Paul thanks God for the “partnership” of the Philippians, he is thanking God that from the first day they heard about the gospel, they got busy, they rolled up their sleeves and helped advance the good news of Jesus. They put the gospel first as the controlling motivation of their lives and did whatever it took to bring this message of Jesus to everyone.

            A couple of things make this partnership pop. The Philippians were not ashamed of Paul’s chains. He said, “…whether I am in chains or defending and confirming the gospel…” We may have a very different view of Paul’s chains today – as a mark of his commitment no matter the obstacle – but in those days, to be imprisoned was seen as failure. It made the gospel look weak. It made Paul look like a criminal, a fraud, a telemarketer. The Philippians didn’t see it that way. They knew that it was for the sake of Jesus that Paul ended up in a cell. 

            Another amazing thing, this church was not wealthy, but they gave more money to the cause of Christ than the rich churches. They were the first to give to Paul’s mission. Paul praises them for giving out of their meagreness in 2 Corinthians. This is why Paul loves these people – he can see that Jesus got a hold of them. He says, “God can testify how I long for all of you with the affection of Christ,” (8). The word “affection” refers to the heart generally, but more specifically it means the intestines, the kidneys, and the heart. In other words, I love you with all my “guts.” 

 

3. Our Ongoing Prayer for the Church (1:9-11)

 

I thank God for you! I am so thankful that we are partners in the sharing of Jesus with each other and the world! What joy there is being a church together.

            Let’s continue to make Paul’s prayer a prayer we pray for our church as he did for the Philippians. This is a great text for praying scripture over each other. Paul says, “And this is my prayer…”

The Focus: “…that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight…” (9). Paul’s focus in this request is that we would have a limitless love that abounds more and more. The picture is of a river rushing over its banks and flooding out over the land. I know that’s a painful imagery for us living in a flood zone. But think of the implication: the ’97 flood and its far-reaching coverage – the flood of the century. Imagine praying that God’s love would so fill us that our love would pour out over every believer and infect every unbeliever. This “love” is agape love – a kind of love that is unconditional and finds its source only from God. It’s not driven by emotion or impulse; it’s a matter of the will. To love for love’s sake. 

The Hope: “…so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ…” (10). Paul’s hope in this request is our hope. Imagine praying this for someone you know, praying that God’s love would help you to love them. Then when God’s love abounds more and more in you, you will be able to discern what is best. We don’t think of love leading to discernment, but God’s love helps us to identify what is good and what is evil, or between what is good, better, and best. 

            The Greek word for “discern” was used for testing counterfeit money. I read a story about testing pottery in those days. Good pottery was made as thin as possible. Sometimes the pottery cracked, and the potter would use a wax colored like the pottery to cover the imperfection. A discerning buyer would hold up pottery to the light to see if there was any deception. We pray for discernment so that the love of God in us will help us to choose what is best for ourselves and others. 

The Goal: “…filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ – to the glory and praise of God,” (11). Finally, we pray that our lives would be fruitful. Do we pray this for our church? What would this look like?

            When a church opens itself up to Jesus, it is swept away by grace. Jesus is allowed to be Lord here, his love fills this community, and his purposes become our goal. The church becomes a place where people of all backgrounds and cultures and ethnicities can come and find Jesus. Barriers aren’t thrown up, they are destroyed. There is no competitive spirit except to outdo each other in serving one another. There is no fear in confessing sin because no sin shocks us, and no sin is unforgiveable – Jesus forgives all. You won’t experience a retracted hand but a warm embrace. Where the sharing of a concern is responded to with “let’s pray.” The church becomes a place of true friendship, and it blossoms and grows and is fed by the Spirit of God. Where God’s glory is the goal and everyone is so happy in Jesus, they can barely stand it. And people who are seeking him, find Jesus here. This is the fruit of righteousness. 

            If that is not your experience here, then you have a blueprint for prayer in Paul’s prayer for the Philippians. 

 

Have you ever started something that you didn’t finish? I started a seminary course from Regent in Vancouver. It was a home course that cost 1000 dollars. I barely got into it and then quit – it was too hard at the time. I wanted to get into a hobby and started building a balsam wood airplane that I hoped to fly. I quit that too. I have started a few things that cost me money and effort but never finished. It feels like defeat. God has started something in you, and he will not stop until he completes that work. This is a promise.

Paul’s words in the opening to his letter to the Philippians remind us of a simple but profound truth: The Christian life is not a solo journey. We are partners together in the Good News of Jesus Christ. And whatever we are now, we are not what we were – we have grown, we have become more like Jesus. And we can be confident of this; God is still working in us so that we are not yet what we will be. God is faithful to finish what he began in us. Let’s pray that we continue to grow in the love that points to Jesus.

            

                                                AMEN

Camp Sunday - "Only One Way"

ONLY ONE WAY

**Note: Camp Sunday celebrates the success of another year of Bible camp. Our church joins with other churches in our community to host a week of children's and a week of teens camp at Long Bow Lake in Ontario. This message is written to reflect a typical camp session devotional at teens week. 

 

In a world of different beliefs, it’s common to hear people say that “all religions are basically the same.” Another familiar comment is “that there are many ways to God.” It goes against the flow of our culture then to declare that one religion is better than other religions.

            There are billions of people on the earth and many of them are not Christian. Some of them don’t know anything about Christianity. And yet we declare that Christianity is true and that other religions are not true. How can we claim such a thing? Is this not arrogant? Is this not intolerant of us? Where did we get the idea that our faith is superior to other faiths? Why do we think that Christianity is the only way to God?

            For one thing, Jesus did not leave any room for the idea there are many ways to God. He made a bold, exclusive claim: He is the only way to the Father. 

            What did Jesus mean when he said he is the only way?

 

1. How Can We Know the Way?

 

The scene of John 14 provides a context for this bold statement. Jesus is about to go to the cross and he is sharing a final meal with his disciples. They are anxious and worried and very much afraid. 

            Jesus reassures them that he needs to go away so that he can prepare a place for them. He talks about making room for them in God’s presence – his household. Then he will come again and bring them into that presence, that place of God. 

            Then Jesus tells them, “And you know the way to where I am going.” Thomas was never afraid to ask the question that was on everyone’s mind, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” (5). Jesus replies with that bold and exclusive claim that has forever rocked the world:

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me,” (John 14:6).

            Note that Jesus did not say, “I know the way,” he said, “I am the way.” In other words, he did not give them a map or rulebook or a philosophy to follow. No, he gave them himself. The Christian life is not about keeping rules or performing rituals – it’s about trusting and following a Person.

 

2. The “Way” is Jesus

 

Let’s unpack this claim that Jesus made with a few observations.

            First, as we said, the statement begins with the personal pronoun “I.” We are not saved by a principle or a power, but by a person. Jesus declared himself to be the embodiment of the way, the truth, and the life. 

            Then we are drawn to what’s called the article. In this case, the article is definite. An indefinite article is indicated by the word “a.” The difference this makes for Jesus’ statement is stark. Consider if he had said, “I am a way, and a truth, and a life.” This would imply that he is one of many ways. But Jesus used the definite article “the” to show he is not giving options.

            Third, all three concepts are active. The way brings us to God; the truth makes us free; and the life produces relationship. Without the way there is no going; without the truth there is no knowing; without the life there is no living. 

            And since Thomas asked specifically about “the way” Jesus was going, “the way” predominates the statement. Jesus is saying, “I am the way because I am the truth and the life.” 

            Jesus clearly says that there is only one way to God. Without Jesus there is no truth. Only Jesus bridges the gap between the person seeking God and God himself. 

            What does Jesus mean when he says, “I am the way”?

We will use the Mountain Analogy to begin with: God is pictured at the peak of the mountain, and we are at the bottom. The story of religion is how different people try to move from the bottom to the peak and find God. The mountain has many paths, some go direct; others wind all over the mountain but eventually reach the top. The bottom line in this picture is that all religious roads will arrive at the same place. Jesus says that there is only one road to get up the mountain.

            Another picture goes like this: Suppose you are in a strange town and ask for directions. A person may reply, “Take the first right and then turn left. Go past the funny looking tree and cross the square near the church. Take the third on the right and you will see a reddish house…” Or the person could say, “Come, I’ll take you there.” In the second option, the person is the way, and we will not get lost. He does not give advice or directions. He takes us by the hand and leads us.

            What does Jesus mean when he says, “I am the truth”? Truth today is relative. People say, “What’s true for you may not be true for me.” Without the belief in an absolute truth, we are reduced to doing what seems right or what feels good and what satisfies. Jesus shouts above the noise of these voices, “I am the truth. Get to know me and you will discover what is totally true and transforming.” Truth does not change with time or culture. It remains the same and can be counted on each and every day. Jesus is the truth.

            And what does Jesus mean when he says, “I am the life”? I can teach geometry or geography, and my character doesn’t influence what I am saying. I could be adulterous, lie, cheat, steal, but geography is geography. If I teach truth – moral absolutes, right versus wrong, good versus evil – my character makes all the difference. With Jesus, his life makes all the difference to the way and to the truth. His life is an important part of knowing the way and the truth. We observe his life, and we know the way. That’s why Jesus said to Thomas, “If you had known me, you would have known my Father also.” To know Jesus is to know God.

            We often think of “eternal life” when we think of the life Jesus gives. But I think we miss out on the life Jesus gives us now. His life is a model for us to follow. In him we see true life as we sacrifice, love, and give ourselves for the other.

 

3. Is Jesus the Only Way? 

 

But aren’t all religions true in some sense? Don’t they all offer a piece of the universal truth that is God? That’s what the Bahai faith tries to do in blending all the world religions into one smoothie. Some take a buffet approach to faith by picking what you like from the many different dishes of religion. 

            The problem is that these faiths contradict each other and don’t blend very well at all. And how can all religions be true if they contradict each other? The Law of Noncontradiction says that if two statements about one particular issue contradict each other, then there are two possible answers: 1) Only one of them is true, or 2) they are both false. They cannot both be true in the same sense and at the same time. 

            If Jesus says he is the only way to God, but Islam says there’s another way, then either Jesus is correct and Mohammed is wrong, or Jesus is wrong and Mohammed is right…or they’re both wrong. They cannot both be right. 

            Now Hindus believe in many gods and use yoga, prayers, and charity to find truth. They accept Jesus but not exclusively, which denies the exclusive statement of Jesus.

            Buddhists say there is no God and endorse just being a good person. They say they are tolerant of other “ways”, but the Dalai Lama has stated that their way is preferable. 

            Of course, Jews don’t believe in Jesus as the Son of God but try to please God by works of the Law. 

            And Islam says that worshiping a human as God is blasphemous. They teach the five pillars as the way to God: declaring faith in Allah, prayer (5x/day), charity, fasting, and a pilgrimage to Mecca. 

            Other religions are based on sincerity, morality, and duties. Christianity is not based on what we do but on our relationship with Jesus. There is an obvious contradiction between Christianity and these other faiths, and they are not compatible precisely because of the exclusivity of Jesus. 

            But you know, exclusive does not mean we are not inclusive. We believe there is only way – because Jesus said so – but we believe that Jesus includes all who will seek God through him. No one is excluded.

            All the other major religions teach that you must get yourself together. Clean up your act. Pray five times a day. Give money. Fast. Use a Tibetan prayer wheel. Observe the Sabbath. Live a decent life and hope you do it right. Maybe you’ll make it to Nirvana or Heaven. 

            Christianity is different. Jesus tells us we will never earn our spot before God. We will fail to measure up to the holiness of God. But God reaches down in Christ and in his great love he rescues us from the penalty of life without God that we deserve. 

            Some theologians were discussing what makes Christianity different from other religions. CS Lewis came in late and asked what the question was that had stirred up the group. When he heard it, he said, “Oh that’s easy. It’s grace.” 

 

 

                                                AMEN

The Final Act: The Conclusion of Samson's Story

THE FINAL ACT

 

This is the final act in Samson’s tragic story. And the question is: Is this episode about the restoration of a failure or does this episode say something deeper about the person of God? 

            I know what you’re going to say: “Can’t it be both?” Yes, it can. But in a moment of revelation this week (I get those now and then), the Lord revealed something about himself that I had not grasped in this text. It sent a shiver through me as a holy awe overcame me. And while we are encouraged that someone like Samson, a man influenced by what he saw and desired, led astray by his passions, can be redeemed and used by God, it is overwhelmed by what this event tells us about our holy and awesome God. 

            Certainly, God worked in history to restore failures for the honor of his own name. And you can be sure that the Lord by his grace does this in your life today. But what I saw in the brief flicker of revelation that Jesus allowed me to see was THE FINAL ACT of God to vindicate his name in all the earth. I am compelled to tell you about this revelation.

            Let’s return to the story of Samson. Israel’s judge has told the secret of his strength to his girlfriend, the Philistine woman, Delilah. She cut his hair off and left him like a naked mole-rat, weak and helpless. He was the blind and hairless trophy of the Philistines sentenced to grind grain in seclusion.

            And then his hair began to grow back…

            Charles Spurgeon once said, “The Philistines should have sent a barber into that prison cell every day to keep him shorn.” 

 

1. When the World dishonors the Name of the LORD 

 

If I have learned anything from movies and crime shows it is that the “bad guys” gloat too much. They talk and talk and should just shut up and eliminate the hero. But they can’t help themselves; they have to boast.

            Our narrator tells us that the Philistines are no different. “Now the rulers of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate, saying, ‘Our god has delivered Samson, our enemy, into our hands.’” (23). 

            This is a lesson in how not to interpret stuff, good or bad, that happens to us. The Philistines are celebrating their capture of Samson and consequently how they defeated Yahweh. But they didn’t defeat the LORD. They defeated Samson. And the only reason they defeated Samson is not because Dagon was stronger than Yahweh, but because Yahweh “left” Samson. Dagon didn’t hand Samson over to the Philistines; the LORD did. 

            The Philistines were mocking the LORD. They wouldn’t be able to mock Yahweh if not for Samson’s sin. If he had been true to God none of this would be possible. It’s one thing for people to mock the LORD, but when it’s because of our actions, our sins, our failure, that is tragic. And because of Samson, the Philistines mock Yahweh’s name.    

            The world hardly needs encouragement to mock God. More than 130 years ago, Friedrich Nietzsche declared “God is dead.” Nietzsche was an atheist, but he didn’t mean that God had actually died, but that our idea of God had. After the Enlightenment, the idea of a universe that was governed by physical laws and not by a divine being became popular. This led to governments and rulers no longer organizing their nations around references to God. Nietzsche didn’t think this was a good thing because he knew that if we abandon Christian faith, we remove the foundation of morality. 

            On April 8, 1966, Time Magazine published an edition with “Is God Dead?” on the front cover. While it elicited the fears and imaginations of millions of people, the question reflected a world that had seen countless atrocities, the spread of communism, and the friction of the civil rights movement. Churches were teaching that believing in God was an irrational leap in the dark. And many were unwilling to take that leap anymore. Most would say then and even today, God’s not dead, but where is he? 

            People, it’s not 1966, but this is the world we have inherited. The dominant thinking is like this: God is irrelevant. And when the world sees the “Samsons” mess up, they mock, “This is your God?”

            But God will not be mocked. Isaiah wrote that God would allow his people to go through the fire of suffering because of their sin, but “I will rescue you for my sake – yes, for my sake! I will not let my reputation be tarnished, and I will not share my glory with idols,” (Isaiah 48:11 NLT).

 

2. When the World shames the LORD’s people 

 

The Philistines were drunk and brazen in their victory. They decided to bring Samson out to make sport of him, to humiliate him. The depraved mind can imagine all kinds of terrible things to do to a victim. They may have made Samson try to lift heavy weights or catch objects while blind or tear his clothes off of him and make him guess “who done it.” 

            But they made a fatal error. This party was made up of the cream-of-the-crop of Philistine leadership and nobility. They were praising their god, Dagon, who could not prevent the site of his celebration from becoming a massive cemetery. The Philistine elite were gathered under (or on) one roof – it would have been like the gathering of the joint session of Congress with the Pentagon and the Supreme Court (think Designated Survivor). For these leaders to be in one place at one time was a devastating error. If all these people died it would leave the Philistine nation powerless for years.

            Remember how we worded Samson’s fate? Dagon did not deliver Samson to the Philistines, the LORD did. Do you see the plan coming together? 

            But meanwhile, the LORD’s servant is being ridiculed and mocked and shamed. I’m going to tell you a fact: God does not like it when his people are shamed! 

            When the world persecutes Christians, God takes it personally. If you suffer for the name of Jesus – I don’t necessarily mean persecution or martyrdom - I mean, if you are merely made fun of for being a Christian – Jesus will not let that go. 

            Saul was persecuting people of The Way in Acts 9, throwing believers of Jesus into prison and making sure they suffered and died. Then Jesus met him on the road to Damascus and said, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”Saul didn’t know what he meant or who he was. Jesus said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.” (Acts 9:4-5). Jesus makes himself intimately connected with his church. What happens to us, happens to him. And he does not take it lightly. 

 

3. The Vindication of the LORD’s Honor (28-30)

 

While the world mocks our faith in God, we pray that God will reveal himself. Our prayers are imperfect and lack the direction we ought to have. Sometimes they are filled with our own agendas and how we see life playing out in our favor. 

Like Samson’s prayer… (see v. 28).

            This is the second time Samson prayed in the whole story. He starts out well, “Sovereign LORD, remember me…” he uses the name “Yahweh” where before he only said “Elohim.” He continues, “Please God, strengthen me just once more…” Okay, not a bad request, but…he says, “and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes.” Yeah, he can’t help himself. This is a bit too self-centered; it’s all about Samson again. 

            But…God answers his prayer. What? Yes, it was not the ideal prayer to follow as an example, but God used it for his own purposes. And that’s the key. This story is not about Samson’s redemption or his repentance. I will not make Samson a model of how to receive forgiveness or restoration. He is listed in the Hall of Fatih in Hebrews 11, but I don’t think that’s important here right now. I believe the emphasis is on the LORD’s honor and what he will do about it.

            What we preach on very little is God’s judgment. Evangelicalism today focuses heavily on the grace of God and Christian living. What we are afraid to say is that there is a Day of the LORD coming and it will be frightening. 

            Paul wrote the Thessalonian believers about this day saying, “For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, ‘There is peace and security,’ then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape,” (1 Thess. 5:2-3). The final act in the Samson story is a foreshadow of The Final Act of God. This is what I saw this week: this is a thumbnail of how the LORD will vindicate his honor. 

            As the world mocks God and declares him irrelevant, he takes note. As our society rejects us and our faith telling us we are not “good Canadians” because we believe in biblical values, the Lord takes note. And as Samson pushed the pillars of the temple down so that 3000 Philistines were destroyed, we see a picture of the LORD taking out the foundation of the world of those who denied him. 

            Christ is denied in the Congresses and Parliaments of the world. Christ is regarded as irrelevant in the consideration of the laws of our land, the protection of unborn babies and the dignity of the elderly who are pressured to consider MAID, and the injustices faced by the races and peoples of different walks. Christ is disregarded on the battlefields as people fight for borders and rights and ideologies that the dead will never enjoy. 

            But God the Father, who will not be mocked, gave Jesus “…the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father,” (Phil. 2:9-11). 

            As we consider the story of Samson, its adventure, its violence, his misguided desires, we must consider the strange choice of Yahweh. Why would Yahweh use a character like Samson as his servant? He is not the model of discipleship we need. He is someone who breaks the rules and ignores his vows. He uses his gifts for his own amusement. He doesn’t know how to pray and he’s kind of a jerk. 

            God's choice of Samson is not based on Samson's performance. God's choice of us is not based on our performance either. It is based on the performance of Christ. That is where we put our hope and our faith. 

            During the US Civil War, a rumor spread that General Grant was drunk during the battle of Shiloh. A man who had President Lincoln’s ear went to share that story. He told Lincoln that popular opinion was against Grant, and he should be removed from his command. Lincoln listened, was quiet, and then said quietly, “I can’t spare the man; he fights.”

            We cannot explain Yahweh’s choice, but we can admit that Samson knew who he was fighting. God will act in strange ways. God will choose unlikely servants. God will answer prayers that lack eloquence or the right words. God will even use us to do his will. And we are headed for that day when God will vindicate his Name and he will reveal his honor to us. 

            When we consider the world events and the decline of morality in our present context, we are apt to conclude "all is lost." It seemed that way for Britain when Germany was bombing them into oblivion during World War 2. But The Prime Minister, Winston Churchill addressed the nation with these words of hope: “This is not the end. It is not even the beginning of the end. But it is perhaps the end of the beginning,” (Churchill).

            For the follower of Jesus, this perspective is helpful. We are not looking at the world's decline and sighing, "all is lost." But we are full of assurance that Jesus is coming back as King to restore Creation and reign over his Kingdom. What we see then is "the end of the beginning." And all creation groaning in anticipation of Christ's return. 

            God will not tolerate the world system mocking him.

            God will not ignore the mockery of his people.

            God will vindicate his name, the LORD, and in his vindication, we find our hope.

 

                                    AMEN

Tangled: Samson's Story of Sin and Defeat

TANGLED:

SAMSON’S STORY OF SIN AND DEFEAT

 

I once had hair. It’s true. The hair that does grow on Mount Klassen, my wife (my Delilah) shaves twice a month to keep me humble. She’s trying to keep me as weak as a kitten. 

            I once had great hair. In high school, I grew it long and visited a stylist regularly. But one awful day, a fellow classmate, my antagonist, spit a big wad of gum in my hair. I could feel it sitting lightly on top of my well-combed coif. If you have ever experienced gum in the hair, you know the trouble it brings. 

            I immediately reached for the gum to remove it from my hair. It should have been an easy extraction, I thought. But the more I tried to get the gum out, the more embedded it became. Can you imagine going to class with gum in your hair? And everyone had a remedy to offer. 

            When I got home, my mother worked to remove the gum. But she too just drove it deeper into my hair. Peanut butter, shampoo – nothing worked. Eventually, my mom had to take scissors and cut a chunk of my hair out. Even that procedure left an awkward vacancy in my hair. Gum in the hair. The only solution was to cut it out. 

            Sin in your life is like gum in your hair. When it becomes obvious how embedded sin is in your life, it is humiliating; it shames you; it reminds you of your weakness. The only way to deal with sin is to cut it out, right? Oh, if it were that easy! 

            Samson’s is the true story of how sin entangles itself in your life (like your hair) and brings you down to defeat. 

 

1. The Sin that so easily Entangles (16:1-4; Heb. 12:1)

 

In this episode, Samson goes down to Gaza, the Philistine capital. He often strayed into enemy territory; he wasn’t afraid to cross the tracks and dance on the dark side. He simply had no fear, and that was one of his many problems. A strong man like Samson is overconfident in his ability to escape trouble.

            His real problem is not his strength or confidence, however, but his eyes. Look at verse one: “One day Samson went to Gaza where he saw a prostitute. He went in to spend the night with her,” (1). This is a subtle reference to his ongoing propensity to see something and take it. Remember his wife in chapter 14? “Samson went down to Timnah, and at Timnah he saw one of the daughters of the Philistines,” (14:1). We can only imagine that Samson did not fall in love with Delilah for her bookkeeping skills as well. 

            Samson is led by his desires. Desire seeks satisfaction. Desire is not evil in itself; it is a gift from God that we might seek satisfaction in him alone. What we seek in life ultimately has something to do with our desire for God. It follows then that sin can be defined as seeking satisfaction in other places. Samson was seeking soul satisfaction outside of a relationship with God. His eyes were leading him to what he thought he needed.

            We are warned in John’s first letter, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world – the desires of the flesh and the desires of the eyes and pride of life – is not from the Father but from the world,” (1 Jn. 2:15-16). There is a clear distinction for the Christian between relationship with God and what the world offers as an alternative. The “desires of the eyes” is but one third of the formula but is intricately connected to the desires of the flesh.

            It is often said that “lust” is a “man problem,” but I say that it is a human problem. Books and sermons have zeroed in on men as driven by the lust of the flesh. However, statistics show that 35% of online porn users are women, and the number is growing. In one country listed, 50% of porn views were women. We are all driven by what we see. It’s not just sex that drives us. We long to fill the void in our lives with sex, material things, or power, or fame, or whatever we feel would dull the ache of meaninglessness in this world. Lust is an ”us” problem.

            The Tenth Commandment is “You shall not covet…” (Ex.20:17). Someone once said, and I agree, that when we covet (when we want what someone else has) it is the root cause for breaking all the other commandments. If I covet something so bad, I will kill to get it (Js. 4:1-2). The Israelites even wanted the gods of the other nations as well as Yahweh – they coveted gods that they felt filled a need. 

            When we covet what others have, when we want it so bad it consumes our imaginations, our dreams, our longings, it leads us to adultery, murder, theft, and lying. I wonder if this is what the writer of Hebrews meant when he said, “…let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us…” (Heb. 12:1b). What is the “sin”? Coveting…

 

2. “Oh, what a tangled web we weave…” (16:5-14; Js. 1:13-15)

 

Sir Walter Scott penned these famous words, “Oh what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to deceive.” When you lie or act dishonestly, you are asking for trouble that will have a domino effect of complications. This deception will (note the certainty) run out of control.

            Samson loves Delilah. We don’t know if Delilah loves Samson. I’m pretty sure Delilah loves money because the Philistines pay her handsomely to betray Samson. 

            The name “Delilah” is a Semite name. That means it’s a Jewish name. But she’s in a Philistine city. We can only assume that she is a mixed blood woman, half Israelite and half Philistine. She is the product of intermarriage, which God forbade. Delilah thus represents the immorality of Israel. 

            And Samson toys with her. Three times Delilah tried to pry from Samson the secret of his strength, but three times he tricks her; he plays with her. Each time, she springs her trap with the words, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” And each time he snaps the bowstrings, ropes, or the loom that holds him. Samson thinks these are bedroom games. He is flirting with his life, possibly not knowing that there are men ready to jump him if his strength really does leave him.

            Samson is too confident. He has broken all his vows as a Nazirite: touching a dead body, consuming the fruit of the vine, and so on. He’s gotten away with it time after time. He’s been trapped at Gaza and walked away with the gates of the city. He believes there is nothing that will hurt him. Samson is dancing with the devil; flirting with sin; trying to find out how close he can come. Every time he crosses the morality line, he thinks, “humph, nothing happened.” Don’t we do that?

            Paul said, “…if you think you’re standing firm, be careful you don’t fall…” (1 Cor. 10:12). He’s talking about temptation. It’s dangerous. Don’t dance with it.

            Moral compromise always makes us vulnerable. It might be subtle; it might be obvious. We watch something we think we can handle and “boom” it triggers an impulse. But like an alcoholic, if you have been entangled in porn, you can never look at it again. It will grip you once more in its talons.

            Delilah was beautiful. That’s the problem – the eyes. Eve saw the fruit was good…and boom. Sin will not come to us in an ugly form but as something we desire. It can even be good in essence and fulfilling, but the timing is off, or it comes to us when we are committed to something else.

            When we toy with temptation as Samson did with Delilah, it will eventually trap us. As followers of Jesus, we have a calling. The Bible doesn’t tell us to fight temptation; it tells us to run away. To flee (see 1 Cor. 6:18; 1 Tim. 2:22; 1 Tim. 6:11).

            James counseled believers regarding temptation, “…each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full grown, gives birth to death,”(Js. 1:14-15). If you play with sin, you may get away with it for a while, but it doesn’t mean that the enemy isn’t waiting in the closet for an opportunity to take you down.

3. Baldly Going Where No Man Should Go (16:15-21)

 

Finally, Delilah plays the “you-don’t-love-me” card to get Samson to spill his secret. He’s heard this before. His wife used it 20 years prior to get him to give her the answer to his riddle about the lion. Did he learn? No.

            Samson is a fool for love. Until now, Samson has escaped every trap despite his foolishness. Under pressure, perhaps sick to death of her nagging, he tells her “everything” (see 17). Why did he do it? Did he think he could trust her? Did he think he could handle the consequences? And then sleep? How could he sleep with his secret exposed?

            Our hearts belong to the LORD, but when we stray from him, we make ourselves vulnerable. Satan wants our hearts, but he knows he can’t get them head on; so, he goes through someone like Delilah. Samson gave his heart away to someone who only wanted to exploit it. That’s what sin does.

            Figure this out: Samson broke all his other vows, but he never cut his hair! Wow! There was nothing magic in his hair – it was a symbol – perhaps the last one – of his separation to God. And Delilah started shaving…

            There are jokes about baldness that recede into the “dad” category. “Don’t think of it as losing your hair but gaining face.” Or “God only made so many perfect heads, the rest he covered with hair.” I often refer to Tony Campolo’s quip, “Some people use their hormones to grow hair; I use it to grow brains.” 

            This is no laughing matter. Once more Delilah calls out, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” (20). They seize and gouge his eyes out and make him grind their grain. 

            Isn’t it ironic that it is the eyes they take? His eyes have been his Achilles heel. Samson saw a woman – he takes her. He sees – he wants. Now his eyes are gone. He can no longer see except in his mind’s eye. He can only grieve what he has lost and mourn his captivity. 

            Ambrose, an early Christian writer, wrote, “Samson, when brave, strangled a lion; but he could not strangle his own love. He burst the fetters of his foes, but not the cords of his own lusts. He burned the crops of others and lost the fruit of his own virtue when burning with the flame enkindled by a single woman.” 

            

This is a tragic tale of sin and defeat.

            We are left with one little verse, “But the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved,” (22). One little note of hope. Of course the hair grew back – it does that.

            I can relate to Samson’s struggle with sin. Can you? Sin is not something that you can chuck like a banana peel; if you dabble with it, it sticks with you. Like gum in the hair, it embeds itself into your person and it is hard to get rid of, to deal with, to eliminate. 

            Like Samson, whose hair was shorn, whose confidence was shattered and replaced with humiliation and shame, we know the feeling of futility as we pray for relief from sin’s effects. It is even more frustrating when, like Samson, we are led by our eyes to return to our sin, to know the further humiliation of being shackled to it with no hope of escape. What are we to do?

            Have you ever watched those video clips of dog owners confronting their pets? Three dogs sit in a row – one of them made a mess in the living room (either pooped or chewed up a pillow) – and the master says, “Which one of you did it?” Two of the dogs immediately look at the offending dog who at that moment looks away in shame. 

             When we sin, our natural inclination is to hide. How can I look at Jesus again after betraying his love with my chronic habit of sin? I’ve sinned again. How foolish! How shameful! But Jesus wants us to look at him…

            The writer of Hebrews, after telling us to cast off the sin that entangles, says this: “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfector of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God,” (Heb. 12:2). 

            Samson’s eyes led him astray. What are we focusing on? Jesus calls attention to sinners not to look away but to consider him, gaze upon him, look him in the eye, and consider the cost of our sin. The cost of our sin, the look of love in his face, the grace that has been lavished on us, should remind us of our true desire. When you sin (again), look at Jesus fully and know that he has taken away your humiliation and shame and guilt. Do not fight your desires; run from them; and run straight to Jesus.

 

                                                                        AMEN

"Samson's Greatest Hits" - Judges 15

“SAMSON’S GREATEST HITS”

 

We have read the story of Samson together in our scripture reading and are familiar with the adventures of God’s unusual hero. In chapter 15 are Samson’s “greatest hits,” not to be confused with Abba’s greatest hits (Waterloo, Voule Vous, Take a chance on me). No, these greatest “hits” are Samson’s greatest victories over the enemies of God.
            It’s an odd story, isn’t it? The Spirit of the LORD stirs Samson, and he sees a Philistine girl and impulsively marries her. He kills a lion and violates his Nazirite vow by touching the dead body, eating honey out of its corpse, and becoming unclean. Samson next toys with his wedding guests by making a bet they can’t solve his riddle about the lion and the honey. They do solve it, but only by pressuring his bride into manipulating him. He becomes angry and a cycle of revenge sets off a chain of events that escalates in violence and slaughter. Samson ultimately kills 1000 Philistines with a donkey’s jawbone and caps off this spree with an offensive joke about it. 
            I have studied this story. I have read commentaries. I have rehashed this episode by reading other preacher’s sermons. And I must stand back with you all and say, “What am I looking at?” What does this story tell me about God and his relationship with his people? Is there any connection at all between this impetuous strongman and the loving Jesus? What are you and I supposed to do with this story?

            This Arnold Schwarzenegger type guy makes jokes, chases girls, kills people, and barely acknowledges God. Can you relate to Samson and his story? Does it teach us anything?

            We are going to look at three of Samson’s “greatest hits” or three themes that emerge from this story.

 

1. The Humor of the LORD’s Salvation 

 

Imagine you are an Israelite reading this story of Samson for the first time. It is a biting satire of your worst enemy, the Philistines. Think of when Polish jokes were popular. Nazi propaganda in World War 2 portrayed Poles as stupid and inferior to dehumanize them and justify their horrible treatment of them. Germans said that the foolish Poles attacked tanks on horseback with swords. Dummies. This attitude spread to the US in the 60s.

            The Israelite joke is similar. Look how dumb the Philistines are: they come up with a plan and Samson spoils it every time; a solution-failure formula. They solve Samson’s riddle and win the bet; but Samson kills 30 Philistines to pay the debt. They win but they lose. Samson’s father-in-law gives away his bride thinking he doesn’t like her anymore and Samson responds by burning their crops with 300 jackals with torches tied to their tails. The Philistines respond by burning the father-in-law and the bride alive. And so, it goes.

            The whole of chapters 14-16 is one long Israelite joke on the Philistines. The story is full of irony and humor that we don’t get. Every move the Philistines make, though seemingly giving them the upper hand, proves disastrous as Samson plays with them. They look like the Three Stooges vs. Captain America. But it’s pretty dark humor at its best. 

            I had an uncle who told lame jokes but ended each one with, “Funny, eh?” That cracked us up more than the joke. I don’t blame you if you don’t get this “Samson” joke.

            Are there jokes in the Bible? Does the Bible use humor to make a sober point? The Philistines are the enemies of God’s people. Their stupidity is held up in Samson’s story for ridicule; they are a laughingstock. Why?

            To show us the lunacy of being an enemy of Yahweh and his people (even when they are sinful). When the ungodly try to ruin and crush God’s people, Yahweh makes them look ridiculous. In Psalm 2, the writer asks why the nations rage against God, why do they resist him? Then he reveals that, “He who sits in the heavens laughs; the LORD holds them in derision…” (4). 

            Take courage in this: God will make those who hurt you and mock you look foolish. Who would have thought that God would deliver Moses from Pharoah’s murdering of children by having Pharaoh’s own daughter rescue him…and then hire Moses’ own mother as his nanny? I mean, come on, that’s pretty funny. That is the humor of the LORD’s salvation. 

 

2. The Tragedy of the LORD’s People (15:11-13)

 

While the writer of Judges has us laugh at the Philistines, he also has us weep for God’s people. After they burn Samson’s in-laws, he swears vengeance on them and struck them “hip and thigh.” Then Samson retreats to the rock at Etam.

            The Philistines won’t leave it alone. They invade the territory of Judah looking for Samson. The men of Judah are confused, “What have we done wrong?” They find out that they are looking for Samson and 3000 of them confront Samson. The men of Judah say to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philistines are rulers over us? What then is this that you have done to us?” (11). What’s wrong here?

            Israel faces all the “ites” in Judges. When they are oppressed, they cry out to God, and he sends someone to deliver them. With the Philistines it’s a different story. The Philistines aren’t that cruel, they even intermarry, and they trade with each other (the Israelites were dependent on Philistine technology). It was a “live-and-let-live” situation. Peaceful. What’s so bad about that? Assimilation. As they interacted with the Philistines, the Israelites started losing their own culture, their own faith, their dedication to Yahweh. 

            Tim Keller said, “Israel’s capitulation to the Philistines is far more profound and complete than any of their previous enslavements. In the past, Israel groaned and agonized under their occupations by pagan powers, because their domination was military and political. But now the people are virtually unconscious of their enslavement, because its nature is that of cultural accommodation.” They have adapted the Philistine lifestyle, their worship. Even Samson tries to “marry in” to the upper classes of Philistine society. 

            Think of the church in Canada today. Our greatest threat is not overt persecution and threats from our society. The greatest danger we face as the church of Christ is the enticing nature of Canadian culture. We pray for the persecuted church in Iran and China because they face imprisonment and death for Jesus. But I wonder if they pray for us because we face assimilation into our culture, because we have adopted values without discernment and practice them in our communities. We are disappearing; we have lost our distinction as a people of faith. There’s a big word that describes this, it’s called “syncretism.” It means that two cultures are blending into one new culture, often to the detriment of the one culture that doesn’t want to hang onto its distinctives. It blurs the lines as we conform to the dominant culture.

            Paul warned in Romans 12, “Do not be conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect,” (2). What makes us distinct in Southern Manitoba? What makes a Christian unique in our culture? 

            In Samson’s story, Israel told him to stop rocking the boat. They were ready to forsake God to placate the Philistines. They didn’t ask for this deliverer. They didn’t ask to be saved. They didn’t even want to be Yahweh’s free people. It is a sad thing when God’s people are content to let the enemy rule our lives when we are called to “hate what is evil” with a holy hatred. 

 

3. “I’m going to save you anyways”

 

Samson kills 1000 Philistines after breaking the ropes that bound him. Now he’s thirsty. And for the first time in the story, he prays to God for relief. God answers him, provides a spring of water, and guess what? He names it after…God? Nope. It’s called “the spring of him who called.” Self-centered arrogance. It’s all about you Samson, isn’t it? 

            We see in Samson some ungodly traits. Two stand out immediately: One, he is impulsive. Led by his sensualities, his “thirsts” he reacts to what he sees without thinking it through. He sees what he wants and takes it. In the next episode it will become even clearer that he has no sexual self-control. Women are objects to him, and he only wants to possess them, not to love them. Two, he is unteachable. Wanting to marry a Philistine woman, his parents try to dissuade him, but he doesn’t listen. In that culture, your father chooses your spouse. So, “honor your father and mother” is out the window. And we see that Samson does not learn from his mistakes. He is unteachable. 

            Samson is a flawed character. Ruled by his passions, taking what he wants because he wants it. The theme of Judges “Everyone did what was right in his own eyes” is modeled by Samson. Clearly, Samson is the personification of the spiritual state of Israel. The story of this one man is the story of Israel.

            And his story is our story. James tells us that Scripture is a mirror. “Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like,” (1:23-24). As we gaze into the mirror that is the word of God and evaluate Samson and his impulsive nature, how he greedily gulps what the world offers, do we not see our own reflection? 

            What does our culture value?

            Individual freedom. The liberty to choose what makes me happy and to live a life that expresses the real “me.”

            Deconstruction. All that the past said was true is reevaluated. Traditions, religion, the wisdom of our elders, laws are all unpacked and rethought, revised, or thrown away. 

            Technology. We think that we can make our world better by creating a better app. All I need to know I can find on the internet.

            Tolerance. Everyone has the right to find their own truth and define themselves by their own values, so don’t judge.

            The goodness of humanity. There is a belief that we are basically good. 

            And to be honest, we probably agree with most of these values as Christians. We go to church and listen to the Word, but we still choose what to believe and question the authority of someone who tells us we are wrong. 

            Look at the Philistines, look at Judah, look at Samson, and we see ourselves. They are messy people. We are messy people. 

            What astounds me about this story is how many times we see the “Spirit of the LORD” use Samson. I believe it is four times, more than any other person in the historical books of the Bible. He wasn’t worthy of such a filling, but God used him. 

            The second thing that amazes me is that Judah did not cry out to God, but God decided to save them anyways. And he does it through this unlikely man. Did Samson know he was a deliverer? 

            God didn’t intend for Samson to be so impulsive, reckless, and wild. But that God used him gives us hope. God uses weak, flawed people and redeems them. That’s the good news of Jesus right there. God uses sinners. We shouldn’t sin, but our Redeemer doesn’t stop working on us, in us, and through us. 

            Tim Keller wrote, “If you ever feel that way about reading the Bible [that the Bible is a collection of moral fables showing us good examples], it shows that you don’t understand the message of the Bible. You’re imposing your understanding of the message on the Bible. You’re assuming that the message of the Bible is “God blesses and saves those who live morally exemplary lives.” That’s not the message of the Bible. The message of the Bible is that God persistently and continuously gives his grace to people who don’t ask for it, don’t deserve it, and don’t even fully appreciate it after they get it.”

 

Three questions we need to ask when we read any text of Scripture are these:

·      What do we learn about God from this text?

            From Samson’s story we learn that our God is a Redeemer God who works to deliver his people.

·      What do we learn about God’s salvation or deliverance from this story in the macro-sense (the big picture)?

            That our God doesn’t stop working to deliver us (even when we don’t want to be delivered)

·      What should we do or know?

            We need to go the opposite direction than Samson; we need to become submissive and teachable. Imagine what God could have done with a Samson that was submissive and teachable. Imagine what God could do with you and me if we were to submit to his ways and learn from his grace.

 

Bonus:

The Puritans were famous for finding “types” of Jesus in the OT. A type is an OT picture of a NT truth. They saw in Samson a type, a symbol but not necessarily an example of the ideal of Christ. Let me show you what that looks like.

·      Samson was rejected by his countrymen – so was Jesus.

·      Samson was arrested by his own people – so was Jesus.

·      Samson handed over to certain death – Jesus was handed over to die.

·      Samson didn’t resist his own people when they betrayed him. Jesus said nothing to those who came to arrest him and was silent before the chief priest.

·      Samson broke the cords which bound him. When Jesus rose from the dead, he broke the cords of death.

·      Samson in his mighty victory put the army of the Philistines to flight. Jesus in his victorious resurrection from the dead defeated Satan and the powers of the demons. 

·      Samson delivered his people – so did Jesus.

            Samson is the last man on earth you would think would be a type of Jesus. There is no one more unlikely. But that’s the beauty of the Samson story; it is there to encourage us that God wants to deliver us from sin even when we don’t want to be delivered. And while there is a lot of Samson in us, but Jesus wants to be the LORD in us and change us from glory unto glory, bit by bit, until we are like him.

 

                                                            AMEN