Lesson 44 – When the Spirit Comes Mightily

Judges 14:5-6

"So Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and came to the vineyards of Timnah. Now to his surprise, a young lion came roaring against him. And the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him, and he tore the lion apart as one would have torn apart a young goat, though he had nothing in his hand. But he did not tell his father or his mother what he had done."

    Once again, a very troubling passage. Here is Samson, seeking after a woman he had fallen for from the enemies of the Lord, one in whom his parents were not pleased. Here is Samson, going through the vineyards, apparently in secret since his commitment to God was to avoid grapes and their products as part of his Nazarene vow to be set apart for the Lord. Ultimately, here is Samson, using his great strength to kill a young lion with his bare hands.

    I certainly don't understand why the Spirit of the Lord moved mightily in the disobedient Samson to give him this strength to kill the lion. If I had been God, I'd let the lion have the victory! In pitching a fit to his parents for the woman of the Philistines, Samson had shown his true colors. In slinking through the grape vines, he was playing with the fire of disobedience.

    As I pondered why God didn't judge Samson, I kept coming back to God's grace. While Samson didn't deserve the filling of the Spirit, in his grace, God apparently chose to give him another chance to be proven faithful. That's what grace is all about--a second chance where none is deserved. That is the mercy of our Lord.

    Even as born again believers, you and I know we're not worthy of God's grace. We're like Samson in often choosing to be disobedient, chasing after sins in secret, not wanting anyone to know. But these are not hidden from the Lord, and the only reason we come through unscathed is because of the Lord's great mercies. God chooses to give us another chance to be faithful, not withholding the touch of his Spirit from our lives.

    As a pastor, I'm often awed that God would use me in spite of my sins. But that's the way of our Lord. Loving a sinner such as I.

LORD JESUS

I ask for your forgiveness for when I've chosen the path of disobedience. While I'm not deserving of your mercies, I thank you for not withholding your Spirit from my life. Amen.