In his book titled, ‘The Unfolding Mystery’, Edmund Clowney states, “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!” In Samson, we can see the power of God being demonstrated in an amazing way. He was miraculously conceived by a woman who was sterile. He was raised by faithful parents in strict accordance with a sacred Nazarite vow for the primary purpose of defeating the Philistine empire. Yet, Samson was anything but a godly man. He was a man who had all sorts of issues. He was impulsive. He had a temper. He loved women. He was not the easiest one to teach. He failed to take God’s word seriously. He never seemed to learn!
In this narrative of Israel’s history, we witness the power of God in a man that no one would choose for such a mission. Yes, Samson was strong. And yes, he was a fighting machine. But it was God who gave him the power when he needed it to perform amazing acts of bravery. He single handedly killed one thousand men with the jawbone of a donkey! Sadly, Samson struggled with pride and had very little wisdom when it came to women. On two occasions he was outwitted by cunning and self-serving women. These two ladies used emotional blackmail to obtain what they needed to defeat this powerful strong man of God. Yet, as we look into this woeful period of Israel’s history, we see the Sovereign hand of our Lord at work.
Even though Israel continued to do evil in the eyes of the Lord, God decided to send them a rescuer in Samson. He was far from perfect but that did not deter God in using him. In a bizarre twist, we witness a broken, weak and blind man wreaking havoc on a temple filled with Philistine subjects. The Lord God gave Samson incredible strength after he cried out to the Lord for help. Upon receipt of this strength, Samson managed to send thousands of ungodly Philistines to their death as he demolished a temple with sheer brute force.
God continues to use weak and broken people like us to do amazing things for His glory. Samson was the first to be used in the downfall of the Philistine nation. King David was the next. Yet King David could not overcome the sin in his life. Jesus came to do exactly this – to save people from their sins. Our task is to introduce people to Jesus who need forgiveness. We were once no different to them. But because of God’s amazing power, love and mercy we are now His children – much loved! Let us remember what God did with one flawed impetuous man and be encourage