Judges 13, 16: God's Faithfulness to and through Samson

Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries, 22 May 2022, by Captain Michael Ramsay. Based on 'Covenant: The Example of Samson' in The Officer (March-April 2009) by Captain Michael Ramsay. Available on-line: http://sheepspeak.com/RamsayonCovenantSamson.pdf Similar to 'Judges 16:23-31. Samson: Just Dessert' Presented to Nipawin and Tisdale Corps on June 8, 2008 by Captain Michael Ramsay. Available on-line: http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2008/06/judges-1623-31-samson-just-dessert.html

We read about the end of Samson’s life and we have just read about the beginning of his life and a covenant that his mom and dad were encouraged to enter into with God on behalf of their son – and their whole nation, actually.

 

Do we know what a covenant is? A covenant is an agreement. I covenant is promise. A covenant is a contract. It is a holy contract. Mostly today if we use this word covenant it will be in relationship to our marriage covenants – in that covenant, among other things, people promise not to date other people but to forsake all others. Sometimes people enter into sobriety covenants to help them break free of addiction – they promise not to drink again and other things. And when someone becomes a full member of The Salvation Army we enter into a soldier’s covenant where we also promise to do and not to do certain things as a way of saying we are part of this movement.

 

COVENANTS are very important to the Lord. In his article 'Till I Die' (Nov - Dec 2008), then Captain Stephen Court made a very important point about our soldier's covenant when he pointed out that it does not come with an expiry date. This is significant. We can't simply declare that we no longer feel called to a covenant or that we no longer agree with every aspect of the covenant, then pick and choose which parts we adhere to and which we disregard.

 

This is like Samson in the Bible. Samson was bound by a covenant without an expiry date (Judges 13:7), a covenant that he didn't even willingly enter into (Judges 13, cf 1 Samuel 1, Luke 1, Leviticus 27:28, 29), a covenant that he either didn't like to obey or at the very least struggled to keep.

 

Samson was not to drink nor was he to defile himself or do any other number of things. However, Samson was a liar at times (Judges 16:7ff). He was a killer at times (see Judges 14:19), he visited prostitutes (Judges 16: 1), he put himself and others ahead of God at times (Judges 14: 17), he disobeyed his vows. He transgressed his covenant with God. But – even though he did this time and again- the Lord did not forsake him (see Judges 16:22, Romans 3:3, 4).

 

At some times in his life Samson, like many of us, was better at following the Lord's direction than at others. At times he was greatly used by God. At times he experienced the great blessings that accompanied his covenant. At times Samson drew on the strength of the Lord and was used greatly by God to accomplish his purposes. At other times Samson sinned.

 

Every time in his life that Samson turned to and drew on the strength of the Lord, the Lord delivered him. No matter what Samson did, the Lord did not leave him. He still reaped the benefits of his covenant with the Lord until one very significant day.

 

I'm sure it was a surprise to Samson, who had lied, visited prostituted women, sinned and transgressed his covenant in his life, that one day after the covenant made on his behalf by someone else had been violated (by someone else, see Judge 16: 18), the Lord's strength of his covenant was not available to him (Judges 16:20).

 

Samson disobeyed his covenant and finally - after being given many chances - the Lord allowed him to experience the natural and logical consequences of disobeying his covenant. Samson was blinded, bound and imprisoned (Judge 16:21).

 

But the story does not end there. This is significant. Samson did not fulfil his vow. Samson sinned. Samson disregarded his covenant. Because he did this, he suffered natural and logical consequences, but the Lord did not release him from his covenant (see Judges 16:22). He did not crumple it up and throw it away. He did not say you failed so many times that I am giving up on this covenant, your ability to fulfil it and I am giving up on you. No! God is faithful even when we are faithless. God did not forsake Samson. When Samson repented, turned to the Lord and drew on the strength of the Lord that was provided through his covenant, the Lord used Samson to save his

people and Samson is now forever remembered as a hero of the faith (Hebrews 11).

 

This is important for Salvation Army soldiers and officers and any of us who enter into any other covenants with the Lord. We, Salvation Army soldiers, like Samson, are bound to God through a covenant that does not have an expiry date before we die (Romans 7:2, 3). This is like the covenant on the Cross. When we enter into an eternal relationship with Jesus Christ, for his part, he will never leave us nor forsake us. (whether we can leave him or not is a discussion for another time)

 

If we do not live up to our covenant, like Samson, we will find that we are not as effective as we could be and we will find that we will suffer the natural and logical consequences of disrespecting our covenants.

 

However, no matter what we have done, no matter how far we have strayed, no matter how may times we have fallen short of our covenantal promises, while we are still alive there is still the opportunity to turn to the Lord (repent) and draw on our covenant and his strength – and God will save us in through and from whatever we need saving in through and from both for now and forever.

www.sheepspeak.com

www.facebook.com/salvogesis

Proverbs 1:7, 9:10: Yir’ah, The Fear of the LORD.

Presented to the Nipawin, (17 May 2009) Swift Current (27 May 2012) and Alberni Valley Corps of The Salvation Army (15 May 2022) by Captain Michael Ramsay

This is the 2022 version. To view the earlier version, click here:  http://sheepspeaks.blogspot.com/2009/05/proverbs-17-910-yirah-fear-of-lord.html

 

Today we are looking at Proverbs. A proverb is a wise saying with instructions for living an effective life. Proverbs are characterized by short, memorable statements that reflect the world as we know it As I was considering our text today, I ran across a number of contemporary proverbs about optimists and pessimists:

• –       In the long run the pessimist may be proved right, but the optimist has a better time on the trip. ~Daniel L. Reardon
• –       Pessimist: One who, when he has the choice of two evils, chooses both. ~Oscar Wilde
• –       Both optimists and pessimists contribute to our society. The optimist invents the airplane and the pessimist the parachute. ~Gil Stern
• –       An optimist stays up until midnight to see the New Year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves. ~Bill Vaughan
• –       Always borrow money from a pessimist, he doesn't expect to be paid back. ~ Unknown[1]

My favourite: This is more of a definition than a proverb actually but I thought that I would share it anyway:

• –       An Optimist is a word which here refers to a person…who thinks hopeful and pleasant thoughts about nearly everything. If an optimist had his left arm chewed off by an alligator, he might say, in a pleasant and hopeful voice, "Well, this isn't too bad. I don't have my left arm anymore, but at least nobody will ever ask me whether I am right-handed or left-handed," but most of us would say something more along the lines of "Aaaaah! My arm! My arm!" ~Lemony Snicket[2]

 

Proverbs in the Bible often contrasts the wisdom of following God to the folly of following our any counsel that is not based in reverence for our Lord. Proverbs champions the truth, with many different examples, that people have very real choices in life but they all boil down to this: either we follow God and live an abundant life with God or we follow ourselves or anyone or anything else and forego that life with God.

The theme of Proverbs can be summed up in Proverbs 9:10 [9] and 1:7: ‘The fear of the LORD is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline.’ The beginning of any understanding is a fear of God. Well, what does that mean? What does it mean to have the fear of the LORD’?

Does it mean to panic? Does it mean to be timid? No. It is different. To be timid is to cower. To be timid is like…have you ever seen an abused animal who has been terrorized? She pulls back as soon as you reach out your arm. The timid person is walking on eggshells at all times. This concept shows up in the book of Timothy, where Paul tells us that timidity (Greek: deilia) is not from God. Timidity is not the beginning of wisdom. [11]

The timid person reminds me of in the parable of the talents. Remember that parable, recorded in Matthew 25? The king gives three people talents (money). The third one is so afraid (Greek: phobeo) that he does not even invest his talents. He is actually paralyzed with fear. This fear creates what the Apostle Paul calls in Romans 8:15, ‘a spirit of bondage’, a phobia. In Romans 8:15 (like Matt 25:35), the Greek word Paul uses is actually ‘phobos’ – from which we derive the word ‘phobia’, and this as we know refers to an irrational fear.[12] This kind of irrational fear is not the beginning of wisdom. It is not from God: phobia. And the spirit of timidity (deilia) Paul tells us about in 2 Timothy 1:7, is not from God; God gives us power and love and a sound mind. Sometimes even we Christians forget this.

Many –but not all- Christians believe in the so-called ‘rapture’. The idea behind the rapture is that at some point, God will snatch up either those He loves (the more popular belief) or those He hates (a less popular belief) and leave the rest behind. We had a professor at College who was raised in a phobia-producing kind of church environment that focused on a terror of being left behind if you weren’t good enough to be raptured and he told us that one night he heard a car horn or a train whistle and he woke up in absolute terror. He was so frightened that that sound was the trumpet of the Lord and that he had missed the rapture. He was terrified that he might have been left behind. Phobias, timidity and this panic: these are not representative of the fear of the Lord that Proverbs is talking about. This is a terror some even well-meaning people can put into the minds of innocent souls.

That being said, the word for fear here in Proverbs 1:7 and 9:10, yir'ah, is not totally absent of the concept of a terror of sorts. Scholar Allen P. Ross tells us that, “The term yir'ah can describe dread (Dt 1:29), being terrified (Jh 1:10), standing in awe (1 Ki 3:28), and/or having reverence (Lv 19:3). With the Lord as the object, yir'ah captures both aspects of shrinking back in fear and of drawing close in awe. It is not a trembling dread that paralyzes action, but neither is it merely a polite reverence (Plaut, p. 32).”[15]

Strong’s dictionary and concordance both define yir'ah as this ‘fear’ or ‘moral reverence’ acknowledging that yir'ah encompasses more than that – it can refer to a sense of moral fearfulness.[16] What does this mean? What is the difference between a reverent, moral fearfulness that leads to knowledge and wisdom and the fearful, panic-stricken, timid phobia that leads to cowering? We are all familiar with the word ‘deference’, right? Deference means respect. People often have a certain amount of deference (respect) for our uniforms. I have had many people -even strangers- alter their language and try not to swear in my presence because of my uniform.

In many other countries – more than here, students generally have a certain amount of deference for their teachers. They respect their authority. They seem to be a little less likely to speak out than children in our public school systems. I remember once when I was working at an international school, there was this joke among the staff. It went like this: ‘How do you get an international student to be quiet?’ The answer: ‘You ask them to be quiet… please.’ This is respect.

I have witnessed deference firsthand in courtrooms too. You would be surprised at how quickly a person removes his hat or turns off her cell phone with just one sideways glance from that judge. I have seen people talking big outside the courtroom and then a moment later I have seen them inside bowing quickly to the authority and power of the courts. I have seen even your most law-abiding citizens who are not in the court on charges but simply there to assist someone else – I have seen people who know the judge quite well – when they are addressed by the judge, immediately defer to her position. This deference is not entirely without fear. Our courtrooms are probably one of the best parallels to the emotions that accompany yir'ah in contemporary western society.

Another example of that same idea. We have a number of AA groups that meet here during the week. There was a time when I drank – too much. I remember my late teens. I was at a party at a friend’s apartment and I was drinking. It was late. Most of the people had gone home but a few of us remained. Things went bad. A friend and her boyfriend started fighting and when I say fighting, I don’t mean that they were just yelling at each other. She was hitting him quite hard and repeatedly and then he gave her a black eye. Other than them, I was the only one there who wasn’t passed out. I pushed him out on the tenth storey balcony with me and I locked the door behind us so that she would be separated from him. I did not want to be in the middle of this. Well, I thought that I had locked the sliding balcony door but next thing I know she comes through the door and attacks him and in the ensuing scuffle, I am knocked off the tenth-floor balcony. Literally, I am dangling by my fingertips. I am hanging there as they are fighting, trying to kill each other. I have been a Christian since I was a child. I have had way too much to drink and I am dangling from this balcony. I pray ‘God, please don’t let me meet you like this’ – what I mean is ‘God, please don’t let my last act at this time on earth be something so unglorifying to you.’ He answered my prayer obviously and saved my life as I climbed back onto the balcony and into the apartment with my friends and I sobered up and He used even me in that time and place to minister to my friends.

In that moment when I was dangling over the edge of the balcony and coming before the LORD in prayer, I had the fear of the Lord. I had a moral fear of the LORD. I am not afraid that He is going to punish me because I was bad. I am not afraid that I am going to go to hell. I did have that moral, dreadful fear of the LORD though that I – in this moment, in this state – am letting my saviour down. I am not living up to my heavenly potential. I am not holy as I could have been holy. When the Lord saves me, He lets me hold onto not only the memory of these events but also the real memory of the moral, dreadful fear of the Lord. From that experience, I am able to learn so much. I no longer find myself dangling from balconies or drinking too much! Nor am I committing other such errors. I have grown in knowledge and wisdom from this fear of the LORD.  

Even more: When we love someone, we don’t want to fail him or her. When we work for someone, we don’t want to let him or her down. When we love and work for someone, we want to do everything we can for them because we love them. It is this fear of the Lord that keeps us holy. It is this fear of the Lord that causes us to follow the path of wisdom put forth in the book of Proverbs. It is this love, this respect, and this fear of the Lord that is the beginning of wisdom for it is only from this real love for and deference to the only real God, who loves us, that we can possibly be wise enough to serve Him. If we want to be wise it must begin here. Deference and, Prov 9:10: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, …”

What is wisdom then? Wisdom is this: It is how to survive in this world. It is an understanding of how the world works. The Bible and Proverbs are not books of do’s and don’ts randomly generated to organise a society or to earn our way into heaven. The ‘Scriptures… were given by inspiration of God, and…they only constitute the Divine rule of Christian faith and practice.’[17] The Scriptures explain to us the mystery of how and why the world works. The more we read them the more we know about God, just like the more time we spend with God, praying and reading His Word, the more we know Him.

I invite you to read through Proverbs this week. It won’t take long and as you do, you will notice that indeed each proverb is a brief glimpse into the reality that is our life. These are words to live by (as is the whole of Scripture) that we can fully understand when we really do love God when we honestly really have a healthy deference, yir'ah, fear of the LORD, because the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.

Let us pray

 

http://www.sheepspeak.com/

www.facebook.com/salvogesis

---

[1] The Quote Garden! Quotations about Optimism and Pessimism: http://www.quotegarden.com/optimism.html Cited 03 May 2009.

[2] Lemony Snicket, A Series of Unfortunate Events: The Miserable Mill. (New York, NY: Scholastic, 2000), 26-27.

[3] Cf. DA Hubbard, ‘Wisdom Literature’, NDB, p. 1334

[4] Richard J. Clifford, NIB V: Proverbs-Sirach, ‘Introduction to Wisdom Literature’ (Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 1997), p. 9.

[5] Doctrine 2 of The Salvation Army.

[6] Richard J. Clifford, NIB V: Proverbs-Sirach, ‘Introduction to Wisdom Literature’ (Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 1997), p.12.

[7] Raymond C. Van Leeuwen, NIB V: Proverbs-Sirach, ‘The Book of Proverbs’, (Nashville, Tenn.: Abingdon Press, 1997), p.34.

[8] Cf. also. Michael Ramsay, ‘Paul and the Human Condition as reflected in Romans 1:18-32 and 2:1-16’. Presented to William and Catherine Booth College (Winter 2007). Available on-line: http://www.sheepspeak.com/NT_Michael_Ramsay.htm#Paul%20and%20the%20Human%20Condition

[9] Derek Kidner. An Introduction to Wisdom Literature: The Wisdom of Proverbs, Job & Ecclesiastes, (Downers Grove, Illinois: Inter-Varsity Press, 1985), p. 17.

[10]Warren E. Berkley, Expository Files 4.9 (September 1997), available on-line: http://www.bible.ca/ef/expository-proverbs-1-7.htm: You must carefully consider the context in order to assign the proper meaning to the word. It is one of those words that is context sensitive. So, the "fear" we are concerned with in Prov. 1:7 is not identical to the "fear" of Rom. 8:15 or 2 Tim. 1:7.

[11] Cf. The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. ‘1167: deilia’ (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson Publishing, 1995), p.20.

[12] Cf. The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. ‘5401: phobos’ (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson Publishing, 1995), p.96.

[13] Tim F. Lahaye and Jerry B. Jenkins, Left Behind (Cambridge, UK: Tyndale House Publishing, 1996).

[14] But I will argue against it here: Michael Ramsay, The Sheepspeak Commentary. Farewell to the Rapture! March 19, 2009. Available on-line: http://renewnetwork.blogspot.com/2009_03_01_archive.html#1407993155574202234 Cf. also N.T. Wright, Farewell to the Rapture! Bible Review, August 2001. Available on-line at: http://www.ntwrightpage.com/Wright_BR_Farewell_Rapture.htm

[15] Allen P. Ross, The Expositor's Bible Commentary, Pradis CD-ROM:Proverbs/Exposition of Proverbs/I. Introduction to the Book of Proverbs (1:1-7)/C. Motto: The Fear of the Lord (1:7), Book Version: 4.0.2

[16] Yirah, in The New Strong’s Complete Dictionary of Bible Words. (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson Publishing, 1966), p. 395. Cf. also Cf. The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. ‘5374: yir’ah’ (Nashville, Tenn.: Thomas Nelson Publishing, 1995), p.59.

[17] Doctrine 1 of The Salvation Army

 

Genesis 4, 1 Samuel 1, Matthew 20:20-28, Luke 1:26-56. 2 John: Mother’s Day Haikus.

Presented to The Salvation Army Alberni Valley Ministries on Mother’s Day, 08 May 2022, by Sarah-Grace and Heather Ramsay

 

Today is Mother’s Day. Now, I actually I looked up whether it is Mother apostrophe ‘S’ Day (the day of one particular mother) or Mother ‘S’ apostrophe Day (a day belonging to more than one mother) or whether it is Mother no apostrophe ‘S’ Day (a day to celebrate mothers in general). Apparently, it is the former - Mother apostrophe ‘S’ Day (the day of one particular mother) – so, I encourage everyone who is able to today, to honour your particular mother and make her feel special.

 

We love you mom!

 

In the Bible there are many amazing women. A few of them who are mentioned specifically for their role as mother. For our time today, we have haikus about some of these particular mothers from the Bible. One from the New Testament, one from the Gospels, one from the Old Testament outside the Pentateuch and one from the Pentateuch and as a bonus we will also have a haiku about Mary the mother of Jesus too. Our first Mother Haiku is from Genesis in the Pentateuch:

 

EVE

Today’s Mothers’ Day

The first mom we have is Eve

For 2 sons she grieved

 

The Bible doesn’t tell us too much about Eve as a mother. We do hear about her struggles and interactions with the serpent and her husband a little bit. It is a very sad note for her that when the Bible says death entered the world because of her and her husband, its first two casualties were indeed her eldest two children. Her one son killed her other son and thus she lost both children because of it. Being a mom isn’t always easy. Being a mom can be very sad at times. We, like many people, are sorry when it is us who cause our moms and others to be sad.

 

Dear God please forgive us for the times that we have made both You and our mothers sad.

 

The next mom we have is also from the Old Testament; She is from the book of 1 Samuel.

 

HANNAH

Sam, my first-born child

Of the two books named for him

Only one he’s in

 

Fun fact: Samuel isn’t even in the book of 2^nd Samuel.

 

Hannah first shows up in the Bible as a wife who desperately wants to be a mother. She wants just to be a mother so much that she promises God that when He gives her a child, she will give him right back to God. God gives her a child and when the child is old enough, she brings her son – the boy who will later become the prophet Samuel - to be raised serving in the tabernacle of God by the High Priest. God blessed her son and raised him up to be the last ruler of Israel before the time of the kings. God blessed Hannah, this mom, by giving her many more children to love and to rear. This mom was blessed by God not only by having her child but also in seeing how God blessed her whole nation through her son.

 

Mom, like Hannah, you have made sure that we were raised in the Church – knowing, loving, and serving God. Thank you. To all of the moms and dads here who have dedicated their children to God, Thank you. To all the moms, parents, and other family members who are desperately praying for their children like Hannah did, even when they are far away, may the Lord answer your prayers.

 

Let us pray: Dear God we pray for all the children and families represented here today. We pray that our loved ones will all come to know and to love you and to know they are loved by You. Amen.

 

MRS ZEBEDEE

James and John’s mother

Thought her sons like none other

Made others wonder

 

Mrs. Zebedee was quite a lady. There was no holding her back. She marched her two adult sons right up to Jesus, bowed down in front of the Lord and asked that they both be held as more important than the others. When the other disciples heard about this, they were quite upset that James and John would let their mother do this but Jesus calmed everybody down, using this moment to teach about serving others rather than looking out for yourselves.

 

Moms continue to look out for their kids even after they have grown up and left home. Moms try their best. Like with all of us, sometimes it works out and sometimes maybe it doesn’t; sometimes, maybe like with Mrs. Zebedee, it causes a few extra little problems that would not have happened if mom didn’t try to help out. But moms love us and they try to help however they can. Thank you, mom, for loving us. Thank you everyone here for the love you show to one another – your family, your friends, and others.

 

Let us pray: Dear God. Thank you for loving us. Thank you for the opportunity to love one another. Please help us to always love unselfishly, caring for You and others more than ourselves. Amen

 

Our 4^th of 5 specific mothers on this Mother’s Day comes from 2^nd John in the New Testament.

 

KYRIA ELECTA

Mother of children

Physical, spiritual

Early church pastor

 

2^nd John says it is addressed to a specific mother and her children. Her name ‘Kyria’ translated to English from Greek literally means ‘Lady’ and her other name ‘Electa’ literally means ‘chosen’. Thus, the NIV reads this letter as written to the chosen lady. Kyria Electa was chosen as one of the first Christian pastors. She encouraged her children - those who have come to faith through her and presumably her natural born children as well. John sent her this letter of encouragement and it is neat because he concluded this short letter by sending greetings from the children of another woman pastor/teacher in the church.

 

God has used and is using many mothers and others in many roles in His church. Mothers especially are great teachers of their children. In times gone past before daycares and kindergartens moms were the primary teachers of the next generation. It is my hope that we would all be encouraged as Kyria Electa to continue to teach and care for one another.

 

Let us pray. Lord God, we pray that we will faithfully care for and teach those you give us to teach and we thank You for the many people You have provided and continue to provide to care for and to teach us. Amen.

 

Our next mother today is from the Gospels. She is probably the most well known and most often represented mother in artwork in the history of the world. The next mother we have today is Mary.

 

 

 

MARY

Mary Did You Know

That your son would save us all

Everlasting life

 

Mary was chosen by God to give birth to the Son of God and raise Him and care for Him. I can’t imagine what it must have been like for her to see Him grow and do the things He does. I can’t imagine what it would be like for her to realize and respect her son as the Lord. I can’t imagine what it would have been like for her to see him upon the cross. He loved her so much: He entrusted her care to his friend even while He was upon the cross. I can’t imagine then what it would be like for her to know of His resurrection and eternal life. I can’t imagine how humbling it would be to see what God has and is doing through her little boy.

 

Moms, dads, and families are often proud of their children. They are very happy when they see how God uses them. God used Mary’s son, His Son, to accomplish so much in this world and the next. Mary’s son is also the Son of God and He was conceived, born, lived, died, and rose again so that we may all live forever more.

 

On this Mother's Day, let us all take Jesus up on that offer and let us all serve Him both for now and forever more.

 

Let us pray: Dear God on this Mother’s Day, we thank you for our mothers and others who love us. We pray for those near and dear to us. We pray that You will be with them and care for them; Lord we pray that we will know that You are near us and those we love in times of trouble. Lord, we thank you for loving us for now and forever more.

 

Amen.

www.sheepspeak.com

www.facebook.com/salvogesis