Strong in the Lord

There’s a group of boys playing in my front yard. I stand in the garage and get to listen as they interact. They range from 8 to 10 years old and are intent on playing a “Home Run” game with a whiffle bat and balls. The object is to hit the balls over the cars in the driveway. Every time one makes it, there is a chorus of cheers and clapping, encouragement to hit another, and the recognition that the boy who hits is really strong. It is that recognition of strength that makes me laugh. Everybody wants to be strong. Strength can be a real asset in home run hitting, or football, or soccer, or any other sport or game that 9 year olds play.

But if I stop and think it through, that’s true of adults too. Everyone likes to be strong. We talk about strength in a variety of areas. Strength of almost any kind is desirable in our culture. It is an attractive quality in men and women. It brings confidence and a sense of self-assurance. Physical strength emotional strength, financial strength, you name it and we desire it. We desire to be viewed as strong. We hate to be viewed as weak.

This week, as we finish up the Book of Judges, we look at a man who was known for his strength, Samson. His name is a byword for strength. When I was young, I had a Bible with pictures and Samson was the guy with the biggest muscles. He looks like a professional wrestler or body builder. Long flowing locks of hair that blow in the wind. He doesn’t own many shirts, but he has whole shelves full of oil. The women swoon as he walks by and the men are jealous. He looks like he has it all together and the stories they tell about his strength are amazing. He has killed a lion with his bare hands. He has torn the gates off of a city wall. He breaks cords and rope by flexing his muscles. He has killed Philistines by the thousands.

But where does his strength come from? As a child I thought it was all about his hair. The longer the hair, the stronger Samson became. But as an adult, I know better. Samson’s strength came from God. It was the spirit of God coming on Samson in power that enabled Samson to commit the deeds he carried out. He started off as a child living under a vow. The vow was meant to dedicate Samson to the service of the Lord. But Samson lived out his vow half-heartedly at best. He enjoyed the blessing, but was never very good at surrender or obedience. He drank when he should have resisted. He touched what the Lord forbade. He lied, he schemed, and he gloried in his own pride. He seemed to think that God would simply continue to give Samson his strength, but eventually, God let Samson live out his own choices.

Judges 16:20 is one of the saddest statements in the Bible. It is the moment when Delilah has cut Samson’s hair, the moment when Samson has told her his strength flows from his hair. It is in that moment that God allows Samson to live in his own strength. And Samson’s strength is not able to carry him through. The Bible says that Samson did not know that the Spirit of God had left him. He was unaware of his spiritual walk with God. He had lived so long for self, just assuming that God would do what Samson wanted, that he never realized that God was the source of his power. That is until he stood alone, blind, a prisoner of the Philistines. It is in that moment when Samson calls out to God. Not a very good prayer and really centered on Samson’s own agenda, but he prayed, and God answered.

Samson’s story can be sad. But it is a great way to learn what embedding the Bible is all about. You see, you and I cannot be strong on our own. Oh, I know we can attain all the kinds of strength that the world offers, but this isn’t the kind of strength that is important. The strength you and I long for is the strength that comes from walking with God. The strength that comes from surrender and obedience. The strength to walk away from sin and self. The strength to live in the world but not of the world. You and I want to be strong in the Lord. Embedding the Bible helps us to see the promise of God and know the strength that God provides. Embedding the Bible strengthens our walk with God so that God’s strength can empower our lives.

So take the lesson. Live out the promises you have made to God and watch God live out His promises in you. Live in the strength that God provides. Be strong in the Lord.