Tactics

Day two hundred twenty-one

I finally got over myself and turned my attitude around yesterday.  This morning I thought it appropriate to thank the Lord for hanging in there with me.  I am so grateful for His hand in my life and His ability to put the things and people in my day that I need to keep my attitude in check. His relationship with me provides me with the prefect example of perseverance and endurance, He never gives up on me!  Thanks for always being there!

Judges 16
The last glimpse we had of Samson was of a man who seemed to have gotten his act together. We saw Samson calling on the Lord in humility. He prayed to the Lord and God delivered him from death through a great miracle. That story ends with Samson judging Israel for 20 years.

After a period of peace and service to Israel, Samson falls once again into his old ways. His old passions rise to the surface and Samson once again finds himself entangled in a web of sin. Samson may have been a powerful man physically, but he was a moral weakling. He may have demonstrated his power time and again over the enemies of the Lord, but he was helpless against the power of his flesh.

As I read chapter sixteen I was looking for what would lead Samson into the world of sin again.  Those that are familiar with the story know that it is his lust for women that leads to his demise, but how did it happen?  I reread the chapter underlining any words or phrases that I felt had to do with sin.  Here are some examples:

verse 2 - "come hither", "compassed him in", "laid in wait', "were quiet"

verse 5 - "entice" "prevail", "bind"

verse 9 - "laying in wait"

verse 16 - "pressed him daily", "urged him", "soul was vexed"

verse 19 - "afflict"

verse 20 -  "the Lord was departed from him"

Can you see the association of these words with sin?  Satan's tactics are clearly portrayed in Samson's story.  The Gazites reaction to Samson is a perfect outline of these tactics:

First there was the opportunity for sin "Samson is come hither"

Second, the phrase "compassed him in”. That means that his enemies surrounded him. They laid a trap for his capture.  That is the way sin works as well.

Third, the Gazites also “laid wait for him all night”. They were patient as they waited for him to leave the harlot’s house. They were in no hurry because time was on their side.

Sin is also patient in the way it works. It will play its cards close to the vest until the sinner is hopelessly entangled in its web. The sinner doesn’t always feel the trap closing around them when they are living out their life of pleasure, but sin is patient, and when the time is right, it will spring the trap and destroy the life of its victim.

Fourth, the Gazites “were quiet all the night”. They did not let Samson know they were there and lying in wait to capture him.

Such is the subtle nature of sin. It does not tell the truth. It leads the sinner to believe that there can be pleasure with no consequences. Sin never tells the truth.

If Samson teaches us anything, he teaches us the truth that we must guard our hearts. We must shield our lives from all the evil influences that would lead us away from God. We need to watch the places we go. We need to be aware of the things we give our attention to.  We need to be careful about the people we associate with. If we allow sin into our lives, it will wrap itself around us until it has choked the life right out of us. It will not stop until it has destroyed us and everything we love.  There are always consequences attached sin, and God will allow those consequences to be brought to pass in our lives because He loves us! (Heb. 12:6-11; Rev. 3:19.)

Benjamin Franklin got it right when he said, "Sin is not hurtful because it is forbidden; but it is forbidden because it is hurtful." 

This is a good opportunity to examine the things in our own lives that may be leading us into a life of sin. Where do we spend our time? Are there things we watch or listen to that could be hurting us spiritually? Who are we spending our time with? Do our friends build us up or are they bringing us down? Remember Satan's tactics and take an honest look into your life and decide what should stay and what should go, then do it!  We have a powerful tactic of our own: If shedding our lives of those questionable things seems bigger than you, ask for help through prayer. There is no one bigger than God and because He loves you He will help!