SAMSON AND JOSEPH (1)

“These things happened to them as examples…for us.” 1Co 10:11 NIV

Samson was a loser, Joseph was a winner. Samson had everything going for him. He was the product of a miracle birth, raised by godly parents, and given supernatural strength. Yet he failed miserably. Why? (1) He did not pray. The only time we read of Samson praying is when he was in trouble. Sound familiar? If you conduct a post-mortem on your biggest failures, somewhere in the wreckage you’ll find that you’ve forsaken the place of prayer. You can’t run your car on an empty tank, work on an empty stomach, or pay bills on an empty checking account. And you can’t live a victorious Christian life without daily prayer. (2) He refused to live by God’s Word. When confronted by his parents over marrying the wrong woman, Samson told them, “She pleaseth me well” (Jdg 14:3). When you’re led by sentiment rather than Scripture, you’re heading for trouble. One of the best definitions of “disobedience” is “incomplete obedience.” You can’t pick which Scriptures you want to live by and turn a blind eye to the rest! (3) He had the wrong spirit. While Joseph extended forgiveness to those who’d harmed him, Samson prayed for revenge. Any time you give in to resentment you’re allowing someone other than God to dictate your actions, and you end up suffering even more. (4) He was motivated by greed. Consorting with the Philistines, he placed a bet with thirty of them, saying, “If you lose, then you will give me thirty changes of raiment” (See Jdg 14:13). You say, “What’s the point?” If it could happen to Samson, it could happen to you!

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