male announcer: This
presentation is brought to you
00:00:02.40\00:00:04.20
by the friends of the
Amazing Facts Ministry.
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Doug Batchelor: The devil
is trying to make a monkey
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out of every one of you.
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If he's got you thinking you
can continue in a life of sin
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and everything's gonna
end well, you're being a fool.
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Tell me I'm
wrong from the Bible.
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It does not end
well for the wicked.
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Doug: We're continuing a
series that we began a couple
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of weeks ago dealing with
the Bible character of Samson.
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And today, in particular, we're
gonna be talking about Samson
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who was conquered by compromise.
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Samson's story is something
of a paradox, because through
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the story of Samson,
we see shadows of Jesus.
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He was one of
the judges, a leader,
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a type of Christ
in some respects.
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Many failures, but,
of course, David failed,
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and Abraham failed,
and yet, there were things
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in their life that were
clearly types of Christ.
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And so, you'll see, as
we conclude, I'm gonna do
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my best to bring out a
picture of Jesus in all of this.
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Go to verse 4,
Judges 16 verse 4.
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"Afterward it
happened that he loved a women
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in the Valley of Sorek
whose name was Delilah."
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Sorek was a little bit down
the hill, right on the border.
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It was a place that was
famous for wonderful grapes.
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Right on the
border of the Philistines
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and the people of
Israel, the tribe of Dan.
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And maybe Samson was thinking,
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"Well, look, you know,
I sure like so many things
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about the Philistines."
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He spent a lot of
time with the Philistines,
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I mean, that's how he
ended up marrying one of them.
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He thought, "I'm gonna find the
halfway ground between the two."
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He was looking for a compromise,
and he found a girl that lived
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in Sorek, Delilah, may
have been very beautiful,
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it says he loved
her, but she sold him out,
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which, again, is
another type for Christ.
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And so, when he
falls in love with Delilah,
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and by the way, the
name Delilah means consumer.
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It means
something that is feeble,
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and she made Samson,
who was so strong, feeble.
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He was consumed
through this relationship.
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So, the lords of the
Philistines come down to her,
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they said to her, "Entice
him and find out where his great
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strength lies, and by what
means we might overpower him,
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that we might bind him to
afflict him, and every one
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of us will give you eleven
hundred pieces of silver."
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Now, there were five
lords of the Philistines that
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we see several
other places in the Bible.
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They were like governors,
there was a joint kingdom,
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and that means 5,500, if
I'm right, pieces of silver.
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Now, a piece of silver
would be worth about $20
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in today's currency.
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Jesus was sold for what?
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Thirty pieces of silver.
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The amount of money that they're
offering her is approximately
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$110,000, just to see
if they could find out
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where the secret was.
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By the way, that's 183 times
what was offered for Jesus.
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Again, it was silver.
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Well, now if Samson's strength
was because his mother ate
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very carefully, and
she had good prenatal care,
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and he was born
just super strong,
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and he had big muscles, then
it would have been obvious where
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his strength was, but the
Spirit of the Lord came on him,
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and he had
supernatural strength.
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They wanted to
know what is the secret?
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We've gotta
fight fire with fire.
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There is a spiritual
thing happening here.
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You remember even the king
of the Moabites said one time,
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called Balak, he said,
"Look, it's obvious God is
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with these people.
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I've gotta find the
secret to their strength."
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If you could come
and fight fire with fire,
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if you just cursed
them, it's a spiritual battle,
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and we're gonna
fight in a spiritual way.
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So, they said,
"Delilah, there's a secret here.
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There's something
spiritual going on here."
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I mean, maybe, you
know, the Bible doesn't say,
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Samson could have
been five feet five,
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shorter than me.
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He could have worn glasses
and looked like a computer nerd,
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and the Spirit of the
Lord would come on him,
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and he'd get his donkey jawbone
and go out, smite hip and thigh,
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and you can't prove me wrong.
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I mean, I have the glasses,
but it doesn't say anywhere
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he was big, do you realize that?
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Nowhere, nowhere does
it say he had big muscles.
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Matter of fact, when the
Spirit of the Lord left him,
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it says he was
like everyone else.
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So, she begins to tease him.
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"So, Delilah says to
Samson, 'Please tell me where
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your great strength
lies, and with what might you
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be bound and afflicted.'"
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Now, right away, if
you're dating a girl
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and she starts asking
that question, how could you be
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tied up and tormented?
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I'd say, you know, I'm
probably dating the wrong girl.
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But, you know, when you're
being governed by your feelings
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instead of the truth, you
make a lot of bad decisions.
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How can you be bound?
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And Samson said, "Well,
if they bind me with seven
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fresh bowstrings, that have
not yet dried," a bowstring,
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now bowstrings were very strong,
because it needed to hold
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a strong bow, it
needed to maintain the tension
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of a strong bow.
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They'd find the very strongest
fibers, like, you know,
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a piano string for us.
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They'd find the strongest fiber
they could find, and when dried,
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it could handle a
long arrow and not break.
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And he said get fresh
new ones, they're not worn.
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And you think, well, nobody's
gonna break out of that,
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that's like steel.
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Tie me up with that, and
I'll be as weak as other men.
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She thought, "Okay,"
so, she has him tied up.
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"Now there were men lying in
wait with her," and she says,
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"The Philistines are
upon you, Samson, wake up."
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And he wakes up, and
he's tied up with bowstrings,
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"But he broke the
bowstrings as a strand of yarn
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when it touches the fire."
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You remember our
illustration last week.
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"So, the secret of his
strength was not known.
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Then Delilah said to
Samson, 'Look, you've mocked me,
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and you've told me lies.
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Please, tell me now and where
in where you may be bound.'"
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Well, I would have been
suspicious way before this,
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but it gets worse.
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"So he says to her,
'If they bind me securely
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with new ropes,'"
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well, he had already
been bound with new ropes
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by his own people when he
was handed to the Philistines,
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but these are new ropes
that had never been used.
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There's something
spiritual about that.
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"Then I'll become
weak and like other men."
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Notice, he even knows that
it might be possible for him
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to be weak.
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"Therefore Delilah took new
ropes and bound him with them,"
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I guess again
while he was asleep,
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and then she shouts, "The
Philistines are upon you,"
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again, they're hiding in
the background somewhere,
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and he jumps up,
and the Bible says,
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"He broke them off his arm like
thread," supernatural strength.
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Then Delilah says
to Samson, "Until now,
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you've mocked me
and told me lies.
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Tell me with what
you may be bound."
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Now, he's getting
tired of this, and so,
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you notice what
he keeps thinking?
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Samson thinks, "I
know, I can't trust Delilah,"
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but he was infatuated with her.
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She may have been beautiful, he
might have loved a lot of things
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about her character, he
just couldn't tear himself away.
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And so, even though she
keeps after him about this,
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he keeps making
things up, but you know,
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interrogators have found
that if you keep asking people
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the same
question again, you keep--
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and say, "Tell me
the story," and you say,
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"Well, I already told you,"
"Tell me again," every time
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it seems like they give up
a little bit more information
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and they get closer
and closer to the truth.
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And the devil will
wear people down, and so,
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he's flirting, he's
toying with temptation.
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He thought, "I'm chosen by
God, I've got this strength,
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this power of God,"
and because he sinned,
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and nothing happened, he figured
he could just keep on going.
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This is a very
important point, friends,
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sometimes we deceive
ourselves into thinking because
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the sun shines and it
seems like our job is good,
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and the Lord has bless
us, that that must mean that
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even though we're living
in known rebellion to God,
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"I have the favor of God."
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And because, sometimes we fall,
and he gets us out of trouble,
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and he gets us out of
trouble, we start thinking,
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"Hey, I guess, you know, this
is just the way it's supposed
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to be, is that I just
keep doing what I want,
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and God keeps blessing
me and giving me his power
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and his Spirit."
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And we don't realize that
we're playing Russian roulette
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with eternity.
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The Bible tells us that, if you
read in Ecclesiastes chapter 8,
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"Because the sentence against
an evil work is not executed
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speedily, therefore the hearts
of the sons of men are fully set
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in them to do evil."
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If the first time that
Samson had stepped over the line
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began to compromise
with the Philistines,
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God had hit him with
lightening--you ever seen,
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they got these
collars on dogs, you know,
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they walk out of the
circle and they get shocked,
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and you can teach the
dog, don't go past that point.
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Matter of fact, I understand,
I've never done this to a dog,
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but I understand that once a dog
finds out where the borders are
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that they're not supposed to go
beyond because they get zapped
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every time they go beyond this,
you can take the collar off
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and they won't go
anymore, because they say,
00:09:27.30\00:09:29.60
"Man, I get shocked."
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God doesn't teach us
like that with a shock collar.
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He doesn't zap you
every time you disobey,
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have you noticed that?
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Now, if you've
got the Holy Spirit,
00:09:39.64\00:09:40.94
your conscience
might trouble you,
00:09:40.98\00:09:42.28
but you can quiet that.
00:09:42.31\00:09:44.61
And eventually Samson
kind of just felt, you know,
00:09:44.65\00:09:47.52
I'm the exception.
00:09:47.55\00:09:49.15
I've got the
Spirit of God, I mean,
00:09:49.18\00:09:50.75
look at how many
people I've killed,
00:09:50.79\00:09:52.25
and pride was getting after him.
00:09:52.29\00:09:55.52
He thought, well, I
deserve it, you know,
00:09:55.56\00:09:57.39
being a judge is tough.
00:09:57.43\00:09:59.26
And so, little by
little, he begins to sacrifice
00:09:59.29\00:10:01.40
his purity and sacrifice his
consecration because he thinks,
00:10:01.43\00:10:05.30
"Well, look, God's
still blessing me."
00:10:05.33\00:10:07.94
It's like believing once
you're saved you can't be lost,
00:10:07.97\00:10:10.84
you ever run into that before?
00:10:10.87\00:10:13.71
And he kept
pushing the boundary.
00:10:13.74\00:10:17.45
He said, "Yeah, my hair," so
they tie his hair in the loom,
00:10:17.48\00:10:22.35
and she again says, "The
Philistines are upon you."
00:10:22.38\00:10:27.32
He woke up from his
sleep, he pulled out the batten
00:10:27.36\00:10:30.63
and the web from the loom.
00:10:30.66\00:10:32.36
He just gets up from bed and
this whole big loom apparatus
00:10:32.39\00:10:35.26
is clanging and
battering behind him.
00:10:35.30\00:10:38.00
And then she
says, "How can you say,
00:10:38.03\00:10:40.07
'I love you,' when
your heart is not with me?'"
00:10:40.10\00:10:43.17
It says, "It came to pass when
she pestered him daily with her
00:10:43.20\00:10:47.41
words and pressed him so that
his soul was vexed to death."
00:10:47.44\00:10:54.52
He's at the point of death.
00:10:54.55\00:10:57.35
Do you know the Bible
says that Jesus, in the Garden
00:10:57.39\00:10:59.52
of Gethsemane said, "I
am pressed even to death?"
00:10:59.55\00:11:05.29
And three times he said,
"Not my will, thy will be done."
00:11:05.33\00:11:07.73
And Jesus was willing to die for
a bride that did not love him
00:11:07.76\00:11:13.07
back, but he was betrayed by
his own people into the hands
00:11:13.10\00:11:18.71
of the enemy, for
silver I might add.
00:11:18.74\00:11:23.01
Do you see it, friends?
00:11:23.04\00:11:25.85
He couldn't tear himself away.
00:11:25.88\00:11:28.02
He says, "I've loved you
with an everlasting love."
00:11:28.05\00:11:30.22
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Doug: Who does Delilah
represent in this story?
00:12:05.79\00:12:07.89
Well, I told you she kind
of represents a corrupt church,
00:12:07.92\00:12:09.89
but certainly the Lord's not
with her, it's the devil, right?
00:12:09.92\00:12:14.03
How does the
devil break us down?
00:12:14.10\00:12:16.80
Daily, he tries to
undermine your resolve to do
00:12:16.83\00:12:20.90
the right thing.
00:12:20.94\00:12:22.80
And because we stay so
close to the devil's territory,
00:12:22.84\00:12:27.91
Sorek was a place
of beautiful vines.
00:12:27.94\00:12:30.35
He's surrounded by vines.
00:12:30.38\00:12:32.78
A Nazarite is not
supposed to be near a grape,
00:12:32.81\00:12:34.72
he's not supposed
to be near a raisin,
00:12:34.75\00:12:36.38
let alone wine, and so
he's placed himself on enchanted
00:12:36.42\00:12:40.62
ground where he's not
safe, and daily she's after him.
00:12:40.66\00:12:45.59
So, if you and I are living in a
world where the devil's after us
00:12:45.63\00:12:48.16
daily, how do you compensate?
00:12:48.20\00:12:51.40
Give us this day our what bread?
00:12:51.43\00:12:54.07
Daily bread,
Paul said I die daily.
00:12:54.10\00:12:59.87
Jesus said if you
would live forever,
00:12:59.91\00:13:01.78
let every man take up his
cross daily and come after me.
00:13:01.81\00:13:07.02
Being a Christian is
a daily turning to God,
00:13:07.05\00:13:10.35
because you've got an enemy
that will pester you daily.
00:13:10.39\00:13:14.76
Can any of you think of
a day where you didn't have
00:13:14.79\00:13:16.52
any temptation?
00:13:16.56\00:13:20.23
If you think you had a
day with no temptation,
00:13:20.26\00:13:22.23
you were probably totally
sold out and didn't know it,
00:13:22.26\00:13:24.57
'cause you felt no resistance,
you were just flowing,
00:13:24.60\00:13:26.40
going with the tide,
and you didn't notice it.
00:13:26.43\00:13:30.37
But, if you try to
swim against the current,
00:13:30.41\00:13:32.41
you are gonna daily
feel temptation, amen?
00:13:32.44\00:13:35.81
You're in a word where you're
just surrounded with evil.
00:13:35.84\00:13:40.75
A lady came once to the
evangelist Billy Sunday and
00:13:40.78\00:13:43.59
she said, "Pastor Sunday, you're
always preaching against sin,
00:13:43.62\00:13:46.32
you just keep rubbing
the cats fur the wrong way."
00:13:46.35\00:13:49.62
And he said, "Sister, if
the cat would turn around,
00:13:49.66\00:13:52.43
I'd be rubbing the
cat's fur the right way."
00:13:52.46\00:13:55.46
So, you need to turn around.
00:13:55.50\00:13:58.30
So, if you're
living in this world,
00:13:58.33\00:14:00.07
and you're trying
to be a Christian,
00:14:00.10\00:14:02.40
you're just gonna
meet with temptation.
00:14:02.44\00:14:03.97
Daily, she's after him.
00:14:04.01\00:14:05.97
Finally, he's vexed to death,
"And he told her all his heart."
00:14:06.01\00:14:10.91
Notice the word heart.
00:14:10.95\00:14:12.25
She says, "You haven't
told me your heart," and finally
00:14:12.28\00:14:13.65
he gives her his heart.
00:14:13.68\00:14:16.05
And he says to her, "No razor
has ever come upon my head."
00:14:16.08\00:14:21.69
I would have
moved out at that point.
00:14:21.72\00:14:23.22
I said, "Now she
knows, she can't be trusted.
00:14:23.26\00:14:25.19
Every time I
wake up, I'm tied up,
00:14:25.23\00:14:27.40
my hair is in a loom, you know.
00:14:27.46\00:14:29.26
Every time I tell her a
secret, the Philistines are
00:14:29.30\00:14:31.23
in the house."
00:14:31.27\00:14:33.37
And she goes, "Oh, Samson,
the Philistines are here."
00:14:33.40\00:14:36.91
I mean, you gotta be
pretty dumb to know that she has
00:14:36.94\00:14:39.97
nothing to do with it.
00:14:40.01\00:14:44.01
Yeah, you ever heard the
expression love is blind?
00:14:44.05\00:14:46.28
Some people think they're in
love and they got these strong
00:14:46.31\00:14:49.72
feelings for someone, and this
person is just tearing 'em down,
00:14:49.75\00:14:53.89
and they don't see it.
00:14:53.92\00:14:55.22
Everyone around them
says, "What's wrong with you?
00:14:55.26\00:14:58.03
How come you don't see
he's no good, she's no good?"
00:14:58.06\00:15:01.26
"Oh, no, I love him.
They would never hurt me."
00:15:01.30\00:15:06.74
Come on, have you
heard that before?
00:15:06.77\00:15:10.11
Now, if you're
married, you're stuck.
00:15:10.14\00:15:13.54
I'm talking about the ones
who are dating the wrong way.
00:15:13.58\00:15:20.65
And so, "She lulled him to
sleep," and it said she shaved
00:15:20.68\00:15:26.55
off his locks, or had a
barber come shave off his locks,
00:15:26.59\00:15:29.46
and boy, he must have
had that razor sharp so that
00:15:29.49\00:15:31.46
he didn't hear
it going snip, snip.
00:15:31.49\00:15:35.03
"And she said, 'Sampson,
the Philistines are upon you,'"
00:15:35.06\00:15:38.83
and he gets up, and
he's still a little groggy,
00:15:38.87\00:15:41.84
he doesn't notice that
he's feeling a cool breeze
00:15:41.87\00:15:45.21
on his head that he
had not ever felt before.
00:15:45.24\00:15:49.31
He doesn't notice the hair
laying on the ground around him.
00:15:49.34\00:15:53.55
He gets up and he thinks I'll
go shake myself another time
00:15:53.58\00:15:56.22
and then I'll throw those
Philistines out the window
00:15:56.25\00:15:58.22
and out the door, and
I'll teach them a lesson,
00:15:58.25\00:16:00.49
and he gets up, and suddenly,
he's only five feet five
00:16:00.52\00:16:05.69
and he has no strength.
00:16:05.73\00:16:07.73
And the Bible says, "He
did not know that the Lord
00:16:07.76\00:16:11.57
had departed from him."
00:16:11.60\00:16:14.64
You know, it's interesting,
it says she woke him up
00:16:14.67\00:16:16.84
and she tormented him.
00:16:16.87\00:16:18.21
She sang him to sleep
and woke him up in torment.
00:16:18.57\00:16:22.38
The devil will try to stroke
your heads and lull you to
00:16:22.41\00:16:26.15
sleep, he'll get you to sin,
and he's the first one to point
00:16:26.18\00:16:30.02
the finger at you, and he'll
make the most of your torment.
00:16:30.05\00:16:33.59
He acts like,
"You just listen to me,
00:16:33.62\00:16:35.59
you'll really enjoy yourself."
00:16:35.62\00:16:38.13
You just compromise,
and you'll really have fun."
00:16:38.16\00:16:41.30
And then, when
you do compromise,
00:16:41.33\00:16:42.80
you find out that
it doesn't play well.
00:16:42.83\00:16:45.37
He did not know.
00:16:45.40\00:16:46.70
You know, that makes me
shutter, I don't know about you,
00:16:46.74\00:16:48.37
just the very idea that you
could have the Spirit depart
00:16:48.40\00:16:50.64
and not know it.
00:16:50.67\00:16:54.71
Did King Saul
grieve away the Spirit?
00:16:54.74\00:16:58.35
It says the Spirit of the
Lord departed and left him
00:16:58.38\00:17:00.15
because of his
pride, and his stubbornness,
00:17:00.18\00:17:02.22
and his persistence
and rebelling against God.
00:17:02.25\00:17:04.39
God finally said, "Look,
you don't really want me to be
00:17:04.42\00:17:07.22
in charge, I'm gonna
let you do your own thing,"
00:17:07.26\00:17:09.36
and God withdrew the Spirit.
00:17:09.39\00:17:12.73
David, after he
sinned with Bathsheba,
00:17:12.76\00:17:14.56
Psalm 51, he prayed and said,
"Lord, take not thy Holy Spirit
00:17:14.56\00:17:18.07
from me."
00:17:18.10\00:17:20.84
One of the most frightening
things is that there'll be
00:17:20.87\00:17:22.94
people in the last days
that will stand before the Lord,
00:17:22.97\00:17:25.57
and they'll say, "Lord, Lord,"
he'll say, "I don't know you."
00:17:25.61\00:17:28.08
They'll say, "What do you mean?
We thought we belonged to you."
00:17:28.11\00:17:32.58
And they didn't
have the Spirit of God.
00:17:32.61\00:17:34.55
A lot of people doing religious
things and they don't have
00:17:34.58\00:17:36.89
the Spirit of God.
00:17:36.92\00:17:38.92
"Then the Philistines
took him and put out his eyes,
00:17:38.95\00:17:44.56
and brought him down
to Gaza," remember Gaza
00:17:44.59\00:17:47.10
where he had torn the gates off?
00:17:47.13\00:17:49.03
He thought, "You
could never trap me in Gaza,
00:17:49.06\00:17:51.07
I'll just tear the gates off."
00:17:51.10\00:17:52.40
Well, now he's in Gaza,
"And they bound him with
00:17:52.43\00:17:54.74
bronze fetters, and he became
a grinder in their prison."
00:17:54.77\00:17:59.74
How sad, now Samson, who
had been called to be a judge
00:17:59.77\00:18:04.35
of Israel, a representative
of God, a leader of God,
00:18:04.38\00:18:07.82
he's been living by
the flesh, and he ends up
00:18:07.85\00:18:12.12
living like a beast.
00:18:12.15\00:18:14.39
Instead of being
ruled by the Spirit,
00:18:14.42\00:18:16.16
he had been ruled
by the flesh, and so,
00:18:16.19\00:18:19.19
now they've got him doing
what animals typically did.
00:18:19.23\00:18:22.46
And I'll tell you, it
is a pretty pitiful scene.
00:18:22.50\00:18:24.57
I don't know if you've
ever seen how they do that,
00:18:24.60\00:18:27.04
but there would be a large room,
it might be outside in a yard,
00:18:27.07\00:18:31.77
and there was a
big stone circle,
00:18:31.81\00:18:34.31
and on top of the
stone circle platform,
00:18:34.34\00:18:35.78
there was a big stone wheel
that had a wooden axel going
00:18:35.81\00:18:38.95
through it, and
the axel stuck out.
00:18:38.98\00:18:41.52
And they would
throw grain in the middle,
00:18:41.55\00:18:46.35
and this oxen or something would
go around in a circle like this,
00:18:46.39\00:18:50.63
all day long, making--and
then people would be off in the
00:18:50.66\00:18:53.66
middle of the pole, and they'd
be shoveling new grain in.
00:18:53.70\00:18:55.86
It would be grinding, and
it would slowly spill off.
00:18:55.90\00:18:57.87
It was sloped a little bit,
so it would be spilling off,
00:18:57.90\00:19:00.20
and all day long the
animal would go like this,
00:19:00.24\00:19:02.70
and there would be a rut.
00:19:02.74\00:19:04.37
Every now and then, some of the
grain would fall into the rut,
00:19:04.41\00:19:06.41
and that's why Paul
says don't muzzle the ox
00:19:06.44\00:19:08.18
that's grinding out the grain.
00:19:08.21\00:19:09.88
But now, Samson is
going round and round,
00:19:09.91\00:19:13.31
and he's in the dark.
00:19:13.35\00:19:15.28
Sometimes the
Philistines would come.
00:19:15.32\00:19:18.22
I mean, he'd been
a judge for 20 years,
00:19:18.25\00:19:19.92
and this is after
he'd killed thousands,
00:19:19.95\00:19:22.02
and he'd done
all these exploits.
00:19:22.06\00:19:23.46
And the Philistines said,
"Oh, we've conquered him,"
00:19:23.49\00:19:26.29
and they'd come and they'd
taunt him, and they would spit
00:19:26.33\00:19:29.30
on him, and they would
poke him with an ox gourd,
00:19:29.33\00:19:33.47
and I'm sure they treated him
very cruelly, like an animal,
00:19:33.50\00:19:38.57
and then he'd be by
himself, bound at night.
00:19:38.61\00:19:42.34
What do you think was
going through his mind?
00:19:42.38\00:19:45.61
Why have I wasted my life?
00:19:45.65\00:19:47.28
He probably, like Peter, he
wept bitterly, day after day,
00:19:47.32\00:19:52.39
because he had been such a fool.
00:19:52.42\00:19:54.62
You and I read his story and
we can see what Delilah's up to,
00:19:54.66\00:19:57.06
but it took him until he
lost his eyes and he lost
00:19:57.09\00:19:59.69
his strength to realize
how could I be so blind?
00:19:59.73\00:20:03.83
Now, he's blind
and his eyes are open.
00:20:03.87\00:20:06.40
Before, his eyes were
open, but he was blind
00:20:06.43\00:20:08.27
to what the
devil was doing to him.
00:20:08.30\00:20:09.97
The devil is trying to make a
monkey out of every one of you.
00:20:10.01\00:20:13.64
If he's got you thinking you
can continue in a life of sin
00:20:13.68\00:20:16.34
and everything's gonna
end well, you're being a fool.
00:20:16.38\00:20:21.28
Tell me I'm
wrong from the Bible.
00:20:21.32\00:20:23.92
It does not end
well for the wicked.
00:20:23.95\00:20:26.52
I don't know if I read
the rest of that verse to you
00:20:26.55\00:20:28.29
in Ecclesiastes.
00:20:28.32\00:20:30.06
"Though a sinner does evil
a hundred times and his days
00:20:30.09\00:20:32.76
are prolonged, yet I know
that it will be well with those
00:20:32.79\00:20:36.00
who fear God,
who fear before him,
00:20:36.03\00:20:37.77
but it will not be
well with the wicked."
00:20:37.80\00:20:41.04
It might seem to
go okay for a while.
00:20:41.07\00:20:42.94
God was so patient w Samson.
00:20:42.97\00:20:44.44
God is loving, he's
merciful, but you can't continue
00:20:44.47\00:20:47.38
to live like that and
expect it to end well.
00:20:47.41\00:20:50.91
You know, the amazing thing
though is that while he was
00:20:50.95\00:20:54.42
going around, day
after day, and he's praying,
00:20:54.45\00:21:01.22
his hair was growing.
00:21:01.26\00:21:04.09
But, it doesn't
grow overnight, does it?
00:21:04.13\00:21:06.59
And it's interesting as the
people came by and they saw him,
00:21:06.63\00:21:08.76
you know, he's
blind, he's in chains,
00:21:08.80\00:21:10.27
they weren't afraid, and it just
didn't occur to the Philistines,
00:21:10.30\00:21:12.87
you know, he lost all his
strength when his hair was cut,
00:21:12.90\00:21:16.54
but his hair began to grow.
00:21:16.57\00:21:17.87
What do you think that means?
00:21:17.91\00:21:19.41
I don't think the big thing
is that his hair began to grow,
00:21:19.44\00:21:21.44
I think that his
heart began to grow.
00:21:21.48\00:21:24.61
His
consecration began to return.
00:21:24.65\00:21:27.05
He was repenting of his sins,
and God was hearing his prayers.
00:21:27.08\00:21:32.05
He was wishing he
could do something else.
00:21:32.09\00:21:34.86
The reason he was raised
up was to defeat the enemies
00:21:34.89\00:21:37.46
of God's people that
had been oppressing them.
00:21:37.49\00:21:42.13
And so, there he is,
grinding in the prison.
00:21:42.16\00:21:44.50
It says, "Now the lords of the
Philistines gathered together
00:21:44.53\00:21:48.54
to offer"--I'm in
verse 23, chapter 16,
00:21:48.57\00:21:51.64
"To offer a great
sacrifice to Dagon,
00:21:51.67\00:21:54.01
their god, and to rejoice.
00:21:54.04\00:21:58.08
And they said, 'Our god has
delivered into our hands Samson
00:21:58.11\00:22:01.52
our enemy.'"
00:22:01.55\00:22:02.88
I don't think a
year had gone by,
00:22:02.92\00:22:04.22
because this is the first
kind of national Dagon feast
00:22:04.25\00:22:06.39
their having.
00:22:06.42\00:22:07.72
All the lords
of the Philistines,
00:22:07.76\00:22:09.06
they come together
to Gaza, this one town,
00:22:09.09\00:22:10.99
they have this big
national feast, and,
00:22:11.03\00:22:15.16
"When the people saw
him, they praised their god,
00:22:15.20\00:22:17.70
for they said, 'Our god
has delivered into our hand
00:22:17.73\00:22:19.73
our enemy, the
destroyer of our land,
00:22:19.77\00:22:23.07
the one who
multiplied our dead.'
00:22:23.10\00:22:25.94
So it happened, when their
hearts were merry, they said,
00:22:25.97\00:22:29.04
'Call for Samson, that
he might perform for us.'"
00:22:29.08\00:22:32.95
And so, they've got
this great temple of Dagon,
00:22:32.98\00:22:36.32
and in the middle there's
these two pillars that probably
00:22:36.35\00:22:38.69
are straddling an
altar, or are near an altar,
00:22:38.72\00:22:41.42
and when they bring him in,
it's a good chance they were
00:22:41.46\00:22:44.26
getting ready to execute
him after they tormented him,
00:22:44.29\00:22:48.20
like someone else
we know in the Bible.
00:22:48.23\00:22:50.97
"Then Samson said to the
lad who held him by the hand,"
00:22:51.00\00:22:53.84
he was blind, he said,
"Let me feel the pillars
00:22:53.87\00:22:58.07
which support the temple,
that I can lean on them.'
00:22:58.11\00:23:00.91
Then Samson called
to the Lord, and said,
00:23:00.94\00:23:03.61
'O Lord God, remember me.'"
00:23:03.65\00:23:07.18
I don't think he's just
thinking about his blindness,
00:23:07.22\00:23:08.98
I think he's praying that
God will forgive them for the
00:23:09.02\00:23:11.42
Philistines making him blind
long before he lost his eyes.
00:23:11.45\00:23:16.56
There's a lot of Christians
out there that are blinded
00:23:16.59\00:23:18.53
by the world.
00:23:18.56\00:23:20.00
You may still have 20/20 vision,
but the devil's blinded you.
00:23:20.03\00:23:23.97
Samson realized he had
been blinded by the beauty
00:23:24.00\00:23:26.23
of the Philistines.
00:23:26.27\00:23:29.20
"I pray thee, strengthen
me, just this once, O God,
00:23:29.24\00:23:34.04
that with one blow I might take
vengeance on the Philistines
00:23:34.08\00:23:37.51
for my two eyes.'
00:23:37.55\00:23:38.85
Samson took hold of the
middle pillars which supported
00:23:38.88\00:23:41.62
the temple, and he
braced himself against them."
00:23:41.65\00:23:44.19
Yes, they must have
been close enough for him
00:23:44.22\00:23:45.92
to reach them both.
00:23:45.95\00:23:47.99
"One on the right and
the other on the left."
00:23:48.02\00:23:50.66
Jesus died between
two thieves, on the right
00:23:50.69\00:23:52.79
and the other on the left.
00:23:52.83\00:23:55.70
"And Samson said, 'Let me
die with the Philistines.'"
00:23:55.73\00:23:59.43
And before they could sacrifice
him, he beat them to it,
00:23:59.47\00:24:02.57
"And he pushed
with all of his might,
00:24:02.60\00:24:05.57
and the temple fell, and
the people who were in it.
00:24:05.61\00:24:09.28
So the dead that he killed
by his death were more than
00:24:09.31\00:24:13.05
he killed by his life."
00:24:13.08\00:24:15.48
The whole story of
Samson is summarized right here.
00:24:15.52\00:24:17.85
You know, sometimes
at the end of a parable
00:24:17.89\00:24:19.49
you've got the moral?
00:24:19.52\00:24:21.69
Samson is a type of Christ
in that Jesus, at the end,
00:24:21.72\00:24:24.83
he stretched out his arms,
00:24:24.86\00:24:27.03
he laid down his life to defeat
the enemies of God's people.
00:24:27.10\00:24:32.57
Samson, as I
mentioned before, is mentioned
00:24:32.60\00:24:34.14
in the Book of
Hebrews as someone of faith.
00:24:34.17\00:24:36.60
I think God honored his faith.
00:24:36.64\00:24:39.74
He was growing in the
dark, and God gave him strength.
00:24:39.77\00:24:43.31
You look at the last few
words in the story of Samson
00:24:43.35\00:24:45.95
at the end of
chapter 16, it says,
00:24:45.98\00:24:48.48
"Then his family, his
brother and his father's house,
00:24:48.52\00:24:50.85
came and they took
and brought him up.
00:24:50.89\00:24:52.69
They took care of his
body and they buried him."
00:24:52.72\00:24:54.82
Did the friends and family
of Jesus come and take him
00:24:54.86\00:24:58.29
from the cross and bury him?
00:24:58.33\00:25:00.63
You know, the story of Samson
is really the story of Christ.
00:25:00.66\00:25:04.10
It's a story of warning for
us of how we can lose strength,
00:25:04.13\00:25:08.17
and it's also a promise.
00:25:08.20\00:25:09.64
You know, the
wonderful thing is,
00:25:09.67\00:25:12.17
Samson was saved in the 11th
hour because he turned to God,
00:25:12.21\00:25:16.75
even though it looked like he
had nothing left to offer God,
00:25:16.78\00:25:18.98
he turned to God, and when
Samson surrendered everything,
00:25:19.01\00:25:21.92
and he was willing to die, he
received his greatest strength.
00:25:21.95\00:25:26.09
When do we receive
our greatest strength?
00:25:26.12\00:25:28.52
When we take up our
cross, and we are willing
00:25:28.56\00:25:30.49
to be crucified with Christ.
00:25:30.53\00:25:33.29
You know, I just love
these stories in the Bible.
00:25:33.33\00:25:35.80
We don't wanna be
blinded by the world, friends,
00:25:35.83\00:25:38.07
like Samson was, we wanna turn
our eyes on Jesus now, amen?
00:25:38.10\00:25:41.87
announcer: Don't forget to
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To get your digital copy of
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It's now easier than ever
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Amazing Facts wherever and
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important, to
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announcer: "Go
into all the world
00:26:20.14\00:26:21.94
and preach the
gospel to every creature."
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Through radio, television,
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and the internet,
Amazing Facts International
00:26:28.05\00:26:30.75
is heeding the call of
Jesus to go into all the world.
00:26:30.79\00:26:34.69
Millions of individuals
in over 150 countries
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have been blessed
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Amazing Facts has
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in India, Africa,
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With each new country come
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00:26:46.53\00:26:49.50
study guides, and
video presentations produced
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in each region for
the people of that region.
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Armed with
these precious truths,
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gospel workers are empowered
to spread bright rays of light
00:26:57.01\00:27:00.15
on every path they travel.
00:27:00.18\00:27:02.28
Please visit,
reachtheworld.amazingfacts.org,
00:27:02.68\00:27:05.95
to learn more about
Amazing Facts International and
00:27:05.99\00:27:08.76
how you can participate in this
exciting soul-winning ministry.
00:27:08.79\00:27:12.69
That website again is
reachtheworld.amazingfacts.org.
00:27:12.73\00:27:17.20
Thank you for your support.
00:27:17.23\00:27:19.20
announcer: What if
you could know the future?
00:27:20.17\00:27:23.91
What would you do?
00:27:23.94\00:27:25.54
What would you change?
00:27:25.57\00:27:27.81
To see the future, you
must understand the past.
00:27:27.84\00:27:33.01
This intriguing documentary,
hosted by Pastor Doug Batchelor,
00:27:33.05\00:27:37.32
explores the most striking
bible prophecies that have
00:27:37.35\00:27:40.36
been dramatically
fulfilled throughout history.
00:27:40.39\00:27:43.63
"Kingdoms in Time."
00:27:43.66\00:27:45.33
For more information
visit kingdomsintime.com.
00:27:45.36\00:27:49.26
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announcer: Don't forget to
request today's free offer.
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It's sure to be a blessing.
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And thank you for your continued
support as we take the gospel
00:27:59.67\00:28:02.68
of Jesus Christ to the world.
00:28:02.71\00:28:05.18
We hope you'll join us next week
as we delve deep into the Word
00:28:05.21\00:28:08.25
of God to explore
more amazing facts.
00:28:08.28\00:28:11.62
¤¤¤
00:28:12.75\00:28:22.73
announcer: This
presentation was brought to you
00:28:24.27\00:28:26.74
by the friends of the
Amazing Facts Ministry.
00:28:26.77\00:28:28.50