¤[music ends]¤
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>>John Bradshaw:
This is It Is Written.
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I'm John Bradshaw.
Thanks for joining me.
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It was January the 28th, 1986,
and the space shuttle Challenger
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was on the launchpad at
Cape Canaveral in Florida.
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Seven astronauts
were heading into space
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on what was to be the
Challenger's tenth mission.
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Among them was
Christa McAuliffe,
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a 37-year-old social studies
teacher at Concord High School
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in New Hampshire.
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Her presence on
the space shuttle
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meant that school children
from all over the country
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were watching
coverage of the launch.
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I'll never forget seeing
the famous tragic photograph
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of the
Challenger disintegrating.
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I'd been working overnight.
I'd slept during the day,
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and as I arrived at
the studio late in the day,
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the receptionist was
reading the afternoon newspaper,
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and the front page
was facing towards me.
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And I noticed what I thought
at first glance was a swan.
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Maybe it was a photo of a
swan taken at the nearby lake.
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But, of course, I looked again.
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I, I, I asked to
see the newspaper.
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And like millions of people all
around the world, my heart sank.
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I was heartbroken to think of
the tragedy that had unfolded.
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The seven astronauts, black
and white, male and female,
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perished.
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President Ronald Reagan
had been scheduled to deliver
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the State of the
Union address that night.
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But it was
postponed for the first time
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in this nation's history.
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Instead, President Reagan spoke
to America about the tragedy.
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It was a four-minute speech.
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Many said it was
one of his best ever.
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"The future doesn't
belong to the fainthearted;
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it belongs to
the brave," he said.
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"The Challenger crew was
pulling us into the future,
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and we'll
continue to follow them."
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And then he said, quoting from
a, a poem, "We will never..."
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>>Ronald Reagan:
...never forget them,
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nor the last time we
saw them, this morning,
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as they prepared for
their journey and waved goodbye
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and "slipped the
surly bonds of earth"
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to "touch the face of God."
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>>John: It was later discovered
that the Challenger broke up
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only 73 seconds after liftoff
because of a faulty O-ring.
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It was an unusually cold day,
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and the O-rings weren't able to
function correctly in the cold.
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They needed warmer temperatures.
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There'd been
warnings about this,
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but the warnings were ignored.
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A vehicle weighing four
and a half million pounds
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was undone by an O-ring.
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The Challenger had a fatal flaw,
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not unlike many people
who have an Achilles' heel
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in their makeup.
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And one such person is the
focus of our program today,
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as we continue
with our ongoing series
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"Great Characters of the Bible."
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He was born in a time of
widespread apostasy in Israel.
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All God asked is that
His people would be faithful,
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that is, lean on Him, trust
Him, allow Him to do for them
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the things they
couldn't do for themselves.
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But there's something about
human nature that allows people
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to exercise terrible judgment,
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even when they know it's
not in their best interests.
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Like the person who
will drink and then drive,
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that person said,
"Okay, I'll only have one,"
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knowing there was every chance
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things were not
going to end well.
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Judges 13:1 says, "Again
the children of Israel did evil
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"in the sight of the Lord,
and the Lord delivered them
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into the hand of the
Philistines for forty years."
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This was Israel's
almost-Sisyphean saga:
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follow God,
collapse into apostasy,
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and end up being
dominated by an enemy,
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return to God, turn from God,
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national
greatness, national ruin.
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If you read
through the book of Judges,
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you notice that Joshua dies.
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"They forsook the Lord,
and served Baal and Ashtaroth."
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The Bible says, "And when the
Lord raised up judges for them,
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"the Lord was with the judge and
delivered them out of the hand
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"of their enemies all
the days of the judge;
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"for the Lord was moved
to pity by their groaning
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"because of those who oppressed
them and harassed them.
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"And it came to pass,
when the judge was dead,
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"that they reverted
and behaved more corruptly
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"than their fathers,
by following other gods,
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"to serve them
and bow down to them.
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"They did not cease
from their own doings
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nor from their stubborn way."
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In Judges 3, they
served the king of Mesopotamia
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for eight years.
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They cry out to God, and Caleb's
nephew Othniel was raised up
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by God to deliver them.
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Forty years of peace,
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Othniel dies, and they "did evil
again in the sight of the Lord,"
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and they served Eglon,
king of Moab, for 18 years.
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Ehud delivered Israel from Moab,
and they had 80 years of rest.
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Then 20 years under
Jabin, king of Canaan,
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then they're delivered
again in the time of Deborah.
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Then the
Midianites conquer Israel,
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then 40 years of
peace under Gideon.
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Then the Philistines
rule Israel for 40 years,
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and God steps in again.
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Manoah and his wife are told
they're going to be parents,
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which came as a big
surprise because Mrs. Manoah
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hadn't been able
to have children.
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The couple are told not to drink
wine, not to drink strong drink,
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and not to eat anything unclean.
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And they're told not
to cut the boy's hair.
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He was to be a Nazarite.
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The Nazarite vow was a
vow of complete commitment
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and consecration to God.
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It seems Samuel and John
the Baptist might've taken
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the same vow.
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The couple were told to
take special care of the child,
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even before he was born.
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Now, we know today how important
the prenatal influences--
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even before children are born,
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you want to be careful
about what you expose them to--
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and, of course,
then after they're born.
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Sadly, some kids aren't
given a chance by their parents.
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Fill a child's head with
anger and violence and hate
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and foul language,
expose them to media
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that they've got no
business watching or hearing,
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and at the same time if you're
not reading the Bible to them,
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laughing with
them, praying with them,
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walking with
them in the woods...
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If you pour love and
good health into a child,
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expose that
child to good values,
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commit that child to
God, the child has a chance.
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But in cases where
that doesn't happen,
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well, all too
often we see the results.
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But, thank God,
it's never too late.
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God can still work, even
if parents make mistakes.
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But going into childrearing,
we all need to know
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how extremely important it
is to mold children God's way.
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The angel of the Lord
even reiterated this counsel:
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"Let the woman pay
attention to all that I said."
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They named their child Samson,
which means "like the sun."
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He was raised up by
God to shine brightly.
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But you know how
it works with the sun.
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It can warm you,
or it can burn you.
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And Samson was
going to do a lot of both.
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I'll be right back.
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¤[music swells and ends]¤
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>>John:
Temptation is a fact of life,
00:07:32.51\00:07:34.82
but you can be successful
in the face of temptation.
00:07:34.85\00:07:38.22
Be sure you get
today's free offer,
00:07:38.25\00:07:40.22
"When the Lion Roars,"
00:07:40.26\00:07:42.69
and find out how you can
successfully defeat temptation
00:07:42.72\00:07:46.83
instead of
being defeated by sin.
00:07:46.86\00:07:49.10
To get your free copy
of "When the Lion Roars,"
00:07:49.13\00:07:51.80
call us on 800-253-3000.
00:07:51.83\00:07:55.14
You can write to the
address on your screen
00:07:55.17\00:07:57.04
or visit us
online at iiwoffer.com.
00:07:57.07\00:08:00.51
>>John Bradshaw: Thanks for
joining me on It Is Written.
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Samson was from Zorah,
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a Canaanite town
west of Jerusalem.
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His parents were
faithful followers of God,
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but Samson was raised in an area
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where there was a
strong pagan influence.
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His parents were instructed
to raise him for God's honor,
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to keep harmful
influences out of his life.
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Judges 13:24 says
that "the child grew,
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and the Lord blessed him."
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So his life got
off to a good start.
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But, you know, you
can't let your guard down
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when you're a believer in God.
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Nor should you want to.
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Samson had a fatal flaw.
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Like the O-rings on
the ill-fated Challenger
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space shuttle flight,
00:08:40.35\00:08:41.92
Samson's one fatal flaw
was gonna be his undoing.
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Chapter 14 of Judges
opens with the words,
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"And Samson went
down to Timnath."
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It wasn't a very long way, but
it resulted in a very long fall.
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He went down all
right, and he went down hard.
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He said to his parents, "I
have seen a woman in Timnath
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"of the daughters
of the Philistines:
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now therefore get
her for me to wife."
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Samson's parents definitely
knew about Deuteronomy 7,
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and Samson would have
known, but he didn't care.
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That's where God listed a number
of non-Jewish nations and said,
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"Nor shall you make
marriages with them.
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"You shall not give
your daughter to their son,
00:09:24.29\00:09:27.03
"nor take their
daughter for your son.
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"For they will turn your
sons away from following me,
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to serve other gods."
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And we've seen this.
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Solomon was a prime offender,
marrying the daughter of Pharaoh
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in order to form a
political alliance.
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It was a disaster.
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Samson's parents
tried to reason with him.
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"Then his father
and mother said to him,
00:09:46.15\00:09:48.05
"'Is there no woman among
the daughters of your brethren,
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"'or among all my people,
that you must go and get a wife
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"from the
uncircumcised Philistines?'
00:09:54.16\00:09:56.93
"And Samson said to his
father, 'Get her for me,
00:09:56.96\00:10:00.30
for she pleases me well.'"
00:10:00.33\00:10:03.13
In the Bible you'll
find strong warnings
00:10:03.16\00:10:05.47
against marrying unbelievers.
00:10:05.50\00:10:07.57
But Samson, he
disregarded all the warnings.
00:10:07.60\00:10:10.94
He ignored his parents' wishes,
and he married the woman anyway.
00:10:10.97\00:10:15.18
Now, the Bible says,
"It was of the Lord,"
00:10:15.21\00:10:17.91
but that's not
justifying Samson's mistake.
00:10:17.95\00:10:20.62
That's the Bible saying God
was able to use this in a way
00:10:20.65\00:10:23.69
that would work
out for His glory.
00:10:23.72\00:10:25.92
Now, keep that in mind with God.
00:10:25.95\00:10:27.76
He's able to take our mistakes
00:10:27.79\00:10:29.69
and then use them
in a positive way.
00:10:29.72\00:10:31.63
That doesn't make the
mistakes a good thing,
00:10:31.66\00:10:34.10
but it tells us that God
is able to turn things around.
00:10:34.10\00:10:36.90
So if you've made
mistakes, wrong choices,
00:10:36.93\00:10:39.73
exercised poor judgment, God is
able to bring good out of that.
00:10:39.77\00:10:44.41
Things might not be perfect,
and they weren't for Samson,
00:10:44.44\00:10:47.04
but God is able.
00:10:47.08\00:10:48.81
He works with us even
when we make mistakes.
00:10:48.84\00:10:52.18
He's a good God.
00:10:52.21\00:10:55.45
On his way to
see his bride-to-be,
00:10:55.48\00:10:57.59
Samson is approached by a lion,
00:10:57.62\00:11:00.49
and as a
harbinger of things to come,
00:11:00.52\00:11:02.99
he kills the animal
with his bare hands.
00:11:03.02\00:11:05.63
Of course there's the temptation
to question this entire story.
00:11:05.66\00:11:09.43
Samson does some
remarkable things,
00:11:09.46\00:11:12.13
incredible feats of strength.
00:11:12.17\00:11:14.20
Could it even be possible?
00:11:14.24\00:11:16.37
But what he does, he
does through the power of God.
00:11:16.40\00:11:20.24
The Bible says, "The Spirit of
the Lord came mightily upon him,
00:11:20.28\00:11:23.61
"and he tore the lion apart
as one would have torn apart
00:11:23.65\00:11:27.32
a young goat, though he
had nothing in his hand."
00:11:27.35\00:11:31.12
His strength came from God.
00:11:31.15\00:11:34.02
But you'll notice
Samson is getting careless.
00:11:34.06\00:11:37.73
When he saw a swarm of bees
producing honey in the carcass
00:11:37.76\00:11:40.66
of the lion, he took
some of the honey and ate it.
00:11:40.70\00:11:44.07
Now, nothing
wrong with eating honey,
00:11:44.10\00:11:47.34
but taking it from the
carcass of a dead lion?
00:11:47.37\00:11:50.97
That was a
violation of his Nazarite vow.
00:11:51.01\00:11:53.17
It went against the
teachings of his parents,
00:11:53.21\00:11:55.28
and, of course, it went against
the teachings of Scripture;
00:11:55.31\00:11:57.58
it was unclean.
00:11:57.61\00:11:59.51
But it was apparent
Samson wasn't worrying
00:11:59.55\00:12:01.88
about the teachings of
Scripture as he once used to.
00:12:01.92\00:12:05.65
He was sliding,
slipping, drifting.
00:12:05.69\00:12:09.72
Once you intentionally
depart from God on one point,
00:12:09.76\00:12:14.00
you make it so much easier
for yourself to slip from God
00:12:14.03\00:12:17.43
on a whole lot more.
00:12:17.47\00:12:19.13
Samson went down to Timnath,
00:12:19.17\00:12:21.47
and he was going further
down than he might have hoped.
00:12:21.50\00:12:26.01
And his fatal
flaw was soon exposed.
00:12:26.04\00:12:29.48
At a feast he put forward
a riddle to some young men.
00:12:29.51\00:12:32.21
They didn't have a
hope of figuring it out.
00:12:32.25\00:12:34.42
After three days
of trying to solve it,
00:12:34.45\00:12:36.12
they said to Samson's wife,
00:12:36.15\00:12:37.75
"Entice your husband, that
he may explain the riddle to us,
00:12:37.79\00:12:41.66
or else we will burn you and
your father's house with fire."
00:12:41.69\00:12:46.90
Well, now she
was highly motivated.
00:12:46.93\00:12:49.00
"Then Samson's wife
wept on him, and said,
00:12:49.03\00:12:51.70
"'You only hate
me! You do not love me!
00:12:51.73\00:12:54.20
"'You have posed a
riddle to the sons of my people,
00:12:54.24\00:12:56.94
but you have not
explained it to me.'"
00:12:56.97\00:12:59.57
So finally,
00:12:59.61\00:13:01.18
"He told her, because
she pressed him so much."
00:13:01.21\00:13:04.28
And she told the young men.
00:13:04.31\00:13:06.18
Samson had been
deceived, and he was so outraged
00:13:06.21\00:13:10.42
that he went to Ashkelon and
killed 30 men to pay his debt
00:13:10.45\00:13:13.56
to the men of his wedding feast.
00:13:13.59\00:13:15.82
Samson wasn't just drifting
now. He was out of control.
00:13:15.86\00:13:20.26
And that was his issue.
00:13:20.30\00:13:21.66
He completely
lacked self-control.
00:13:21.70\00:13:24.60
He wasn't surrendered to God.
00:13:24.63\00:13:26.97
Well, the fact is, he
didn't even need self-control;
00:13:27.00\00:13:30.61
he needed God control.
00:13:30.64\00:13:33.27
That's what people need:
00:13:33.31\00:13:34.84
to be moderated,
guided, influenced by God.
00:13:34.88\00:13:38.61
But he didn't want that.
00:13:38.65\00:13:41.02
He wanted a woman
he shouldn't have had,
00:13:41.05\00:13:43.82
but he wouldn't be told.
00:13:43.85\00:13:45.85
And this is the same
age-old problem we face today.
00:13:46.86\00:13:49.92
Samson's problem is
real, and it's prevalent.
00:13:49.96\00:13:53.53
Self says, "I want
it," whatever it might be.
00:13:53.56\00:13:57.07
The Bible says God
has what's best for you.
00:13:57.10\00:14:00.47
It's the challenge we all face.
00:14:00.50\00:14:02.40
You might be living
in your comfortable home
00:14:02.44\00:14:04.01
with your comfortable
job and your happy family
00:14:04.04\00:14:05.91
and think that all is well.
00:14:05.94\00:14:07.24
But without Jesus in
the heart, all is not well.
00:14:07.28\00:14:11.05
Sometimes
temptation will convince us
00:14:11.08\00:14:12.85
that we want
the forbidden thing.
00:14:12.88\00:14:14.85
That's why John warned
us: "...the lust of the flesh,
00:14:14.88\00:14:17.99
"the lust of the eyes,
and the pride of life--
00:14:18.02\00:14:20.76
is not of the Father
but is of the world."
00:14:20.79\00:14:23.93
That's 1 John 2, verse 16.
00:14:23.96\00:14:26.80
Samson returned to Timnath
00:14:26.83\00:14:28.40
to find that his wife
was now with another man.
00:14:28.43\00:14:32.03
Her father thought
Samson had forsaken her,
00:14:32.07\00:14:34.30
but now he's back, and instead
of taking it on the chin,
00:14:34.34\00:14:38.21
he set fire to
Philistine wheat fields.
00:14:38.24\00:14:41.31
The Philistines
responded with brutality,
00:14:41.34\00:14:43.65
and Samson took revenge.
00:14:43.68\00:14:45.55
When the Philistines
came to apprehend Samson,
00:14:45.58\00:14:47.85
the men of Judah were so afraid
00:14:47.88\00:14:50.09
they handed him
over to the enemy.
00:14:50.12\00:14:52.12
Samson took the jawbone of a
donkey and killed 1,000 of them.
00:14:52.15\00:14:57.09
So Samson's out of control.
00:14:57.13\00:14:59.36
God's intent was to deliver
Judah from the Philistines,
00:14:59.39\00:15:03.30
and here was someone He could
use to accomplish His plans.
00:15:03.33\00:15:07.10
So what should Samson have done?
00:15:07.14\00:15:10.07
He's driven now
by lust and revenge.
00:15:10.11\00:15:14.11
Do we see that today?
00:15:14.14\00:15:15.51
Oh, yes, we do.
00:15:15.54\00:15:16.85
And society has a
two-faced response to this.
00:15:16.88\00:15:19.91
On the one hand,
there's condemnation for sin
00:15:19.95\00:15:22.42
driven by lust
and a drive for power.
00:15:22.45\00:15:24.79
But on the other
hand, society fuels lust;
00:15:24.82\00:15:28.52
it encourages and
even celebrates immorality.
00:15:28.56\00:15:31.56
We pay a price for that.
00:15:31.59\00:15:33.36
The devil knows how to tempt
and who to tempt with what.
00:15:33.40\00:15:37.90
And people struggle to
stay on the right path.
00:15:37.93\00:15:41.14
Now, I'm gonna share with you
the secret Samson never knew.
00:15:41.17\00:15:45.61
If you know it, and if you put
this into practice in your life,
00:15:45.64\00:15:49.38
it'll save you and
others from a lot of heartache,
00:15:49.41\00:15:53.72
and it'll keep you from making
the same mistakes Samson made.
00:15:53.75\00:15:58.32
I'll be right
back in just a moment.
00:15:58.35\00:16:00.32
¤[music swells and ends]¤
00:16:00.36\00:16:07.36
>>John:
Temptation is a fact of life,
00:16:09.33\00:16:11.57
but you can be successful
in the face of temptation.
00:16:11.60\00:16:15.07
Be sure you get
today's free offer,
00:16:15.10\00:16:17.11
"When the Lion Roars,"
00:16:17.14\00:16:19.54
and find out how you can
successfully defeat temptation
00:16:19.57\00:16:23.71
instead of
being defeated by sin.
00:16:23.75\00:16:26.01
To get your free copy
of "When the Lion Roars,"
00:16:26.05\00:16:28.68
call us on 800-253-3000.
00:16:28.72\00:16:32.02
You can write to the
address on your screen
00:16:32.05\00:16:34.12
or visit us
online at iiwoffer.com.
00:16:34.16\00:16:37.26
>>John: The experts say
he's living in our midst.
00:16:39.39\00:16:42.63
Many people claim
to have sighted him.
00:16:42.66\00:16:44.97
A famous film shot in the
1960s seems to show he exists.
00:16:45.00\00:16:48.84
But does he?
00:16:48.87\00:16:50.71
Does Bigfoot visit
campsites in towns and forests
00:16:50.74\00:16:54.01
across North America?
00:16:54.04\00:16:55.24
Don't miss "Bigfoot,"
part 1 of It Is Written series
00:16:55.28\00:17:00.05
"Conspiracy, More
Than Just a Theory."
00:17:00.08\00:17:03.52
You'll visit a museum dedicated
to Bigfoot and hear from a man
00:17:03.55\00:17:07.62
who claims to have
sighted a Sasquatch twice.
00:17:07.66\00:17:11.33
And you'll learn what the
Bible says about the conspiracy
00:17:11.36\00:17:14.10
playing out
right before your eyes,
00:17:14.13\00:17:16.46
a conspiracy of
eternal importance,
00:17:16.50\00:17:19.43
a conspiracy most
people are missing.
00:17:19.47\00:17:22.90
Make sure you know about the
greatest conspiracy of them all,
00:17:22.94\00:17:26.88
a global conspiracy involving
you and those you love.
00:17:26.91\00:17:30.51
Watch "Bigfoot"
00:17:30.55\00:17:32.45
from the series "Conspiracy,
More Than Just a Theory"
00:17:32.48\00:17:35.82
on It Is Written TV.
00:17:35.85\00:17:37.85
>>John Bradshaw: The
Bible says Samson loved a woman
00:17:40.29\00:17:42.79
named Delilah.
00:17:42.82\00:17:44.79
It's one of the most famous
love stories of the Bible--
00:17:44.83\00:17:48.43
although it's
hard to find much love.
00:17:48.46\00:17:50.93
The Philistines offered
Delilah a large sum of money
00:17:50.97\00:17:54.70
if she would find out the
secret of Samson's strength
00:17:54.74\00:17:57.27
and tell them.
00:17:57.31\00:17:58.44
For some reason,
Samson entertained her.
00:17:58.47\00:18:01.14
He hadn't learned
from past experience.
00:18:01.18\00:18:03.21
He told her, to start with,
00:18:03.24\00:18:04.31
that if he was
bound with seven cords,
00:18:04.35\00:18:06.05
his supernatural
strength would be gone.
00:18:06.08\00:18:09.22
So as he slept, Delilah
bound him with the cords,
00:18:09.25\00:18:12.19
and when she told him,
"The Philistines are here,"
00:18:12.22\00:18:14.62
he broke the cords
like they were nothing.
00:18:14.66\00:18:17.39
Same sort of thing
happened on two other occasions.
00:18:17.43\00:18:20.93
Of course, you have to wonder.
00:18:20.96\00:18:22.70
What Samson did was
incredibly reckless.
00:18:22.73\00:18:26.17
But Delilah wore him down.
00:18:26.20\00:18:29.10
You'd think that
Samson had to be able to see
00:18:29.14\00:18:31.37
where this was going.
00:18:31.41\00:18:32.61
He'd been deceived once before.
00:18:32.64\00:18:34.41
But the thing was,
Samson couldn't see.
00:18:34.44\00:18:37.41
He had obscured his own vision.
00:18:37.45\00:18:40.58
His undoing was lust.
00:18:40.62\00:18:43.69
Samson had desires
he couldn't control--
00:18:43.72\00:18:45.99
or, or wouldn't control.
00:18:46.02\00:18:48.26
His desire got
the better of him.
00:18:48.29\00:18:51.06
People face the same issue
today in a variety of ways.
00:18:51.09\00:18:54.66
Some people can't
control their desire for...
00:18:54.73\00:18:58.07
chocolate cake or, or soda,
00:18:58.10\00:19:00.17
or beer or tobacco
00:19:00.20\00:19:01.77
or video games or coffee.
00:19:01.80\00:19:03.84
But what Samson
was wrestling with,
00:19:03.87\00:19:06.27
that was in a class of its own.
00:19:06.31\00:19:08.48
Solomon was a slave to lust.
00:19:08.51\00:19:11.11
King David, same issue, at
least when he took Bathsheba.
00:19:11.15\00:19:14.82
We see it today.
00:19:14.85\00:19:16.25
So many people have had their
lives ruined because of lust--
00:19:16.28\00:19:20.32
politicians and sports stars
and...ministers of the gospel
00:19:20.36\00:19:26.16
and people from
every walk of life.
00:19:26.19\00:19:28.70
It's one of the
reasons so many marriages fail.
00:19:28.73\00:19:31.97
And sometimes
what starts as desire
00:19:32.00\00:19:35.77
ends up in a very dark place.
00:19:35.80\00:19:40.14
So what should Samson have done?
00:19:40.18\00:19:42.08
The answer is important
because it's the one way out
00:19:42.11\00:19:45.71
for anyone who has an
issue with self-control
00:19:45.75\00:19:48.18
or is stuck in some sin.
00:19:48.22\00:19:50.32
If something
really has hold of you,
00:19:50.35\00:19:53.39
then look at Romans
6, starting in verse 5.
00:19:53.42\00:19:56.73
It says,
00:19:56.76\00:19:57.86
"For if we have been
united together in the likeness
00:19:57.89\00:20:00.23
"of His death, certainly we
also shall be in the likeness
00:20:00.26\00:20:03.90
"of His
resurrection, knowing this,
00:20:03.93\00:20:07.00
"that our old man
was crucified with Him,
00:20:07.04\00:20:09.87
"that the body of sin
might be done away with,
00:20:09.90\00:20:12.94
"that we should no
longer be slaves of sin.
00:20:12.97\00:20:16.28
For he who has died
has been freed from sin."
00:20:16.31\00:20:20.82
Notice the language:
00:20:20.85\00:20:22.32
The one "who has died
has been freed from sin."
00:20:22.35\00:20:26.19
We are to die.
00:20:26.22\00:20:27.42
Now, clearly,
this isn't literal.
00:20:27.46\00:20:29.66
Verse 11 and on:
"Likewise you also,
00:20:29.69\00:20:32.56
"reckon yourselves to
be dead indeed to sin,
00:20:32.59\00:20:35.56
"but alive to God in
Christ Jesus our Lord.
00:20:35.60\00:20:39.30
"Therefore do not let sin
reign in your mortal body,
00:20:39.33\00:20:43.07
"that you should
obey it in its lusts.
00:20:43.10\00:20:45.57
"And do not present
your members as instruments
00:20:45.61\00:20:47.71
"of unrighteousness to sin,
00:20:47.74\00:20:49.61
"but present [yourself] to God
as being alive from the dead,
00:20:49.64\00:20:53.08
"and your members as instruments
of righteousness to God.
00:20:53.11\00:20:56.52
"For sin shall not
have dominion over you,
00:20:56.55\00:20:59.75
for you are not under
[the] law but under grace."
00:20:59.79\00:21:04.89
You come to
Jesus and let self die.
00:21:04.93\00:21:09.20
That's referring to
surrendering to Jesus
00:21:09.23\00:21:11.37
and letting Him do
His will in your life.
00:21:11.40\00:21:14.84
Think about this.
00:21:14.87\00:21:16.00
If you're being
tempted and you call out to God
00:21:16.04\00:21:18.77
and ask Him to deliver
you, what do you think He'll do?
00:21:18.81\00:21:22.84
He can't possibly
fail to deliver you
00:21:22.88\00:21:25.38
from that temptation.
00:21:25.41\00:21:26.78
In the Lord's Prayer we pray,
00:21:26.82\00:21:28.12
"And lead us
not into temptation,
00:21:28.15\00:21:30.99
but deliver us from evil."
00:21:31.02\00:21:32.25
That's Matthew 6:13.
00:21:32.29\00:21:33.92
This is one of the great
themes of the New Testament:
00:21:33.96\00:21:36.86
what Jesus can do in your life
00:21:36.89\00:21:39.39
and how He delivers you
from temptation and sin.
00:21:39.43\00:21:42.53
Philippians 2, verse 13:
00:21:42.56\00:21:44.43
"For it is God who works
in you both to will and to do
00:21:44.47\00:21:49.20
for His good pleasure."
00:21:49.24\00:21:51.34
We make a big mistake
when we don't surrender to God.
00:21:51.37\00:21:54.68
Sin is bigger than anyone alive.
00:21:54.71\00:21:57.88
The prophet
Jeremiah put it this way:
00:21:57.91\00:21:59.81
"Can the Ethiopian change his
skin or the leopard its spots?
00:21:59.85\00:22:04.02
Then may you also do good
who are accustomed to do evil."
00:22:04.05\00:22:09.39
Samson couldn't
straighten himself out,
00:22:09.42\00:22:12.43
but that was no reason
for him to plunge into sin.
00:22:12.46\00:22:15.33
His weakness was a call
to Samson to cry out to God
00:22:15.36\00:22:18.37
and tell God that
he needed God's help.
00:22:18.40\00:22:20.67
He needed God's power.
00:22:20.70\00:22:21.77
He needed the Spirit
of God to work in him,
00:22:21.80\00:22:24.74
to strengthen him.
00:22:24.77\00:22:26.47
And Samson, well, he hadn't
completely given up on God.
00:22:26.51\00:22:31.15
The Philistines
callously blinded him.
00:22:31.18\00:22:33.82
And at a big pagan festival they
brought Samson out to mock him.
00:22:33.85\00:22:37.62
But his hair had grown back,
00:22:37.65\00:22:39.99
and his strength was
again granted him by God.
00:22:40.02\00:22:42.52
In one massive final effort,
Samson collapsed the building,
00:22:42.56\00:22:48.06
and hundreds and
hundreds of Philistines died.
00:22:48.10\00:22:51.13
And Samson died.
00:22:51.17\00:22:53.47
He governed Israel for 20 years,
00:22:53.50\00:22:55.07
during which time
Israel was at peace.
00:22:55.10\00:22:58.14
And, you know, it wasn't his
hair that gave him his strength.
00:22:58.17\00:23:01.24
His hair was a symbol
of his consecration to God,
00:23:01.28\00:23:05.08
and with God's hand upon him,
00:23:05.11\00:23:07.22
he had strength like
no other man has ever had.
00:23:07.25\00:23:11.09
Imagine how the
story might have ended
00:23:11.12\00:23:12.62
had Samson been faithful to God,
if he'd married the right girl,
00:23:12.65\00:23:18.13
surrendered to the will of God.
00:23:18.16\00:23:22.60
Samson is the man who
could have been so much more.
00:23:22.63\00:23:26.70
In a time of national crisis,
his countrymen needed him,
00:23:26.74\00:23:30.61
but he never
delivered what he could have.
00:23:30.64\00:23:33.88
Physically, Samson was the
strongest man in the world,
00:23:33.91\00:23:37.75
but in
self-control and integrity
00:23:37.78\00:23:39.88
he was one of the weakest.
00:23:39.91\00:23:42.32
You know, a lot of people
think it's a sign of strength
00:23:42.35\00:23:44.42
to exhibit strong feelings.
00:23:44.45\00:23:46.65
But real
strength is demonstrated
00:23:46.69\00:23:48.29
in controlling those feelings.
00:23:48.32\00:23:51.29
Curiously, Samson's
name is written in Hebrews 11
00:23:51.33\00:23:56.90
as one of the heroes of faith,
00:23:56.93\00:23:58.93
alongside Abraham
and Jacob and Moses.
00:23:58.97\00:24:04.24
Now, think about that.
00:24:04.27\00:24:05.61
They were all faulty
people, and God used them.
00:24:05.64\00:24:09.11
Samson was
faulty, but God used him.
00:24:09.14\00:24:12.28
And at the end of his life, he
wanted to honor and glorify God.
00:24:12.31\00:24:16.38
See, if you've been entangled
in some regrettable things,
00:24:16.42\00:24:19.69
God can still use you.
00:24:19.72\00:24:21.36
It isn't too late.
00:24:21.39\00:24:24.99
Can you think of
things that you've done
00:24:25.03\00:24:26.23
that you wish you hadn't?
00:24:26.26\00:24:28.06
Of course you can.
00:24:28.10\00:24:29.46
Have you made mistakes?
00:24:29.50\00:24:31.77
Of course you have.
00:24:31.80\00:24:33.27
But can God use you?
00:24:33.30\00:24:35.20
Can, can your life honor God?
00:24:35.24\00:24:38.51
Of course it can.
00:24:38.54\00:24:40.28
Samson's story is all
the evidence you need.
00:24:40.31\00:24:45.45
In Yosemite National
Park in January of 2021,
00:24:46.45\00:24:50.25
a freak windstorm
struck the Mariposa Grove,
00:24:50.29\00:24:53.79
where 500 mature
giant sequoias grow.
00:24:53.82\00:24:57.16
At least 15 of the
giants crashed to the ground.
00:24:57.19\00:25:00.10
The strong winds came, and
the big trees couldn't stand.
00:25:00.13\00:25:04.73
Down they went.
00:25:04.77\00:25:06.63
The strong winds of temptation
are gonna come at you,
00:25:06.67\00:25:09.64
but you don't have
to fall like Samson did.
00:25:09.67\00:25:12.61
Life is
challenging. Things happen.
00:25:12.64\00:25:16.11
Your foundation can be shaken.
00:25:16.14\00:25:18.78
And if you're dealing with
moral or spiritual weakness,
00:25:18.81\00:25:22.75
it leaves you very vulnerable.
00:25:22.78\00:25:25.52
You wanna be connected to
God, living a life of faith.
00:25:25.55\00:25:29.32
That will strengthen you.
00:25:29.36\00:25:31.46
The Bible and
prayer, there's power there.
00:25:31.49\00:25:34.36
You haven't gone too far.
00:25:34.36\00:25:36.30
And if you've
never surrendered to God,
00:25:36.33\00:25:38.80
it isn't too late for you.
00:25:38.83\00:25:41.97
You can imagine Samson
chained in the temple of Dagon,
00:25:42.00\00:25:45.17
looking back over his life,
00:25:45.21\00:25:46.41
wishing he'd done
things differently,
00:25:46.44\00:25:48.81
wishing he'd
made better decisions,
00:25:48.84\00:25:51.15
wishing he'd had
his priorities straight,
00:25:51.18\00:25:54.35
wishing he hadn't wasted his
time by not surrendering to God.
00:25:54.38\00:25:58.82
It was too late for him then.
00:25:58.85\00:26:02.39
But it isn't too late for you.
00:26:02.42\00:26:04.83
God wants you to come
to Him in faith right now.
00:26:04.86\00:26:09.13
>>John: Thank you for
remembering that It Is Written
00:26:10.93\00:26:12.83
exists because of the kindness
of people just like you.
00:26:12.87\00:26:16.27
To support this international
life-changing ministry,
00:26:16.30\00:26:19.51
please call us
now at 800-253-3000.
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You can send your
tax-deductible gift
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to the address on your screen,
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or you can visit us
online at itiswritten.com.
00:26:26.75\00:26:30.55
Thank you for your prayers
and for your financial support.
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Our number
again is 800-253-3000,
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or you can visit us
online at itiswritten.com.
00:26:37.69\00:26:40.70
>>John Bradshaw: Let
me pray with you now.
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Our Father in heaven, thank
You for the story of Samson.
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He's truly one of the
great characters of the Bible.
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And what a character.
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So much given him of heaven,
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so much squandered.
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So many
opportunities, so many wasted.
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Dear Lord, I'm asking
that You would not allow us
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to be like that.
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My friend, God is
speaking to you now.
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Would you welcome His
Spirit into your heart
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to strengthen you, to
deliver you from desire,
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to deliver you from sin, to
strengthen you in temptation,
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to keep you from going
down the road Samson went down?
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Would that be your prayer?
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If it is, tell God right now:
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Lord, take my heart.
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Can you say those words?
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Lord, take my heart.
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Make it Yours.
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Make it Your stronghold
and Your dwelling place.
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And we will go from this moment
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with the assurance that
You are ours and we are Yours.
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We thank You, and
we pray in Jesus' name,
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amen.
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Thank you so
much for joining me.
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Looking forward to
seeing you again next time.
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Until then, remember:
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"It is written, 'Man
shall not live by bread alone,
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but by every word that proceeds
from the mouth of God.'"
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