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The Destruction Of Samson

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Spiritual Shock Treatment

Written by Ron Luce

The Philistines knew Samson had a thing for Delilah, so they offered her money if she could find out the secret to his power.

So Delilah said to Samson, "Tell me the secret of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued."

Samson answered her, "If anyone ties me with seven fresh thongs that have not been dried, I'll become as weak as any other man."
(Judges 16:6-7)

Samson was toying with Delilah, but Delilah did not take this as a joke. After he went to sleep, she tied him with seven fresh thongs, then woke him up and said, "Samson, the Philistines are here! Wake up!" Boom! He busted the thongs off.

Now I don't know about you, but if I was Samson, I would be thinking, Hey, maybe I need to check to see if she's really sincere. I don't know if she loves me for who I am. But Delilah headed him off at the pass by accusing him of not really loving her.

The next night she asked him again what the source of his strength was, and this time he told her that if he was tied up with seven fresh ropes he would be as weak as any other man. So of course, she did that and then yelled, "Samson, wake up! The Philistines are here!" Boom! He breaks loose again. She gets mad and accuses him of not loving her.

Now I'm thinking, Samson, what do you have in your head? How could you be so stupid? That was the second time she betrayed him and the second time she made him feel guilty about it. Talk about losing the edge! When you lose the edge you do some incredibly stupid things and don't even realize it.

The third time around, Samson told her that if she would weave the seven braids of his hair into a fabric in the loom and tighten it with a pin, he would become as weak as any other man. So while he was sleeping, Delilah did just that. (Personally, I don't know how Samson slept through it!) Then again she cried out, "Wake up, Samson!"

Samson threw the loom all over the room and she said, "Oh great, you lied to me again!" Now I'm thinking, Three times Samson! What's up, man? Talk about being dense! Talk about losing the edge! Samson was supposed to be this anointed man of Israel and he couldn't see what was happening right in front of his face. This is what happens when you lose the edge.

Finally he told her the true secret to his power—never cutting his hair. So what did Delilah do? She cut his hair and he lost the edge. The Philistines gouged out his eyes, chained him, and used him to grind grain. (See Judges 16.) Samson is a portrait of someone who lost the edge and didn't even realize it.

You go through your little Christian activities and everything looks good, but bit by bit you begin to lose the edge. You begin to lose the fervency you once had for the Lord. You begin to lose the passion to see people saved and hearts and lives changed. Sadly, it can happen so gradually that you don't even realize the edge is diminishing until it's gone.

Are there any sins you are justifying or making excuses for?

Are there any areas in your life where you are compromising?

If you said yes to either of these questions, get on your face right now and submit yourself to God. Tell Him everything, get forgiven and cleansed, and then ask Him for the strength and wisdom to keep from falling for the same thing again. Don't be stupid like Samson! Keep the edge!

Source: Spiritual Shock Treatment by Ron Luce.
Excerpt permission granted by Teen Mania Ministries