"And
it came to pass
afterward, that Samson
loved a woman in the valley
of Sorek,
whose name was
Delilah. And the lords
of the Philistines
came up unto her, and
said unto her, Entice
him, and see wherein
his great strength
lieth, and by what
means we may prevail
against him: and we
will give thee every
one of us eleven
hundred pieces of
silver." (Judges
16: 4, 5)
O'
Church of the living
God, wherein lies your
great success? What is
the secret of your
supernatural power and
authority? From whence
do you
derive such
boldness, integrity,
humility, and
strength? From whom
did you receive the
permission, authority
and mandate to
defy Satan's
kingdom of darkness
and despoil his
assets? Who gave you
the power to save
hell-bound souls, heal
sick bodies and minds
and cast out unclean
spirits, from sinful,
sick, tormented and
bound humanity?
O'
Church, Who is your
Great King? What is
the name of your
Kingdom? Wherein lieth
your great strength?
What is your Secret?
The Church's one
foundation is Jesus
Christ her Lord;
She is His new
creation by water and
the Word: From Heav'n
He came and sought her
to be His holy bride;
With His own blood He
bought her, and for
her life He
died.
Martin
Luther the leader of
the Protestant
Reformation, was
asked;
"Where will you
be, when the
whole world is against
you - the Cardinals,
the Archbishops, the
Pope, the Nobles and
the Emperor?
Where will you be
then, Martin
Luther?"
The
great reformer
answered: "Then,
as now, I will be in
the hands of
God!"
What a secure place to
be - in the hands of
God.
Girolamo
Savonarola,
Florence, Italy,
called 'The Herald
of the Reformation',
was a mighty man of
God and a
martyr! Martin
Luther often spoke of
him and John Hus - the
Bohemian monk - who
was burned at the
stake even earlier.
Savonarola
lived at the time of
the Borgias
– a wicked coterie
of Cardinals and Popes
- who
committed evil,
criminal acts, and
plunged the Church
into the most
degraded condition
of its
existence! He
spent much time in
fasting and prayer and
seeking God, while
denouncing the
corruption of
the Church.
His
righteous sermons of
repentance shook Florence
and the rural areas of
Italy, before his
martyrdom! He cried
out:
"Come
to me, O'
wretched Church, for
thou art a harlot.
Once thou didst blush
for thy sins, but not
anymore!"
He
correctly
prophesied that the Pope,
the King of
Naples,
and Lorenzo de Medici
of Florence, would all
die within one year.
Another prophecy, that
judgment would
befall
Italy
because
of their sins, was
also fulfilled when
France
invaded
Italy
and
sacked Naples in
1494. God
revealed to him that
he had only eight
years to preach before
his death, and that
was fulfilled when he
was eventually
excommunicated by the
Pope and burned at the
stake.
John
Knox, another great
reformer – cried out
to God: “Give me
Scotland
or I die!” God
heard his prayers and
Scotland
remained free from
Rome
’s tyranny!
Bloody Queen Mary of
Scots stated: “I
fear the prayers of
John Knox more than
the armies of England."
Alexus
de Tocquille,
member of the French
Academy,
wrote in 1931: "I
sought for the
greatness and genius
of
America
in her
commodious harbours
and her ample rivers,
and it was not there:
in her rich mines and
her vast world
commerce and it was
not there. Not
until I went into the
Churches of America,
and heard her pulpits
aflame with
righteousness, did I
understand the secret
of her genius and
power!"
DISCOVER
SAMSON'S POWER,
DELILAH
The
elders of the
Philistines approached
Delilah, Samson's
lover, with an offer
of eleven hundred
pieces of silver from
each of them,
if she could
uncover the secret of
his great power, so
that they might "prevail
against him."
Samson
is
a type of the Church;
bold, daring and
powerful, defeating
the enemies of God!
Samson was a
gift from God to
his parents and to the
nation of Israel,
which he served as a
judge for 40 years. He
was consecrated to the
Lord, a Nasserite from
birth and dedicated to
his mission. He was
not allowed to drink
wine or strong drink,
and his lips were
sealed regarding his
vows. As a sign of his
consecration, Samson
could not cut his
hair. To break that
vow would break his
consecration to God!
It would result in his
demise.
Similarly,
as the lords of the
Philistines didn't
understand Samson or
know the source of his
power, the devil and
the world do not
understand the Church
or the source of our
supernatural
power.
And
as the lords of the
Philistines offered
huge sums of money to
Delilah to discover
the source of his
immense power, Satan
is bidding high to
discover our
weaknesses in his
quest to wrestle from
us our great power.
The
Bible says: "But
we speak the wisdom of
God in a mystery, even
the hidden wisdom,
which God ordained
before the foundation
of the world unto our
glory: Which none of
the princes of this
world knew: for had
they known it, they
would not have
crucified the Lord of
glory.
"But
the natural man
receiveth not the
things of the Spirit
of God: for they are
foolishness unto him:
neither can he know
them, because they are
spiritually
discerned."
(1 Corinthians 7, 8,
14).
Here are some
vital truths regarding
this matter:
1.
OUR UNIQUENESS AS
THE BODY OF CHRIST
We
Are The Church:
We have special status
because we are a part
of the Church - (Greek
- Ekklesia
- called
out ones).
We are disciples,
followers and
imitators of Jesus
Christ! The early
Christians
were called,
among other things
- The
Family of Jesus.
We
Are Born Again:
"Jesus
answered and said unto
him, Verily, verily, I
say unto thee, Except
a man be born again,
he cannot see the
kingdom
of
God. Marvel
not that I said unto
thee, Ye must be born
again." (John
3:3,7). We are born of
the Word of God and
the Spirit of God. (I
Peter 1: 18, 19)
We
Are Changed By God's
Power: "And
you hath He quickened,
who were dead in
trespasses and sins;
Wherein in time past
ye walked according to
the course of this
world, according to
the prince of the
power of the air, the
spirit that now
worketh in the
children of
disobedience: Among
whom also we all had
our conversation in
time past in the lusts
of our flesh,
fulfilling the desires
of the flesh and of
the mind; and were by
nature the children of
wrath, even as others.
"But
God, Who is rich in
mercy,
for His great love
wherewith He loved us;
Even when we were dead
in sins, hath
quickened (made alive)
us together with
Christ (by grace ye
are saved). And hath
raised us up together,
and made us sit
together in heavenly
places in Christ
Jesus."
(Ephesians 2: 1
- 6).
We
Are Spirit-Filled:
"But
ye shall receive
power, after that the
Holy Ghost is come
upon you: and ye shall
be witnesses unto
Me..." (Acts 1:
8); "And they
were all filled with
the Holy Ghost and
spake with other
tongues as the Spirit
gave them
utterance." (Acts
2: 4);
"And
I will pray the
Father, and He shall
give you another
Comforter, that He may
abide with you
forever; even the
Spirit of truth; Whom
the world cannot
receive, because it
seeth Him not, neither
knoweth Him: but ye
know Him; for He
dwelleth with you, and
shall be in you."
(John 14; 16 -17)
We
Are Chosen of God:
"Ye
have not chosen Me,
but I have chosen you,
and ordained you, that
you should go and
bring forth fruit and
that your fruit should
remain, that
whatsoever ye shall
ask of the Father in
My name, He may give
it you." (John
15: 16);
"Ye
also, as lively
stones, are built up a
spiritual house, an
holy priesthood, to
offer up spiritual
sacrifices, acceptable
to God by Jesus
Christ.
"But
ye are a chosen
generation,
a royal priesthood, an
holy nation, a
peculiar people; that
ye should show forth
the praises of Him Who
hath called you out of
darkness into His
marvelous
light." (1
Peter 2: 5, 9);
"According
as He hath chosen
us in Him before the
foundation of the
world, that we should
be holy and without
blame before Him in
love." (Ephesians
1: 4)
We
Are Children of God: "For
as many as are led by
the Spirit of God,
they are the sons
of God. For ye have
not received the
spirit of bondage
again to fear; but ye
have received the
Spirit of adoption,
whereby we cry, Abba,
Father. The Spirit
Himself beareth
witness that we are
the children of
God." (Romans
8:
14
,
16);
"Beloved,
what manner of love
the Father hath
bestowed upon us, that
we should be called
the sons of God:
therefore the world
knoweth us not. Beloved,
now are we the sons of
God, and it doth
not yet appear what we
shall be: but we know
that, when He shall
appear, we shall be
like Him; for we shall
see Him like He
is." (1 John 3:
1, 2)
We
Are Heirs of God &
Joint Heirs with
Christ:
"And
if children, then
heirs; heirs of God,
and joint-heirs with
Christ; if so be that
we suffer with Him,
that we may be
glorified together.
For I reckon, that the
sufferings of this
present time are
not worthy to be
compared with the
glory which shall
be revealed in
us." (Romans 8:
17, 18)
We
Are Temples of the Holy
Spirit:
"What?
Know ye not that your
body is the temple of
the Holy Ghost which
is in you, which ye
have of God, and ye
are not your own? For
ye are bought with a
price: therefore
glorify God in your
body, and in your
spirit, which are
God's." (1
Corinthians 6: 19, 20)
"For
we are members of His
body, of His flesh,
and of His
bones!"
(Ephesians
5:
30
);
"At that day, ye
shall know that I
am in the Father, and
ye in Me, and I in
you. Jesus answered
and said unto him, If
a man love Me, he will
keep My words: and My
Father will love Him,
and we will come unto
him, and make our
abode with him."
(John 14: 20, 23);
"I
am the vine, ye are
the branches: He that
abideth in Me, and I
in him, the same
bringeth forth much
fruit: for without Me
ye can do nothing. If
ye abide in Me, and My
words abide in you, ye
shall ask what ye
will, and it shall be
done unto you."
(John 15: 5, 7)
2.
OUR CONSECRATION TO
GOD
We
Are A Separate People:
"And what
agreement hath the
temple
of
God
with
idols? for ye are the
temple of the living
God; as God hath said,
I will dwell in them,
and I walk in them;
and I will be their
God, and they shall be
My people. Wherefore
come out from among
them, and be ye separate,
saith the Lord, and
touch not the unclean
thing; and I will
receive you, and will
be
a Father unto
you, and ye shall be
My sons and daughters,
saith the Lord Almighty."
(2 Corinthians 6: 16
-18)
We
Are A Holy People Unto
God: "Wherefore
gird up the loins of
your mind, be sober,
and hope to the end
for the grace that is
brought unto you at
the revelation of
Jesus Christ: As
obedient children, not
fashioning yourselves
according to the
former lusts in your
ignorance:
“But
as He which hath
called you is holy, so
be ye holy in all
manner of
conversation; Because
it is written, BE YE
HOLY; FOR I AM
HOLY. Seeing then
that all these things
shall be dissolved,
what manner of persons
ought ye to be in all
holy conversation and
godliness." (I
Peter 1:13
-
16; 2 Peter 3:11).
3.
OUR DEDICATION TO
GOD
"I
beseech you therefore,
brethren, by the
mercies of God, that
ye present your bodies
a living sacrifice,
holy, acceptable unto
God, which is your
reasonable service.
And be not conformed
to this world: but be
ye transformed by
the renewing of
your mind, that ye may
prove what is that
good, and acceptable,
perfect, will of
God." (Romans 12:
1, 2)
"Wherefore
seeing we also are
compassed with so
great a cloud of
witnesses, let us lay
aside every weight and
the sin which doth so
easily beset us, and
let us run with
patience the race that
is set before us,
Looking unto Jesus,
the author and
finisher of our faith;
Who for the joy that
was set before Him
endured the cross,
despising the shame,
and is set down at the
right hand of the
throne of God."
(Hebrews 12: 1, 2)
“And
when He had called the
people unto Him with
His disciples also, he
said unto them.
Whosoever will come
after Me, let him deny
himself, and take up
his cross, and follow
Me. For whosoever will
save his life shall
lose it; but whosever
shall lose his life
for My sake and the
gospel's, the same
shall save it.”
(Mark
8:
34
,
35)
“Jesus
said unto him. Thou
shalt love the Lord
thy God with all thy
heart, and with all
thy soul, and with all
thy mind. This is the
first and great
commandment. And the
second is like unto
it, Thou shalt love
thy neighbour as
thyself.” (Matthew
22: 37)
Our
sole responsibility is
to love the Lord and
serve Him to fullest
of our ability and
serve our fellowman
with God's love in our
hearts! If we become
complacent, Satan will
get the advantage over
us. We cannot, must
not and will not, let
that happen!
4.
OUR LOVE &
REVERENCE FOR
GOD
The
Bible says: "And
unto the man He said,
Behold, the fear of
the Lord, that is
wisdom; and to depart
from evil is
understanding."
(Job 28: 28);
"The fear of the
Lord is the beginning
of wisdom: and the
knowledge of the Holy
is
understanding."
(Proverbs
9:
10
);
"We
love Him because He
first loved us."
(1 John 4: 19)
Dr.
James Dobson,
a Christian
psychologist,
interviewed the
notorious rapist and
killer, Ted Bundy on
International
TV. Knowing
that Bundy had been
adopted by loving
parents who raised him
in a godly home, Dr.
Dobson asked him: "When
did you stop loving
Jesus?"
Bundy answered: "I
never stopped loving
Jesus."
Startled by that
answer, the
psychologist asked him
how that could
possibly be! Ted
Bundy replied: "I
lost the fear of
God."
THAT
IS WHAT HAPPENED TO
SAMSON! He broke his
vow, because he had
lost the fear and
reverence for God in
his heart. It happened
gradually. He visited
a prostitute in Gaza
and God
was still with him.
With
his enemies camped
outside, saying, "In
the morning, we will
kill Samson",
the Holy Ghost
awakened him at
midnight
.
Samson ripped loose
the pillars of the
city gate and carried
them to the top of
Hebron. Then
he picked up a jawbone
of an ass and slew
1000 Philistines,
because God was still
with him! His vows,
consecration, covenant
and God’s grace
still covered him!
SAMSON
DISREGARDED THE
WARNINGS
As
he continued down the
path of backsliding,
he played a dangerous
game with a woman from
the enemy camp.
Repeatedly there were
red flags, but he
disregarded them all
until he crossed the
dead-line, and God's ‘hammer
of judgment’
fell.
He
had given away God’s
secret. No longer was
his vow holy! It didn’t
matter anymore, what
anyone said or did. He
was hooked and refused
to see the disaster
looming before him.
His sacred
consecration meant
nothing anymore! He
gave it all away! What
did he get in return? Humiliation,
shame, derision and
death.
God's
champion, who had been
chosen before his
birth, consecrated to
Almighty God and had
vowed to live a
separated and
sanctified life, was
chained by the
Philistines and led
away in shame! His
strength was gone and
the enemy gouged out
his eyes with hot
pokers, and he was
forced to grind at
the mill like a brute
beast!
SATAN
CAME TO STEAL, KILL
AND DESTROY
Jesus
called the Evil
One, by three
names: Satan (hebrew
adversary, enemy),
devil (greek - liar,
false accuser,
traducer) and Be’el’ze-bub
(god of flies, filth).
The
Bible says: "And
the seventy returned
again with joy,
saying, Lord, even the
devils are subject
unto us through Thy
name. And He said unto
them, I beheld Satan
as lightning fall from
heaven. Behold I give
unto you power to
tread on serpents and
scorpions, and over
all the power of the
enemy: and nothing
shall by any means
hurt you."
(Luke 10: 17 - 19)
Jesus
stated: "No
man can enter into a
strong man's house,
and spoil his goods,
except he will first
bind the strong man;
and then he will spoil
his house."
(Mark
3:
27
).
The
Lord Jesus was accused
of casting out devils
by the prince of
devils. That was
impossible! If Satan
rose up against
himself, he would have
an end. Jesus
declared that
He cast out
devils by the Spirit
of God, and that in
itself, was a sign
that the
Kingdom
of
God
had
come unto them.
Satan
is a strong man
who chains
and enslaves his
victims, but Jesus is
the Stronger Man who
binds the devil
and liberates
them from his bondage!
Our Lord said: "The
thief cometh not but
for to steal, and to
kill, and to destroy.
I am come that they
might have life, and
have it more
abundantly."
(John 10: 10);
We
must also be on guard,
so that cares and
pleasures do not take
the upper place
in lives! Jesus
warned: "And
the cares of this
world, and the
deceitfulness of
riches, and the lusts
of other things
entering in, choke the
Word, and it becometh
unfruitful."
(Mark
4:
19
)
Remember,
our Saviour is coming
soon and His reward is
with Him.
(Revelation 20:
7, 12, 20) He is
returning for a glorious
Church
without spot or
wrinkle. (Ephesians 5:
27). I want to
be a part of that
Church, don't you?
Let's make sure that
when He comes, we'll
be ready and waiting
to meet Him!
HOW
CAN WE RECEIVE HIS
POWER?
Through
God’s Word:
"For the Word of
God is quick (alive)
and powerful, and is
sharper than any
two-edged sword,
piercing even to the
dividing asunder of
soul and spirit, and
of the joints
and marrow, and is a
discerner of the
thoughts and intents
of the heart."
(Hebrew 4: 12)
“Let
the Word of Christ
dwell in you richly in
all wisdom; teaching
and admonishing one
another in psalms and
hymns and spiritual
song, singing with
grace in your hearts
to the Lord.”
(Col.3:16); “So
then faith cometh by
hearing, and hearing
by the Word of God.”
(Romans
10:17)
By
His Holy Spirit:
And
be not drunk with
wine, wherein is
excess; but be filled
with the Spirit."
(Ephesians 5:18); “For
the manifestation of
the Spirit is given to
every man to profit
withal. For to one is
given by the Spirit
the word of wisdom; to
another the word of
knowledge by the same
Spirit;
“To
another faith by
the same Spirit; to
another the gifts
of healing
by the same Spirit; To
another the working
of miracles;
to another prophecy;
to another discerning
of Spirits;
to another diverse
kinds of tongues’
to another the interpretation
of tongues:
But all these worketh
that one and the
selfsame Spirit,
dividing to every man
severally as He will.”
(1 Corinthians 12: 7
-11)
Through
Jesus’ Blood:
"Having
therefore, brethren,
boldness to enter into
the holiest by the
Blood of Jesus."
(Heb.
10:
19
); “And they
overcame the devil by
the blood of the Lamb,
and by the word of
their testimony; and
they loved not their
lives unto the death.”
(Revelation 12:
11)
In
Jesus’ Holy Name:
"And these signs
shall follow them that
believe; In My name
shall they cast out
devils; they shall
speak with new
tongues; They shall
take up serpents (like
Paul on
Malta
);
and if they drink any
deadly thing, it shall
not hurt them; they
shall lay their hands
upon the sick and they
shall recover."
(Mark 16: 15 - 18).
“And
whatsoever ye do in
word or deed, do all
in the name of the
Lord Jesus, giving
thanks to God and the
Father by Him.”
(Colossians 3:
17).
May
we all learn a lesson
from Samson,
so that we always stay
clear of the pitfalls
that Satan sets for
us, knowing that when
we walk with God -
with a clear
conscience – nothing
is impossible to us!
In fact, “All things
are possible to Him
that believeth!”
(Mark
9:
23
)
PUTTING
EVERYTHING IN
PERSPECTIVE
“And
hereby we know that we
are of the truth, and
shall assure our
hearts before Him. For
if our heart condemn
us, God is greater
than our heart and
knoweth all things.
Beloved, if our heart
condemn us not, then
we have confidence
toward God. And
whatsoever we ask, we
receive of Him,
because we keep His
commandments, and do
those things that are
pleasing in His sight.”
(1 John
2:
19
-22)
If
our heart condemns us,
it is because of sin
or fear in our lives,
but God has a remedy
for sin: “The
Blood of Jesus Christ
cleanseth us from all
sin.”
(1
John 1: 7). When the
sin is gone through
the cleansing power of
the blood of Jesus, we
have confidence
(faith) to ask for the
impossible in His
name.
There
is one other
condition: “…because
we keep His
commandments.”
(verse 22) what is His
commandment? “And
this is His
commandment, That we
should believe on the
name of His Son Jesus
Christ, and love one
another as He gave us
commandment."
Here
is another vital
Scripture: “And
this is the confidence
(faith)
that we have in Him,
that, if we ask any
thing according to His
will, He heareth us:
And if we know that he
hear us, whatever we
ask, we know that we
have the petitions
that we desired of
Him.”
(1 John: 14, 15).
We
must remain vigilant,
keep His commandments
and study God’s Word
to comprehend His
will. Then, as we
appropriate His
promises to us, we
will see mighty hand
outstretched in
forgiveness, healing,
deliverance and
revival!
Amen.
