No More Deliverance

Samson was the last Judge of Israel. His Judgeship is marred by an inconsistent life of of compromise. The story of Samson breaks a pattern that ran throughout the book of Judges. Israel had been going through this pattern of apostasy since chapter 3 of the book. The four steps are as follows.

1. Israel does evil in God's sight. Judges 3:7

2. God allows them to be oppressed. Judges 3:8

3. Israel sees their error and cries for deliverance. Judges 3:9a

4. God sends them a deliverer. Judges 3:9

By Judges 3:12 the pattern begins to repeat. However, notice Judges 13:1-2, "And the children of Israel did evil again in the sight of the LORD; and the LORD delivered them into the hand of the Philistines forty years. And there was a certain man of Zorah, of the family of the Danites, whose name was Manoah; and his wife was barren, and bare not." Can you see what is missing? Where is step three of the pattern above? Where does it say that the children of Israel cried unto the Lord for deliverance? IT DOES NOT! Israel has become complacent and comfortable living in bondage. As a result, they are given a flawed Judge who compromises his vows as a Nazarite. He never delivers Israel. The Lord said of him, "and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines." Samson's story ends in chapter 16. In chapter 17 and 18 the Danites break away never to recover spiritually. In Chapter 19 the tribe of Benjamin becomes infected with sinfulness and homosexuality. In chapter 20 the other tribes attack Benjamin and nearly destroy it. In chapter 21 we read one of the saddest verses in the Bible! Verse 25 says, "In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes."

How much do we parallel this today? Who is burdened by a spirit of repentance for our nation? What has happened to weeping souls calling on Christ for salvation in America's churches? Why are many pulpits filled with compromising ministers preaching a compromised lie to a compromising people? It is time to quit playing games and call on Christ! He is the one and only hope and salvation for our nation and the world.