Philippians 4:13-23 Final words

Paul is trying to make sure that thay don't think he is after more money, but at the same time is appreciative of all the help thay have given him. Indeed, at one time they were the only ones who did help him. And this had been no isolated case, they continued to help him. Then we get another asssurance that he is not looking for more. Instead Paul is looking for an increase in their fruit. This is both in their personal growth and in the further growth of the gospel.

Paul has already received their gift and is amply supplied. Moreover, he assures them that their gift is pleasing in God's sight as well. Just as Paul knows God's provision, he assuresbthem that they too will know His abundant provision. God provides according to His riches in glory in Christ. Now some take this too mean that we will get more money. Sometimes we wil, but this an impoverished way of looking at it. God's riches go way beyond this. It means we will always be able to be successful in advancing the kingdom. So it is to God that the glory belongs, always.

Paul closes with a final greeting.

Philippians 4:10-13 - The secret of contentment

Communication wasn't as easy in those days as it is now (sometimes it is too easy!), and the Philippians had been unable to contact Paul for some reason. However, contact had been resumed and they were able to express their concern for him. 

Paul had learnt the secret of being content in all circumstances. He knew what it was to be in need and what it is to have plenty. There were times when he was hungry and in want, at other times he had plenty. But he had learned how to be content in all situations and in all situations to live in Christ's strength.

This has many lessons for us in regard to some so-called prosperity teaching. The notion that if we have enough faith we will always be materially well off is simply wrong. It was not true of Paul, and I doubt any of us can claim to have anywhere near as much faith as he had. 

But there is a prosperity that we have and should seek more and more of, and that is to live for Christ, to do the work of Christ, to know Christ and to know the joy of the Lord in all circumstances. And there are times when there will be direct material and financial blessings. We have a source of strength and supply that the world knows nothing of, that no circumstances or attacks can remove. 

We are wrong if we put undue emphasis on financial blessing, but we are equally wrong if we think that God will not (or should not!) bless or help us financially. We should look at the life of Paul and see how things worked out in his life and seek to imitate him.

In all situations we can be more than conquerors.

Philippians 4:8,9 - Focus on the good

While the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds, we also have a role to play in guarding and nurturing our minds. We need to be careful what we focus on. So we should focus and ponder on  what is honourable, pure, just, lovely, commendable, excellent and worthy of praise. If we focus on the negative all the time we will at best become depressed, at worst it will pollute our minds. If instead we focus on these good things it will help to build us up and motivate us. 

And we need to practice the good as well as just think about it. All this will help us to know the peace of God. So we are not passive in receiving the peace of God, but active. However, we should not try and work out how the peace of God will come, just believe that it will. 

We should focus on "what does God want me to do". Not "how do I get over this problem". What God wants us to do will sometimes be directly related to the problem, at other times it will have nothing to do with the problem, but if we get on and do it we will find that God solves the problem anyway.

Philippians 4:1-7 Peace

We have a glorious future ahead of us, so we should stand firm. If you know there is something wonderful around the corner, then you are prepared to endure almost anything, to keep going in the face of all sorts of opposition.

Paul's instructions are not just generalities, but specific as well. He has urged us on several occasions to be of one mind, now he turns to a particular disagreement that had arisen between two women. There are a number of points to be made here. One is that this is yet another counter example to the notion that Paul was anti-women. He sees this pair as important and commends them for the their past efforts working with him. There is no mention of the what the source of contention was, and Paul is not taking sides. Sometimes there is a clear matter of principle or morality in a matter, and then we need to take a clear stand, but often a disagreement is a matter of opinion. Instead he encourages others to help them come to agreement.

We then get yet another call to rejoice in the Lord. The Lord is to be the focus of the whole of our being. Then we are called to be gentle for the Lord is near. Why does this make a difference? Think about why you become agitated when you do, why you become short-tempered. It is often because we are fearful or anxious. There is no need to be so, for the Lord is near in each and every situation. Conversely when we are confident and at peace about circumstances we are gentle and calm, not easily provoked. The Lord is near, so we should always be at peace.

Instead of losing our temper or being overwhelmed with anxiety we should pray to the Lord, and do so with thanksgiving. 

Then the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds in Christ. Note that this transcends understanding. We get fretful because we cannot work out how a situation will be resolved. We do not need to do so, for God's peace goes beyond human understanding. And God can bring a peace to our minds and and our emotions in any and every situation.

Philippians 3:17-21 - Follow the right example

Paul cites himself as an example. None of us are perfect, but at the same time there should be at least some aspects of our lives which others can imitate, which are helpful for following Christ. 

We should look to those who are effective at following Christ and use them as examples. There are people who are not good examples, and such people can even be enemies of Christ. Paul does not mince his words about such people. Destruction is the ultimate destiny for such people. They worship their belly, glory in shame and have their mind set on earthly things. This means that they are interested in only in feeding themselves, whether it be food, sexual appetites or their pride. 

We have a different citizenship, we are citizens of heaven. We need to realise how different we are, and to live differently. Christ is our goal, and it is His kingdom that we seek. And we know that He will transform our earthly bodies. Paul here is talking about what will happen at the end of the age when Christ returns. Whether we are alive at the time or have died, we will be given a new body. And everything will be subject to Christ.

Philippians 3:12-16 - Pressing on

There is a balance in the Christian life. We must never think we have made it, now must we ever get totally despondent. Paul knew he had achieved some things, but also that there was much further to go. We also need to be strongly aware that living by faith and being totally dependent upon Jesus most definitely does not mean that we don't do anything! Indeed the exact opposite is true. We are saved by faith, not by works, but the more faith we have the harder we will work. 

So Paul pressed on towards the goal of being just like Jesus. He did this because Christ had made him His own. Paul was not weighed down by the past. The past is important, but we can be hindered by the past in two ways. We can be dogged by past failures, or we can rest on our laurels. Both could have applied to Paul. He could have given up because of all he had done wrong, or he could have taken things easy because of all his success. He did neither. We have been called to a great prize by Jesus and we need to pursue that prize with all our strength.

Philippians 3:4b-11 - Knowing Christ

"Confidence in the flesh" generally means confidence in human things, whether it be our own strength and abilities, our heritage, or any aspect of our humanity. Here Paul specifically means confidence in his Jewish ancestry  and adherence to the Jewish Law. He had been circumcised on the eighth day, had impeccable ancestry. He had been a Pharisee, the most zealous sect for keeping the Law, and he had even persecuted the church. If the Law provided a basis for righteousness then Paul was in ahead of practically every other Jew. Paul could not be accused of becoming a Christian because he was a "failed Jew". The only logical reason he had for following Christ was that the Law did not work as a means of being righteous, and he fully believed that following Christ did work. And this was the case. 

Paul considered all his Jewish heritage as garbage. Now this does not mean he considered them absolutely worthless, but he considered them useless as a means of gaining righteousness. Knowing Christ is all that counts. The Jewish heritage and the Law were valuable if they are given their proper place, namely as pointing ahead to Christ, and Paul makes copious use of the Old Testament in his letters.

Righteousness is obtained by faith in Christ. Faith in what Jesus did on the cross is the source of our assurance. Moreover, Paul wanted to know the power of the resurrection and to share in Christ's sufferings. Believing in Christ is not just a matter of being forgiven, but a matter also of obtaining new life and sharing in the life of Christ. And sharing in Christ's sufferings is all part of this.

Philippians 3:1-4a - Rejoice in the midst of arguments

Paul again urges them to rejoice in the Lord. Many things, many troubles, seek to grab our attention. In all circumstances we should rejoice in the Lord. 

Paul is now going to write to them about circumcision. This will not be the first time he has spoken to them about this, and it is something that crops up in many of his letters, especially Romans and Galatians. Wherever the gospel spread there were those who were insisting that to really be right with God they needed to be circumcised. This may seem silly to us, but circumcision was something that all Jewish males had to have. They had come to see it as essential to righteousness. The gospel teaches that only Christ is essential to righteousness, this is why Paul so vehemently argued against these people. 

He speaks of the Christians as "the circumcision", ie those who are the covenant people of God. Now being good evangelicals we might think that he would put being forgiven in Christ first here, but instead he puts serving God by His spirit first. Paul was talking about a whole way of life. We serve God by the power of the Holy Spirit, not by the Law. We boast of Christ, not of any ritual, not of any "sign in the flesh". We put no confidence in anything we have done, or anything about our heritage. 

Now see here the importance of rejoicing. There are times when theological or other arguments arise. Sometimes these arguments are just silly and childish, but at others they are very serious and do indeed need to be addressed. In the midst of these arguments we need to make sure that we do not become so absorbed in the argument that we lose sight of Christ. We need to maintain our joy in Christ at all times.

Philippians 2:19-30 - Personal Relationships

Timothy worked closely with Paul and was like a son to him. Paul trusted Timothy, so he intended to send him to Philippi to see how things were.

The distinguishing mark of Timothy was that he looked out for the interests of Jesus Christ, not himself. There needs to be a fundamental shift in our attitudes. Timothy had proved himself to be reliable. Our actions are important, more important than words. It is the quality of our lives that shows to what extent we are filled with the Spirit.

Paul also hoped to be able to see them soon, implying that he expected to be released. 

Paul also sends back to them Epaphroditus. The Philippians had sent him to Paul to help him out. Epaphroditus had been close to death, but the Lord had spared him, and he was keen to see how the Philippians were getting on.

The progress of the gospel is dependent upon many things, including the personal relationships between people involved in the work of the gospel.

Philippians 2:14-18 - Lights in he darkness

So what does working out our own salvation mean in practice? Well, first of all it means doing all things without grumbling or complaining. That should bring about a major change in our lives! And one that marks us out as different from other people.  Just take a moment to think about  how much of everyday life and conversation is based around complaining and grumbling. Now we do need to remember that Paul is not laying down a law, but a principle. It does not mean that we never object to anything, but it does mean we have a very different attitude. 

The goal of our life is to be blameless and innocent, children of God. We are to stand out as different in the world. Jesus stood out not just because of the miracles He did, but for the very different life and attitude He had. We are to shine out as lights in this world. Isaiah 60 talks about us shining as lights in the midst of the darkness. Jesus is the light of the world, but He also said that we are to be the light of the world. 

By living like this we hold out the word of life to the world. This is what Paul desires. Even if he himself was to die, if those he was an apostle to lived Christ like lives in the world he would be happy.

Philippians 2:12,13 - Working with God

These first two verses can be read in two ways. First as a simple exhortation to continue to obey God, and an assurance that as we put our own effort into following Christ, He is at work in us at the same time.

The second way is to remember what the situation was for the early Christians. They were not following a well established religion. This letter was written about thirty years after the death of Christ. Wherever the gospel went there were Jews who opposed Paul, and there were Jewish Christians who insisted that the Gentile Christians needed to be circumcised. In chapter 3 Paul will address this matter directly. So the second way to read these verses is as an encouragement to them to continue in the way of faith, an assurance that God is at work in them and that they are on the right road.

We see here a familiar theme in Paul, and that is that following Christ, living by faith, involves us putting great effort into things. God works in us and through us, He works together with us. This is how we live by faith. Living by faith most definitely does not mean sitting back and doing nothing. The more we live by faith the more we will do.

The "fear and trembling" bit is a reminder that we are to fear God not men. Men may seek to put fear in our heart, but it is God we should always look to. Jesus said we should fear the One who can destroy the soul, not those who can only destroy the body.

Philippians 2:5-11 - Finding yourself

Jesus is much more than example, His life is about much more than just being an example of how to live, but He most definitely is an example. He lived the life of a perfectly godly man, He showed us how we should live, He showed us the life that the Holy Spirit is seeking to build within us.

So we are to have the same mindset, or the same attitude, that Jesus had. Then we have this wonderful hymn that expresses both the divinity and humanity of Christ. Jesus is God in His very nature. If a chemical test for divinity could be carried out, Jesus would prove to be 100% God. But he did not consider equality with God something to be grasped. Instead He made himself nothing and became a servant. We do well to remember this with regard to any blessings that God gives us, be they financial blessings, blessings of authority, blessings of gifts and abilities. Whatever God gives us we are to use to serve Him and to serve others, not to get our own way.

If we go back to our hypothetical chemical test, Jesus would also prove to be 100% human. The most fundamental aspect of truly being human is obedience to God. Folk are always talking about finding ourselves, being true to ourselves. We find ourselves when we live in obedience to God. This is what we have rebelled against, and is why we as the human race are in such a mess. 

This obedience even led to death on a cross. We have rebelled against God because we wanted to exalt ourselves. But because Jesus humbled Himself, He has been exalted to the highest place. And one day every knee will bow and every tongue confess that He is Lord. 

If we humble ourselves, then God will exalt us.

Philippians 2:1-4 - Consider others

Paul has just urged them to live a life worthy of the gospel, worthy of Christ. Now he expands on what this means for us. In this first verse he uses the term "in Christ", or "united with Christ". Being a Christian is certainly more than merely knowing about Christ, it is more than simply trying to follow Christ. We become part of Him, united with Him. We find this unity in many places in the Bible. A husband and wife are to be one, Jesus prays for the church to be one. Supremely, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one. Now this being one most certainly does not mean that we lose our identity, rather it means that we find it.

So, Paul appeals to them that if they have received any benefit at all from Christ, if they know Him at all, if they have any awareness of Him, then they should seek to live in unity, being one in spirit and mind. 

In practice this means doing nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit. So much of life is geared around getting the best for yourself, even at the expense of others, or of exalting ourselves. These are not godly attitudes. Instead we are to value others more than ourselves. At the same time, it is worth pointing out that this does not mean a false humility, or having no concern for yourself. 

We are to look for the interests of others. It is a powerful thing to look to the interests of others first. This is part of living in the kingdom of God. In God's economy we each look first to God, then to others. And God looks after our needs, and others look after us.

Philippians 1:27-30 - Suffering for Christ

Whatever happens we should conduct ourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ. We often faced with situations where we don't know what to do. We can feel out of our depth, overwhelmed by the circumstances. In these situations we should take the focus of ourselves and instead  focus on trying to please Christ. Despite the worries and the pressures we may feel we should see how we can help others, we should focus on praising God, we should remain calm. We will then often find that insoluble situations become soluble. 

There is a unity between all Christians, and this unity becomes reality when we work together with the Holy Spirit. In seeking unity we often worry too much about how much you should come over to my way of thinking, and how much I should go over to your way. In truth we should focus on how we get closer to the Spirit's way of thinking.

There are always those who oppose the gospel, sometimes violently. We should remain calm in the face of opposition, continuing to live Christlike lives at all times. This is the way to defeat the opposition. We must beware of giving in to fear, for this will lead to error. Note also that this is no promise of an easy way. Paul reminds us that suffering with Christ is part of the deal. Christ suffered, Paul suffered for Christ, as did all the apostles. Suffering for Christ is normal.

Philippians 1:19-26 - To live is Christ

Here we get one of the many mentions of rejoicing or joy. Paul is filled with joy because he knows the purposes of Christ are being fulfilled. This is the path to a joy. We need to stop being self-centered and become more Christ-centered. Jesus said that if we lose our lives we will find them.

In order for these good things to happen Paul knew he needed prayers and the help of God's Spirit. he also was not proud, continuing to pray for God to enable him to have the courage that he needed. 

Paul lived his life for Christ, and Christ gave him the motivation and the energy to live. If he died, then that would be gain for Paul, for he would then be with Christ forever. Death had no fear for him. In Christ we are set free from the fear of death. Death is something that all of us have to face, but because of the resurrection death has lost its sting.

Yet this most definitely does not mean we have a death wish! We are to live, seeking to play our part in fulfilling the great commission. Paul knows that God's purposes would be fulfilled. It is worth noting that Paul would actually die within a year or so of writing this letter. This may cause some problems to some people, wondering why Paul got this "wrong". We should not let this trouble us, instead we should recognise the limitations of our knowledge. God tells us everything we need to know, and beyond this we need not worry.

Philippians 1:12-18 - Preaching the good news

Assuming this was written during Paul's imprisonment in Rome, many thought his trip to Jerusalem in the first place was ill-advised, and subsequent events (attempts on his life, arrest, and then being sent to Rome) would serve to support that view. However, Paul saw it differently. He knew that God's plans were being fulfilled, and he wanted the Philippians to know this too so that they would not be discouraged. The purpose of the gospel was being fulfilled. The purpose of Paul's life was to see the good news spread (Acts 20:22-24). He was now in captivity, but he had made sure that everyone knew why he was there, that it was because he was a servant of Christ. His example had also served to encourage others. We encourage others to action by our teaching and preaching, and by our lives.

Now some might counter that there were some preachers who did so for their own ends, whether financial or pride, rather than for Christ's sake. So you see there is nothing new in the things that sometimes go on in our own times. Paul rises above the intrigues of men, is delighted that the good news is preached. 

Philippians 1:3-11 - Thanksgiving and Prayer

The Philippians brought joy to Paul every time he thought of them. Why was this? because of their faith and their partnership with Paul in spreading the gospel. Some of the letters, most notably the two Corinthian letters, dealt with problems. We should seek to be people who bring joy to our leaders, rather than people who cause them problems and heartache.

Paul's joy is based not just on what the Philippians are like, but on God as well. He is confident that the Lord will bring to completion the work he has started in them. There is a fundamental point here, and a basic understanding of what the good news is about. We need to get rid of any "ticket to heaven" mentality that we might have. Jesus did not come simply to forgive us, but to transform us as well into what we were always meant to be. As soon as we are born again a work of transformation begins, and this work will not be completed until the day that Jesus returns.

Paul's circumstances did not stop him feeling this way. A theme running through Philippians, brought to a head in chapter 4, is that of overcoming the circumstances, rising above them.

So Paul prays fervently for them, praying that their love may abound all the more. Note that this love is not mere sentimentality, rather it is grounded in knowledge and insight. The fruit of this is that they will know the will of God, and be filled with the fruit of righteousness.

Romans 5 Sermon

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Philippians 1:1,2 - Greeting

Paul writes on behalf of himself and Timothy. They describe themselves as servants of Christ. Unusually, Paul does not describe himself as an apostle in the introduction. Maybe this is because he had such a good relationship with the Philippian church, there was no need to remind them of his authority.

The letter is addressed to all God's people in Philippi, along with the overseers and deacons. It is not clear why Paul singles out the church officials. Maybe it is a reminder that the contents and teaching of the letter apply to all of them. Humility is one of the themes of the letter.

As in most of the letters, Paul blesses them with God's grace and peace in Christ. Grace and peace are to be parts of our lives. Notably, these are things that are absent from most people's lives. 

Philippians - Introduction

This letter was probably written in the early 60's AD. We know that Paul wrote it from prison, but the letter does not specify which prison. The most likely answer is that it was written while he was in Rome. There he was held for two years before his trial. This was more house arrest than jail, which is why he had the freedom to write letters.

Whereas Romans gives an almost theoretical grounding for the gospel, Philippians is focused on the practical., but its theology is no less profound. We learn both by a combination of studying the Bible and seeing how things work out in real life.

One of the great themes of the letter is joy. This letter was written by a man who, as he says in chapter 4, had learnt to be content in all circumstances. He knew what it was to know the joy of the Lord, and as it says in Nehemiah 8:10, the joy of the Lord is our strength.

Judges 21 - Get a wife

Israel had exacted retribution on the Benjamites, but they felt sorrow at having to have done so. They had also taken a vow that none of them would give their daughters in marriage to a Benjamite.

They wanted the tribe to continue, but they also took their vow seriously. All the tribes, but one, had assembled before the Lord. This one tribe was singled out and even more retribution was carried out against that tribe. This seems cruel and harsh to us. There are two things to note. First God did not instruct them to do this. Secondly, a vow and righteousness were taken very seriously, as was the sense of community.

The would even kill the children and women. However, some women were found who were spared, and these were given as wives to the Benjamites, if in a somewhat convoluted and underhand manner.

The book closes with the refrain "Israel had no king and everyone did as they saw fit".

So ends the rather sorry state of affairs recorded in the book of Judges.

Judges 20 - Retribution

The Levities actions had the desired effect and all of Israel was appalled at what had happened, and it stirred them to action. In our own times terrible events are sometimes needed to shake us out of our slumber and rise up to do something about the situation.

The Israelites decided to get an army together to punish the Benjamites. A tenth was taken from each tribe, so that all were represented. Action was taken on behalf of the community.

Instead of repenting the Benjamites decided to muster their own army. This is a picture of the response of all mankind. Instead of responding to God's call for repentance, we react against God instead.

The Israelites inquired of the Lord for detailed battle plans.

For two days the Benjamites seemed to have the upper hand and killed many Israelites. The Israelites were discouraged, but instead of giving up they went to inquire of the Lord. So they persisted and eventually won the battle. There is a lesson for us here. There is no problem with feeling discouraged or confused at times, this is normal and it happens. The problem is if we then give up. Instead we should take our situation and our feelings to the Lord.

The previous defeats only played a part in the final victory, giving the Benjamites a false sense of security.

Judges 19 - State of the nation

Again, this section starts with the words, "Israel had no king", a warning that we are about to get another episode of the depravity of the nation.

The incident starts with the rather tawdry relationships of the man and his concubine. She is unfaithful to him, but in the end they get back together. The concubine's father and the repeated efforts of the father to get the man to stay a little longer is an example of the hospitality culture of the time.

On the way back to his home town the man, contrary to his servant's suggestion, wants to stay in an Israelite town, expecting to receive hospitality. As it turns out they are very inhospitable. We tend to skip over this fact and shrug our shoulders, but hospitality was considered very important. The earlier part of the chapter is stressing what good hospitality should be like, and the contrast with the lack of it from the Israelites is a damning indictment of them.

One man does take the travellers into his house. A crowd from the town then gathered and they demanded the traveller be sent out for them for homosexual rape. The old man offered to send his daughters out, and in the end the traveller sent out his concubine. The crowd raped and abused her. The man then cut her up and distributed the pieces around the nation.

Now, the whole episode is horrible and appals us (rightly so). However, the main point of the incident is the depraved state that the nation had descended into.

Judges 18 - Life without God

This chapter starts with the phrase "In those days Israel had no king". This implies that it was a time when they had no real ruler and everyone did as they saw fit. It also indicates that the book was put together during the time when Israel did have kings.

This chapter concerns the Dannites. They had not yet got a proper inheritance and wanted more land. So they took advantage of an unsuspecting and peaceable people. The events in Judges are records of what actually happened, they are not a record of the way things should happen, quite the opposite in fact.

Micah and his priest also come into the picture again. Micah loses his priest and idols, and the priest gladly serves the tribe of Dan. This priest was a priest for sale, a priest for hire, not a man dedicated to the Lord.

The idol that Micah had made was worshipped by the tribe of Dan until the time of captivity. This shows us part of the purpose of this book. It is to demonstrate how Israel had abandoned God, and the state into which they had descended.

This is one of the amazing things about the Bible. It was written by Jewish people, yet is very clear about the sorry state of Israel. This is one of the most compelling arguments for the Bible being inspired by God, being written on His behalf. If it was a man-made book there is no way it would portray Israel in, and many individuals, in such a bad light.

Judges 17 - Micah

This incident is an example of the sorry state of the nation. It wasn't just the leaders who were affected, it was all the people. In the same way, we can criticise the leaders of our nations, and they have much to answer for, but we also have a responsibility. There is some truth in the statement that we get the leaders we deserve.

Micah was a fairly common name, and this is definitely not the Micah who has a book named after him. Micah had taken money from his mother. She had initially declared a curse on the thief, but now pronounced a blessing. She also took part of the money and used it to pay for an idol. 

The idol was set up in Micah's house, where he had a shrine. He even made his sons priests of this and other idols. Man will either worship the true God, or will worship idols of one form or another.

A Levite, ie one who was part of the tribe that were supposed to be the true priests of God, passed by, and Micah paid him to his own priest. The Levite agreed. Micah then so this as a sign that God was good to him. Those who are servants of the living God have a great responsibility, for others will base their impression of God on what we do. Because the Levite compromised his faith, Micah thought his actions were OK. The Levite should have told Micah to worship the Lord, not idols. It is also an example of the muddled thinking we have when we abandon God.

Judges 16 - Delilah

Samson's stupidity continues as he spends a night with a prostitute. The people of Gaza wanted to take this opportunity to capture Samson (so we see that conflict between Gaza and Israel is nothing new). However, Samson used his great strength.

Later he fell in love with a woman called Delilah. The Philistines saw this as another opportunity to trap Samson. They wanted to find out the source of Samson's strength, then they could overcome him. 

Delilah did as the Philistines wanted. Samson at first gave her false answers and this resulted in him continuing to overcome the Philistines. 

Delilah acted like a petulant child. One really wonders at the foolishness of Samson, Why did he continue with this woman when she was so clearly being used to trap him? However, men can be very foolish when it comes to women (and vice versa for that matter). Samson continued in his foolish ways, and eventually Delilah's nagging wore him down and Samson told her about his hair not being cut. The Philistines then cut his hair and his strength left him. The hair itself was not the source of the strength, rather it was that the vow had been broken, so the Lord's strength left him.

Samson was captured and his eyes were gouged out. However, his hair started to grow again. One wonders why the Philistines did not give him a weekly shave to be on the safe side. Maybe this was just the pride of man playing its part, as it always does. If you look at history you often wonder why people did various things. Why was Hitler so stupid in his invasion of Russia and at various points in the war? All leaders do stupid things at times, and evil rulers more so than others. 

The Philistines were having a party worshipping their god Dagon. Samson took this as an opportunity, praying to God to give him strength one more time. Then Samson pulled the pillars down and killed many Philistines. 

The whole story of Samson is strange. Why did God persist in using this foolish man? Why did He give spiritual power to this man?

Judges 15 - More aggro

More exploits from Samson. He tries to go and see his "wife", but she has been given to someone else by his father, so he is offered her sister instead. We do need to remember that the social system was somewhat different in those days!

Samson sees this as an excuse to exact vengeance on the Philistines, this time in a destructive exercise with foxes and fire. No doubt the animal rights lobby would be deeply offended! The Philistines reacted in kind by killing Samson's wife and her father. Samson promises more violence. The Philistines went up to Judah demanding that they hand over Samson. The people of Judah are, quite understandably, getting rather fed up with Samson.

Samson let them bind him up and hand him over, knowing that the Lord's strength would enable him to break free and overcome the Philistines, and so it proved to be.

The Lord then gave Samson a miraculous supply of water, and he led the nation for twenty years.

Judges 14 - Killing Lions

Samson now starts to make his mistakes. First he wants to get a Philistine woman as a wife, directly against what the Law said. He also asks his parents to do this for him. Our reaction might be, why didn't he get on do this himself, but in the culture of the day parents often arranged marriages.

His parents were against the idea. Then it says it was part of the Lord's plan. Now there is something important for us to understand here. Just because something is part of God's plan and is used by Him does not mean that He approves of it. It would have been far better of Samson had been perfectly dedicated to the Lord. At the same time, God knows all about our vagaries and twistedness, and this does not stop His plans working. Moreover, we may sometimes see things in our own children that we do not like, or know that they are wrong, God still use even these things as part of His plan.

Samson then went down to the Philistines and killed a lion along the way (as you do!). Later he got honey from the lion carcass. He then held a party and told the people a riddle. The Philistines used his wife to get the answer out of him. This succeeded. Samson was furious, and in the power of the Lord struck down the thirty men.

So we see the power of the Lord here working in strange ways, first to kill a lion, then to attack these thirty men. When we are given gifts from God we have a responsibility in how to use them, and are given a degree of freedom. We have a duty to use them properly, we also need to live our lives in a righteous way. Samson did neither of these things.

Judges 13 - The birth of Samson

Samson is undoubtedly the most famous person in Judges. After the previous kings and what seemed like a period of reasonable peace and prosperity the Israelites did evil again, and so were handed to the control of the Philistines. When we sin we become slaves to something. Sin never brings freedom, it always brings captivity.

As with several key figures in the Bible (Eg Isaac, Samuel, John the Baptist), Samson was born to parents who were unable to have children. The child would be a gift from God, and he was to be dedicated to the Lord. There were also conditions that were to be observed. The parents were not to drink alcohol, and Samson, famously, was not to cut his hair. The full conditions of the Nazirite vow are given in Numbers 6:1-21.

The promise was delivered by a man who looked like an angel of the Lord. Manoah, the husband wanted to know more details of how to bring the boy up. Manoah and his wife offered a sacrifice to the Lord as the angle of the Lord appeared in the flames. Manoah thought they were doomed to die, but his wife saw things more clearly. Sometimes women are more logical and clear thinking than men!

In time Samson was born and the Spirit of the Lord was working in his life.

Judges 12 - Various leaders

Again the Ephraimites seem to have been left out of things, and take umbrage at the fact. It seems that Jephthah had in fact called them but they did not answer. When people complain, they are often talking a load of nonsense. Unlike the previous incident with Gideon and Ephraimites, this was led to war. The Ephraimites seem to have taken great delight in upsetting people. We need to make sure we are not such a person.

As an aside, we get here the source of the term Shibboleth as a test. There are many phrases and terms common in popular culture that have their origin in the Bible.

Jephthah was followed by a series of leaders who spent a lot of time having sons and daughters. Apart from that there is little remarkable about their reigns, though Israel seems to be doing Ok at this point.

Judges 11 - Jephthah

Jephthah was a mighty warrior and would save Israel. However, he did not come from a good background, for his mother was a prostitute, and his father's other sons drove Jephthah away. You may think that there are things about your background, or life that make it impossible for God to work in your life. This is not true. In fact, God makes a habit of choosing the things and the people that men have rejected or consider worthless. None of us like it when other people make us out to be worthless in some way, but we should not become discouraged. It is God's opinion that matters more than anything else.

When the nation was in trouble they went to get Jephthah back. Jephthah looked for assurances that they would truly accept him as leader of the nation, and received these assurances.

Jephthah then sent a warning to the Ammonites, reminding them of recent history, seeking a peaceful resolution. The Ammonite king, however, rejected the peace offer.

Jephthah was filled with the Spirit of the Lord and defeated the Ammonites. Jephthah, however, made a foolish vow to the Lord, to sacrifice the first thing he saw when he returned from the battle. This turned out to be his daughter. Surprisingly his daughter did not ask her father to forego his vow, but asked only for two months for her to weep before the Lord. In fact the situation may not be quite as drastic as it seems. It is possible that his daughter was in fact redeemed for money rather than actually sacrificed. The reasons in favour of this view are:

1. The Law forbids human sacrifice (Lev 18:21, 20:2-5).
2. No priest would be likely to officiate at such a ceremony.
3. The Law allowed something vowed to the Lord to be redeemed by it being set aside for lifetime service (Lev 27).
4. The daughter mourns the fact that she will never marry, rather than actually being killed.

Judges 10

Yet again God raised up a man to save Israel. He came from Shamir in the hill country of Ephraim. Remember that Ephraim had been upset at not having been included in Gideon's army. God often chooses people who are of little account, or are from places of little account. If men despise you, do not lose heart, it is God's opinion and His favour that counts more than anything. 

Tola was followed by Jair, and he appears to have been a successful leader as well. The reference to thirty sons and thirty donkeys is an indication of his wealth.

However, after this relatively long time of prosperity Israel sank back again in to her evil ways, serving foreign gods. So Israel became prey to her enemies, the Philistines and Ammonites. 

Israel cried to God, but this time He rebuked them for having learnt nothing from her history, for failing to recognise the error of her ways. Israel then quickly got rid of her idols and served the Lord. God then changed His mind. 

We are in a relationship with God. Any view of our relationship with God that is purely legalistic, that views it    like a scientific law is seriously deficient.