You are chosen to speak well of God. (Ephesians 1:1-14)

Cornerstone Mission Church, Sunday Sermon, April 26 2009

When you think of worship, what comes to your mind? Perhaps, you think of worship in how we praised God this morning together. When we worship God, when we praise God, what are we doing?

Klyne Snodgrass explains that worship is about our opportunity to tell the truth about God.^[1] When you and I take time to worship and praise God, we are taking opportunity to express what is true about God. When you begin to express what is true about God, the reality of who God is, what he has done, and what he will do grips your heart. And, being gripped by God, you cannot help but speak well of him. When you sincerely speak well of a person, it is because you are personally gripped and fascinated, inspired, compelled and moved by this person. If a person makes no life changing impact on you, you won’t feel compelled to speak well of this person. But, if you are deeply touched, inspired and changed by a person, it will be hard for you not to speak well of the person.

What I see in Paul’s letter to Ephesians is a man who had whole lot of good things to say about God. Paul was a true worshiper because his heart was gripped and fascinated by God, inspired, compelled and moved by God. And, experiencing God in this way, it was only natural for him to speak well of God.

This morning did you know that you had an opportunity to tell the truth about God through songs? In that opportunity, were you able to worship, praise, that is speak well of God? If you spoke well of God during the time of praise, what were your reasons to speak well of him? Are you gripped and fascinated by God, inspired, compelled and moved by God? Are you a true worshiper as Paul was?

This morning I want you to understand that true worshipers cannot contain their words to speak well of God. When you are gripped by God’s incredible choice to exercise his power to demonstrate his love, his forgiveness, to transfer you into the kingdom of his Son he loves from the kingdom of darkness, to build eternal relationship with you in and through his Son Jesus Christ, what else can you do, but to speak well of God, to worship God.

1. Worship overflows when you are captivated by what makes God fascinating and compelling.

Let’s dig deeper into God’s word and learn more about worship. You may have noticed that in Ephesians 1:1-14, the word, “worship” does not occur. Instead, you come across “Praise” in verse 3; “Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.” NIV translates the Greek adjective eujloghtov" as “praise” while other literal translations like ESV as “blessed”. eujloghtov" is a compound word from “eu” meaning well and “log” from word logos meaning word. Together, it literally means to speak well.^[2] You are familiar with the word eulogy in funeral settings. It is also a compound word formed from “eu” and “logos”. In eulogy you expect to hear a speech that speaks well and honors a deceased. So, when you think of worshiping, praising God, think of speaking well of God for all his excellence in his blessings. Paul says in Ephesians 1:3 that God has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.”

Worships is all about blessing God, speaking well of him because of the way he grips and fascinates us, touches, inspires, and moves us. Some of you guys have noticed these days how I like to talk about what God is doing in our lives. When we know that God is active and living, powerfully working in our lives, we can worship him, speak well of him.

Do you want to worship God as Paul did? Your worship will deepen when you are captured by God who grips and fascinates you, inspires, compels and moves you. In Ephesians 1:4-14, what you see is Paul worshiping God, speaking well of God because he was gripped by God’s excellence in his choice to seek and establish eternal relationship with the people like you and me in Christ.

2. Worship God who has chosen you in Christ.

Why is our God captivating and compelling? It is because of his excellence in his eternal choice to build lasting relationship with you and me. Paul says in Ephesians 1:4 that God chose us in him [that is in Christ] before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight.

His choice long ago: His choice was planned long time ago even before the creation of the world. Can you wrap your head around this? I have hard time planning my weeks in advance, but here was God setting his heart on choosing you and me long ago before anything was created and working out the history to fulfill his purpose to choose us. The fact that he chose us unfathomably long time ago speaks to his serious commitment and determination to pursue us. This is a reason to speak well of God.

His choice in his character: His chose not because he was compelled or influenced by the external force, but out of his nature of mercy and grace. He chose us long ago because he is God of mercy and grace. It means God’s eternal choice does not permit the worldly sense of feeling pride and superiority for being chosen. God made it abundantly clear to the Israelites that he chose them out of his goodness, his kindness, his grace, not because the Israelites deserved to be chosen. It says in Deuteronomy 7:7-8, “The LORD did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples [meaning God didn’t choose you because you were special], for [the fact of the matter was] you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the LORD loved you and kept the oath he swore to your forefathers that he brought you out with a mighty hand …” And, Deut 4:37, “Because he loved your forefathers and chose their descendants after him, he brought you out of Egypt by his Presence and his great strength.” God has chosen you and me, not because we deserve to be picked and be chosen by him, but because he is loving and kind God. There is no room for pride or sense of superiority in being chosen by God. True worship fully acknowledges this and responds with humble gratitude in speaking well of God. His choice makes our choice possible. And, this is something we can speak well of God.

His choice for relationship: His choice is for building relationship, not any kind of relationship but father and children relationship bound in Christ. Paul says that God predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ in Ephesians 1:5. This echoes God’s prophecy from Malachi 3:17, “They will be mine,” says the LORD Almighty, “in the day when I make up my treasured possession…” His choice creates belonging for us in Christ as God’s children. This is a reason why you can speak well of God.

His choice to preserve: He affirms and preserves you in his choice through the Holy Spirit. Ephesians 1:13 says that when we respond in faith to God’s loving will to choose us, to make us a people belonging to him, he says he marks us with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit. Paul likens the Holy Spirit as a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance. The Holy Spirit is a down payment, a first installment that guarantees the complete payment; the Holy Spirit affirms and preserves us to run the race without failing. Can you speak well of God for filling you with his Spirit to convict you, to guide you, to tell you which way you should go? He promised in Isaiah 30:21-22, “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear a voice behind you, saying, “This is the way; walk in it.” Then you will defile your idols… you will throw them away.” God doesn’t choose us only to leave us alone to fend for ourselves. He gives you the Holy Spirit as your abiding helper, your enabler to walk in the right path. This is something you can speak well of God.

His choice for community: His choice is corporate in nature. Verse 4 says, “he chose us in him,” verse 5, “he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ,” verse 11, “In him we were also chosen,” all these verses make it abundantly clear that we cannot envision salvation apart from our corporate identity in the body of Christ. God’s choice was never to create a private religion. He choice was to create a cohesive relationship of his people for himself bound in Christ and through Christ. This is why 1 Peter 2:9 speaks of our identity not as individually chosen persons, but as “a chosen people.” His choice has always been to create a chosen people for himself. To speak well of God means we take our corporate identity seriously and do all that we can to build up the body of Christ. In order to speak well of God, we need to find ways to appreciate the body of Christ, appreciate each other in Christ and speak well of each other. We cannot speak well of God without speaking well of others in whom God is at work.

His choice and our response: His choice calls for responsible response from us. Can God bless us in the sense of speak well of us? When God has chosen us, he has envisioned creating a chosen people who are set apart, “saints” in Christ (v. 1), to be holy and blameless in his sight (v. 4). We are chosen so that we can live as his new creation. Ephesians 5:27 says that Christ works “to present her [the church] to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.” Can God bless you and me? Can God speak well of you and me because we will be presented to himself as a radiant church?

When faith is not lived out, when faith is reduced to a sentimental feeling of a spoiled child wanting nothing more than being pampered by God for our own selfishness, then evidence of God’s choice, his election won’t be there. Apostle Peter said in 2 Peter 1:10, “Therefore, my brothers be all the more eater to make your calling and election sure.” And, apostle Paul said in Philippians 2:12-13, “continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.” And, he also said in Titus 1:1, “… the faith of God’s elect and the knowledge of the truth that leads to godliness.” Can we truly speak well of God, worship him without responsibly responding to his choice, his call, his election? Can we praise God without rejecting godlessness and without thirsting after godliness? To speak well of God sincerely, we need to take God’s “commission to fruit-bearing service, obedience and a God-fearing and God-trusting life.”^[3] Then, God who blesses us with his grace and works in us to will and to act according to his purpose can speak well of us in his delight.

His choice for his glory: His choice is to the praise of his glory. Ephesians 1:6 says that the purpose of God for choosing relationship with us as our Father in Christ is “to the praise of his glorious grace.” Ephesians 1:12 again Paul repeats that it is “for the praise of his glory” that we were chosen. And, for the third time, Paul explains that the purpose of the seal of the Holy Spirit who guarantees our complete redemption to the end is “to the praise of his glory” (Ephesians 1:14). Less we forget that it is all about God, Paul repeats three times to make it crystal clear to us that God has chosen you and me in Christ to godly life so that we can praise his glory, that is to speak well of his excellence in choosing us in Christ.

3. Conclusion

Do you have the reasons to speak well of God? Do you know that you are chosen to speak well of God? God wants to raise us up as true worshipers. And, we must press on to experience God, to be griped by him, to be fascinated by his character, his goodness, his kindness, his grace, his power, to be inspired by his wisdom, his truth, to be touched by the conviction of the Holy Spirit, to be moved from the kingdom of darkness into the kingdom of the Son God loves.

Remember this week, God has chosen you so that you speak well of him.

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[1] Snodgrass, Klyne. “Contemporary Significance” In NIV Application Commentary, New Testament: Ephesians. By Klyne Snodgrass, 61. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, © 1996.

[2] The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology: Volume 1. 205. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, © 1967, 1969, 1971.

[3] The New International Dictionary of New Testament Theology: Volume 1. 542. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, © 1967, 1969, 1971.

1 Samuel 12, Worship the King!

1 Samuel 11:15 says, “So all the people went to Gilgal and confirmed Saul as king in the presence of the LORD. There they sacrificed fellowship offerings before the LORD, and Saul and all the Israelites held a great celebration.” And, do you recall how this celebration came after the great victory against the Ammonites led by Saul?

They got it now. God had granted them what they had been longing after, what they had been asking for a king to call their own just like other nations had. When Saul led the charge against the Ammonites and won a great victory against them, perhaps they through how lucky, fortunate, blessed to have such a king. They were standing at the important turning points in their history. The rise of Saul as king over Israel marked the end of the era of Judges and the beginning of the monarchy, a nation under a king.

Things were seemingly unfolding just the way they had imagined. All seemed to be well with just the good reasons for celebration! They felt secure under this new management. They had high hopes for this new system, a strong and courageous king to lead them to the winning battles, a king to protect them from the threats and the powerful forces of other nations. Life felt good to them.

This moment of great celebration and certainty for having their own capable king was the backdrop for 1 Samuel 12 our today’s passage. I would like you to consider this question; when you feel good about life because you got what you wanted, is everything really well? Jeremiah 17:9-10 says, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it? I the LORD searches the heart and examine the mind, to reward a man according to his conduct, according to what his deeds deserve.”

What we will see in 1 Samuel 12 is God searching the heart and examining the mind of Israelites through Samuel, to unveil what was really in their hearts. God does this because he is after raising you to worship him with passion and faithfulness.

1. Samuel a servant of God in integrity and faithfulness

Before Samuel engaged the heart and the mind of Israelites to search and examine them, Samuel sought to establish his integrity as their leader thus far. He had been their leader from his youth until now, an old man. Although his sons were infamous and disgraced for their dishonest gain, accepting bribes, and perverting justice, Samuel was a man beyond reproach, blameless unlike them. So, Samuel called them in verse 3, “Here I stand. Testify against me in the presence of the LORD and his anointed”, Saul. People testified in verse 4, “You have not cheated or oppressed us… You have not taken anything from anyone’s hand.” He was a man of impeccable character.

2. God saved you so you can worship him.

From verse 6 to 12, having established his faithfulness and blameless, he confronted the Israelites with the facts of God’s faithfulness and righteousness in the history to make worshipers out of unbelievers.

The greatest historical moment in Israel was the Exodus. God appointed Moses and Aaron to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. What was God’s purpose to bring them out of Egypt? Exodus 3:12 says, “When you have brought the people out of Egypt, you will worship God on this mountain.” They were brought out of Egypt to Mount Sinai, and then later given the Promised Land; they were saved and they were given the spiritual blessings so that they could worship the LORD their creator, their holy king, as his holy people, to draw all men to their God.

But, what defined them was not worship, but forgetting. Verse 9 says, “They forgot the LORD their God,” that is they didn’t remember their God. What is God to do when his people forsake him, when his people don’t remember how he saved them so they could worship him freely and passionately? He gave them into the hands of their enemies.

We are saved to worship God; but when we don’t worship God, God leaves us in the hands of the devil until we cry out to God. When the Israelites cried out to God for help, he sent the judges like Jeru-Baal, Barak, Jephthah and even Samuel to deliver them out of the hands of the enemies in order that they would worship their God again.

But, when Nahash king of Ammonites moved against them, all they wanted was to have a king over them, even though the LORD their God was their King, verse 12. When they got fearful of the Ammonites, they didn’t remember their God who delivered them out of Egypt to worship him. They forgot their true King who alone could deliver them.

3. Worship God in fear!

We can see that the Israelites were asking for a king for all the wrong reasons. Then, why did God grant them a king? God had bigger plan for the Israelites. His plan was spelled out in verse 14 and 15; “If you fear the LORD and serve and obey him and do not rebel against his commands, and if both you and the king who reigns over you follow the LORD your God-good! But if you do not obey the LORD, and if you rebel against his commands, his hand will be against you, as it was against your fathers.”

God is always at work to bring us to true worship. He gave them a king not for the reason they were asking for, but for the purpose of bringing the whole nation to worship God; the king was to lead them to worship!

There are two aspect of what it means to fear God. God honoring fear is when people find themselves in awe in who God is and what he have done and still does. But, for people who live in rebellion and disobedience, fear of God means having God’s hand against them.

In verse 16-17, we see God demonstrating his power through Samuel to rouse the fear of God in the hearts of the Israelites. It was wheat harvest season which meant normally it was a dry season. Samuel said, “Is it not wheat harvest now? I will call upon the LORD to send thunder and rain. And you will realize what an evil things you did in the eyes of the LORD when you asked for a king.”

When God demonstrated his power, the fear of God gripped the hearts of the Israelites; the fear of God had a purifying effect on them, helping them deal with their own sins. Verse 19, they said to Samuel, “Pray to the LORD your God for your servants so that we will not die, for we have added to all our other sins the evil of asking for a king.”

When the fear of the Lord gripped their hearts, they became afraid. So Samuel replied in verse 20, “Don’t be afraid.” The fear of God can make people be afraid of God and be paralyzed. But, this is not what God intends. His intension is that all who fear him turn to him. The true fear of God helps us not to turn away from the LORD. It helps us to serve the LORD with all our hearts. Transforming-fear of God helps us turn away from the useless idols.

4. Cultivate the heart of worship!

What we as God’s people need is to cultivate the heart of worship! Let me point out the practical steps you can take that will help you to cultivate the heart of worship!

• Prayer

Samuel said in verse 23, “As for me, far be it from me that I should sin against the LORD by failing to pray for you.” Wow, have you considered this? When we don’t pray for each other we are sinning against the LORD. As God’s people, we are commanded to pray for each other’s spiritual health. What amazes me is Samuel’s burden to pray for people who rejected him as their leader. Instead of licking a wounded pride, he prayed humbly for their spiritual wellbeing.

• God’s word

Samuel said in verse 23, “And I will teach you the way that is good and right.” The heart of worship knows the way that is good and right. The heart of worship avoids the evil way. If you want to cultivate the heart of worship, recommit to daily reading and mediating in God’s word.

• Fear the LORD

Samuel said in verse 24, “be sure to fear the LORD.” And, verse 25, “Yet if you persist in doing evil, both you and your king will be swept away.”

Jesus said in Luke 12:5-7, “But I will show you whom you should fear: Fear him who, after the killing of the body, has power to throw you into hell. Yes, I tell you, fear him. Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. Indeed, the very hairs of your head are all numbered. Don’t be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.”

Our Lord alone has the power to control the final destiny. At the end of the road, each of us will have to stand before God and give account to our motives and actions. Consider in fear when we persist in doing evil, God’s hand will be against us; consider what happened when God actively opposed his rebellious and disobedient people.

Consider and reconsider in fear how without Jesus Christ, we would all be thrown into hell. Consider in hear how God is intimately aware of all our motives and actions. Consider in awe how with Jesus Christ, we become really important to God; in Christ we matter to God.

• Serve faithfully

Samuel said again in verse 24, “Serve him faithfully with all your heart.” To cultivate the heart of worship, you need to find ways to serve God with all your heart. This Friday, I was mopping off the floors of our church with Mike. I noticed how the edges where the floor tiles meet the walls were really dirty. I mopped the edges as hard as I could to clean the dirty spots. As I was doing that God helped me to pray this prayer… “Lord, cleanse me all my dirty spots!” In serving, God touched my heart.

You cannot cultivate the heart of worship without finding yourself in serving. If you don’t know where to serve, come and ask me. I could sit down with you and explore the ways you can serve Jesus in our church. Or, go and ask those who seem to do everything. They might be able to give you ideas on how you can serve.

When God searches your heart and examine your mind what does he find?

Do you worship your king?

Sunday Sermon, Judges 16, Are you on the path that leads you to worship God or make you fall away from him?

This past week, I was riveted to what happened to the family of James Kim. He was a senior editor for CNET.com. He and his wife Kati along with their two daughters Penelope and Sabine, 4 years old and 7 month old were stranded in a minor logging road in Southwest Oregon. The road was supposed to be locked to prevent people from taking it. But apparently a vandal had caught the lock, allowing the family to drive into this impassable road. They were reported missing on November 30^th. The wife and the two children were found alive on December 2^nd, but James Kim was found dead on December 6^th. He tried to find help on foot until he was overcome by hypothermia.[1]

When the family decided to go down that logging road, they had no idea that the road was impassable. Had they known about it, I doubt they would have taken that path. It was supposed be a short cut, but only led them to the heartbreaking tragic outcome.

Samson’s life was like that. He kept on taking the paths that led him astray from God and ultimately destroyed his promising life.

This morning we will consider Samson’s life from Judges 16. As we go through this chapter I would like you to make a mental note on what happened when Samson went down the wrong paths.

1. What happened when Samson took the wrong path?

We read in 16:1, “One day Samson went to Gaza, where he saw a prostitute.” Just like we saw Samson going from his hometown Zorah to Timnah about five miles away in chapter 14, this time we see him going from Zorah to Gaza. Timnah was located on the outskirt of Philistia, but Gaza was in the heart of Philistia. We are talking about over 30 some miles of traveling through the heart of Philistia to get to Gaza. What was Samson doing in Gaza? Verse 1-2 says that he saw a prostitute and he went into spend the night with her.

As we saw in chapter 14, this was Samson’s fundamental flaw; taking the wrong path! Instead of taking the paths that would lead him to worship God, he kept on walking down the paths where he would be tempted to abandon his faith in God, where he would ultimately be destroyed.

Somehow the people of Gaza knew that Samson was in their town. So, they waited till the dawn to kill him thinking that he would be sound asleep then. But, Samson got up in the middle of the night and ripped the doors of the whole city gate along its two posts out of the ground and the wall. The doors were made of iron or bronze. It must weigh tons. He carried the whole thing for about 38 some miles in elevation of some 2000 feet towards Hebron, a city in Judah.

What Samson did was a national humiliation for the Philistines. They were outrage; all they wanted to do with Samson was to tie him up, to subdue him and to humiliate him.

Some time had passed since this last feat of taking the city gate from Gaza. Verse 4 states that Samson fell in love with woman in the Valley of Sorek; her name was Delilah. Most likely she was not an Israelite, but a Philistine, just like all the women he had fall for.

Last time the Philistines threatened Samson’s wife from Timnah to act on behalf of them. But, this time around instead of using threats, they bribed Delilah to work for them.

They asked her 16:5, “See if you can lure him into showing you the secret of his great strength and how we can overcome him so we may tie him up and subdue him. Each one of us will give you eleven hundred shekels of silver.” Later in chapter 17:10, we find that 10 shekels of silver was offered as a year’s wage. Let say someone earns 30,000 dollars a year; 30,000 dollars time 110 is 3.3 million dollars. Wow, for 3.3 million dollars, do you think Delilah would betray her lover?

Timnah was motivated to betray Samson because she feared for her life and her family; Delilah too was highly motivated to betray Samson; she aggressively pressured Samson to spill the beans. For Delilah, it was all for money.

Talking about dysfunctional relationship! Why would he get into relationship with a woman who would betray him for money? Why did he get into relationship with her when he didn’t even trust her?

Can Delilah be any more obvious with her intention when she demanded Samson in verse 6? “Tell me the secret of your great strength and how you can be tied up and subdued.” At this point, Samson must have remembered how his Philistine wife from Timnah deceived and betrayed him when she prodded him for the answer to the riddle.

Well, this time around Samson was determined and confident that he wasn’t going to tell her the secret of his strength; instead of telling her straight up that he wasn’t going to tell her, he played a game with her.

He told a made up story about how being tied up by seven fresh and moist thongs used for bowstring or tent cord would make him powerless. Delilah herself bound him with the seven fresh and moist thongs given by the Philistine rulers. Then, she put on her act, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” He snapped them like strings near flame.

In verse 10, Delilah accused him of making a fool of her and lying to her. And, she pressured him again, “Come now, tell me how you can be tied.” Samson made up a story about using new robes to bind him. She tied him with the new robes that had never been used, but this didn’t make him weak.

For the third time, she repeated her complain and demanded an answer from him in verse 13, “Until now, you have been making a fool of me and lying to me. Tell me how you can be tied.” Samson again resisted Delilah’s prodding, but came very close to disclosing the secret of his strength. He made up a story that if his seven braids of his head were to be woven into the fabric and pin down, he would lose his strength. Again, this didn’t work.

Just like Samson’s Philistine wife of Timnah did, Delilah questioned Samson’s love for her in verse 15. “How can you say, ‘I love you,” when you won’t confide in me?” Samson kept his secret from Delilah, but Delilah didn’t give up. 3.3 million dollars was at stake for her. Verse 16 says “With such nagging she prodded him day after day until he was tired to death.”

Samson had overcome any number of Philistines or wild beasts, but he couldn’t overcome Delilah’s nagging. He could have broken off the relationship with Delilah, but instead he allowed himself be broken by her.

He said to her in Verse 17, “No razor has ever been used on my head… because I have been a Nazirite set apart to God since birth. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as week as any other man.”

Now if you remember, Samson broke thus far two of his Nazirite rules. He broke one rule, not to touch anything or anyone dead. And, he broke the second rule, not to consume any wine even grapes. He didn’t break the third rule, not to cut his hair.

God was ever patient with Samson. Even though Samson broke two of his vows, God didn’t take away the strength from Samson. So, as long as Samson was to honor this last vow, God was going to work with him patiently. But, Samson jeopardized this.

She called in the rulers of the Philistines one more time ensuring them Samson had finally spilled the truth. She got him to sleep on her lap. Then, she called a man to shave off the seven braids of his hair.

Just like the first three times, she woke Samson up from his sleep as though she was alarming him from harm, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!”

Now, here is truly a sad moment. Verse 20 tells us that when Samson woke from his sleep, he thought to himself, “I’ll go as before and shake myself free...” but he did not know that the LORD had left him.”

Samson, a man of high calling, a man of destiny to be a deliverer for Israel from the Philistines, did not know when the LORD had left him. He got up to face the Philistines just like other times feeling confident in his strength to overcome them. But, he couldn’t overcome them. The Lord was not with him. And, God’s strength was not available to him any more. God took his hand of protection off from Samson. Finally, his sinful way of life caught up with him.

The result was tragic. Verse 21 described what happened to powerless Samson. The Philistines quickly seized him, gouged out his eyes and took him down to Gaza. There, binding him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding in the prison.

Samson lived his life careless; he went after whatever pleased his eyes regardless of what God’s will was for him. Samson used his feet to travel far in order to please his desire inflamed by his sight. He was now blinded. His feet that led him to the wrong paths were now shackled by a heavy metal. To Gaza, a place where he took out the city gate with mighty force, he now returned not as a deliverer for Israel, but as a prisoner. There, he was hooked on to the grinding stone like a donkey, going around and around grinding with no purpose and future.

The story doesn’t end here. Verse 22 says, “But the hair on his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.” This gives us the readers a clue that the story of Samson was not finished yet.

From verse 23-30, we learn what happened to Samson after being blinded, shackled, and forced into a meaningless labor. Verse 23 tells us that the Philistines assembled to honor their god Dagon. Dagon was a god of grain. They gloried in having captured Samson, “Our god had delivered Samson, our enemy, into our hands.” They praise their god Dagon, “Our god has delivered our enemy into our hands, the one who laid waste our land and multiplied our slain.” Samson, once thought to have defeated Dagon when he torched the harvest fields, was brought into their temple for their entertainment.

Having gotten used to living now without sight but hearing, he figured out that he was about in the middle of the temple. He asked the servant who held his hand to put him where he could touch the main supporting pillars so he could rest. There, he prayed to the LORD in verse 28, “O Sovereign LORD, remember me, O God, please strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes.” Samson referred God as Sovereign LORD. This title affirms God as having the universal authority. To this God who has the universal authority, Samson prayed; he asked him to remember him and to give him the last strength to have his revenge on the Philistines. Even at this moment, Samson was still out for himself. He asked God to remember him and to give him strength in order to revenge for his two eyes instead of desiring to glorify God or to deliver Israel. In spite of Samson’s self-absorbed prayer, God granted him the power to break apart two of the supporting pillars. The result was in his single act, he killed all the rulers and three thousand Philistines gathered to honor their pagan god Dagon.

With this single act granted to Samson by God, God asserted that there is no other God besides him.

2. Does the path you are on lead you to worship God or abandon God for substitutes?

Now, I will spend the rest of our time together to see how the story of Samson from chapter 16 applies to us.

Proverbs 5:21 says, “For a man’s ways are in full view of the LORD, and he examines all his paths.” It is critical to evaluate the paths we are on.

When God examines all your paths, where do your paths lead you to? There are paths that lead us to closer intimacy to God. Then, there are paths that lead us away from God. Are you on the path that leads to God or away from God?

Proverbs 5:8 says, “Keep to a path far from her, do not go near the door of her house, lest you give your strength to others and your years to one who is cruel.” This verse is talking about the need for a young man to keep his life pure from sexual immorality. How can he make sure his walk is pure? He does it by not directing his foot steps towards a path that would lead him to a house of adulteress.

For Samson, he lost the battle way before he got to Gaza where the prostitutes abound. He lost the spiritual battle when he left his home town of Zorah to take the path led to Gaza. He lost his battle when he left his home and took the path that led him to the Valley of Sorek where Delilah lived.

Proverbs 7 also captures this picture of young man going to the wrong direction. 7:6-9 says, “At the window of my house I looked out through the lattice. I saw among the simple, I noticed among the young men, a youth who lacked judgment. He was going down the street near her corner, walking along in the direction of her house at twilight, as the day was fading, as the dark of night set in. Then out came a woman to meet him, dressed like a prostitute and with crafty intent.” And, verse 22-23 comments about the fate of this young man who lacked judgment. “All at once he followed her like an ox going to the slaughter, like a deer stepping into a noose till an arrow pierces his liver, like a bird darting into a snare, little knowing it will cost him his life.”

And, verse 27 says, “Her house is a highway to the grave, leading down to the chambers of death.”

This Proverb 7 opens with an admonishment with a fatherly advice for his child. Proverbs 7:1-5 reads, “My son, keep my words and store up my commands within you. Keep my commands and you will live; guard my teachings as the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers; write them on the tablet of your heart. Say to wisdom, ‘You are my sister,’ and call understanding your kinsman; they will keep you from the adulteress, from the wayward wife with her seductive words.”

Here is another similar passage. Psalm 119:9 asks this question. “How can a young man keep his way pure? And, it answers, “By living according to your word.”

In our time, men or women, young or old, single or married, laypeople or ministers, we are all vulnerable to sexual temptations. 1 Peter 5:8 says, “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.” Samson took the wrong path and he paid with his eyes, with shackles on his ankles, and with meaningless labor.

3. Will this person help me to worship God or distract me from worshiping God?

Another thing we can learn from Samson’s life is this. How do you avoid getting married to a spouse who would betray you without thinking twice? Well, the key is you look for a person of noble character. Proverbs 12:4 says, “A wife of noble character is her husband’s crown, but a disgraceful wife is like decay in his bones.” Although this is about a wife of noble character, it applies to men as well.

Now, how do you know someone possesses noble character? You see someone’s character when you see how they conduct their relationship with others, foremost with God and with people.

You look at the paths they are on. Are they on the paths that lead them to worship God or fall away from God? If you see a person consistently taking the path to worship God, you know that person honors God and his Word. A person who takes the path to worship God opens self to character transformation. Another word, a person who walks closely with Jesus becomes like Jesus. There is no one of greater noble character than Jesus. You want someone who is becoming more like Jesus everyday in their character. People like this walk the paths that lead them to worship God.

Well, if finding a person of noble character is contingent upon someone taking the path that leads them to worship God, doesn’t it make sense for you to take the path to worship God as well?

When the Lord brings you into a season to look for a future mate, you ask two questions.

First, Am I becoming a man or a woman of noble character? Am I choosing the path that leads me to worship God?

Second, is this person a man or a woman of noble character? Does this person have the history of choosing the right path to walk?

May God help you become a man and a woman of noble character who consistently take the paths to worship God!

May God help you never marry someone who would betray you like Delilah, but leads you to a person of noble character!

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[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Kim

Sunday Sermon: Judges 2:6-3:6, A Living Encounnter with God

Today, we will hear from the book of Judges chapter 2:6 to 3:6.

This passage 2:6-3:6 expands the passage from the last week, specifically 2:1-5. Today’s passage is about God’s perspective on what really happened to the generation after Joshua’s death.

Open your Bible to Judges 2 and would you follow with me as I read the passage.

1. The generation under Joshua’s leadership

Judges 2:6-7 says, “After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take possession of the land, each to his own inheritance. The people served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had seen all the great things that Lord had done for Israel.”

These two verses refer back to Joshua 24:28 and 31. Joshua died at the age of a hundred and ten. And, when Joshua dismissed the people to take possession of the land, their own inheritances, he was close to the age of 110.

And, before Joshua dismissed the Israelites to go and to take the inheritances, he gave his farewell speech. We see this farewell speech in Joshua 23.

He gathered the leaders and spoke to them. He told them in 23:4-5, “Remember how I have allotted as an inheritance for your tribes all the land of the nations that remain-the nations I conquered-between the Jordan and the Great Sea in the west. Joshua allotted the still unoccupied land to the twelve tribes back in Joshua 13, some twenty five years before.

Now, close to his death, Joshua encouraged them in 23:5-8:

The Lord your God himself will drive them out of your way. He will push them out before you, and you will take possession of their land, as the Lord your God promised you. Be very strong; be careful to obey all that is written in the Book of the Law of Moses, without turning aside to the right or to the left. Do not associate with these nations that remain among you; do not invoke the names of their gods or swear by them. You must not serve them or bow down to them. But you are to hold fast to the Lord your God, as you have until now.

Before his death, Joshua wanted people to trust in God who had remained faithful to them. He wanted them to be strong and to remain faithful to God as he had done.

Joshua followed his exhortation and encouragement with the strong warning. He began his warning by saying in verse 12-13:

But if you turn away. and ally yourselves with the survivors of these nations that remain among you and if you intermarry with them and associate with them, then you may be sure that the Lord your God will no longer drive out these nations before you. Instead, they will become snares and traps for you, whips on your backs and thorns in your eyes, until you perish from this good land, which the Lord your God has given you.

And, he continued in verse 16,

If you violate the covenant of the Lord your God, which he commanded you, and go and serve other gods and bow down to them, the Lord’s anger will burn against you, and you will quickly perish from the good land he has given you.

Having given them the charge, the encouragement, and also the stern warning, Joshua in chapter 24 gathered the Israelites at Shechem. Long ago, Shechem was where the Lord first promised the land of Canaan to Abraham and his descendants in Gen 12:6-7. In this historical site, Joshua challenged the people to decide, to choose whom they would serve. He said in 24:14-15:

Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your forefathers worshiped beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your forefathers served beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.

To this, the Israelites committed to serve the Lord. 24:31 says, “Israel served the Lord throughout the lifetime of Joshua and of the elders who outlived him and who had experienced everything the Lord had done for Israel.”

This is the background of Judges 2:6-9.

The generation under Joshua’s leadership and the elders of his time experienced God firsthand. And, they responded to God faithfully.

2. The post-Joshua’s generation and their downfall.

From 2:10, you witness how the post-Joshua’s generation fell away from the Lord.

Verse 10-11 says, “After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the Lord nor what he had done for Israel. Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the Lord.”

Unlike their previous generation, this post-Joshua’s generation is said to have not known the Lord, neither what he had done.

Does this mean that this post-Joshua’s generation did not have the head knowledge about God and what he had done in the history? This is unlikely. They were cultured in the Hebrew tradition. They heard the story about God and what he had done. They were like churched people who grew up hearing the Bible stories. The problem was not that they didn’t know the stories about God and what he did, but they didn’t know God and what he did personally.

Let me illustrate this from Judges 3:2. It says that the descendants of the Israelites had not had previous battle experience.” The phrase had not had previous experience translates a Hebrew verb ud^y, which is the same Hebrew word used in 2:10.

The post-Joshua’s generation knew about the warfare. They heard about the battles. But, they didn’t have the personal encounter in fighting the enemies.

I personally grew up hearing a lot about what the Korean soldiers experienced, but those stories were just the stories to me. Those stories did not have any smell of mud or sweat, nor any sound of wind brushing the trees, nor the sight of the North Koreans, no weight of M-16 on my shoulder. I heard about them, but have never experienced them.

Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament defines knowing God, ud^y as “a personal relationship growing out of a living encounter with God.”

What was the consequence of not having the living encounter with God? They did evil in the eyes of the Lord. What did they do that was evil in the eyes of the Lord?

Instead of holding fast to the Lord, they forsook the Lord; instead of following and worshiping the Lord, they followed and served the various gods of Canaan. Instead of remaining distinctive people of God, they assimilated, they became like one of the Canaanites and others.

Verse 12-13 says this “provoked the LORD to anger.”

And, when the Lord was provoked to anger, he acted. Verse 14 says that God handed them over to the raiders, sold them to their enemies around them, and verse 15 says that whenever Israel went to fight, his hand was against them to defeat them. Verse 20 says that because the Israelites violated the covenant with him, he no longer drove out before them any of the nations Joshua left when he died. He left those nations as means of punishing the Israelites, for they became the thorns and the snares for the Israelites.

We need to be very clear about this. God doesn’t get angry because he is feeling moody or wants to get back at us for no reason. His anger is not unpredictable unlike how we get angry. I don’t know about you, but I am very unpredictable when it comes to what makes me angry, how I get angry. If I am feeling funk, it seems like anything can push me over the edge. But, God’s anger is nothing like that.

Our God laid it out plainly for everyone to know with certainty what would make him angry, when he would get angry, what he would do in his anger. He spelled it out throughout the Old Testament. Deut 4:25 says, “After you have had children and grandchildren and have lived in the land a long time--if you then become corrupt and make any kind of idol, doing evil in the eyes of the LORD your God and provoking him to anger.” When it comes to anger, God is very predictable.

Was this the end of the story? Does the story end with God punishing the Israelites for their unfaithfulness because he was provoked to anger?

No, the story doesn’t end with God’s anger and punishment. Yes, when he was provoked to anger, he handed them over to the raiders, he sold them to their enemies around, he was against them to defeat them… whenever Israel went out to fight. When God acted in anger, the people experienced the great distress for the nations remained became the thorns and the snares. They groaned in agony and can you guess who was there to hear their cries of distress? Verse 18b says, “for the Lord had compassion on them as they groaned under those who oppressed and afflicted them.” What was God’s compassionate act all about? God raised up a judged for them and he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as judge lived (Joshua 2:18a). He swung into the action to save them, to deliver them, to rescue them when they cried out for help.

3. Stand out in the crowd!

Judges took place during the Iron 1 period (1200-1000 B.C.). And, the archeological studies have revealed hardly any kind of distinctive mark of the Israelite’s existence.[1] Another word, Israel had assimilated to the surrounding and occupying culture so much that Israel during this period left no distinctive mark in the history. How did this happen? 3:5-6 says, “The Israelites lived among the Canaanites, Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites. They took their daughters in marriage and gave their own daughters to their sons, and served their gods.” Instead of standing out in the crowd, they became one of their enemies.

Apostle Peter wrote in 1 Peter 1:17:

live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.

Why has God redeemed us? 1 Peter 2:9 says:

You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belong to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.

The generation during the Judges period, the Iron age, and our generation face the same choice. Whether to respond to God who calls out, to be unique, distinctive, to stand out in what we value, live for, how we do our daily lives, how we speak, how we care for people, or to blend right in, assimilate with the rest of the world that refuses to acknowledge God.

Are there things about you that set you apart, to make you stand out, that make you unique, strange, and mysterious to people around you? Or, are you like the majority of the people who make confession with their mouth that they believe in God or even Jesus Christ, but show no evidence of their confession in their daily living? Beyond how you spend two hours on Sunday morning, are there things that mark you radically different?

Can things said about you by people around you that you are crazy about loving Jesus and loving people? The world is full of Christians who talk about their relationship with God and how they are glad for holding the ticket to go to heaven, yet they think, live, behave no differently from the rest of the world. Are you one of them?

How can you make sure that this doesn’t happen to you? You need to fight against it! You do this by fighting to know God. You fight for the daily living encounter with God. How can you have the daily living encounter with God? You do this by fighting for the time to read God’s word, to talk to him, to do his will, to be in brotherhood and sisterhood in Christ. When you fight for it, God becomes real! When God becomes real to you, then you change. When you change, the world notices it! You stand out in the crowd.

4. Worship God = enjoy God the most!

How do you know if you are provoking God to anger? You provoke him to anger if you don’t worship him. How do you know if you are worshiping God? Coming to church on Sunday and sing praise songs for 30 minutes does not define worship.

To our God, it is really important that he is in the position of giving himself to us as our God, as our King, as our Lord, as our Lover. And, that we live out his purpose, his will, his love. And, that we see living in the presence of God as the best thing we can ever experience. This is what worship is. We know we worship God if we are crazy about God and what is important to him.

We provoke God to anger when don’t worship him, when we don’t enjoy him.

Our God has the kingdom agenda. The kingdom agenda is for God to give himself to us through Jesus Christ as our joy, as our meaning, as our purpose, as our end, as our glory, as our everything. His agenda is for us to become consumed by his love, his greatness, his will. Deuteronomy 4:24 says, “For the LORD your God is a consuming fire, a jealous God.” If this is not growing reality for you, then you are likely provoking God to anger.

So, again fight to worship God, to enjoy God the most!

5. Seek God’s mercy in Jesus!

When the Israelites abandoned their God, God was provoked to anger. And, in anger, God no longer fought the battle for them. God would permit such miseries and defeats in their lives they would find themselves in great distress.

But, this is not the end of the story. Judges 2:18 says, “Whenever the LORD raised up a judge for them, he was with the judge and saved them out of the hands of their enemies as long as the judge lived; for the LORD had compassion on them as they groaned under those who oppressed and afflicted them.”

As God what he does to the unfaithful generation in his anger is right and just. In our rebellion against the God of the earth and the heavens, we all deserve to perish. But, when our God hears us groaning in agony, when he sees our distress, our God is God whose heart is moved with deep compassion. So, he has compassion on us when we groan. When God’s people experienced God’s merciful act, they are moved to serve God. The Judges were the tangible reality of God’s powerful mercy and compassion; and those who experienced God’s mercy served God.

Judges 2:19 says, “But when the judge died, the people returned to ways even more corrupt than those of their fathers, following other gods and serving and worshiping them. They refused to give up their evil practices and stubborn ways.” When the tangible reality of God’s mercy and protection was not so evident by the death of the judges, the Israelites returned to their old ways, even further away from the Lord. They didn’t cherish the memories of God’s loving kindness, his mercy upon them. They didn’t remember God.

For us, our judge is Jesus Christ. He is the tangible reality of God’s mercy for he died and was raised from the dead. And, the intangible reality of God’s mercy is the presence of the Holy Spirit in us who reminds us the reality of God’s love in Christ.

This is really another way of describing what it means to know God, to have a personal relationship growing out of living encounter with God. This is possible only in Jesus Christ.

Why doesn’t God make all sources of temptations and evil go away to make it easy for us to trust him, to follow him, to worship him? Why did God allow the existence of that one limitation in the Garden of Eden, the fruits from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?

God uses them to test us, to train us in warfare. The world is our testing ground. The word is our training ground. God doesn’t shield us from the evil. God doesn’t magically get rid of the sources of temptations. What God wants for us is to make the choice, the choice to serve God, not the devil who brings temptations.

And, you can make the choice for God only when you remain in his mercy, in Jesus Christ. To remain in God’s mercy, in Jesus Christ, you need to acknowledge that you are not up for the challenge to face the evil and the temptations in this world without the help from the Lord. This is the attitude of humility that sees Jesus as the only way to salvation, deliverance from the evil, from the sinful flesh.

Don’t give up! Because God doesn’t!

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[1] K. Lawson Younger, Judges, Ruth: The NIV Applicaiton Commentary. p. 87