Finding God's Strength in our Weakness
Notes
Transcript
Intro:
Intro:
Weak versus strong. Samson is weak but God is strong. Samson is not strong on his own, it is the Sprit of God that Gives Samson strength. Just as Samson on his own is limited in what he is able to accomplish, so are we the same.. God created us for his glory and he has created purpose for all of us according to his will. We each can meet our potential when we are are submitting to the will of the Lord. Even in our faithlessness it does not stop the faithfulness of God.
God is forever faithful and we are inevitable sinful, and God is still able to use us because of his wonderful grace for us. Therefore, it is by God’s power we are able to over come whatever may come our way.
31 What shall we say about such wonderful things as these? If God is for us, who can ever be against us?
DT: God’s Power is out source and our power and may we trust in God more than we trust in ourselves.
Know your Weakness
Know your Weakness
Be aware you can fool yourself. We are not as wise as we think we are about ourselves. You think you know yourself but who truly knows oneself? Aristotle is quoted saying, “Knowing yourself is the beginning f all wisdom.”
God knows us best
9 “The human heart is the most deceitful of all things, and desperately wicked. Who really knows how bad it is? 10 But I, the Lord, search all hearts and examine secret motives. I give all people their due rewards, according to what their actions deserve.”
Therefore, it is good for us to trust and follow the Lord’s instructions in our life. We make ourselves available to be used for great things for his glory.
Samson’s weakness
Samson’s weakness
1 One day when Samson was in Timnah, one of the Philistine women caught his eye. 2 When he returned home, he told his father and mother, “A young Philistine woman in Timnah caught my eye. I want to marry her. Get her for me.”
Samson’s desire leads him more than God’s word.
His parents understood not to marry with the enemy
16 Then you will accept their daughters, who sacrifice to other gods, as wives for your sons. And they will seduce your sons to commit adultery against me by worshiping other gods.
3 You must not intermarry with them. Do not let your daughters and sons marry their sons and daughters,
God was working in the background of Samson’s weakness.
3 His father and mother objected. “Isn’t there even one woman in our tribe or among all the Israelites you could marry?” they asked. “Why must you go to the pagan Philistines to find a wife?” But Samson told his father, “Get her for me! She looks good to me.” 4 His father and mother didn’t realize the Lord was at work in this, creating an opportunity to work against the Philistines, who ruled over Israel at that time.
Samson in his weakness is the opportunity of God to use Samson to strike agains the Philistines.
God can use our weakness to be used for his glory.
God can use us with our character flaws and issues for his purpose and will.
Thank God that he can take us as we are.
We do not need to go anywhere else but simply come just as you are and allow the Lord to use you for his glory.
Become a mighty weapon of God in his hand.
However be aware of the enemy
However be aware of the enemy
5 As Samson and his parents were going down to Timnah, a young lion suddenly attacked Samson near the vineyards of Timnah. 6 At that moment the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him, and he ripped the lion’s jaws apart with his bare hands. He did it as easily as if it were a young goat. But he didn’t tell his father or mother about it.
The text says the Spirit of Lord came upon Samson to empower him to withstand the attack of the lion.
There are some detailed mentions in this account.
One, Samson is in a vineyard.
Second, Samson has a vow to not eat or drink of the fruit of the vine, and yet he has this all around him.
Know it is God’s Power, And not our own power!
Know it is God’s Power, And not our own power!
We are weak vessels like jars of clay for the glory of the Lord.
7 We now have this light shining in our hearts, but we ourselves are like fragile clay jars containing this great treasure. This makes it clear that our great power is from God, not from ourselves.
Samson’s power comes from God, and we too have access to this great power!
Power from God to do great things and to stand against the enemy.
Does the Lion serve as a warning to Samson to be aware of what is ahead of him?
God give power to overcome evil!
God give power to overcome evil!
8 Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour.
Know your weakness, you are weak with out God.
God calls us to depend on him and his word.
We need to stay sensitive to the Spirit of God to see his great work in our life.
Notice the devil is being compared to a lion and Samson is attacked by a lion and God’s Spirit gives him supernatural strength.
We need to be aware of our weakness and the need of resurrection power of Jesus in our life.
See with God’s eyes
See with God’s eyes
7 Then he went down and talked with the woman, and she was right in Samson’s eyes.
Samson’s eyes were blinded by lust and move. Samson finding what was pleasing to him is a theme in Judges.
1 Again the Israelites did evil in the Lord’s sight, so the Lord handed them over to the Philistines, who oppressed them for forty years.
The Israelites did evil in the sight.
The Israelites did what was right in their sight and what pleased them.
Be careful that what is pleasing to us is not always pleasing to God.
Know that God calls us to do his will over our will.
Let us pray and put ourself in the poster to surrender for the will of God. May we be open to see what brings him glory in our life.
See that our power comes from God!
See that our power comes from God!
We can do all things through Christ who strengthens us.