Samson: Portrait of a Derailed Life - Part 2 (Judges 13-16)

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INTERACTING WITH THE SERMON
SYNOPSIS OF THE SERMON
Pastor Stephen Van Dop asks “Where was God in our mess”? From the narrative of Samson, the same question could be asked – “where was God in the mess of Samson’s life”? Time and again in Judges, God reveals himself to the insignificant. Samson’s parents were nobodies with no significant standing and God met them in their need. No-problem is too small, and no-body is beyond the sovereign work of God. God is also beyond understanding. We cannot plummet His ways or understand his work completely, rather what He asks of us is to trust Him - have faith in his promises and obey what He asks of us today. We see this demonstrated in the Angel’s words to Samson’s parents. Additionally, we see a God who empowers his people. He sends his Spirit over and over again. Stephen invited us not to be damp, but wet in the Spirit. Let’s not be satisfied with a little of the Lord, but yearn for all God wants to give. Finally, God shows His grace to Samson. Like Samson, we do nothing to earn God’s favor – He gives it freely (Col 2:13-15). God was present and sovereign in Samson’s life, and He is in our lives as well.

In 5 minutes or less, briefly give a synopsis of this week’s sermon. What insight, principle, or observation from this weekend’s message did you find to be most helpful, eye-opening, or troubling? Explain.

GETTING THE CONVERSATION STARTED
These questions can be used as ice-breakers in the beginning OR interwoven between the questions below to draw the group into the discussion.
•Have you ever told a lie in order to save face?
•Have you been faced with a situation in which you had to confront or expose someone about his or her wrongdoings? What led you to act in that way?
•Share a quick story of how you’ve seen God intervene in your life even after you’d given up hope.

SCRIPTURE STUDY
Study Summary:

In the book of Esther, we read a story about God’s providence and faithfulness even in the midst of impossible situations. We also learn from Mordecai and Esther what faith in action looks like, as they refuse to simply sit back and accept what was being planned against them. God’s providence is in play even before they are aware of it, and we as Christians need to live our lives knowing that God’s providence is already available, and depend on His grace for everything we do, no matter how difficult the situation in front of us may seem.

Read Esther 4:1-17 (***consider deleting the scripture text to reduce printing pages)

1 When Mordecai learned of all that had been done, he tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and ashes, and went out into the city, wailing loudly and bitterly. 2 But he went only as far as the king’s gate, because no one clothed in sackcloth was allowed to enter it. 3 In every province to which the edict and order of the king came, there was great mourning among the Jews, with fasting, weeping and wailing. Many lay in sackcloth and ashes.
4 When Esther’s eunuchs and female attendants came and told her about Mordecai, she was in great distress. She sent clothes for him to put on instead of his sackcloth, but he would not accept them. 5 Then Esther summoned Hathak, one of the king’s eunuchs assigned to attend her, and ordered him to find out what was troubling Mordecai and why.
6 So Hathak went out to Mordecai in the open square of the city in front of the king’s gate. 7 Mordecai told him everything that had happened to him, including the exact amount of money Haman had promised to pay into the royal treasury for the destruction of the Jews. 8 He also gave him a copy of the text of the edict for their annihilation, which had been published in Susa, to show to Esther and explain it to her, and he told him to instruct her to go into the king’s presence to beg for mercy and plead with him for her people.
9 Hathak went back and reported to Esther what Mordecai had said. 10 Then she instructed him to say to Mordecai, 11 “All the king’s officials and the people of the royal provinces know that for any man or woman who approaches the king in the inner court without being summoned the king has but one law: that they be put to death unless the king extends the gold scepter to them and spares their lives. But thirty days have passed since I was called to go to the king.”
12 When Esther’s words were reported to Mordecai, 13 he sent back this answer: “Do not think that because you are in the king’s house you alone of all the Jews will escape. 14 For if you remain silent at this time, relief and deliverance for the Jews will arise from another place, but you and your father’s family will perish. And who knows but that you have come to royal position for such a time as this?”
15 Then Esther sent this reply to Mordecai: 16 “Go, gather together all the Jews who are in Susa, and fast for me. Do not eat or drink for three days, night or day. I and my attendants will fast as you do. When this is done, I will go to the king, even though it is against the law. And if I perish, I perish.”
17 So Mordecai went away and carried out all of Esther’s instructions.

Context – The story of Esther takes place in the reign of the Persian king Xerxes, who had chosen Esther as queen, without knowing she was a Jew. Mordecai, Esther’s uncle, discovers a plot by a royal official named Haman, to annihilate all Jews, and therefore comes to Esther for help. The book of Esther was written to demonstrate God’s love and sovereignty in all circumstances.

•Read Esther 3-7 and help set the context for your group.
•V. 1-3 What was Mordecai so upset about? Did he have a good reason to be distressed? Have you ever found yourself in a situation where it all feels lost, where there’s no hope for a positive outcome? What was your response to that situation? Briefly share.
•V. 7-8 Even though Mordecai was distressed and was facing annihilation, he still had a plan. Not only did he hope God would intervene, but he knew that God’s will would prevail no matter what happened. In light of this, what should our response be to trying situations? Is moving forward even when there appears nothing to move forward to something you’ve had to do before? Were you able to see God’s hand in that situation? Briefly share.
•V. 10-11 What was Esther’s initial response to Mordecai’s request? How do you deal with risk? Have you ever had to put yourself in a dangerous position to do what you knew was right? What led you to do what you did? Explain.
•V. 12-14 Why do you believe Mordecai answered how he did? Do you believe Mordecai knew God was bigger than King Xerxes and Haman and whatever plan they had against the Jews? If so, why does he plead Esther to rise to the task? How does the fact that God doesn’t “need” you and yet He chooses to partner with you make you feel? Have you ever experienced partnering with God for His purposes? Briefly share.
•Is it possible that God had placed Esther in a privileged position in the king’s court for such a day as this? What does this tell you of God’s provision? Just as Mordecai knew that relief and deliverance for the Jews would arise from one place or another, do you believe God will always provide for you? Have you ever experienced God’s provision in the midst of an impossible situation? Briefly share.
•V. 15-16 Esther turns to God in fasting and prayer before she takes action, and after she does, she is ready to face death itself. What does this teach you of how we should prepare ourselves before trying situations? Have you ever found yourself in a place where you had to trust God with your life? How about trusting Him with your reputation, or your job? What was the outcome? Briefly share.

MINISTRY APPLICATION

Below you’ll see some options for ministry time with your group. We always encourage you to reserve time in your group to pray for one another and wait on the Holy Spirit.

Break the habit of lying
•As a group, take some time to meditate in silence about God and His provision in each of your lives.
•Spend time praying with those in your group that are facing a trying situation in their lives and are praying for God to intervene.
•Pray for and encourage each other in the assurance we find in God as our provider, protector, father, etc.

Samson - Protrait of a life Derailed (Judges 13-16)

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INTERACTING WITH THE SERMON
SYNOPSIS OF THE SERMON
The opening questions in the sermon concern character. Successful leadership long-term requires character. In “Derailed”, the author, Tim Irwin cites leader’s “dark sides” as the cause for failure long-term, not a lack of intelligence or charisma. The text of Judges 13-16 reveal a leader (Samson) whose life illustrated the sad side of the character-in-leadership principle. Samson ultimately reflected the moral and spiritual life of Israel at the time – Pastor Rich said of Judges 13 that it’s a “story of decline and derailment”. Samson’s parents had committed him as a Nazarite, but he did not live life one “set apart”. Pastor Rich says there were 6 warning signs along the way of decline and potential derailment. First was the sign of “deafness” 14:1-3; next was the sign of “disobedience” 14:5-10; next is ignoring the warning sign of “a loss of self-control” 15-1-8; there is escalating “lust” 14:7, 16:1; there is the pattern of “renaming sin” 15:9-12; finally there is the warning sign of “hubris” 16:4-7,11,13, 17. One shield we can use to fight against derailment is to pray for a healthy fear of the Lord. When we are at bottom and we look up and turn to him, he comes to us in grace and in forgiveness, allowing us to renew our relationship with him and to recover a sense of purpose for the rest of our lives.

In 5 minutes or less, briefly give a synopsis of this week’s sermon. What insight, principle, or observation from this weekend’s message did you find to be most helpful, eye-opening, or troubling? Explain.

GETTING THE CONVERSATION STARTED
These questions can be used as ice-breakers in the beginning OR interwoven between the questions below to draw the group into the discussion.
•Can you share something from the message that stood out to you? Can you identify with Samson, or not? Please share briefly.
•If you feel comfortable to share, have you ever had something hidden come into the light? Was it discovered of did you reveal it yourself? What was life like afterward? Please share briefly.
•Can you share an experience where you were tempted to compromise your integrity on something really “big”? What did you do and what happened afterward? Please share briefly.



SCRIPTURE STUDY
Study Summary:

James’ epistle might have been an anecdote for Samson. We, at least, can take heed of James’ exhortations with an aim to grow in Christ and “not lack anything”. Part of the anecdote is the regular application of the power of the Gospel to sanctify us. Additionally, when the gospel is coupled with our own humility, the effects can take root and bear much fruit in our lives. We need develop patterns of behavior that allow us to hear God (and others) speak – silence, methods to handle and release our anger, follow-through, and perseverance. All these safe guard our lives and keep us from being deceived.

Read James 1:19:25 (***consider deleting the scripture text to reduce printing pages)

19 My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, 20 because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. 21 Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.
22 Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. 23 Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror 24 and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. 25 But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.

Context – James, the brother of Jesus, wrote this letter to a diverse church (the 12 tribes), rich and poor in fellowship together experiencing various trials throughout the Roman World. Additionally, he was addressing significant problems he believed stemmed from issues of anger, lack of control over tongue and speech, and the charge to live out our faith not just in words but in actions. Sprinkled throughout the letter is much wisdom in Christian living from a seasoned believer who walked with Jesus. James opens by contrasting two types of church people – the double-minded person (v. 8) who follows after their evil desires leading to death (vv. 14-15), and the one who perseveres (vv.3-4) and becomes a “kind of first fruit” (v.18), “complete” not lacking anything in wisdom and maturity (v.5). The rest of the letter continues these contrasts.

•V. 19-20 What 3 things does James exhort us to do? For what reason? Break apart the three: “quick to listen and slow to speak and slow to anger” – comment on each of the 3 exhortations individually. What does it mean to control our reactions to others and why is it so hard? Why does James address our speech over other actions? What other verses apply to our speech (Jam 3:8-9, Col 4:6, Prov 13:3, 15:1, Matt 12:36)? Can you share a situation where you were not slow to listen and spoke “too quickly” – what happened?
•V. 21 What is “the Word”? How does it need to be received? On a scale from 1 to 10, how stubborn would you rate Americans? How prideful? What about meek? Or submissive? The soft soil in which the gospel of grace needs to take root is fertilized with our humility. Describe a spiritually humble person – Is humility something you’re born with, or something acted upon? What are you like when you’re not humble, or submissive? Do you feel near to God during those times?
•V. 21 What is the fruit of the work of the Gospel? This is the context for James exhortations. Additionally, it’s clear that the work of the gospel is not a one-time event – spiritual regeneration is an on-going challenge. We need to “persevere” to clean out the filth in our hearts. So experiences of trials in life and in relationships can stir up, and reveal, evil within us – Have you seen this reality play itself out in your life? Please share briefly.
•Back to vv. 19-20 – consider your walk with God. How can you practice the first principle with the Holy Spirit “quick to listen and slow to speak”? How have you found success in listening to God’s voice? In what ways do you shut our God’s voice, or prevent Him from speaking?
•Do you practice solitude? What works and doesn’t work for you. Please share.
•“Slow to anger” – how does anger affect he work of the gospel within us? Have you ever been under the weight of anger – experience a “long-term” season of anger and frustration? What was it like? How did it affect your relationships? How did it affect your relationship with God?
•What does it mean to give our anger to God? What needs to be exchanged in us? Has there been a time a where you did not receive “justice”, but through surrendering to God you became free from anger? Please explain
•V. 22. Read Luke 11:28. How can there be deception in us, even though we encounter truth? How did Samson display this quality (or lack thereof)? What happens when we continually ignore the piercing call of obedience to God?
•V. 23,24 Part of becoming mature, and not lack any wisdom, it involves a severe honesty by which we perceive ourselves. How can we gain perspective and deeper self-awareness? Would you say your relationships with other believers are honest and transparent? Contrast two categories of relationship – one that is honest and transparent and another that is superficial? Read Prov 13:20. What can we learn from this proverb?
•V. 25 What is the perfect law that gives freedom? How long or how many times should we observe it? Describe what in means for you to ”look intently”?


MINISTRY APPLICATION

Below you’ll see some options for ministry time with your group. We always encourage you to reserve time in your group to pray for one another and wait on the Holy Spirit.

Break the habit of lying
•There were 6 fantastic applications from the message on Samson, and one or more of them may have struck a cord with you. Consider how God might want you to address what’s lacking and tackle areas of blindness within.
•We can foster and impact the process of spiritual regeneration – we can do so through humility and a healthy and honest perspective of ourselves. Unlock whatever is holding you back, and pray with another about being free.
•God may be speaking to you about your entire orientation – defensive rather than humble, angry rather than forgiving, “quick to speak rather than quick to listen”…if you feel challenged by the passage, pray that the power of the gospel take deep root in you. Also consider deliberate steps to change your attitudes.

Jephthah – A Man of His Word (Judges 11)

Click here to download the Study Guide in PDF
Click here to download the Study Guide in WORD

INTERACTING WITH THE SERMON
SYNOPSIS OF THE SERMON
This week’s sermon is from the story of Jephthah, found in Judges 11. The main point drawn out of this story is the importance of keeping our word. In today’s world, truth-telling and commitment keeping is extremely rare and people are surprised when you do actually tell the truth or keep a promise. The context for the story of Jephthah is Israel’s ongoing sin and unfaithfulness to the Lord, which brings hardship upon them. In their distress, they turn to Jephthah for help. This illustrates for us that God often chooses unlikely, unexpected people to do His work (like a Jephthah). Consider the disciples or even Jesus Himself, a man despised and rejected. Also, we should never conclude that our past disqualifies us from service to the Lord. Like the Israelites, who cried out for help, everyone cries out to God when the suffering gets too great—even the most hardened skeptic. Jephthah agreed to help on the condition that he be made the ruler and head over the people. We need to realize that underneath all of our “pressing” needs is our ultimate need for Jesus to be Lord of our lives! The main focus of this story is Jephthah’s vow (vv.30-31). Why did he do it? Because, like us, he was bargaining with God. He didn’t understand unconditional grace in the same way we don’t often understand the difference between the gospel and religion. We believe we must strike a bargain with God in order to get Him to help us. In the end, Jephthah is caught between his integrity through keeping his vow and his love for his only daughter. Jephthah keeps his vow and sacrifices his daughter. What is the good that we can learn from this? Why keep our word? 1) It shows value to the person we have made a promise to. 2) It shows value for our own words. 3) It shows that we understand what it means to worship God. Worship is more than just singing praises—it is keeping our word, even to our own hurt! 4) Telling the truth is THE mark of the Christian. 5) It bears witness to God, who is truth and who always tells the truth. But the bad thing about Jephthah keeping his vow is that in doing so, he violated God’s law to not kill and to never offer children as sacrifices! There are some vows we should NOT keep, such as vows that do violate God’s laws. We should also not keep inner vows (e.g. “I will never be like my mother/my father.). These are vows we make to ourselves that hold us in bondage. Jesus is like Jephthah in that He always keeps His promises. Jesus is unlike Jephthah in that in order to keep His promise, He sacrificed Himself (not someone else) for us!

In 5 minutes or less, briefly give a synopsis of this week’s sermon. What insight, principle, or observation from this weekend’s message did you find to be most helpful, eye-opening, or troubling? Explain.

GETTING THE CONVERSATION STARTED
These questions can be used as ice-breakers in the beginning OR interwoven between the questions below to draw the group into the discussion.
•Share something from this week’s sermon that particularly stood out to you.
•What is your experience of the loss of truth telling and commitment keeping in our culture today (e.g. at your job, in your family, with friends)?
•Have you ever been surprised by someone actually keeping a promise? Have you ever surprised someone by doing that? Describe the situation and what happened.

SCRIPTURE STUDY
Background:

Ephesus was a large, metropolitan city in what is now Turkey. It was an important commercial center and the location for the temple to the Greek goddess Artemis, which was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. There was in that city a strong cult following. Paul spent 2-3 years in Ephesus, evangelizing with powerful signs and wonders (see Acts 18-19) and a major church was established there. He later sent his young associate, Timothy, to Ephesus to help care for this church. 1 and 2 Timothy was written to help Timothy pastor the Ephesian church. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians was probably intended to be circulated and read in multiple churches, not just the one in Ephesus. In it, Paul lays out God’s grand purposes in this world: to unite all things under one head, Jesus Christ. He accomplished this first through the cross and then continues through the church. The two major themes in this letter are unity and maturity. In chapter 4, Paul begins to describe how we to live, in light of God’s grand purposes.

Read Ephesians 4:17-32 (***consider deleting the scripture text to reduce printing pages)

17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, and they are full of greed.
20 That, however, is not the way of life you learned 21 when you heard about Christ and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus. 22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; 23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds; 24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. 26 “In your anger do not sin”: Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry, 27 and do not give the devil a foothold. 28 Anyone who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with their own hands, that they may have something to share with those in need.
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice. 32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

Discussion: Paul begins this section by describing how we ought to relate to our pasts. The point was made in the sermon that the Lord chooses unlikely people and that our past never disqualifies us from service to God. Yet we do need to make some breaks with our past.
•Vv. 17-24 describe the Ephesian Christians’ past—where they were coming from. How would you describe their past, in your own words? How would you describe your past—where you were coming from when you encountered Christ?
•Describe the difference between the “old self” and “new self.”
•What do you think it means to “put off the old self?” (e.g. Try to forget about it or pretend it never happened?) What have you done this since coming to Christ to put off your “old self?”
•How do you think we “put on the new self?” (e.g. Does this happen automatically or are there things we must do to allow this to happen?) What are some of the ways you “put on the new self” in your own life?

Telling the truth is very important to the apostle Paul (see 4:15; 4:21,25; 6:14). As we heard in the sermon, it is the mark of the Christian.
•What are some reasons why truth is so central to the Christian life. (e.g. see John 1:14; 8:42-47; 1 John 1:5-10)
•According to v.25, why is truth telling so important? What does it mean that we are “members of one body?”
•How do you think telling the truth is related to anger (v.26)? How do you think it is related to stealing (v. 28)?
•Paul warns us about letting the devil get a “foothold” in our lives (v.27). How do you think this happens?
•In Eph.4:15, Paul tells us to “speak the truth in love.” How are truth and love related? What do you think he means (and what doesn’t he mean)?
•What are some situations in your life in which you really struggle to be honest—where you are still tempted to not tell the truth? Where have you seen real growth and change in your life in the area of truth-telling and promise keeping?

MINISTRY APPLICATION

Below you’ll see some options for ministry time with your group. We always encourage you to reserve time in your group to pray for one another and wait on the Holy Spirit.

Break the habit of lying
We live in a culture of lying and deception. We are surrounded by liars at work, at school, in our neighborhoods and even in our church. We ourselves lie and deceive for a multitude of reasons (to cover-up who we are, hide what we’ve done and to gain approval and acceptance). Lying can become a habit in our lives that is hard to break—what is often referred to as a “besetting sin”—a sin we are in bondage to. Freedom from any sin begins with confession. Confession is agreeing with God that something we do is wrong. It involves coming out from darkness and hiding and into the light.

Read 1 John 1:5-10 out loud.

5 This is the message we have heard from him and declare to you: God is light; in him there is no darkness at all. 6 If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin.
8 If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness. 10 If we claim we have not sinned, we make him out to be a liar and his word is not in us.
Divide into small groupings and take time to confess to one another, particularly this habit of lying.

Break the bondage of inner vows
While we are as Christians are to tell the truth and keep our promises (vows), there are some vows we are called to break. These are often referred to as “inner vows.” They are promises we make to ourselves, usually in a reaction to some painful experience. They are a way for us to protect ourselves from further pain.

For example, a woman who was raped as a teenager may have made an inner vow to never let that happen again. Now she may find herself in bondage to anger against all men, or she may have an inappropriate aversion to sex. A boy who experienced abuse from his father’s angry outbursts may have vowed never to get angry. Now he cannot form healthy relationships because he can’t deal with conflict.

Inner vows create bondage in our lives because they are a substitute for God, who is our true protector and the determiner of our future.

To break the bondage of an inner vow we must first become aware that an inner vow was made. It may require a time of self-examination and prayer to make the connection between an inner vow and an area of bondage in our lives.

The second step is to renounce the vow—verbally reject it in the name of the Lord, by saying it is a false substitute for God and we want nothing more to do with it.

The third step is to bring truth into that area of our life. We must accept and believe for ourselves the truth that God alone is our protector, that He alone determines our future and that because He loves us, we can trust in Him.