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Samson and Delilah | I can choose to make the right choice
“Finally, Samson shared his secret with her. ‘My hair has never been cut,’ he confessed, ‘for I was dedicated to God as a Nazirite from birth. If my head were shaved, my strength would leave me, and I would become as weak as anyone else.’” – Judges 16:17
Judges 16:4-22
You make hundreds of choices every day: What to eat for breakfast, what route to take to work, which check-out line to get in at the grocery store. The list goes on. Some choices, like the small day-to-day decisions we make, have little effect on the trajectory of our lives. But other choices – where we go to college, who we marry, what job we apply to – can be life altering. With every choice we make, whether big or small, there is a benefit or a consequence.
Samson was a man of incredible physical strength. He could not be overpowered or contained and many Philistine rulers were frustrated by this. They wanted to know the secret to his strength. The leaders told Delilah, the woman Samson loved, to figure out what makes Samson so strong and how they could defeat him, and in return, they would pay her with 1,100 pieces of silver.
Three times, Delilah tried to lure Samson into a trap by asking him how he could be tied up securely. Samson knew he was being tempted so each time he gave her the wrong instructions and broke free from his trap – for he knew his strength came from the Lord. But eventually, Samson gave in to Delilah’s request and shared the secret of his strength that his hair had never been cut as part of his dedication to God. If he cut his hair, his strength would leave him. As he slept that night, Delilah brought in a man to cut Samson’s hair. Immediately, his strength disappeared and the Philistine men captured Samson.
When Samson chose to give in to temptation, he chose to abandon God. Delilah wore him down, and out of weakness and his love for her, he told her the secret that would lead to his downfall. In that moment, Samson could have called out to God for help to overcome temptation. He loved God, but Samson’s true weakness was women. When given the choice to stay strong and not give in to temptation or fall prey to his weakness and tell his secret to Delilah, he made the wrong choice.
Samson’s choice had a consequence and one that changed the course of his life forever. He was captured by the Philistines and forced to work hard labor as their prisoner. Our choices have consequences too. Will you choose to follow God and make the right choice or ignore what He says and make the wrong one?
QUESTIONS TO THINK ABOUT:
- Describe a time when you have made a choice that had negative consequences.
- What is one choice or decision you are facing right now?
- Is there something distracting you from following God and making the right choice?
- What are some ways you can discern which is the right choice?
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