Redemption Ministries Weekly Bible Study 1st June 2021

BIBLE TEXTS: Proverbs 2:6; 2 Corinthians 6:14

MEMORY VERSE: “And the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt give me half thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place: For so was it charged me by the word of the Lord, saying, Eat no bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the same way that thou camest. So he went another way, and returned not by the way that he came to Bethel.” 1 Kings 13:8-9.

THE AWFUL DEATH OF ONE OF GOD’S FINEST SERVANTS. 1 Kings 13:1-26
On daily basis, we determine what the future holds by our actions, utterances and choices. None of us can be exempted from this pool of delicate options that can at the very instant determine whether or not there is any future to start with. 1Kings 13 chronicles the blazing emergence of God’s firebrand and a trailblazer who appeared on the scene with a raging prophetic word to sanitize and return the sanctity of the altar and cause God’s glory to radiate again in Bethel. The choice to live was at his disposal.

Beyond his rare prophetic manifestation, we see a man who seemed to have no control over his tongue and possessed a strange inability to fit in theologically as a custodian of divine secrets. He was snared and smeared by his unprincipled and frivolous discharge of confidential information and inability to stand firm on the leadership and guidance of the LORD ( 1 Kings 13:7-9, 16-19).

His future was truncated by an old prophet who suddenly resurrected his prophetic ministry with lies, took advantage of the Man of God’s flippant release of divine secrets worked on it and prophesied that an angel has spoken to him whereas the Man of God had his instructions from the LORD. We have a more sure word of prophecy than what the devil is suggesting. Gal. 1:8-10.

HOW ARE THE MIGHTY FALLEN AND DESTROYED? Judges 14:1-3; 16:1-21
Samson had an unusual and indeed relatively strange flair and affection for uncircumcised women. As it is always with major decision-makers, God positioned Samson’s way of decline various obstacles to check, stop and bring him back to his primary place of calling. But he never gave heed. See the various checkpoints mounted to prevent Samson from crashing.

(a) SELF WILL OVER EXISTING LAWS. JUDGES 13:24-25. Momentarily, he abandoned the state of Israel where he was presiding as the Judge and went down to the enemy’s camp. This unholy alliance begins seamlessly but ends up in disaster. He needed no army to go with him. But Samson! Samson!! How did you abandon the issue of governance to the point of now going down? A judge at his level must have had some laws put in place to guide him from some of these excesses but Samson was too powerful to be checked or controlled by any national or even international laws. After all he has the sole authority of power both within and outside the nation.

(b) THE HUMAN VOICE: When he began to go down, his parents openly expressed concern and worry over his romance with none Israeli women. Hear the cry of his parents ” Then his father and his mother said unto him, Is there never a woman among the daughters of thy brethren, or among all my people, that thou goest to take a wife of the uncircumcised Philistines? And Samson said unto his father, Get her for me; for she pleaseth me well”. Judges 14:3. Samson’s response is not only annoying but also shows that even his parents couldn’t advise him. Beware of the delicate pool of options. Not all that glitter is gold!

Redemption Ministries Weekly Bible Study 1st June 2021

(c) THE ANIMAL VOICE. Judges 14:5-6. Shortly after the failure of his Parent’s checkpoint to get Samson. As he went down, a lion ROARED AT HIM. As usual, he felt it was another power contest. No Samson! It wasn’t. It was a checkpoint intended by God to correct you. Again, Samson plucked life out of that innocent lion and went on! There is an extent to which the authority you convey becomes forbidden and even God fears you despite His anointing on your life. When you are no longer subject to authority. You may be pulling down strongholds and destroying lions but closest to you is your day of destruction.

(d) THE VOICES OF THE PEOPLE. Judges 14:11, 19-20. These were uncircumcised companions and yet Samson never discerned their voices. He was still waxing in strength while toiling with his life. His first wife was handed over to his companion. Yet Samson never returned home. He further went down to Gaza where he met ( D. D) Dangerous Delilah, a shameless renowned harlot equipped with every trick and tactic to trap down a man no matter how anointed he might be.

Only with her open laps, she was able to drain Samson of any spiritual essence and at last the ragging battle between PASSION and REASON finally ended up with Samson bowing down to passion as he opened up his secret to D. D. It was indeed a tragic end of an anointed man.