“Blessed be the Lord, who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised. There has not failed one word of all His good promise, which He promised through His servant Moses” (1 Kings 8:56).
Our Father in heaven, holy, holy, holy, You who were, and is, and is to come. We enter Your Throne Room because You invited us to come boldly and receive grace and mercy in our time of need. We need You Lord like never before! Please take our pain, take our anxieties, take our fear, and make us more than conquerors in Your love. We ask this in the name of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
As we continue our journey through God’s promises, we will take a look at Samson. If you know Samson’s story, your first reaction might be, “a promise for someone like Samson?” A few days ago we looked at David’s story, and discovered that God’s mercy and forgiveness defies our limited imagination! So let us not jump to conclusions until we hear what God has to say. Always remember, that Jesus is the friend of sinners, which, good for us, includes you and me!
Samson was an only child, the son of Manoah, of the tribe of Dan. This is how his story begins: One day the Angel of the LORD (Jesus), appeared to his wife, who was “barren” and promised her a son. She received special instructions on how to care for this child, from the womb:
” ‘Now therefore, please be careful not to drink wine or similar drink, and not to eat anything unclean. For behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. And no razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb; and he shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines’ “(Judges 13:4, 5).
God had a special mission for Samson to fulfill, and revealed it to his parents that they would be aware that this was not a regular child, but a child that had been called and prepared by God, from the womb!
Manoah’s wife told her husband about this visit from a Man of God. So when the Stranger appeared a second time, the woman ran and called her husband. After inquiring, if, indeed, He was the Man who had spoken to his wife and given her instructions concerning this special child that was to be born to them. He then requested that the instructions be given once again, which the Man did. Then he inquired of the Stranger’s name, but was told it was too “wonderful” (Isaiah 9:6)!
in typical Mid Eastern style, Manoah invited the Stranger to be their dinner guest. The Stranger’s response was not the normal expected answer. He said He would not eat the food, but that Manoah could offer a sacrifice to the LORD instead (John 1:29). Which Manoah did; but did not expect what happened next.
The Stranger ascended in the smoke of the offering! It was then that they realized they had been speaking to God the Son! God had instructed them regarding the birth and care of this special child, from the womb!
We will continue this conversation!