Observe Samson. Learn from Christ.

Princess Diana and Mother Teresa died within days of each other. Mother Teresa is a hero we could learn from, but the outpouring of grief towards Diana far eclipsed that for Teresa. Some attributed this to people’s shallowness, but others found Diana to be more relatable and vulnerable. Some worship heroes and others distrust them. Let’s learn from Samson, a hero, in Judges 15:9-20.
 
Israel was at a dangerous time. Philistines were assimilating them (v11), and many Israelites liked to be ruled by them.
 
God used Samson to create a conflict with the Philistines.
 
Samson killed a number of Philistines, doing to them what they did to him. Three thousand Jews went to confront him because they didn’t want Samson to disrupt their peace. Samson made them agree not to kill him, but to hand him to the Philistines. Then, using the jawbone of an ass, he killed a thousand Philistines and made a joke out of it (v16).
 
Through one man, God saved Israel from losing their faith and culture. Samson led Israel for 20 years as a judge—not judicially, but as a hero-warrior.
 
As a Nazarene, Samson couldn’t cut his hair. When pressed by Delilah, he let her do it. Samson thought his strength guaranteed his success, but he didn’t know the Lord had left him (Judges 16:20). Then the Philistines seized Samson, gouged out his eyes, and humiliated him.
 
Later, Samson trusted in God’s sovereignty again. With his death, Samson killed more Philistines than in his lifetime because he wanted to “get revenge on the Philistines for [his] two eyes” (Judges 16:28). One main purpose of Samson’s life was to get even.
 
In a similar way, the Jews also rejected Christ and handed Him to the Romans. But unlike Samson, Christ follows God the Father. Christ didn’t leave heaps of dead bodies. Instead, Christ forgave them, and many later became His followers. Through His death, Christ destroyed the power of sin and brought salvation.
 
Learn from Christ. Don’t trust your abilities but depend on what Christ has done for us.
 
Summarized from a Tim Keller’s sermon:
https://gospelinlife.com/downloads/the-strength-of-samson-6516/

 
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观察参孙, 向基督学习。
 
戴安娜王妃和特蕾莎修女在几天内相继死亡。特蕾莎修女是人们学习的英雄，但哀悼戴安娜的人却远远超过哀悼特蕾莎的。有些人将此归于人性的浅薄，其他人则认为更容易与戴安娜认同，她的脆弱使人觉得更接近。 有些人崇拜英雄，而有些人则不信任他们。让我们一起来研读士师记 15：9-20中英雄参孙的故事。
 
当时以色列处于危险时刻。非利士人正在同化他们（士师记 15：11），许多以色列人也喜欢被非利士人统治。
 
上帝使用参孙使以色列人与非利士人发生冲突。
 
参孙以牙还牙，杀死了一些非利士人。三千名犹太人不想参孙破坏現有的平安，去以坦磐石的穴内找到他，参孙让这些人同意不杀死自己，而是将他交给非利士人。接着，参孙用驴腮骨杀死了一千多名非利士人，并作诗揶揄此事（士师记 15：16）。
 
上帝通过一个人，使以色列免于失去自己的信仰和文化。参孙作士师带领以色列二十年，不是作为一位司法者，而是一个英勇的战士。
 
参孙作为拿撒勒人是不能剪头发的。在大利拉多次施压后，参孙让她剪了自己的头发。参孙以为他总可以靠力大取胜，但不知道主已经离开他（士师记16：20）。非利士人抓住参孙，剜出他的眼睛，并羞辱他。
 
参孙再次信靠上帝的主权。他去世时杀死的非利士人比一生杀死的更多，因为他要报那剜他双眼的仇（士师记16：28）。参孙一生以复仇扯平为主要目标。
 
基督的故事一部分与此类似，犹太人也拒绝基督并将祂交给罗马人。基督与参孙其中之一的不同是祂一生跟随父神。基督没有留下敌人的尸体遍野。相反地，基督原谅了他们，当中很多人后来成为祂的追随者。通过祂的死，基督摧毁了罪的权势，为人类带来救恩。
 
总而言之，当向基督学习不要相信自己的能力，而要倚靠基督为我们所做的一切事。