Super-Samson or Super-Ego: Confusing Anointing with Approval

Samson was something else, y’all.  His story is so much deeper than the surface-level, almost mythological romanticism applied to his strength.  I’m kind of surprised Marvel or DC never appropriated him as a character in their graphic-novel tradition.  His story has all the hallmarks of popular, dark superheroes—angst; charisma; defining life moments; a smart-aleck, wisecracking mouth; arrogance; epic fails and epic victories.  Honestly, why hasn’t anyone seen the possibilities before now?  I grant you, he lacks a clear moral center.  Perhaps a more accurate description would be that he sees HIMSELF as the center of all things…and the crazy thing is, he is still listed as a judge in Israel.  Why?  Because sometimes, God uses us in spite of ourselves. 

That thought absolutely scares me to death.

Last night, I had the privilege of hearing Bro. Jerry Jones, one of my all-time favorites, preach.  His message, Unrecognizable, had the story of the Emmaus road disciples at the core.  These men were in such bitter disappointment about the crucifixion of Jesus, that as He walked along the road with them, and opened up the scripture to them, they didn’t even realize who he was.

He was standing next to them, and they didn’t recognize Him.

They loved God!  They followed him!  They were heartbroken at his death, and spiritually and emotionally adrift due to the events of the past few days.  But they didn’t realize who He really was.

Do you understand what I am saying?  We MUST lay aside who we THINK He is, and seek to KNOW HIM.  We can’t assume that we already have it all sewed up.  What if He is trying to speak to us, and we don't even realize whose voice is speaking?

The good news is we have access to the Good News.  That is WHY we have to know His word.  He called it daily bread.  Not “weekly bread” or “a few times a month”, or even “yearly bread.”  Daily bread.  It’s up to us to seek His guidance, not just make it up as we go, or rest on past successes.

Samson had been set apart from before his conception!  In our human reasoning, that seems impossible.  Whatever doesn’t exist—yet—just doesn’t exist at all, in our minds.  But God lives way, way outside of time.  He speaks from that perspective, completely unencumbered by our obstacles.  Samson’s parents are given specific instructions from the angel of the Lord on how they are to raise him, and they do their part.

I have to wonder though, that with him being an only child, and a promised child at that, if his parents didn’t indulge him in many ways.  His adult psyche indicates to me that, due to all of the restrictions placed on him by his Nazarite vow, his parents likely found other ways to ‘compensate,’ and we end up with a spoiled, entitled, arrogant, self-absorbed young man.

That’s right—an arrogant young man.  And one who knows he has been set apart for ministry.

Even in THAT, instead of immediately humbling Samson, God uses him anyways!  I’m not sure that the parent in me could do that.  I’d be like, “No way, you spoiled little brat!  See if I use you now!  Your attitude stinks, and there is no way I am going to feed the beast, feed your giant ego, and enable your behind.  You need to be taken down a few notches, and I think I might be the one to do it.”

(Lord, help me.  I am a work-in-progress, folks.)

Nope, God uses him anyways.  Check it out:

Judges 14:1-4  NLT

One day when Samson was in Timnah, one of the Philistine women caught his eye. ² When he returned home, he told his father and mother, “A young Philistine woman in Timnah caught my eye. I want to marry her. Get her for me.”

³ His father and mother objected. “Isn’t there even one woman in our tribe or among all the Israelites you could marry?” they asked. “Why must you go to the pagan Philistines to find a wife?”

But Samson told his father, “Get her for me! She looks good to me.” ⁴ His father and mother didn’t realize the Lord was at work in this, creating an opportunity to work against the Philistines, who ruled over Israel at that time.

Did you catch that?  It’s like God said, “Well, if he won’t see Me for who I Am, if he won’t serve Me out of love and reverence, and avenge My Name, maybe he will serve My purposes by avenging his own self-interest.” 

Eeeek.  God forbid we ever be guilty of the same.  God forbid we ever see some kind of fruit from our ministries, and we automatically ascribe the “results” as being some kind of super-stamp of approval from heaven. We are all fallible.  The anointing of God coursing over and through us is not a lifelong guarantee, especially if we are arrogant enough to play around with our vows of separation and service to the King.  We can’t be disrespectful and self-serving, boastful and superior, and expect that the power God allows us to serve as a conduit for will just flow endlessly, forever and ever.

Samson found out for himself in the hardest, most brutal way, because his over-inflated self-image was his own Kryptonite.    Over and over, he failed to own that the real victor in all his misadventures was God, not himself.  Finally, his time as Israel’s superhero hit a big ol’ brick wall, and he found himself face down in the dirt, humiliated, blind and maimed.  The bible says in Judges 16, that after Delilah’s final deception (and why he ever placed himself in the confidence of that hussy is another discussion for another day), he went to shake off his would-be captors as he did every other time before. 

He didn’t even recognize that his anointing was gone.

He didn’t feel different.  He felt the same as he always had.  So many other times, he’d dabbled with disobedience, and crossed the line of consecration, and in his eyes, everything had turned out just fine.

Now, he didn’t have any eyes at all, because the Philistines gouged them out.  *shudder*

That is what messing around with your anointing will do to you.  You can’t treat it like a party trick, or like you are God’s pet, above having the same expectations of all the other peasants around you.  You’ll simply be a tool to accomplish His purposes.  He’ll use you in spite of you, not because of you.

Samson ultimately ends up in the “hall of fame” in Hebrews 11.  In his death, he finally did the right thing—although I can’t help but notice that he still inserts himself and his fate into the equation.  You’d think by now, he wouldn’t have any arrogance left, but his final request is that he be avenged of his two eyes.  Not for the wickedness of the Philistines, but for his two eyes.

God grants him his request.  Once again, he uses Samson, in spite of himself.

I wonder what Samson might have accomplished for God if he’d had a right spirit? That is a story I’d love to read.

The thing is—it’s a story that any of us could write, with the pages of our life, if we would only submit ourselves to His purpose, and lay our own agenda down.  We just have to realize that the anointing and favor He might lavish upon us isn’t because of us.  It’s because He is a good God, and He loves us.  He has a purpose.  He is the mighty One, and we are just blessed enough to get to be a part of his Kingdom.  The power we wield is directly proportional to the level of our submission, obedience, and attitude.

Samson may have had the hallmarks of a superhero saga—but his end was a super-tragedy.  God, help us all to learn the lessons Samson ignored!  Because ultimately, the only saga I want to be a part of is the one that ends with the King of kings on top, and me as a part of the Bride of Christ.