Sermon Title:
Lessons from Failure: When Sin Becomes Bondage
How do you know if you are in bondage to sin.
(Samson — Judges 13–16)
Judges 14: Then Samson went down to Timnah and saw a woman in Timnah, one of the daughters of the Philistines. 2 So he came back up and told his father and [a]mother, “I saw a woman in Timnah, one of the daughters of the Philistines; so now, take her for me as a wife.” 3 But his father and his mother said to him, “Is there no woman among the daughters of your [b]relatives, or among all [c]our people, that you go to take a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?” But Samson said to his father, “Take her for me, for she is right in my eyes.”
Now, let’s begin by explaining what the point means. You are in bondage to sin when you have no have no standard. There’s an old country song which says, “if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.” What the song means is that a person has to have a standard, or a rule that they live by. It may be the ten commandments, it may be the golden rule, but in order to successfully navigate this life, and the situations that will confront you, you have to begin with some sense of what is right and wrong, and that will guide you.
But what we are talking about specifically is the standard of the Word of God. Some people have standards, but they did not come from God. I was watching a
How do you know if you are in bondage to sin.
Sometimes we fail not because we are weak—but because we are in bondage to sin.
Points: You are in Bondage to sin when you forget your calling. You are in bondage to sin when you quit repenting of sin. You are in bondage to sin when you have no have no standard. you are in bondage to sin when you act on impulse. You are in bondage to sin when you can’t perceive the Spirit of God.
Points: You are in Bondage to sin when you forget your calling. You are in bondage to sin when you quit repenting of sin. You are in bondage to sin when you have no have no standard. you are in bondage to sin when you act on impulse. You are in bondage to sin when you can’t perceive the Spirit of God.
3. You are in bondage to sin when you have no standard.
Judges 14: Then Samson went down to Timnah and saw a woman in Timnah, one of the daughters of the Philistines. 2 So he came back up and told his father and [a]mother, “I saw a woman in Timnah, one of the daughters of the Philistines; so now, take her for me as a wife.” 3 But his father and his mother said to him, “Is there no woman among the daughters of your [b]relatives, or among all [c]our people, that you go to take a wife from the uncircumcised Philistines?” But Samson said to his father, “Take her for me, for she is right in my eyes.”
Now, let’s begin by explaining what the point means. You are in bondage to sin when you have no have no standard. There’s an old country song which says, “if you don’t stand for something, you’ll fall for anything.” What the song means is that a person has to have a standard, or a rule that they live by. It may be the ten commandments, it may be the golden rule, but in order to successfully navigate this life, and the situations that will confront you, you have to begin with some sense of what is right and wrong, and that will guide you.
But what we are talking about specifically is the standard of the Word of God. Some people have standards, but they did not come from God. I was watching a documentary this week. You know there is a group that calls itself Christian, but their standard is not the Word of God. The Latter-Day Saints claim to follow Scripture, but they add to it other books, and the revelations given by the presidents of their movement through the years. The documentary I was watching was about a break off group from the LDS called the Fundamentalist Latter-Day Saints. Now consider from where they came. Generations ago they started with an affirmation that they believed the Bible. But then they decided that Joseph Smith was a modern-day prophet, getting new revelation from God. In the generations after Joseph Smith they added new books, and new revelations from other prophets.
The FLDS also believes that whoever their current leader is, gets new revelation from God. Well, you know where it went. The main doctrinal difference between the FLDS and the LDS is that the men have multiple wives. And amazingly, the leader always seems to reserve the right to take whichever wives he wants, and to tell the members who they can marry. In addition to that, they’ve run into trouble with the law for taking underage wives.
Several of their leaders are in prison now. Warren Jeffs himself was convicted on separate rape charges in Utah and Texas, respectively, and is currently serving a sentence of life plus twenty years in the latter state.
So, that group has a standard, but it is not the Word of God.
Now Samson should have had the Word of God as his standard. He was born into the nation of Israel. They had God’s law. They had Genesis through Deuteronomy, the law given to Moses on Mount Sinai. They had the Levitical priesthood, and a means of seeking the restoration of their relationship with God. The had the tabernacle, a visible representation of God’s presence with them. They had laws like,
Deuteronomy 7: “When Yahweh your God brings you into the land where you are entering to possess it, and He clears away many nations before you,
You shall cut no covenant with them and show no favor to them. 3 Furthermore, you shall not intermarry with them; you shall not give your [a]daughters to [b]their sons, nor shall you take [c]their daughters for your [d]sons. 4 For [e]they will turn your [f]sons away from [g]following Me, and they will serve other gods; then the anger of Yahweh will be kindled against you, and He will quickly destroy you.
He would have known this law when he asked his parents to arrange a marriage between himself and a Philistine woman. But God’s law isn’t even a passing thought to him. And he was a judge in Israel. Now, we must make note of verse
4 However, his father and mother did not know that it was of Yahweh, for He was seeking an occasion against the Philistines. Now at that time the Philistines were ruling over Israel.
Upon reading that, you might think that God was approving this marriage with a Philistine. But we must remember that God uses both good and evil men. And just because God uses an evil man doesn’t mean He approves of the evil he does.
You remember how Joseph forgave his brothers who sold him into slavery. After God raised him to power in Egypt, and used him to save his own family, and Egypt, he said this, “
Genesis 50:20 “You meant evil against me, but God meant it for good…”
God used the treachery of Joseph’s brothers to fulfill His purpose. But that does not God excused his brothers actions. He just used what they did to set Joseph up as the savior of his people. And Samson was not excused from seeking relationships with heathen women.
What this does is demonstrates that Samson has no standard that he lives by. Let’s further illustrate that. He also had a special calling to be a Nazarite from birth. He was supposed to keep himself seperate from certain things.
Numbers 6: 3 he shall abstain as a Nazirite from wine and strong drink;
5 ‘All the days of his vow as a Nazirite no razor shall pass over his head.
6 ‘All the days of his dedication as a Nazirite to Yahweh he shall not go near to a dead person.
Now, the last one is important for our point. He was not to touch a dead body, even if it was a death in his own family. But look at what happens after he asks his parents to arrange a marriage with a Philistine.
5 Then Samson went down to Timnah with his father and mother, and they came as far as the vineyards of Timnah; and behold, a young lion came roaring toward him. 6 And the Spirit of Yahweh [d]came upon him mightily, so that he tore it as one tears a young goat, though he had nothing in his hand; but he did not tell his father or mother what he had done. 7 So he went down and spoke to the woman; and she was right in the eyes of Samson. 8 Then he returned later to take her, and he turned aside to see the carcass of the lion; and behold, a swarm of bees and honey were in the body of the lion. 9 So he scraped [e]the honey into his [f]hands and went on, eating as he went. Then he went to his father and mother, and he gave some to them, and they ate it; but he did not tell them that he had scraped the honey out of the body of the lion.
He eats honey out of the carcass of a dead lion; you would think that anyone would have a higher standard than that. But especially Samson, who was commanded from birth not to touch a dead body. Even though he has the greatest standard the world has ever seen, he seems to have no standard for what he considers right and wrong. He is driven by his desires.
Philippians 3:18–19 “For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ, whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things.”
And Samson was just a mirror of what Israel had become. Israel to just followed their own path. They walked away from the law of God.
Judges 2:11–12 Then the sons of Israel did what was evil in the eyes of Yahweh and [d]served the Baals, 12 and they forsook Yahweh, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods from among the gods of the peoples who were around them and bowed themselves down to them; thus they provoked Yahweh to anger. 13 So they forsook Yahweh and served Baal and the Ashtaroth.
Judges 2:17 Yet they did not listen to their judges either, for they played the harlot after other gods and bowed themselves down to them. They turned aside quickly from the way in which their fathers had walked in obeying the commandments of Yahweh; they did not do as their fathers.
Judges 2:19 But it happened when the judge died, that they would turn back and act more corruptly than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them and bow down to them; they did not abandon their practices or their stubborn ways.
Judges 17:6 “In those days there was no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes.”
Judges 21:25 “In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.”
And by the end of the book, the nation is following other gods, fighting within the tribes, involved in despicable sexual immorality.
You are in Spiritual bondage when you have no standard. It is amazing what has become acceptable under the standard of Christianity today.
Do you remember an illustration that circulated a few years back? It compared the most frequent infractions in school in the 40’s and 50’s to those of today? It illustrated a serious moral and societal breakdown? Remember
School Infractions Then vs. Now 🏫 Top Problems in Schools (1940s–1950s) Talking in class, Chewing gum, Making noise, Running in the halls, Cutting in line, Dress code issues
Top Problems in Schools (1980s–1990s and Later) Drug abuse, Alcohol abuse, Pregnancy, Suicide, Rape / sexual assault, Robbery / theft, Assault, Gang violence, Weapons in school.
I thought, what if we created a similar comparison between churches in the 30’s and 40’s to todays churches.
What Was Preached as Sin Then vs. Now
🏫 Commonly Preached Sins (1930s–1940s Churches) Drunkenness, Sexual immorality (fornication, adultery), Lust and impurity, Dishonesty and lying, Sabbath-breaking, Worldliness (entertainment, dress, habits), Pride and self-righteousness, Neglect of prayer and Scripture, Rebellion against authority, Bitterness and unforgiveness, Idolatry (anything taking God’s place), Unbelief and rejection of Christ, Hypocrisy in religion, Failure to repent
The emphasis was on Sin against God’s holiness, Accountability before judgment, and a need for repentance and conversion.
But what is preached as sin today? Especially in more Seeker-Sensitive / Self-Fulfillment Churches.
Now, make note that this is a general trend. It varies by church, but reflects a real shift noted in modern church studies emphasizing attractional models and therapeutic messaging. What is sin today? “Not living your best life” “Lack of purpose” “Low self-esteem” “Negative thinking” “Toxic relationships” “Stress and burnout” “Not setting boundaries” “Failure to thrive” “Not embracing your identity” “Emotional wounds”
And these things are as they are because of a departure from “the standard, both as a church, and as individuals.
4. You are in bondage to sin when your actions are driven by impulse.
Let me continue telling this story.
In Judges 14, Samson goes down to Timnah and becomes captivated by a Philistine woman, insisting that his parents arrange the marriage even though it violated God’s standard. On the way, he is attacked by a lion, but empowered by the Spirit of the Lord, he tears it apart with his bare hands—yet he keeps this to himself. Later, he returns to the carcass of the lion, finds honey inside it, eats some, and even gives some to his parents without telling them where it came from. The wedding is arranged, and as was customary, Samson is given a set of “groomsmen” for the weeklong celebration.
There are 30 men who accompany him at the wedding feast.
This is kind of an interesting scenario. These were 30 Philistine men who were enlisted to accompany Samson. The thirty men at Samson’s wedding feast were meant to serve as companions—similar to groomsmen—which was a normal part of ancient wedding customs. However, because Samson was among the Philistines and had none of his own people there, these men were provided by the bride’s side rather than chosen by him. While they fulfilled the expected social role, they likely also functioned as observers or even a form of control, given the tension between Samson and the Philistines. What appears on the surface to be a customary celebration actually reflects a deeper cultural conflict, showing that Samson was surrounded not by true friends, but by those who would ultimately turn against him.
Well, it would have been customary at such weeklong gatherings to do things for entertainment purposes; drinking, eating, riddles, games, and conversation. So, in the midst of the celebration, Samson proposes a riddle based on his eating honey out of the dead lion.
Now, let’s go back for a moment to our point. You go into bondage to sin when you live by impulse. Samson seems to be living by the seat of his pants. None of this story seems to be purposeful. Samson is a called judge of Israel, he was called to be a Nazarite, set apart to God from birth. But here he just seems to be going along in life, doing whatever he feels like doing at the time.
He goes to Timnath, a Philistine city. Why? There is no reason given. He seems to have no business there. But while he’s there, he sees a pretty girl and decides he wants to marry her. Why? Because she’s purdy. The marriage goes forward. The Philistines provide him with companions for the wedding feast. He just randomly proposes a riddle and a wager to these 30 men. The wager was, that if you can solve my riddle by the end of the feast, I’ll provide you each with a garment. If they could guess the answer, he would provide 30 garments. But if you can’t guess my riddle, you will give me 30 garments. And here’s the riddle.
“Out of the eater came something to eat, And out of the strong came something sweet.”
The riddle is about his taking honey from the dead lion’s carcass. Now how random is this? These are Israel’s enemies. Yet Samson is partying with them, playing games. Asking riddles. It just comes out of impulsiveness.
Well, when they cannot solve it after 4 days, they pressure his wife with threats. And she, seemingly out of fear, starts asking him for the answer to his riddle.
16 So Samson’s wife wept before him and said, “You only hate me, and you do not love me; you have propounded a riddle to the sons of my people and have not told it to me.” And he said to her, “Behold, I have not told it to my father or mother; so should I tell you?” 17 However she wept before him seven days while their feast lasted. And on the seventh day he told her because she pressed him so hard. She then told the riddle to the sons of her people. 18 So the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down,
“What is sweeter than honey? And what is stronger than a lion?”
They give him the answer. Then you have to love Samson’s reply,
“If you had not plowed with my heifer, You would not have found out my riddle.”
And then what does he do? He’s got to provide 30 garments to these men.
19 Then the Spirit of Yahweh [h]came upon him mightily, and he went down to Ashkelon and struck down thirty of them and took their spoil and gave the changes of clothes to those who told the riddle.
He loses the battle of the riddle. So he goes to Ashkelon, one of the five principal cities of the Philistines, some 20 plus miles from Timnath. Some believe there was a festival, or even a wedding there, because he is gathering fine clothing. And he ambushes 30 men, kills them and takes the garments off of their slain bodies.
Now, you might note that it was the Spirit of God that empowered him to do this. But remember, God is accomplishing His purposes with a flawed tool. Though it is the Spirit of God that comes on him, it is his personal revenge and impulsiveness that inspires him.
And his impulsiveness doesn’t end there.
And his anger burned, and he went up to his father’s house. 20 But Samson’s wife was given to his companion who had been his [i]friend.
Samson had stormed out of his own wedding feast and went on his rampage in Ashkelon. In the meantime, there’s no groom at the wedding. The father, as he would later say, thought that Samson was furious with the bride for telling Samson’s riddle to the 30, so he gives the bride to the best man to marry. Then
15 Now it happened that after a while, in the time of the wheat harvest, Samson visited his wife with a young goat and said, “I will go in to my wife in her room.”
Notice that it says, “after a while.” This phrase, and the fact that it says that the season had changed, it was now wheat harvest, would indicate that it was likely weeks or even months later that he decides to go to his “wife.”. He thinks he has a wife. He’s gonna go see her. Now, you gotta know that by now, word has gotten out how he had acquired those 30 garments. But despite the fact that he would have been viewed as a dangerous or even wanted man, he walks into this enemy town of Timnath, with his goat, to visit the wife he left at the altar months before.
Well, her dad stops him from going in to her.
But her father did not let him enter. 2 And her father said, “I really thought that you hated her intensely; so I gave her to your companion. Is not her younger sister better than she? Please let her be yours [a]instead.”
This does not make Samson happy. So, what does he do? Whatever his impulse drives him to.
3 Samson then said to them, “This time I shall be innocent in regard to the Philistines when I do them harm.” 4 So Samson went and caught 300 foxes and took torches and turned the foxes tail to tail and put one torch in the middle between two tails. 5 Then he set fire to the torches and sent [b]the foxes into the standing grain of the Philistines. So he caused both the shocks and the standing grain, along with the vineyards and groves, to burn.
He probably did this at night, when his actions would be unobserved, and no one would be at hand to quench the flames. It doesn’t tell us exactly how he accomplished this. But first, the Hebrew word here can be foxes or jackals. The difference is that foxes are solitary animals, whereas jackals are pack animals, and would be easier to trap larger numbers.
So, however he did it, we can imagine him wrangling with the animals, tying tails together with firebrands. Then releasing them into the grain fields. The animals would panic and run, but easily get caught when one animal tried to go to the right side of the standing grain, and the other tried to go left. They would be caught until they could break free, and then the process would be repeated a few feet further into the field.
We may imagine him watching the trails of fire from some rocky overlook, and exulting as the conflagration reddened the night. The heat of a tropical country makes everything so dry that his plan would be certain to have burned multiple fields of crops, while the awakened Philistines desperately tried to extinguish the fires.
6 Then the Philistines said, “Who did this?” And they said, “Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite,
Maybe somebody saw him. But notice that they also know why he did it.
because [c]he (the father) took his wife and gave her to his companion.” So the Philistines came up and burned her and her father with fire.
Now, this kind of tells you a bit about the Philistines. First off, you might have thought that their first impulse would have been to get Samson. And maybe it was. But, they probably didn’t know where to find him, and they may have feared him. So, they look for an easy target. The second thing this tells you is how cruel they are. There really is nothing that this man and his daughter did wrong. In fact, I would argue that the father was quite reasonable. First, he stands up to Samson, preventing him from going in to the woman, because she was given to another man. Second, he offers a compromise. But for this, he and his daughter lose their lives.
Now, Samson is angry because they killed his wife and her father.
7 Then Samson said to them, “If you act like this, then I will surely take revenge on you, but after that I will cease.” 8 And he struck them [d]ruthlessly with a great slaughter; and he went down and lived in the cleft of the rock of Etam.
All this story illustrates how impulsive Samson is. We know God used him. Just like God could judge a nation with pestilence or disease, he can also judge them with war and violence. God used Samson as His sword of judgement against the Philistines. But outside of God accomplishing His purposes by what Samson does, there seems to be no rhyme or reason to any of Samson does. It all sounds like a story they would do on 20/20.
Samson is driven by appetite, not obedience.
Well, we’re going to end there, come back next week for the exciting conclusion.
As believers we are directed not to be driven by impulse and appetite.
Proverbs 25:28 “Like a city that is broken into and without walls is a man who has no control over his spirit.”
2 Timothy 1:7 “For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.”
1 Corinthians 6:12 “All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything.”