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consequence

Sketched IV Day 10 Delilah

August 10, 2018 by Rebekah Hargraves Leave a Comment

Read His Words Before Ours!

Judges 16:3-20
Proverbs 14:1
Proverbs 22:14
John 8:3-11
2 Corinthians 5:16-6:1

Sketched IV, Day 10

If you ask me, people are too quick to judge.
If other people had been in the same shoes that, I, Delilah, found myself, perhaps they would’ve made the same choices.

Who’s to say?
All I know is that I did what I felt I had to.

I’ll never forget the infamous day I met Samson.
I knew he wasn’t from my area of town, the Valley of Sorek.
No, he was from the dreaded Israelite territories.

The valley I call home is centered directly between Israelite land and Philistine land, so one might imagine how torn I felt. I live in the midst of intense fighting and constant land disputes between the two dueling nations, but then Samson came along.

This strong, rugged, handsome man whose reputation (for……) went before him clearly loved me, and I him, I suppose.
But sometimes a girl has to do what a girl has to do.

Samson was Israel’s hero.
Judge and mighty conqueror, he was their rescuer and our feared enemy.
Philistine leaders approached me in order to trap him and win the upper hand politically.
They gave me an offer I felt I couldn’t refuse.
I went for it.

In exchange for thousands of pieces of silver, all I had to do was find out from whence came all of Samson’s strength. Easy, right?
And I needed the money!
Silver is hard to come by these days. The land is constantly being divided, lives are being lost, blood is being spilt, and the Israelites are taking land that doesn’t belong to them.
Why wouldn’t I cash in on this offer from the Philistines?

Cash in, I did.
I went to Samson to determine the cause of all his superhuman strength. The stubborn oaf didn’t answer me truthfully the first time. He made me look like an idiot in front of the Philistine leaders. He did this not once, not twice, but three times.
What was he holding on to?! And Why?!

Finally, I knew what would get to him. We women can be quite wily and manipulative when the situation calls for it. So, that’s what I did – I harnessed my immense power of influence as a woman, turned on the waterworks, and accused him of not truly loving me since he refused to tell me the truth. That worked, and the “strong” man caved.
I knew he would.
No man can resist the waterworks.

Did I feel bad when I saw the subsequent treatment he endured at the hand of the Philistines as a result of what I had done?
I admit I did for a time.
But I don’t see how the treatment he suffered was any worse than the treatment he had dished out to the Philistines.
Turn-about is fair play, I say.
Meanwhile, I’m enjoying the look of all this silver in my home!
No more wondering where the next meal will come from for me!

~~~~
It’s so easy for me to look at people like Delilah, in the Bible or otherwise,
and instantly jump to judge them.
Perhaps you can relate?
But wait, put yourself in her shoes and consider why she may have done what she did.
Not to say the actions were right, simply that sometimes, they are at least understandable.
Realizing this helps us to approach others
with humility and grace,
even when dealing with outright sin that must be addressed.

In the story of Samson and Delilah from Judges 16,
Samson, the strongest man of his time,
became a weakling in the hands of a woman,
and as he surrendered his vows to the Lord.

We see this happen all the time, even today.
Proverbs 14:1 explains,
“The wisest of women builds her house,
but folly with her own hands tears it down.”

As women, we carry with us incredible power of influence, either for good or evil.
Proverbs 22:14 says,
“The mouth of a forbidden women is a deep pit;
he with whom the Lord is angry will fall into it.”

Delilah was a forbidden woman to the Israelite Samson, because God had set apart the Israelites for the purpose of declaring His glory to the nations around them and not becoming like them, worshipping false gods.
Israel was to be holy as God was holy (Leviticus 19:2),
putting the Lord on display.

Samson chose to honor and please himself, forsaking the Lord,
and we see what became of him.

Throughout the Word we are given examples of sinful women who destroyed the men who pursued them. On the flip side, however, we also see wonderful examples of godly women who influenced the men around them for good.

In the Garden of Eden, the serpent went to Eve, knowing that if he could seduce her, turning her eyes from the fullness of God, Adam would come tumbling down as well with her power of influence.
Sure enough, he did. They both did.

So, today, I ask you sweet sisters, how are you wielding your power of influence?
For good? Or for evil?
How are your words and actions impacting the spouse, child, friend, co-worker, boss, neighbor, parent, or grandparent near you?
Are you building up the Kingdom with your own hands?
Or are you, perhaps inadvertently, working to tear it down?

The good news of the Gospel is that even if you have used your power in ungodly ways in the past, by coming to Christ, you are “...a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Cling to that truth and rejoice in it; harnessing it to spur you on to faith and good works!

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A Note About Sketched
In this series, we are stepping into the shoes of various characters throughout history. Some are biblical, some are well-known in modern day times, and some are people our writers know personally. We do our best to research the culture and times surrounding these individuals to give an accurate representation of their first-person perspectives on life and the world, but we can’t be 100% accurate. “Sketched” is our best interpretation of how these characters view(ed) God, themselves, and the world around them. Our hope is that by stepping into their everyday, we will see our own lives a little differently!
Enjoy!
And keep watching for Sketched Themes to pop up throughout the year!

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Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Sketched IV Week Two! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!
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Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Sketched IV!

Posted in: Beauty, Broken, Character, Desperate, Dignity, Emptiness, Enemies, Excuses, Flawless, Help, Hope, Redemption, Relationship, Shame Tagged: consequence, death, delilah, future, grace, healing, hope, Jesus, past, Sin, sketched

Passionate Day 11
It Is Finished

April 10, 2017 by Bri Bailey Leave a Comment

Read His Words Before Ours!

John 19:16-30
1 John 4:7-12
Genesis 3:15
Romans 5:12-20 

“It is finished.”

Three words sum up the greatest story of our universe, one that was birthed before the world in the longing heart of a Father. This uncreated heart overflowed with a passionate desire to share the very essence of Himself in a deep, unending, unfathomable love, and so He set time in motion and breathed life into dust.

Thousands of years later, aching for habitation, communion, and the eternity He designed for His children, the Storyteller became dust Himself and uttered three final words.

“It is finished.”

Three words, and the epic battle between good and evil that was launched in the shade of a fruit tree by the first Adam was brought to glorious victory on a blood-soaked tree by the second Adam. Fully man, this son of Eve crushed the head of Satan under his heel. Fully God, Jesus’s death rendered powerless him who had the power of death. Just as every one of us inherited the stain of Adam’s sin, so every one of us is now invited to partake in Christ’s victory over sin. Our death sentence is finished, and the hope of new life in freedom stretches before us.

“It is finished.”

Three words, and the heart-wrenching, body-shattering, eternity-altering story of obedience–even to death on a cross–reached its finale in the sweetness of life poured out for love. In willingly giving His life to complete the work the Father sent Him to do, Jesus lived out His heart of devotion to God. In choosing to die for His bride, Jesus lived out His heart of passion for us. Because of this final, greatest act of loving obedience, our quest to achieve the impossible in earning salvation of our own strength is finished,
and we are free to embrace the redeeming power of grace.

“It is finished.”

Three words, and the anguished suffering of the propitiatory sacrifice was ended. With the last stilled beat of a perfect, sinless heart bled dry, the justice of God was satisfied. Furthermore, in that moment, the way back was opened for the prodigal you and I, ending the anguish of the tender Father’s heart at the loss of His precious little ones. Our separation from God is finished, and we are free to marvel at and revel in the depths of a love that would compel such sacrifice.

“It is finished.”

Three words that mean victory, obedience fulfilled, and the ultimate sacrifice of love for all who walk this earth; now let’s shift our focus and take a moment to get personal. In my life, these three words meant an end to my quest to reach “enough.” As I shared in my faith story, my perfectionism left me plagued with the fear that I wasn’t good ENOUGH, holy ENOUGH, disciplined ENOUGH, simply ENOUGH for God to love me, to be proud of me, to feel His victorious obedience was worth the sacrifice to offer eternity with me.

Until the truth of these words resonated within my spirit: my quest to be ENOUGH was FINISHED on the cross, because it was never mine at all. HE is ENOUGH. HE is perfect, holy, disciplined, victorious, and obedient. And He was willing to make the greatest, most passionate sacrifice for me, because He couldn’t possibly love me more. I am His, and that is ENOUGH. The rest was up to Him, and it is finished.

And so, sweet friend, it’s your turn: what do these three words mean for YOUR journey? What chapter, what struggle, what endless, pointless striving in your story needs to be resolved with the inscription “IT IS FINISHED”?

Let’s believe the work of the cross is for all of us and for each of us, and celebrate His resurrection with the joy, hope, and freedom of embracing the truth of three words:
It Is Finished!

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passionate week 3

Embracing God’s fullness in our lives is rooted in scripture and memorizing His word is vital to our continued growth and depth with Jesus. Tap and hold from your mobile device to download this week’s verse and make it your phone’s lockscreen!

Thanks for joining us today as we journeyed into Passionate Week Three! Don’t miss out on the discussion below – we’d love to hear your thoughts!

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Looking for other journeys from this theme?
Here’s a link to all past studies in Passionate!

Posted in: Broken, Character, Faith, Flawless, Forgiven, Freedom, Fullness, Gospel, Grace, Jesus, Life, Lost, Love, Made New, Pain, Power, Redemption, Relationship, Sacrifice, Sin, Truth Tagged: consequence, forgiveness, gospel, Jesus, Last Words, salvation, Sin

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And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:14