Sometimes the enemy attacks head-on. The soldiers are poised and ready to defend because their target is in front of them, clear and in plain sight. Other times, however, the attack comes quietly, from behind, and catches the troop by surprise. These are the dangerous attacks, because they're unexpected. If the soldier hasn't prepared for this scenario, it can be fatal.
Ephesians 6:11-13 says we're soldiers in a battle too, only our enemy is hidden in darkness and evil. The devil is sneaky, conspiring against God's people and using both frontal attacks and subtle schemes. The frontal attacks are easy enough to see. It's the subtle ones that are harder to identify, and why the enemy prefers to use these maneuvers. One example we find in Scripture of just that kind of attack is the life of Samson.
Samson is known as the strong man of the Bible. I think of him as the Rambo of his day.
My husband loves watching Chuck Norris movies. Chuck Norris is The Man, because he can take out an entire Vietnamese army all by himself. I laugh whenever I see these movies, because we all know that's just impossible. Right?
Yet that was Samson.
When he came to Lehi, the Philistines came shouting against him. Then the Spirit of the LORD came mightily upon him; and the ropes that were on his arms became like flax that is burned with fire, and his bonds broke loose from his hands. He found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, reached out his hand and took it, and killed a thousand men with it.
- Judges 15:14-15
Think about this now: the Philistine army was the strongest army of the day. How could one man kill 1,000 Philistine soldiers without any weapon other than the jawbone of a donkey?! Because the Spirit of the Lord was with him. Frontal attacks weren't going to work on Samson, and the devil knew it. Samson had already killed a lion with his bare hands (Judges 14:5-6) and had also killed 30 men on his own (Judges 14:19). To defeat Samson, a different approach was needed, and the devil knew exactly what to do. How do you bring down a man that can wipe out 1,000 men with a donkey's jawbone? With the strength of one very pretty lady.
Surely when Samson first set eyes on Delilah, he didn't think this was the weapon that would be used to entrap him. He was in love with her (Judges 16:4) and probably figured she was in love with him too. She was in love alright, only it wasn't with Samson; it was with the 1,100 pieces of silver the Philistine lords had promised her in exchange for the secret of Samson's strength. That's not 1,100 pieces of silver total. That was 1,100 pieces of silver from EACH lord. With that kind of money she'd be set for life. That's a pretty strong incentive for a woman, especially when women in biblical times depended on men to take care of them financially. This would make Delilah an independant woman. It's no wonder the devil chose Delilah to do his dirty work. She was beautiful, saavy, and had a heart for silver. How could Samson resist?
The problem, of course, was that Samson shouldn't have been looking at Delilah in the first place. Samson was a man who'd been set apart for God, a Nazirite, since before his birth (Judges 13:2-5). When Samson first fell for a Philistine woman (that's right, Delilah wasn't the first one), his parents were not happy (Judges 14:2-3). That marriage ended in disaster, as chapter 14 of Judges relates. Still, Samson didn't learn his lesson, and fell for Delilah hook, line and sinker.
Were there no signs that Delilah had bad intentions for Samson? Consider Judges 16:6 - "So Delilah said to Samson, 'Please tell me where your great strength lies, and with what you may be bound to afflict you.'" That you may be bound to afflict you? Seems to me that should have raised some red flags. But instead, Samson decided to play some games with Delilah, and give her false information in a sort of cat and mouse chase (see Judges 16:7-14). What Samson obviously wasn't prepared for, was the type of attack a woman like Delilah would bring against him. Samson was used to brute strength to fight off his enemies, but Delilah used feminine wiles to get her way:
"Then she said to him, “How can you say, ‘I love you,’ when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times, and have not told me where your great strength lies.” And it came to pass, when she pestered him daily with her words and pressed him, so that his soul was vexed to death."
-Judges 16:15-16
Samson never stood a chance. The Philistines got their prisoner, Delilah got rich, and Samson learned a hard lesson: not all enemies are easy to see and defeat.
How does this apply to us today? Very simply: the enemy still uses subtle attacks against God's people. After all, if it worked on Samson it'll work on anyone. The enemy still uses lust to woo the hearts of Christians away: lust for the opposite sex, lust for money, lust for material possessions, lust for power, popularity and acceptance. 1 Peter 5:8 tells us to "Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour." Lions are very sly; they hide in the brush and move in slowly, so that when they attack, their prey has little to no chance of escape.
Sounds like a losing battle? It isn't. God has given us an arsenal to keep us protected against the enemy.
Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all perseverance and supplication for all the saints.
- Ephesians 6:14-18
When we stay alert by immersing ourselves in God's word, we strengthen ourselves with wisdom, righteousness, truth and faith. Prayer keeps us in constant communication with God, and helps us stay vigilant. Then, and only then, can we stand and defeat the enemy in this war.
1 comment:
Great devotion! I think we foreget that we've only been in this battle for several years, and the devil has been at it for thousands of years. He's had all that time to perfect his stragegies and he knows what he's doing. We need to be strong in the Word, and close to God, and don't think for a minute that we have the strength or smarts in and of ourselves to defeat him! Wonderful scripture references, Arlene!
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