FINISHING WELL
Judges 15-16
It is often said that it’s never too late to give your life to God. There are countless stories of lost souls finding eternal redemption in their last hours, and certainly heaven celebrates one more brought out of death and into eternal life. Unfortunately, this concept of “never too late” may also have given rise to the idea that someone can live their lives in hedonistic self-service, and only surrender their will once they have had their fun and are near the end of this life. How many souls have reached a dramatic end long before they expected to and without time to reach out for the salvation that has been offered? Certainly, this is not how the Father would have it, yet this is not a new phenomenon.
In Judges 13-16, we find the sad story of Samson, a man whom God had selected before he was conceived and gifted with superhuman strength to fight Israel’s enemies. The sad part is that, rather than living for God and experiencing the fullness of what God could do through him, he chose to live for himself and abused everyone around him. God was able to use Samson’s foolish living to accomplish His purposes but instead of faithfully judging a peaceful Israel and overcoming the Philistines, Samson ended up betrayed by his gentile muse, stripped of his strength, blinded by his enemies, and pushing a grain mill as a slave. Judges 16 captures his final moments, where He finally called out to God and brought down the house on the heads of 3,000 Philistines, ending his own life in the process. While the end of story involves a sensational loss for the enemy, it is also a tragedy compared to what might have been.
Like Samson, we often choose to live for ourselves, ignoring how God has called us to live and use our gifts. We chase after temporary things, fulfilling base desires and never experiencing the fullness of life God has for us. Only when tragedy sets in do we fix our eyes on the Father and begin truly living for Him. As a result, we only begin to know the goodness of a life lived for God at the end. This might be called “finishing better than we started,” but is it truly “finishing well”? Unlike Samson, I want to live it all for God, doing His will and not mine. Like Jesus, I want to submit everything to the Father. And when you and I can say we have served God faithfully, we can truly finish well, with fewer regrets and more joy. Let us choose this day to surrender our wills to God, and live for Him, so that we can all Finish Well.
It is often said that it’s never too late to give your life to God. There are countless stories of lost souls finding eternal redemption in their last hours, and certainly heaven celebrates one more brought out of death and into eternal life. Unfortunately, this concept of “never too late” may also have given rise to the idea that someone can live their lives in hedonistic self-service, and only surrender their will once they have had their fun and are near the end of this life. How many souls have reached a dramatic end long before they expected to and without time to reach out for the salvation that has been offered? Certainly, this is not how the Father would have it, yet this is not a new phenomenon.
In Judges 13-16, we find the sad story of Samson, a man whom God had selected before he was conceived and gifted with superhuman strength to fight Israel’s enemies. The sad part is that, rather than living for God and experiencing the fullness of what God could do through him, he chose to live for himself and abused everyone around him. God was able to use Samson’s foolish living to accomplish His purposes but instead of faithfully judging a peaceful Israel and overcoming the Philistines, Samson ended up betrayed by his gentile muse, stripped of his strength, blinded by his enemies, and pushing a grain mill as a slave. Judges 16 captures his final moments, where He finally called out to God and brought down the house on the heads of 3,000 Philistines, ending his own life in the process. While the end of story involves a sensational loss for the enemy, it is also a tragedy compared to what might have been.
Like Samson, we often choose to live for ourselves, ignoring how God has called us to live and use our gifts. We chase after temporary things, fulfilling base desires and never experiencing the fullness of life God has for us. Only when tragedy sets in do we fix our eyes on the Father and begin truly living for Him. As a result, we only begin to know the goodness of a life lived for God at the end. This might be called “finishing better than we started,” but is it truly “finishing well”? Unlike Samson, I want to live it all for God, doing His will and not mine. Like Jesus, I want to submit everything to the Father. And when you and I can say we have served God faithfully, we can truly finish well, with fewer regrets and more joy. Let us choose this day to surrender our wills to God, and live for Him, so that we can all Finish Well.
by Ben Urban, Pastor of Student Ministries
Posted in Read Through the Bible
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1 Comment
Beautifully written Ben, as usual.