Created & Called on Purpose | Sunday, September 8, 2024

God has a purpose for you, and we're actually going to talk about that today. So, if you would, open up your Bibles. If you don't have a Bible, you can raise your hand, and one of the ushers will gladly bring you one.

As the summer is almost over, we are going to return to our regularly scheduled program, and we're going back to the Book of Judges, which is where we were in May before we took a detour through the Book of Hosea for the summer. We left off in May in Judges chapter 12, which means we're in Judges chapter 13 today. I've been thinking about this passage that we're entering into on the downhill run of Judges for quite some time, contemplating how we should approach this text.

By God's grace, we will finish the Book of Judges over the next couple of months, but this last section launches us into what I'm calling a new series: "Strong Man, Weak Character." If you know anything about the Book of Judges, when I say "strong man, weak character," there's an individual that probably comes to mind—Samson. Samson is probably, along with Gideon, the most well-known judge in the Book of Judges. We already talked about Gideon at the beginning of the year and all the things that God did through him, even though he had some issues. A good chunk of the Book of Judges is dedicated to Gideon, but another significant portion of the story is dedicated to this man, Samson.

One of the interesting things about Samson is that even those who are not church-going Bible readers, who are not necessarily familiar with the Scriptures, still have a basic understanding of the story of Samson. Many people know about this strong guy with the long locks—I'm not talking about myself this morning—but they know the story of Samson, at least in part. It has permeated a lot of Western culture. This story is iconic: the long-haired brute with a divine call who had supernatural strength. However, although he had this supernatural strength and this divine call, he never seemed to fully meet the expectations placed upon him.

The potential he never seemed to fully arrive at what maybe God had for him. This story stands out. Samson was a man with a weakness, and not an unfamiliar weakness. Unfortunately, he had a weakness for women; he had a Kryptonite problem. As a result of this weakness, it leads to an eventual downfall that we will see as we study through the text. His downfall primarily came at the hands of a damsel named Delilah. I wonder why it is that people don't name their daughters Delilah.

This is a familiar story, a very basic story. This man had a Divine call and purpose from God from before his conception. There was a purpose from God, and he had a supernatural empowering that God had given to him. He came at a very timely point in Israel's history with an objective ordained by God, prophesied by a Heavenly being before his arrival on the scene. He was supposed to be set apart, what the Bible would call consecrated. He was supposed to be consecrated to this task from birth.

However, he erred in this through the lust of the flesh. He was drawn away by the lust of the flesh, frequently giving in to the temptation for the things of this world, the pursuit of carnal pleasures. In spite of his flaws, though, God still used him, and it's an awesome testimony to the grace of God. However, I think he was not used to the extent that Samson probably could have been used by God or would have been used by God if he had been wholly dedicated to his purpose and calling.

Unfortunately, as we will see, his weaknesses get the best of him. Even though he is strong in physical strength, his weaknesses ultimately render him weak and blind, grinding down a path toward a bitter end. As I said, this story is a pretty basic story. The structure of it is relatively well-known. What's interesting is that when I was in seminary studying Hebrew, this was one of the texts that my professor used for our Hebrew exegesis. The reason was that the Hebrew is very basic.

It's simple. It's just this historic narrative discourse in Hebrew that doesn't offer much in the way of editorial commentary. It really just reports the facts and leaves it to you, the reader, to evaluate and consider Samson and his story—the pros and the cons, warts and all. You might see some of your own reflection in it.

James says in the New Testament that the Scriptures are like a mirror. We look into that mirror to see what? Just how disheveled our hair is after a night out, or whatever it is. So, maybe we might fix it, although obviously, I didn't. We look into the perfect law of liberty, the Scriptures, as a mirror, and it reflects back to us areas where we may have inconsistencies, like Samson, because all of us do have inconsistencies.

I don't necessarily want to go through this passage from Judges chapter 13 and onward verse by verse. It's about four chapters of Samson's life dedicated here in this passage. I don't want to just retell or rehearse the story because, as I said, even a lot of people who aren't Bible readers have a general understanding of the Samson and Delilah story.

Instead of going through it quickly verse by verse, although I'm sure in some ways we probably will, I want to highlight some things that I think might be important for us living at a time that's not so dissimilar to the time in which Samson lived. The nation of Israel during the time of the judges was a nation in turmoil because of their flesh. We've looked at it a number of times, and we'll see it again today in the text of Judges chapter 13.

The children of Israel did what was right in their own eyes, and there was no governing principle for morality over the people at that time in Israel's history. As they did what was right in their own eyes, they inevitably did what was evil in the sight of the Lord. This would trigger the well-known cycle that we will see in chapter 13, verse 1 today, which begins with compromise. That compromise spirals down to chaos and ultimately to catastrophe.

You can see it in the text of Judges, but you can also see it in the world around you. Sometimes, we even see it in our own lives. It begins with compromise, and it spirals down to chaos and catastrophe. Because God is gracious, He raises up.

A deliverer in the text of Judges quite frequently, Samson's life, upbringing, and birth may hold important lessons for us, especially as we live in a time similar to his. The first thing to note as we go through this text is that Samson can seem like a failure. As I mentioned a moment ago, he never seems to reach the height of what one might expect from his life. There are points where he appears to be an utter failure because he makes some really poor choices. There are those facepalm moments where you think, "Come on, Samson, why are you doing this?"

When I was studying this text in my Hebrew class, my Hebrew professor, Dr. Watson, who spoke here last year, pointed out an interesting perspective. He said, "The problem with Samson is he's kind of just a pervert." That stuck in my mind, and I appreciate that insight. The Hebrew text is very clear; he has some real issues and problems. He possesses a carnal character—he was a strong man with a weak character.

Even though this is evidently true, Samson is mentioned in Hebrews chapter 11, which we know as the Hall of Faith. He is listed in this passage of Scripture in the New Testament by the author of the book of Hebrews, inspired by the Holy Spirit, as a man who worked righteousness and was a man of faith. This raises the question: how is that even the case? It reminds us of something we will see when we get into the book of 1 Samuel: God does not see as man sees. We look at the outward appearance, but God looks at the heart.

There was something about Samson, despite his failures due to his carnality, flesh, and foolishness, that still identified him as a man of faith. It’s worth examining. If you have your Bible, keep your finger in Judges chapter 13 and turn over to the New Testament book of Hebrews, which is near the end of the Bible. In Hebrews chapter 11, beginning in verse 32, the author of the book of Hebrews...

Says this: "What more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell you of Gideon." We already talked about Gideon, but Gideon is in the Hall of Faith, even though he had some major issues. Barak also had some issues in the Book of Judges. He was a judge, and he had his problems. Then there is Samson, and Jephthah. These four men had major inconsistencies and problems in their lives because of their flesh. Yet, Samson is mentioned, and also David. Goodness, we're going to see David in First and Second Samuel, and he had some major problems as well.

Samuel and the prophets, who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, and stopped the mouths of lions, are also highlighted. You know, Samson could probably be listed under that one. As we will see, they quenched the violence of fire and escaped the edge of the sword. He certainly did that. Out of weakness, they were made strong; that might be a reference to Samson, who became valiant in battle. He certainly did that. They turned to flight the armies of the foreigners; he definitely did that.

Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection. Still others had trials of mocking and scourgings; yes, that was him. Yes, and of chains and imprisonment—definitely Samson. They were stoned, not in the 1960s era sense, but they were stoned. They were sawn in two, were tempted, and were slain with the edge of the sword. They wandered about in sheep skins and goat skins, being destitute, afflicted, and tormented.

I love this part: "Of whom the world was not worthy." They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth. When we see Samson and all of his failures brought to light, it is a reminder that these are inspired words of Scripture, inspired by God. They do not hide the problems of these individuals. If this were just the patriotic, nationalistic writings of ancient peoples, they might have glossed over the ways in which Samson and other great individuals in the Old Testament failed. But it does not. It shows that they are failures in many respects.

So when we see the foolish things that they do, and then we are told that they were men and women of faith, of whom the world was not worthy, it is such an encouragement. There is not anyone here this morning who does not do foolish things, even after becoming a Christian.

We fall short in so many ways. Now, that's not to make light of or make excuses for our failures and inconsistencies, but it is to highlight something very important. If there is any good, great, or praiseworthy aspect of my life, it is all on account of God's grace. This is crucial for us to hold in our minds and in our hearts. It's all because of God's grace.

The Apostle Paul knew this. He had failed in many respects as Saul of Tarsus, but he says in 1 Corinthians chapter 15, "I am what I am by the grace of God." It is crucial that we keep this in our minds, even though it seems so simple.

Point number one: whatever good or gain comes from my life, it is all on account of God's grace. It is crucial for us to remember this because there is a real danger for those of you who are here on Sunday, who regularly go to church, and who may be committed to reading the Bible and praying. There is a danger that we can very easily fall into a pattern of self-righteousness, especially when there are "Samsons" in the world. These "Samsons" become something like a lightning rod or a deflector shield that we can point to and say, "Well, at least I'm not as bad as that guy." We can become really self-righteous and justify our own shortcomings.

This was really hammered home to me this week. I had a meeting with a gentleman who is not a Christian yet, but he wanted to meet with me because he has some crises going on in his life. We had about an hour and a half to two-hour conversation, during which he used profanity more times than I could count. He was just laying it all out for me, sharing all the things that are falling apart in his life. I kept thinking, "Yeah, your life sucks."

But here's the amazing thing: I've had a lot of meetings like that over the years with people who are not yet Christians and with people who are Christians. Often, it is the not-yet Christians who are very open and honest about their failures. They lay it all out and say, "Man, I'm a total failure. I don't know what to do." Then I meet with some Christians who justify or make excuses, saying, "Well, you know, I'm not that bad. Yeah, I kind of failed, but I'm not that bad."

It is amazing to me, and it reveals a temptation that I could easily succumb to as well, where I justify myself and make excuses. I am what I am by the grace of God, and I need to remind myself of this. I am what I am by the grace of God. So, that's one of the first things.

Note that we see from Samson's life that he had a divine call and a purpose from before he was even born. In fact, it was before he was even conceived. We will see this in the text of Judges chapter 13 in a moment. Before he was conceived, there was a divine purpose and call upon his life. This is not only true for Samson; it was also true for the Prophet Jeremiah. In Jeremiah 1:5, God said to Jeremiah, "Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you; before you were born, I sanctified you; I set you apart; I ordained you as a prophet to the nations."

It was true for the Apostle Paul as well. Paul, in Galatians 1, says, "God separated me from my mother's womb and called me through His grace." This truth also applies to the Messiah. The prophet Isaiah prophesied about the Messiah in Isaiah chapter 49, where the Messiah says, "The Lord has called me from the womb; from the matrix of my mother, He has made mention of my name."

We see in the Scriptures, in people like Paul, Jeremiah, and of course Christ, this truth. With Samson, we see that from before they were conceived, God had a purpose and a plan for their lives. I don't think it's a stretch to say that it is true for you and true for me as well. Before you were born, God knew who you would be. Before your mother had ever even thought you up, God knew who you would be, and He had a plan and a purpose set for you. He calls you to this.

This is an important reality for us to grasp, and I’m grateful that this is Communion Sunday. We are going to partake of Communion today, which means that our youth are in here. It is vital that if you are in junior high or high school, you grab hold of this truth. But this is not only true for those who are young; for those of you who are older, it is still important to be reminded. Whether you are 15, 55, or 85, God still has a purpose and plan for your life that He desires you to fulfill.

Point number two, if you're taking notes: God created you for a purpose and calls you to fulfill it. It is crucial to grasp this, especially at this moment in our culture's history, because in our culture today, the dominant...

The story, worldview, and philosophy that is given to us, especially to our kids, is that we are the chance product of random chance and mutation over billions of years through the evolutionary process. According to this narrative, we have no ultimate purpose. That is what our culture says, and I can think of no more soul-crushing story than that. I mean, your only ultimate purpose, as I've heard naturalists say before, is to further your genetic material into the future and try to help the human species. That's it. That's all you have for me. That is a sad story that often leads to nihilism, and what we're seeing in our culture today is a meaning crisis. People feel purposeless.

The Bible has the remedy for this. God created you for a purpose, and He calls you to fulfill that purpose. He calls you forward into that. Not only does He call you forward, but He empowers you by supernatural strength, by His Spirit, to fulfill that reality.

Now, there are a number of challenges here. Sometimes it does require work, time, and effort on our part to discover precisely what God's ordained purpose is for us. It does require some work on our part to find that purpose. Here's another challenge: sometimes we are tempted to run from God's purpose, like Jonah. We see what God has for us, and we think, "Okay, I see that over there; I'm going to go this way." That is a temptation.

Another problem is that sometimes, like Samson, we can torpedo or subvert God's purpose. This doesn't mean that His purpose will be completely destroyed; He will accomplish His purpose, but maybe not to the extent that He could. That's one of the real devastating things in reading the story of Samson. I find myself reading it, which I've done many times before, and thinking, "I wonder if maybe God could have done far greater things through Samson." I think the answer to that question is yes. Yes, if he had been wholly and completely dedicated and committed to God.

I want to remind you again of something you may have heard quite a bit in decades past: God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. How many of you have ever...

I heard that saying before, and it's true: God created you for a purpose, and He calls you to fulfill it. Sometimes, you begin to discover that purpose by simply stepping out and serving on the security team or moving a video camera. You start to realize that God has something greater than you might expect. It always begins with the day of small things. As you're faithful in the small things, you discover greater things.

The first step into ministry for me was when I was a teenager. I was invited by my youth pastor to come down and help out. Sometimes that helping out was literally cleaning toilets, picking up trash, or folding bulletins. Those are still tasks that need to be done today. It was through that experience that I discovered God had a greater call on my life. After having been in pastoral ministry for 25 years, I still believe there are greater things yet to do that I don't yet know about. This may just be the day of preparation for those sorts of things. I have no clue, and neither do you.

Here's the challenge: I remember Pastor Tony telling me this when I was young. He sensed a call from God. He was my youth pastor when I was in youth ministry, and he was probably my age now when I was in youth ministry then. I remember him telling me that when he was in his 20s, he sensed a call to ministry, but he ran from it. God finally got His way when he was in his late 30s. There were years of regret, and he often wished he hadn't done that.

I also recall a conversation I had with a very good friend of mine. We went to Bible College together, although I was only there for one semester. I remember my friend Charles and I very clearly. We were in my 1981 Toyota Starlet, which was not a great vehicle. In fact, the person I gave it to later said it caught on fire and burned to the ground. So, it was not a good car. I remember sitting in that car and saying to him, "I don't want to be a person 20 or 30 years from now saying, 'I wish I would have'." Many of us have regrets about things we wish we hadn't done, but almost a greater regret is wishing we had gone through that open door.

God has a purpose for your life, and He calls you to fulfill it. I hope you grasp that. Now, we come into the text, Judges 13:1. Here it is again; I believe it's the seventh and final time.

Judges again tells us that the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the Lord. They began a downward spiral from compromise to chaos to catastrophe. The Lord allowed them to be delivered into the hands of the Philistines, their arch-enemies, for forty years. For forty years, they were in bondage. Some of you this morning may relate to this testimony; for forty years, you were in bondage to the enemy, the adversary, the devil, the flesh, or whatever it may be.

Then, there was a certain man, an average individual from the northernmost part of Israel, among the tribe of the Danites. His name was Manoah, and his wife was barren and had no children. We are introduced to this certain man and his unnamed wife, who, although crucial and important, is never named in the passage.

The angel of the Lord appeared to the woman, the unnamed barren wife, and said to her, "Indeed, now you are barren and have borne no children, but you shall conceive and bear a son." Therefore, she was instructed to be careful not to drink wine or similar drink and not to eat anything unclean. The reason for this was that she would conceive and bear a son, and no razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazarite to God from the womb. He shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines.

They had already been in bondage to the Philistines for four decades, and now this word of deliverance comes to Manoah's barren wife. She is going to conceive and bear a son, but who knows how long it will be until he begins to deliver Israel—maybe fifteen or twenty years. So, deliverance is not yet there, but it is on the horizon. God is good and gracious; He comes and speaks to this woman, who, at that time and in that place, faced the worst possible blight upon a woman. Israel was in dire straits, and she was probably desperate for her nation and for herself, longing for a deliverer. God speaks to this certain man's unnamed wife and says she is going to have a child, and this child is going to be special.

Needs to be set apart. Not only does this child need to be set apart for him to fulfill his purpose that I have ordained, God says, but you also need to be set apart. Man, that's an important thing to consider as a parent. There’s a consecration and a dedication that is required for you as you lead your children, and this doesn't change when your children fly the coop, shall we say. It's still required.

One of the things we're going to discover, although it's kind of a byline in the story, is that Samson's parents were dedicated. They were committed, actually more than Samson would be, and that's an awesome reality. They were good Israelites when many, if not most, of the Israelites were not. They went against the flow and continued to walk in faithfulness to God. So, God chooses this man, Manoah, and his wife to be the ones through whom He will begin to deliver Israel.

The angel of the Lord gave explicit instructions to Manoah's wife that she would not touch anything unclean and that she would not drink any strong drink. These sorts of things were given to her, and it leads us to a third observation: Point number three, the ultimate fulfillment of God's purpose requires dedicated consecration. Manoah's son, Samson, needed to be dedicated and consecrated to God. He was going to be a Nazarite from birth.

Now, this brings up an interesting question about what a Nazarite is. I don't have time to get into the answer to that question today, but you can read about a Nazarite vow in Numbers chapter 6 in the Torah. Needless to say, a Nazarite was one who lived under an avowed commitment to God, and typically, a Nazarite vow was temporary; it was for a time. But Samson was going to be unique in this. He was going to be a Nazarite dedicated to God from conception, and it required that his mother also have a dedication to God, a commitment to God.

For this purpose to be fulfilled, God's great purpose of delivering His people from the Philistines required this dedicated consecration. It's an essential point that we cannot miss: Samson needed to be consecrated to the Lord.

Never quite fully committed to it, and even though he didn't fully commit to it, God was still gracious and used him in powerful ways, but not to the extent that he probably could have. His mother had to be consecrated, and his father had to be consecrated as well. The ultimate fulfillment of God's great purpose requires that we be committed to the Lord in dedicated consecration.

Even Samson, as I said, is mentioned in the Hall of Faith. God brings about great exploits through him, but he does it in spite of his failures. Could there not have been so much more that he could have done? Possibly. But again, it just brings us back to this point: Moms and dads, keep this in mind. God is not only calling your children to fulfill His purpose; He is calling you to a dedicated commitment to see that purpose fulfilled as well.

Note further, look at verse six. The unnamed barren woman came and told her husband, saying, "A man of God came to me, and his countenance was like the countenance of an angel of God." There was something very spectacular about this individual who came and talked to me. He just looked like a man, but he was very awesome. The Scripture says, "I did not ask him where he is from, and he did not tell me his name." Manoah said, or the man said to me, "Behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. So drink no wine or similar drink, nor eat any unclean thing, for the child shall be a Nazarite to God from the womb to the day of his death."

Well, then Manoah prayed to the Lord and said, "Oh my Lord, please let the man of God whom you sent come to us again and teach us." I love this prayer: "Teach us what we shall do for the child who will be born."

Point number four: Dedicated consecration requires fervent prayer. I am often convicted when I come to simple truths like this. Dedicated consecration demands fervent prayer. I'm convicted because when I read that, I realize that I am far too frequently half-hearted and not quite fervent in my prayer. I could be so much better. In the New Testament book of James, James says in chapter 5, "The effective..."

The fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much, as the King James Bible says. In that, we read, "Well, I don't think I'm a very righteous person." God reminds me, "You're not righteous in and of yourself, but I clothed you in My righteousness." The effective, fervent prayer that you offer to Me will avail much.

Then He gives us an illustration. He uses the example of Elijah in James 5:17. It says, "Elijah was a man like us," and yet he prayed diligently that it would not rain, and it did not rain for the space of three and a half years. Then he prayed again, and it did rain. He was a man just like you and me, with the same weaknesses, downfalls, and temptations to discouragement. When you read the story of Elijah, you see that he prayed diligently, and God heard and answered his prayers.

The dedicated consecration demands fervent prayer. Again, moms, dads, and potential parents, this is a really important prayer to commit to memory and pray for your children, regardless of their age: "Oh my Lord, please teach us what we shall do for this child who will be born."

I'll tell you, 16 years ago, I became the pastor of this church in April of 2008. At that time, my wife was about 12 weeks pregnant with our first child, Ethan. I can remember being far more concerned and anxious about becoming a dad than about becoming the pastor of this church. I felt that way because of the gravity and weight of being a dad. It’s like you become a parent with no training.

In fact, it was so funny to me. My wife and I have talked about this before. You have this child, and you're in the hospital for a day or two. Then they come in and ask, "You got a car seat?" You say, "Yeah, I got a car seat." They respond, "All right, see you later." You're left thinking, "Wait, am I supposed to take this thing home?" Yes, it's yours. They don’t help you; you parent this thing.

You might think, "Well, how do I do this?" You could go to a parenting class, but we never did. You go to a parenting class, and the instructor says, "This is what you should do." You ask, "Well, how are your kids?" They respond, "They're terrible." At that point, you think, "Well, I’m not listening to you." So, you're left feeling uncertain about what to do.

This is a really good prayer, and you continue praying it even after they are born. Sixteen years later, I'm teaching my oldest son to drive now, and I'm still praying this prayer: "Dear God, Lord, please teach me what I shall do for the child that is..."

Driving in the car, it's a constant prayer. I'm sure it's true, and I'm not there yet, but I will be when they move out of the house and go to college or get married, or whatever it may be. You never cease from being Mom and Dad; therefore, you need to pray. Casual prayer is an indication of casual commitment, and fervent prayer shows serious devotion. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous individual availeth much.

In accordance with Manoah's prayer, the angel of the Lord returned. Judges chapter 13, verse 9 states that the Lord listened to the voice of Manoah. Let me remind you, God hears your prayers. He listened to the voice of Manoah, and the angel of God came to the woman again as she was sitting in the field, but Manoah, her husband, was not there. The woman said, "Hey, wait there just one second. I have to go get my husband; he wants to talk to you." So she ran and got him. "Hey, the man of God is here!"

Manoah came and now he speaks to this angel of the Lord. In verse 12, Manoah said, "Now let your words come to pass. What will the boy's rule of life and his work be? Tell me about his future." This is amazing, and if you're a parent, you pray this: "Lord, tell me about the future of my child." However, notice that the angel of the Lord doesn't answer that question. Instead, the angel of the Lord said to him, "Of all that I said to the woman, let her be careful. I'm not telling you about him; I'm telling you about you."

Oh, this is key, moms and dads, potential parents. God wants to do a work in you to prepare your child for their future. She may not, in verse 14, eat of anything that comes from the vine, nor may she drink wine or similar drink, nor eat anything unclean. All that I commanded her, let her observe. "Hey, I already told her what to do; she needs to do that."

Then Manoah said to the angel of the Lord, "Please let us detain you, and we will prepare a young goat for you. We want to feed you; we want to give you a meal." The angel of the Lord said to Manoah, "Though you detain me, I'm not going to eat your food." It's like, "What, you got a problem with my cooking? I'm not going to eat your food." But if you offer a burnt offering—wow, that's interesting—you must offer it to the Lord, for Manoah did not know that he was the angel of the Lord. Then Manoah said to the angel.

The Lord asked, "What's your name? Who are you? Tell me who you are." When your words come to pass, we may honor You. The angel of the Lord said to him, "Why do you ask me my name, seeing that it is wonderful?"

Wait a minute, there's something interesting about this. His name is Wonderful, which leads us down an interesting path—a disputed path, but an interesting path. There is only one in the Scriptures that I know whose name is Wonderful. Isaiah 9:6 prophesies of Him in that Christmas passage: "For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government shall be upon His shoulders. And His name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

Who is the Prince of Peace? Is this a pre-incarnate appearance of Jesus? I would suggest to you, yes. There would be some other people who say, "No, I don't think that's who they are," and they have a right to be wrong. They would be wrong, but this is Jesus. He shows up; the pre-incarnate Christ appears on the scene to bless Manoah and his barren wife with a child and to call them unto a consecrated purpose for their son, who would also be called to a consecrated purpose.

In verse 19, Manoah took a young goat, a grain offering, and offered it upon the rock to the Lord. He did a wondrous thing while Manoah and his wife looked on. It happened as the flame went up toward Heaven. As they were offering this offering on the altar, the angel of the Lord ascended. Jesus ascended in the flame of the altar, which means Acts chapter 1, Jesus's Ascension—that was Ascension 2.0. This is Ascension 1.0. He ascended, and when Manoah and his wife saw this, they were struck and fell on their faces to the ground. That is the right response in worship when the angel of the Lord appeared no more to Manoah and his wife. Manoah knew that it was the angel of the Lord, and they fell on their faces to the ground—the obvious right response to an encounter with God.

Point number five, and I'll wrap it up: dedicated consecration invites God's presence and impels our worship. If you, this morning on September 8th, 2024, feel a sense of distance between you and God, first, I want to acknowledge that it's probably not true. God is there, but He might be...

Waiting for you to turn to Him in dedicated consecration is essential. If you sense that there was ever a time in the past when there seemed to be a greater nearness to God than there is right now, my encouragement to you today would be to recommit and rekindle your dedication to the Lord. This invites His presence. The Scriptures say, "Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you." As you draw near to Him, it compels and impels our praise and worship to Him. The Scriptures also say that God inhabits the praises of His people.

We are going to praise God in just a moment. In fact, I'll invite the worship team up here; they are going to lead us in a praise song shortly. We will partake of communion, which is a great way to remember Christ's body broken and His blood shed. You might even consider rededicating yourself during this time of praise to the Lord. Remember, He inhabits the praises of His people.

You don't need Anthony and the team to play music for you to praise God. You can do so on the 15 freeway. I know it seems crazy to praise God in traffic on a Monday morning, but you can totally do it right there. Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you through this dedicated consecration. God created you for a purpose, and He calls you to fulfill it. By committing yourself wholeheartedly to Him through prayer, dedication, and worship, God will draw near to you and work in profound ways—ways that are beyond anything you can think or imagine. He has an awesome ability to blow our minds about what He wants to do.

Let me tell you, just as in Israel 3,400 years ago at the time of Samson, when everyone did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and there was no ruling moral governing principle in the culture, we find ourselves 3,400 years later in the same predicament. We say, "God, would You deliver us?" I believe the eyes of the Lord look to and fro throughout the whole land, looking for someone whose heart is committed and dedicated, like Manoah and his unnamed wife, so that He might be able to move in that place and in that time. Oh, would to God that He'd do it again!

Amen. Oh Lord, we pray as we prepare our hearts for communion that You would move in a powerful way in our lives. First, Lord...

Draw us into a deeper commitment. Maybe that means we get up a half hour earlier. Perhaps it means we spend five more minutes in the Bible. It could also mean we set aside some time tomorrow to pray. Maybe it even means we set aside our own desires for food and fast. Who knows? But in some way, as we draw near to You, You will draw near to us, and You will do great and mighty things that we can't even comprehend—exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think.

Oh God, we desperately need that. Millions and millions of people on Tuesday night this week will tune in to a thing on TV to try and see if maybe one of these individuals is our deliverer. Lord, only You are our hope. We desperately need Your power by Your Spirit to move through us, Your church—not just Cross Connection Church, but all the other churches in this area and in this nation. God, move powerfully, we pray. We pray this today in Jesus' name.

As we sing praise songs, if you have not received the elements for communion, some of our ushers will bring them to you. Hold on to them, and we will partake together in just a moment. But let's sing praise to the Lord and expect Him to draw near to us as we draw near to Him.

Lord, we thank You for Your goodness. We thank You for Your goodness displayed in the grace that You give to broken vessels like Samson and like each of us this morning. We thank You for Your grace and Your love displayed in that Jesus, Your body was broken for us, and Your blood was shed for us. Even when we were dead in trespasses and sins, by grace we have been saved.

Paul, in 1 Corinthians 11, says, "For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus, on the same night that He was betrayed, took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, 'Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you. Do this in remembrance of Me.'"

Let's remember the Lord by partaking together. Lord, You were wounded for our transgressions. You were bruised for our iniquities. The punishment for our peace was upon You, and by Your stripes...

We are healed in the same manner He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup is the New Covenant in My blood. This do as often as you drink it in remembrance of Me." Let's partake together.

Oh, we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to our own way, and Lord, You laid on Him our iniquity. Jesus, Your blood was shed that we could be made whole once again. We praise You and thank You.

Let's stand together. You can pass your cups to the center aisles if you'd like. If you're around Ryan and Kayla or Scott here in the back, maybe just put a hand on their shoulder. God, we do lift these two couples into Your hands. We pray that You go before them and that You would open doors for them on the East Coast. We're sorry to see them go, but would You bless them and draw them into church fellowships there, that they can be a blessing and be blessed.

Lord, we praise You for the way they have been a witness and servants of You here, and we trust that they will be there. Would You just pour out a great blessing upon them?

God, would You pour out a great blessing upon Your people gathered here this morning as we prepare to go from this place into the mission field that You have called us to, to fulfill the purpose that You have called us unto? Help us to be committed to You, dedicated to You this morning, and trusting in You for Your empowering and Your grace. Without You, we can do nothing, but we can do all things through You who gives us strength. So strengthen Your people, we pray. In our weakness, we are made strong by Your Spirit, so we boast in our weaknesses.

May the Lord bless and keep you. May He make His face to shine upon you and be gracious to you. May He lift up His countenance upon you and give you His peace. The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, and the fellowship of His Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen.