Drew Boswell

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“One Thing Leads to Another” Judges 14:10-15:20

The Story of Samson

A Sermon Series

“One Thing Leads to Another”

Judges 14:10-15:20

Introduction

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjE2Kffq8Fk God intends to separate his people from the enemies of God. Like a chain reaction, we will see one thing leading to another – or at least that was the plan.

Samson’s Wife’s Betrayal Leads to Anger (vv. 10-20)

10 His father went down to the woman, and Samson prepared a feast there, for so the young men used to do. 11 As soon as the people saw him, they brought thirty companions to be with him. 12 And Samson said to them, “Let me now put a riddle to you. If you can tell me what it is, within the seven days of the feast, and find it out, then I will give you thirty linen garments and thirty changes of clothes, 13 but if you cannot tell me what it is, then you shall give me thirty linen garments and thirty changes of clothes.” And they said to him, “Put your riddle, that we may hear it.” 14 And he said to them, “Out of the eater came something to eat. Out of the strong came something sweet.” And in three days they could not solve the riddle. 15 On the fourth day they said to Samson’s wife, “Entice your husband to tell us what the riddle is, lest we burn you and your father’s house with fire. Have you invited us here to impoverish us?” 16 And Samson’s wife wept over him and said, “You only hate me; you do not love me. You have put a riddle to my people, and you have not told me what it is.” And he said to her, “Behold, I have not told my father nor my mother, and shall I tell you?” 17 She wept before him the seven days that their feast lasted, and on the seventh day he told her, because she pressed him hard. Then she told the riddle to her people. 18 And the men of the city said to him on the seventh day before the sun went down, “What is sweeter than honey? What is stronger than a lion?” And he said to them, “If you had not plowed with my heifer, you would not have found out my riddle.”

In this interaction between Samson and his wife, we see Samson’s weakness toward women – he knows he shouldn’t tell her. He knows she will probably betray him to her people, but he tells her anyway. In her presence, he can’t think rationally. She cried, and said, “you don’t love me,” and he folded like a chair at the beach. Despite his super human strength he is helpless when confronted with the emotions of a woman.

The conversation between Samson and his wife shows there is no depth to their relationship beyond looks. “If he had not told his parents, then what made her think that he would tell her? She was engaged to a man who had no desire for intimate companionship with her beyond the physical. . . She was willing to deceive and betray her betrothed husband to save her parents, and herself, while he saw nothing wrong in being more attached to his parents than to his wife.”[1] And in a moment he calls her a heifer, which in an insult then just as it is today.

19 And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him, and he went down to Ashkelon and struck down thirty men of the town and took their spoil and gave the garments to those who had told the riddle. In hot anger he went back to his father’s house. 20 And Samson’s wife was given to his companion, who had been his best man.

When Samson is attacked by a lion, and when he attacks this group of Philistines, it says, “the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him.” God is using Samson’s lustful heart, and He is using his rage and anger to cause a division between the Israelites and the Philistines.

(v. 20) while Samson is away killing a town to gather the debt of clothes he owes, his wife is given away by the father of the bride to his best man at the wedding feast. This leads to another action Samson will take in anger against the Philistines. One action leads to another action – deepening the distance between the peoples. What began as two people’s living together, undiscernible (Israelites and the Philistines) – now begin to separate back into two peoples.

“The Lord ultimately works good out of sinful human actions (Genesis 50:20; Romans 8:28). The text does not say that God approved Samson’s actions, only that He used them to fulfill his will. God can bring good out of anything, usually in spite of human weakness.”[2]

Samson’s Anger Leads to Destruction (15:1-8)

After some days, at the time of wheat harvest, Samson went to visit his wife with a young goat. And he said, “I will go in to my wife in the chamber.” But her father would not allow him to go in. 2 And her father said, “I really thought that you utterly hated her, so I gave her to your companion. Is not her younger sister more beautiful than she? Please take her instead.” 3 And Samson said to them, “This time I shall be innocent in regard to the Philistines, when I do them harm.”

Samson goes back to his home, cools down, and “After some days, at the time of wheat harvest,” goes back to try and rebuild the relationship with his wife. As a gift he brings a young goat (that would be a bouquet of flowers today). Thinking this gift will make things right, he quickly reveals why he wants to return, ““I will go in to my wife in the chamber.”

The husband that leaves angry, abandoning his wife (for months), expects for everything to be made right with a young goat? With no communication with his wife, he shows up wanting to consummate the union. His now ex-father-in-law thinking that he hated his daughter has given her to his best man. Now angry again, he sets out to get revenge.

4 So Samson went and caught 300 foxes and took torches. And he turned them tail to tail and put a torch between each pair of tails. 5 And when he had set fire to the torches, he let the foxes go into the standing grain of the Philistines and set fire to the stacked grain and the standing grain, as well as the olive orchards. 6 Then the Philistines said, “Who has done this?” And they said, “Samson, the son-in-law of the Timnite, because he has taken his wife and given her to his companion.” And the Philistines came up and burned her and her father with fire. 7 And Samson said to them, “If this is what you do, I swear I will be avenged on you, and after that I will quit.” 8 And he struck them hip and thigh with a great blow, and he went down and stayed in the cleft of the rock of Etam.

Samson wanted revenge for his wife being given to another man, so he tied fox’s tails together with a lit torch and burned their fields and stored grain. So, in retaliation they burned his wife and her father with fire. Then Samson in retaliation to that, went and killed all those involved with their death. God’s plan of causing increasing division between the people’s is working.

Samson’s Destruction Leads to Victory (vv. 9-17)

9 Then the Philistines came up and encamped in Judah and made a raid on Lehi. 10 And the men of Judah said, “Why have you come up against us?” They said, “We have come up to bind Samson, to do to him as he did to us.” 11 Then 3,000 men of Judah went down to the cleft of the rock of Etam, and said to Samson, “Do you not know that the Philistines are rulers over us? What then is this that you have done to us?” And he said to them, “As they did to me, so have I done to them.” 12 And they said to him, “We have come down to bind you, that we may give you into the hands of the Philistines.” And Samson said to them, “Swear to me that you will not attack me yourselves.” 13 They said to him, “No; we will only bind you and give you into their hands. We will surely not kill you.” So they bound him with two new ropes and brought him up from the rock.

(v. 11) “Do you not know that the Philistines are rulers over us? What then is this that you have done to us?” – God’s people are more concerned with keeping the peace with the world and worshiping their gods, rather than being set free. God’s people were commanded to occupy the land and drive out the enemy. They would rather hand over their deliverer than risk having a confrontation with the world. “It never occurred to God’s people that God, instead of the Philistines, might rule over them. It would seem that they are on covenant with the Philistines instead of God.”[3]

Are we more concerned with being seen as creditable, reasonable, and community minded over sold-out passionate disciples of Jesus Christ. Let us be like Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in Daniel 3 when faced with bowing down before king Nebuchadnezzar’s giant golden statue, “But if not, (if God does not deliver us) be it known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up.”

Romans 12:18 “If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all.” We shouldn’t go around looking to pick fights with the world. But accepting sinful behavior as your own, watering down God’s word to make people happy, or calling sin good and that which is good evil is morally reprehensible. The church has the truth of God and it is our responsibility to share it with the world.

Instead of sending an army against the enemy, they send an army against Samson – the judge. This group of Israelite leaders come to bind Samson to hand him over (so the back and forth of retaliation would stop), again we have a picture of people doing “what seemed right in their owns eyes,” Samson says the anti-Golden rule “As they did to me, so have I done to them.” The Philistines want to do to Samson, as he had done to them. Jesus’ version of this was, Matthew 7:12 “So whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets.”

14 When he came to Lehi (means jawbone), the Philistines came shouting to meet him. Then the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon him, and the ropes that were on his arms became as flax that has caught fire, and his bonds melted off his hands. 15 And he found a fresh jawbone of a donkey, and put out his hand and took it, and with it he struck 1,000 men. 16 And Samson said, “With the jawbone of a donkey, heaps upon heaps, with the jawbone of a donkey have I struck down a thousand men.” 17 As soon as he had finished speaking, he threw away the jawbone out of his hand. And that place was called Ramath-lehi. (the hill of a jawbone)

Samson looks for a handy weapon, and there is a fresh carcass of a donkey. He snatches the jawbone and uses it as a weapon. Which again is a violation of his Nazarite requirement. The big three are 1) don’t drink anything from the vine 2) don’t cut your hair, and 3) don’t touch anything dead. But even though he has broken the law, and is unclean, Samson still has the God-given strength to kill 1,000 men– and while he is doing it, stacking bodies as the swings the jawbone, he sings a little song (which in Hebrew I am sure sounds better).

Why does God still use Samson, and even apparently bless his efforts, if he continually violates God’s law and commandments? Is God’s blessing on our lives contingent on our being faithful to Him? Or Will God’s plan be accomplished regardless of our behavior?

Samson’s Victory Leads the Israelites Nowhere (vv. 18-20)

18 And he was very thirsty, and he called upon the Lord and said, “You have granted this great salvation by the hand of your servant, and shall I now die of thirst and fall into the hands of the uncircumcised?” 19 And God split open the hollow place that is at Lehi, and water came out from it.[4] And when he drank, his spirit returned, and he revived. Therefore the name of it was called En-hakkore; it is at Lehi to this day. 20 And he judged Israel in the days of the Philistines twenty years.

This is the first time that we see Samson talk with God. God has delivered him from a lion, a debt he owed, and now an army of 1,000 men.

(v. 20) Samson, as a judge, led Israel for twenty years. In all the other judges there was leadership toward deliverance. Something was accomplished over a period of time – Samson did not lead them toward deliverance; he had super human strength so people feared him, but he didn’t use his gift to move the people toward anything. The Philistines remained, it says, “in the days of the Philistines.”

God gives His people gifts to lead toward something,

But if there is moral corruption the gifts do not lead to anything.

 It is possible to have these gifts from the Lord, and not grow in your relationship with God. Samson had “the Spirit of the Lord rush upon him,” three times; wouldn’t you expect to see him growing in character and as a person? Yet in one short sentence we see twenty years jump by, and Samson remains the same and God’s people remain the same.

“It is possible to have the gifts of the Spirit, yet lack the fruit of the Spirit. In 1 Cor. 12 and 14, Paul tells us that “gifts” of the Spirit are skills for doing – abilities for serving and helping people, though they can be used for other ends, too. But in Galatians 5:22-23, Paul tells us that the “fruit” of the Spirit are character traits of being – qualities such as peace, patience, gentleness, self-control. Then in 1 Cor. 13:1-3, Paul tells us that it is possible to have skills (or gifts) of teaching and leadership – and yet lack the fruit of love, without which gifts are worth ‘nothing.’” [5]

 God gives believers gifts, but if they don’t use them to move the church forward – what’s the point? God gives believers gifts, but if they use them for their own selfish purposes – what’s the point?

There is a distinction between gifts and fruit of the Spirit. Just because you are incredibly gifted, does not mean that you where you need to be spiritually. This is why we see mega church pastors preach these amazing sermons, then we discover later that they had been having an affair for years. It is because they are gifted, but morally corrupt.

The spirit of the Lord was with Samson to help him accomplish God’s ultimate plan (separating the Israelites from the Philistines) – yet Samson was morally corrupt.

Your gifting if not an accurate gauge of your spiritual health.

 One other thing on gifts verses fruit – the Christian’s gifting is given to be used within the church. You have been given a gift by God that He intends for you to use within the church. Samson never built an army, he never recruited anyone to be apart of what he was doing – he was a one-man show. It’s easier to hide your spiritual immaturity (and sinful behavior) if you don’t engage in the church.

 “All of Samson’s achievements are personal, and all are provoked by his own (mis)behavior. Unlike the other deliverers, he never seeks to rid Israel of foreign oppressors, and he never calls out for the Israelite troops. Samson is a man with a higher calling than any other deliverer in the book, but he spends his whole life “doing his own thing.”[6]

Conclusion

Think about this, “This person uniquely set apart, called, and gifted for divine service – not only fraternizes with the enemy, but also seeks to live among them.”[7] The tragedy of his life was not that he never got the woman he wanted, but he never became the man God wanted him to be. Hebrews 11 is called the Hall of Faith, look at verse 32 “And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—” . . . among the names like David (a man after God’s own heart) and Samuel (the boy who said, “here I am!”) is Samson – the selfish, lustful, impulsive strong man. Come back next week and let’s see if he changes.

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[1] W. Gary Phillips, Holman Old Testament Commentary, Judges, Ruth (Nashville, Tennessee; Holman Reference, 2004) 223.

[2] J Harris, C. Brown, & M. Moore, New International Biblical Commentary, Joshua, Judges, Ruth (Peabody, Massachusetts; Hendrickson Publishing, 2000) 245.

[3] J. Clinton McCann, Interpretation, A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching, Judges (Louisville, Kentucky, John Knox Press, 2002) 105.

[4] Exodus 17:1-7

[5] Timothy Keller, Judges For You (USA; The Good Book Company, 2013) 147.

[6] Daniel I Block, The New American Commentary, Judges & Ruth (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman & Holman, 1999) 441.

[7] Block, 438.

Christ’s Power Over Every Need The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series “Marriage & Children” Mark 10:1-16

Christ’s Power Over Every Need

The Gospel of Mark Sermon Series

“Marriage & Children”

Mark 10:1-16

Introduction

In 2005, the Guinness Book of World Records said that Percy and Florence Arrowsmith held two records—the longest marriage of a living couple (80 years) and having the largest married couple’s aggregate age (205 years).

Both Mr. and Mrs. Arrowsmith have since died, but they left good advice for those who want to have a lasting marriage. Florence said, “You must never go to sleep bad friends. If you’ve had a quarrel, you make it up. Never be afraid to say, ‘sorry’.”

Percy had slightly more humorous advice. He said the secret to his long marriage was just two words, “Yes, dear.”[1]

Prayer

In Intention of Marriage (vv. 1-12)

“And he left there and went to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan, and crowds gathered to him again. And again, as was his custom, he taught them. 2 And Pharisees came up and in order to test him asked, “Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?” 3 He answered them, “What did Moses command you?” 4 They said, “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce and to send her away.”5 And Jesus said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.

When we close chapter nine we have six months until the cross, and when we get to the opening verses of chapter 10 we are only weeks away. There are caravans and multitudes of people traveling to Jerusalem.[2] So, as they are moving and traveling, Jesus is teaching them.

 (v. 1) “went to the region of Judea and beyond the Jordan” – “The fact that Jesus was in Perea, Herod Antipas’s territory, may be significant. Antipas had put John the Baptist to death because John had denounced Antipas’s marriage and divorce. The Pharisees are hoping that Jesus would get himself into trouble with Antipas and would suffer the same cruel fate as John (head on a platter).”[3] John the Baptist died because he took a stand on this subject.

Also, “Herod took John the Baptist’s criticism of his marriage as potential incitement to revolt, and it is likely that the political situation in Galilee best explains the original reason for which Jesus was questioned about his views on divorce.”[4]

Mark tells us these religious leaders, the Pharisees, are up to no good, and trying to trip Jesus up, when he says, “in order to test him.”

Jesus references Deuteronomy 24:1 when he says, “What did Moses command you?” and the Pharisees quote their source of authority, Moses, “When a man takes a wife and marries her, if then she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some indecency in her, and he writes her a certificate of divorce and puts it in her hand and sends her out of his house, and she departs out of his house,” Apparently, before Moses’ day, a man could divorce his wife with just a word.

The Pharisees are saying Moses permitted divorce providing a certificate of divorce was given to the wife.[5] Of course they had rules relating to the certificate (it had to be written on durable material, permanent ink, something that wouldn’t fade, etc.) – But they are not having the discussion of God’s intention behind marriage, only the loop holes, the short cuts, and the way out.

“On the question of the lawfulness of divorce, there was general unanimity among the Jews: divorce was allowed. The real difference of opinion centered on the grounds for divorce. . . In Duet. 24:1 the crucial words are “something indecent.”[6] There were two schools that one typically fell into.

“The school of Shammai, the stricter of the schools, understood these words to mean something morally indecent, in particular, adultery. But remember that “the penalty for adultery was not divorce, under the Mosaic code, but death.”[7]

The school of Hillel interpreted the words much more freely. Just about anything in a wife that a husband did not find to his liking was suitable grounds for divorce. Even if she burned food.”[8] Where Jesus stood between these two schools, and to get him to say something that could be used against him was their goal.

 Remember that the book of Mark was not written to the Jewish people, but to the Roman believers; so there would be little interest in the rabbinical teachings on the law, their focus would have been “in Jesus’ teaching about God’s will.”[9]

Jesus does not question the law. But he reaches back to first principles. God’s design for a man and woman was that marriage should be an unbroken lifelong union. Jesus is pointing out that because man’s hearts are rebellious, he gives provisions that are intended to slow down the effects of sin upon society. The rabbis mistook God’s gracious provision in allowing divorce as his approval of it.”

(v. 5) “And Jesus said to them, “Because of your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment.” – The law was an attempt to promote some order and restraint in the society to which it was first given. The reason for the law was the people’s “hardness of heart.” The people were set on doing what they thought and desired; they were blind and unteachable as far as God’s will for them was concerned.[10]

When Jesus comments on Moses’ statement in that it is not a reflection of the will of God but instead reflects the stubbornness of the Israelites (v. 5) – this would have been unique and striking.[11] The men were throwing their wives to the side for the most insignificant of reasons. 

6 But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ 7 ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, 8 and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. 9 What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.”

Jesus moves the discussion from “is it lawful?” to the purpose of God for marriage. Jesus turns to the beginning of creation; It is God’s purpose for mankind, male and female, to be joined together by God – a holy union. God joined the man and woman together. Man should not separate what God put together. “Mere formal divorce does not annul the actual marriage consummated by the physical union. Breaking that bond does annul it.”[12]

Since marriage is a lifelong union between a man and a woman, its’ claims take precedence over ties to father and mother (v.7). “So they are no longer two but one flesh” – they are one unit.

(v. 9) “therefore God has joined together” – means literally “yoked together” It graphically stresses the importance of husband and wife working together as a team of oxen yoked together. God has put a man and woman together to work for the glory of God, with their family.

In Genesis 1:27 “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” “In this passage men and women are presented on equal ground. Both are to be respected, and they are equal partners. “In the social and economic context of ancient Palestine, the absolute right of the husband to divorce often meant great hardship for divorced wives, who might be given one lump-sum economic settlement if they were not accused of unchastity.

This sum, however would be no more than the woman’s dowry given at marriage, and that might be very small if the woman had poor parents.”[13] Jesus is rejecting the idea of women being property and the wife has rights in the context of marriage, based upon the creation account.

“Jesus defines marriage as a relationship in which both husband and wife are responsible both to each other and to God for maintaining its sanctity.”[14]

10 And in the house the disciples asked him again about this matter. 11 And he said to them, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her, 12 and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

Mark does not tell us how the Pharisees respond to Jesus’ comment. Instead, we go immediately into house again for a private conversation.

“In rabbinic Judaism a woman by infidelity could commit adultery against her husband; and a man, by having sexual relations with another man’s wife, could commit adultery against him. But a man could never commit adultery against his wife, no matter what he did.”[15]

(v. 11) By Jesus saying, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her” – is putting the man under the same moral obligation as the wife, thereby raising the status and dignity of women. Whatever the reason for a divorce someone’s heart along the way was hardened toward God, and this was reflected in the marriage. Jesus is directly targeting men who are being cruel in how they are divorcing their wives, and against their perverse disregard of the purpose of the Creator when he formed man from the dust and joined husband and wife together.

The Innocence of Children (vv. 13-15)

“And they were bringing children to him that he might touch them, and the disciples rebuked them. 14 But when Jesus saw it, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 15 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” 16 And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.”

 It was a custom for parents to bring their children to great men and have them blessed.[16] Here we then see parents bringing their children to Jesus, and he was blessing them. Parents are wanting a better future for their children, a blessed future.

This is the point of a godly household and parents, to bring their children to Jesus. Ephesians 6:4 “bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.”

But the disciples are rebuking them. Why did the disciples want to keep parents and children away from Jesus? They were keeping parents and children from experiencing Jesus. The disciples tried to stop the anonymous exorcist (Mark 9:38-41) from casting out demons, and “Jesus said, “Do not stop him,” Here the disciples are again, trying to stop people.

The disciples haven’t captured the spirit of Jesus. We ask, how can they have been with Jesus so long, and heard all that He said, and still miss the things that Jesus really cared about. They still seem calloused toward people (ex. hungry people, those outside the twelve).

“he was indignant” – “It was a strong word of deep emotion (from agan and acthomai, to feel pain).”[17] “The disciples attempt to turn the children aside because they were unimportant, is one more instance of a persistent tendency to think in wholly human, fallen categories which Jesus had rebuked on earlier occasions (Mark 8:33; 9:33-37). The kingdom of God is made up of “childlike” earthly unimportant people.

(v. 14) “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them,” – hinder is an active, conscience, intentional blocking or obstruction. “for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 15 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter.”

“The kingdom is that which God gives and that which man receives. Essential to the comparison developed in verse 15 is the objective littleness and helplessness of the child, which is presupposed in verse 14 as well. The kingdom may be entered only by one who knows he is helpless and small, without claim or merit.”[18]

(v. 16) “And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.” – “A papyrus dated Alexandria, June 17, 1 B.C. contains a letter of instruction from a husband to his expectant wife, who he supposes may have had her child: “if it was a male child, let it live; if it was a female, cast it out.” Jesus shows his love for all children, which is freely given to all who would receive it.

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[1] https://ministry127.com/resources/illustration/the-secret-to-a-lasting-marriage

[2] Archibald Thomas Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, Volume 1 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1930) 348.

[3] Frank E. Gaebelein, General Editor, The Expositor’s Bible Dictionary, Volume 8 (Grand Rapids, Michigan; Zondervan Publishing, 1984) 710.

[4] Larry Hurtado, New International Biblical Commentary, Mark (Peabody Massachusetts; Hendrickson Publishing, 2001) 160.

[5] An example of an eleventh-century Jewish divorce certificate, “On . . .[date], I . . .[name], son of . . . and of . . .. of my own free will and purpose and without an coercion whatsoever, do divorce, set free, and repudiate you, . . . [name], so that you are now free and in full possession of your own person, with the right to go and be married to whmever you choose. . .” Buttrick, 796.

[6] Gaebelein, 710.

[7] George Arthur Buttrick, The Interpreter’s Bible, Volume 7 (Nashville, Tennessee; Abingdon Press, 1953) 795. See also, John 8:2-11 The woman caught in adultery.

[8] Gaebelein, 710.

[9] Clifton J. Allen, The Broadman Bible Commentary, Volume 8 (Nashville, Tennessee; Broadman Press, 1969) 346.

[10] Allen, 346.

[11] Hurtado, 160.

[12] Robertson, 349.

[13] Hurtado, 160.

[14] Hurtado, 161.

[15] Gaebelein, 712.

[16] Genesis 48:13-20.

[17] Robertson, 350.

[18] William L. Lane, The New International Commentary on the New Testament, The Gospel of Mark (Grand Rapids, Michigan; William B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1974) 361.

A Reaction to The Ashley Madison.com Leak: Genesis 3

 

imagesEd Stetzer in an article submitted to Christianity Today said, “Based on my conversations with leaders from several denominations in the U.S. and Canada, I estimate that at least 400 church leaders (pastors, elders, staff, deacons, etc.) will be resigning Sunday.”[1] That means that tomorrow (Sunday) across the country over 400 faith communities will be losing their pastors, key leaders, deacons, staff members, etc. because of the Ashley Madison leak of membership information. The truth is that 40 million men’s sin has come to light. As a man who himself sins, I do not judge nor point a finger. These men thought their sin would remain hidden, as we all do.

Ashley Madison is a website that advertised itself as a means for a man to have an affair. But as we will see it really made it easier for a man to have the fantasy of having an affair. Popular figures, NFL stars, and millions of other not-as-popular men’s names have been placed on the internet for the world to see. There have also been a string of suicides to this information leak where men were unable to deal with their sin being exposed.

In an article for Gizmodo.com Annalee Newitz wrote, “Overall, the picture is grim indeed. Out of 5.5 million female accounts, roughly zero percent had ever shown any kind of activity at all, after the day they were created.”[2] As the story develops it has become clear that the site was made up of 40 million people. 35 million were men who paid to have access to women’s accounts (who supposedly wanted to have an affair.) Of the less than 5 million all but around 3,000 were shown to be false accounts generated by ashleymadison.com. These were women’s accounts that were completely fake. So 35 million men were interacting with false accounts.

Newitz says, “The men’s accounts tell a story of lively engagement with the site, with over 20 million men hopefully looking at their inboxes, and over 10 million of them initiating chats. The women’s accounts show so little activity that they might as well not be there.”[3] There was no statistically mentionable activity by the women.

So what does this mean? It means that many men were paying for the fantasy of having an affair, but not many actually were having a “real” affair. They weren’t aware of it, but the fantasy alone was enough to drive them to keep checking their e-mail on the site and to sift through the fake accounts. Newitz goes on to says, “Either way, we’re left with data that suggests Ashley Madison is a site where tens of millions of men write mail, chat, and spend money for women who aren’t there.”[4]

How does this happen?

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Sin’s Transformation

Genesis 3:6

[6] “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate.”

Independence

Eve observes the forbidden fruit and made up in her mind that it looked ok to eat. She believed the serpent’s lies that God was keeping something “good” from her. This is what has snagged us all. We say things like, “I don’t see anything wrong with this.” “It looks ok to me, in fact I believe that this will make me very happy.” “God is trying to keep this from me, because he doesn’t want me to have this.”

The fruit wasn’t rotten, “it was good to eat.” The fruit looked very appealing, it wasn’t gross. She knew that this experience would allow her to know something that God did not want her to know. God tries to keep certain experiences away from us not because He wants to keep some happiness from us, but instead He wants what’s best for us.

Adam instead of being the leader of the home, became the follower. Instead of correcting his wife and telling her the truth, he buys into the lie as well. He was right there the whole time. Satan had gone to the woman to disrupt the created order of what God had established. Adam became the woman (helper) and the woman became the man (leading).

Separation

Now when it is too late, they saw the folly of eating the forbidden fruit. They saw the happiness they had fallen from, and the misery they had fallen into. They saw a loving God provoked, his grace and favor forfeited, his likeness and image lost, dominion over the creatures gone.

They saw their natures corrupted and depraved, and felt the disorder in their own spirits of which they had never before been conscious. They saw a law in their members warring against the law of their minds, and captivating them both to sin and wrath. They saw as Balaam, when his eyes were opened (Num. 22:31), the angel of the Lord standing in the way, and his sword drawn in hand.

Their eyes were opened but what they saw they did not want to see. They saw themselves separated from God. Isaiah 59:2 says “But your iniquities have separated you from your God; your sins have hidden his face from you, so that he will not hear.”

Because God is holy and righteous, He will not continue in friendship with those who disobey His commands. He hates everything that is wrong and punishes all disobedience of His commands by death.Romans 6:23 says “…the wages of sin is death…” Because Adam and Eve disobeyed God, they were cut off from their friendship with God. Their relationship with God was dead.

They had taken sides with God’s great enemy, Satan, and they too, were now the enemies of God.

Imagine a green branch broken from a tree it would not die immediately, but in time separated from its life source it would die. The same thing happened to Adam and Eve. Death wasn’t evident in their bodies on the day they disobeyed God. But they had died to God.

That part of them which was made in God’s image, so they could know, love, and obey God, was immediately separated from God when they disobeyed His command. Their bodies would also eventually die, and they would go to a place of punishment which God prepared for Satan and the evil spirits.

Adam and Eve thought that they could cover their own sin. But God does not accept us based upon our outward appearance and behavior. Just as Adam and Eve tried to make themselves acceptable to God by putting on clothes, many people today think that they can make themselves acceptable to God by the outward appearance of respectability – becoming church members, being good parents, being law abiding citizens, holding membership in civic and charitable organizations.

I Sam. 17:7 says, “. . . man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.” Are you trying to cover your heart condition by trying to look a certain way on the outside?

Genesis 3:8

[8] “And they heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden.”

 God would come to the couple everyday at a certain time (in the cool of the day) and they would talk and learn. It was the couple’s responsibility to oversee the Garden and the animals, and they would seek advice and direction from God. “Walked with God” is a favorite expression in Genesis, depicting the righteous conduct of Israel’s hero’s, including Enoch, Noah, and Abraham. Adam and Eve had a perfect relationship with God until now.

Now they hid amongst some trees and were seeking to hide their sin from their creator. They were embarrassed to be in front of each other. Eve because she had led them into rebellion and Adam because he had followed her, he participated in the sin.

There were signs that they were now separated from God:

 First, their attitude toward their bodies changed immediately. Before they disobeyed God, they were naked but unembarrassed. Now they were separated from God, and their minds were no longer under God’s control. Their minds became evil, and their attitude toward their bodies changed. They were embarrassed by their naked bodies.

Secondly, they tried to provide for their own needs. Before they were separated from God, they looked to God to provide everything they needed. But now they tried to do things for themselves. They clothed themselves with fig leaves. They no longer trusted God to give them what they needed. They were trying to live independently of God.

 Sin has transformed the world. It brought a separation between the man and the woman but more importantly, it brought a separation between everyone and God. God could no longer come and walk with them because He cannot allow sin in his presence. Their relationship was broken.

But God has sent a Second Adam. This Adam corrected the mistake that the first Adam made. His name is Jesus Christ. I Cor. 15:45 says “So it is written: “The first man Adam became a living being” ; the last Adam, a life giving spirit. Jesus came to fix what was destroyed at creation.

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It is my hope that when the men who stand before their congregations tomorrow that the congregants will see that they have fallen for the same lie that all mankind have fallen into. It is my hope that the churches will handle their admissions with grace and mercy and an understanding that they are themselves sinners. I hope that the men who step down get the help that they need (in their marriages, in their personal lives, with their children) and that they will come to see another path for their lives. We serve a God who is never surprised, but always have a plan. The universal fall of man is not an excuse, for leaders are held to a higher standard (1 Tim. 3:1-13 and Tit. 1:5-9).

God can take our sin and in His omnipotent power take our mistakes and use them for His glory. If you are on the list, then admit it, step down, mourn the sin, seek to rebuild the relationships, but don’t give up. God is still with you, “for He will never leave you nor forsake you” (Heb. 13:5,6). We have all experienced the emptiness of sin and how it leaves us betrayed.

These men tried to fill an emptiness within them that God had designed to be found somewhere else. We have all done this (in other ways and forms). We should never excuse the sin, nor seek to run from it. It should be dealt with as Scripture commands, but at the same time our attitudes should not be the same as the men who rush to throw stones at the adulteress only to see Jesus writing something in the sand.

John 8:3-9

“The scribes and the Pharisees brought a woman who had been caught in adultery, and placing her in the midst 4 they said to him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the act of adultery. 5 Now in the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. So what do you say?” 6 This they said to test him, that they might have some charge to bring against him. Jesus bent down and wrote with his finger on the ground. 7 And as they continued to ask him, he stood up and said to them, “Let him who is without sin among you be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 And once more he bent down and wrote on the ground. 9 But when they heard it, they went away one by one, beginning with the older ones, and Jesus was left alone with the woman standing before him.”

What did Jesus write in the sand?

Perhaps a website.

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[1] http://www.christianitytoday.com/edstetzer/2015/august/my-pastor-is-on-ashley-madison-list.html

[2] http://gizmodo.com/almost-none-of-the-women-in-the-ashley-madison-database-1725558944

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid.

 

 

"For by grace you have been saved through faith." Ephesians 2:8

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