Irrevocable

Read: Judges 13

You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and his hair must never be cut. For he will be dedicated to God as a Nazirite from birth. He will begin to rescue Israel from the Philistines. Judges 13:5

IN WORD

The holy visitor announced specific plans for the coming child, which included his being set apart under a vow and his role as a deliverer of Israel. So when Samson grew up to violate the vow often and squander the strength he had been given, we could assume that the plan had been forfeited. If he didn’t live up to his conditions, God surely wouldn’t follow through with the promise, right? God had big plans, and Samson had blown them.

To a degree, that’s true. Samson fell tragically short of his potential because of his recklessness. Yet God still made him a deliverer of Israel. The prophecy was fulfilled. Samson began to throw off the yoke of Philistine oppressors. And in his cavalier approach to life, he illustrated a great mystery in the divine-human relationship that we still have not unraveled: how a holy God can work through extremely flawed people to accomplish His good purposes, even when those people violate His words.

Yet this is exactly what God does. When we think we’ve messed up His plan, He accomplishes it anyway. Looking back, we can see how He accounted for our mistakes even before we made them. He knew the future, including its tragic and regrettable turns. When He makes a promise, He already knows every obstacle that will come against it. And He knows the promise will stand.

IN DEED

We may wonder why God chose Samson as a deliverer in the first place. There had to have been people with better character to choose from. Perhaps He intended for Samson to be an example as well as a deliverer, evidence to future generations that He does not revoke His gifts even when His people fail. He loves faithfulness, but He can work through those who stumble every step of the way. In spite of our flaws, God always finds a way to fulfill His promises.

ADDITIONAL READING: Romans 11:29

God is not defeated by human failure.

WILLIAM J. C. WHITE