Police Devotional
“Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall.” (1 Corinthians 10:12)
In police work, you see how sin can ruin people’s lives, including officers’ lives. So you need to learn not to play games with temptation. Sin can ruin your marriage, family, career, and reputation. You may have heard of Samson and Delilah. Samson was a man who had a lot going for him but was ruined because he played games with temptation.
God blessed Samson with amazing strength and used him to win many victories against Israel’s enemy, the Philistines. You may know cops who could play the lead in a movie about Samson. Their arms are so big that they look like they need specially-made shirts. It’s great to have guys with that kind of muscle on your side, especially when you’re up against a group of thugs.
Samson had a problem, though. He kept company with sinful people. Ephesians 5:11 warns, “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness.” That doesn’t mean that a Christian shouldn’t talk with lost people; it means that a Christian shouldn’t fellowship with their sin. It means that you don’t go to the sinful places they go: the bars, casinos, or even the after-work “watering hole” with the guys.
Judges 16:4 says, “And it came to pass afterward, that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah.” Delilah was a Philistine. Samson never should have gotten involved with her, but he didn’t want to obey God. He kept company with her and ended up falling in love with her.
Delilah didn’t love the true God, or Samson—her loyalty was to the Philistines. When the lords of the Philistines offered her a reward to find out the secret of Samson’s strength, she was happy to oblige. Delilah asked him how he could be bound. He lied and told her that if he were bound with seven green, undried cords, he’d become weak. So she tied him up with them, and he snapped them. She pouted at him for lying to her. Then she asked him again how he could be bound. He replied that if he were tied with new ropes, he’d become weak. So she tied him up with new ropes. He snapped them, too. She pouted at him again for lying to her and kept asking him how he could be bound.
Samson was obviously having fun teasing her, but he was playing a dangerous game. He was strong and likely used to being in control, but he wasn’t in control here at all. Maybe he thought Delilah was just asking these questions to be flirtatious. Not hardly. She was on the Philistines’ payroll. She knew how to use her feminine charm to get what she wanted, and he was obviously clueless. Reading this story, you almost want to say, “Duh, Samson, why do you think she keeps asking about your strength?”
Finally, her persistence paid off: “And it came to pass, when she pressed him daily with her words, and urged him, so that his soul was vexed unto death; That he told her all his heart” (Judges 16:16-17). Samson told her that he had a vow before God and part of it was not to shave off his hair—that’s what she wanted to hear. She had him doze off, and a man came in and shaved his head. He woke up and found out that “…the LORD was departed from him” (Judges 16:20). God’s blessing was off, his strength was gone, and Delilah walked away with the money. The Philistines put out Samson’s eyes and bound him with fetters in prison. Samson played with temptation one time too many times, and now his life was in shambles.
Don’t think you can’t be entangled, enslaved, and eventually, ruined by some certain sin. It can ruin you like it did Samson, so don’t toy with temptation. If you’ve never seen in the Bible how to be sure that heaven is your eternal home, please click “How do I go to Heaven?” on the sidebar.
Brian Miller 6/1/2015
Cleveland Baptist Church ~ 4431 Tiedeman Road Brooklyn, Ohio 44144 ~ 216/671-2822