Answering the Accuser: From Shame to the Cross

• Samson's Life and Judgment 00:32:50 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor introduces the final days of Samson, noting his 20-year judgeship and the structure of his story showcasing his final days as a strong deliverer.
• Samson's Suffering and Defeat 00:33:04 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor describes Samson's rough choices, his lack of suffering for them previously, and his current state of being mocked and humiliated by the Philistines.
• Spiritual Warfare and Identity 00:33:54 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor draws a parallel between Samson's physical imprisonment and the spiritual enemy's desire to keep believers in 'mud,' enslaved and hopeless, urging them to know their worth in God's eyes.
• Judges Chapter 16 Narrative 00:34:48 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor reads the biblical account of Samson's blinding, imprisonment, and final act of destroying the Philistine temple.
• Guilt vs. Shame 00:38:26 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor distinguishes between guilt (a gift leading to repentance) and shame (a destructive force that convinces us we are beyond redemption).
• The Enemy's Strategy 00:39:22 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor argues that the enemy uses shame to make sinners believe their failure is their identity and legacy.
• God's Mercy and Hope 00:47:01 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor explains that God's mercy refuses to abandon people because of their worst moments, pointing to Samson's hair growing back as a sign of God's ongoing work.
• Christ as the Better Deliverer 00:51:06 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor contrasts Samson's incomplete deliverance with Jesus' perfect obedience and substitutionary atonement, highlighting that Jesus died for sinners rather than because of sin.
• Samson as a Type of Christ 00:50:38 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor contrasts Samson's flawed deliverance and death with Jesus' perfect obedience and sacrificial death, highlighting Jesus as the 'better deliverer'.
• The Nature of the Gospel and Shame 00:52:38 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor defines the gospel as Jesus entering our shame and bearing our sins, contrasting this with the idea that the gospel is merely about guilt.
• Divine Verdict vs. Enemy Accusation 00:54:03 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor explains that God's verdict of acceptance and righteousness replaces the enemy's accusations of failure and condemnation.
• Boasting in the Cross 00:57:09 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor argues that Christians should boast only in the cross because it is the only unshakeable defense against shame and accusation, unlike human achievements.
• Practical Application of Gospel Truth 01:00:01 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor provides practical advice to 'boast in the cross' daily to combat shame cycles and listen to Jesus' voice rather than the enemy's.

• Sermon Illustration 00:31:08 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor shares a story about a five or six-year-old boy riding a dirt bike in the mud. The boy is nervous, but his mother encourages him from behind the camera, telling him 'you got this baby.' The boy repeats this encouragement to himself as he rides, illustrating how hearing a loving voice can provide courage and boldness.
• Sermon Illustration 00:39:53 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor shares a personal anecdote about stealing from his mother's purse at age 10, being caught, and feeling profound shame when his mother asked him to circle negative traits on a school assignment, illustrating how shame convinces us that our actions define our identity.
• Sermon Illustration 00:57:50 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor references a sermon by Timothy Keller asking what evidence one presents in court when Satan accuses them, contrasting human defenses (accomplishments, lineage) with Christ.
• Sermon Illustration 01:04:34 ▶️ 📄
  > The pastor uses a personal analogy of his baby girl turning one, explaining that just as he would never shame her for her developmental pace, God delights in His children rather than shaming them.

[00:05:14] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_01]
[00:05:14] We welcome you to First Presbyterian Church of Mooresville. Our mission is loving God, loving people, and making disciples.
[00:05:21] Glad you chose to be with us in worship today.
[00:05:24] And if anyone is visiting, we hope you feel the warmth of Christ in our midst.
[00:05:29] Before we dive into worship, take a moment to greet your neighbor.
[00:05:34] If you see an unfamiliar face, introduce yourself to them.
[00:07:03] You can find the call to worship both in our bulletin and up on the screen.
[00:07:09] I'll give you a moment to gather yourselves.
[00:07:14] And this comes from Hebrews chapter 11 and 12.
[00:07:17] By faith Abel worshipped, by faith Noah obeyed, by faith Abraham followed, by faith Moses endured.
[00:07:31] And what more can be said?
[00:07:33] For time would fail to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets.
[00:07:55] Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight and sin that so easily entangles.
[00:08:15] Let us now pray together.
[00:08:18] Heavenly Father, for the joy set before your Son, Christ Jesus endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of God.
[00:08:30] as we gather in your presence remind us of the source of our faith and reason to worship we will not boast in our strength but in Christ our God crucified and risen through your Holy Spirit
[00:08:47] prepare our hearts to worship and behold anew the power of Christ's cross all glory and honor be to your name Jesus Christ the Lord amen and if able please stand with us hymn number 366 and join us in and it can be our faith
[00:13:33] together the words of the apostles creed you can also find that in the bulletin or up on the screen i believe in god the father almighty maker of heaven and earth and in jesus christ his only
[00:13:46] son our lord who was conceived by the holy ghost born of the virgin mary suffered under Pontius Pilate was crucified dead and buried he descended into hell the third day he rose again from the dead he ascended into heaven and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty
[00:14:08] from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead I believe in the Holy Ghost the Holy Catholic Church the communion of saints the forgiveness of sins the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. Amen. Please be seated. You can clap in a sense of worshiping the Lord
[00:18:50] and expressing our joy this morning of the gift of music and giving all glory to him. Now in our capital campaign, the legacy campaign, you're going to start to see some work.
[00:19:02] We're going to repair the organ, refurbish the organ, and we've not been using it for a few months now and I have to tell you I haven't heard one complaint with Greg at the piano and we want
[00:19:15] to thank you for how you've been anchoring us during this time and you'll soon see some movement with the stained glass and different aspects you can't see when we replace the boiler you can't see certain other things but you'll notice with windows you'll notice when the organ comes back
[00:19:30] and but meanwhile thank you for your faithfulness and helping us through this phase and we will still worship our lord david uh hamilton is away this week and uh he'll be back he's away this sunday and the following sunday and i know the choir is uh taking a break for
[00:19:47] the summer so thank you thank you and uh as we continue worship i have a few announcements uh one happy father's day i see a number of fathers out there and uh soon to be father and
[00:20:01] And so I hope you all are getting celebrated properly today.
[00:20:06] I want to thank you all.
[00:20:08] Last night, there was a wedding here in this room.
[00:20:11] And as I look out, I run the risk of giving names because probably about a fourth of you somehow were involved in the wedding for our fourth daughter, Kaylee.
[00:20:20] And I will say, Tom Kirkland, thank you for getting this all hooked up this morning.
[00:20:24] This room looked a lot different yesterday.
[00:20:26] And Kaylee and Steve, they're off.
[00:20:31] headed to California for their honeymoon. And just what a joy to celebrate with so many of you yesterday. And my wife and some family, they went to an earlier service because they're now trying to prepare for Father's Day with grandparents and all that. So it's good to be with you this
[00:20:50] morning. Moses will be here soon. He'll be preaching today. And then next Sunday, we'll have a special, well look at that. The parting of the doors as Moses walks through. And next Sunday his wife Jordan will be preaching. Now in the schedule we've been working our way through the
[00:21:15] book of Judges and her passage was having to do with the concubine being killed and chopped up and being, and I thought you know that's a little heavy for Jordan. She's more than willing to do
[00:21:26] it, but we're going to pause on Judges, and she's going to give a wonderful sermon on discipleship, and then I'll be back the following week. We'll close out Judges. My daughter said, don't you dare skip that passage, because you promised the congregation that you wouldn't
[00:21:41] sugarcoat anything or water it down. And really, what I love about the book of Judges, the people back then, we are no better than the people back then. And ultimately, what do we see?
[00:21:53] You know, there aren't perfect judges.
[00:21:55] Moses, you'll see that addressed today with Samson.
[00:21:59] They point to our need for a greater judge.
[00:22:02] They point to our need for a better king.
[00:22:06] And where do we find that?
[00:22:08] In Christ Jesus.
[00:22:10] King of kings, Lord of lords.
[00:22:12] And so we'll continue that.
[00:22:13] But next, this Sunday will be Samson.
[00:22:16] Next Sunday will be a break.
[00:22:17] Jordan, I think you'll be in for a treat with her.
[00:22:20] She is ordained here in the North Carolina Presbytery, and she's a pastor at large, and she's been working on her counseling degree as well.
[00:22:30] And so she offered, and I'm thrilled we'll be watching the live stream next week.
[00:22:35] As we continue in worship, please know all the announcements are in the bulletin, so read through those.
[00:22:42] And please join me as we join our hearts as we come before our Lord in prayer.
[00:22:54] Heavenly Father, it's good to pause.
[00:22:56] our focus this morning is you we're grateful for who you are all you've done on our behalf lord today is a day that we celebrate fathers and as a father i can attest i have my flaws
[00:23:13] and imperfections and i sure if i talk to any father in this room there we've not been perfect but lord uh you have invited us through faith in your son jesus to call you dad papa abba
[00:23:29] And Lord, what an intimate phrase, a relational phrase.
[00:23:33] And Lord, as great and as big and powerful being a sovereign God and how small we are, we are just in awe and words cannot express our gratitude to be called children of God, the Most High, Yahweh.
[00:23:53] And Lord, through your Son, Jesus Christ, we are able to communicate and you invite us and you know us intimately and you care for us. So this morning on Father's Day, we express gratitude for you, the perfect Father, one who loves us unconditionally. Lord, we take a moment
[00:24:15] now to quiet our hearts and confess to you our sins. And we claim that promise when we confess our sins, you're faithful to forgive us and cleanse us of all wrongdoing. Lord, as we worship
[00:24:41] this morning. We're not the only church. There are churches throughout Mooresville and across the globe that are worshiping you. They're singing songs and hymns and praise and saying prayers. And Lord, give us a spirit of unity as churches, not divisiveness. Lord, may we
[00:25:00] not compete with one another. Give us a kingdom mindset. May we work together to be a light, agents of reconciliation and yes lord we we are weak we are like broken vessels yet you choose to work in and through us what a privilege lord we been many people excited about
[00:25:29] the world cup and many different nations coming here to the united states it's been fun i'm not even a soccer fan i find myself getting captured by just the mixing of cultures and the celebration
[00:25:43] and yes there's a competitive spirit but it's fun and Lord may that be a reminder as a church to think outside our walls here in the community also to think beyond here just are simply the
[00:25:58] United States it's not an either or Lord we're committed here to Mooresville and the surrounding communities but we also are committed to global missions we pray for our missionaries abroad many of them in the trenches being faithful not always receiving recognition or glory but
[00:26:18] the satisfaction of serving you and fulfilling your purpose in their lives lord i pray for the individual here in this room or perhaps on the live stream that's going through a perhaps a season of struggle might be wounded might be stuck lord you know their heart better than they
[00:26:45] can express in words lord you have never promised us an easy life trial free or temptation free but you have promised to be there with us and we face storms to to help us through lord i pray for
[00:27:08] that individual may they not lose sight of that of your presence of your power of your love and Lord, when we trust, you always get us through stronger people.
[00:27:23] You know, Apostle Paul said to live is Christ, to die is gain.
[00:27:26] May we not lose perspective, the big picture.
[00:27:28] Here we live in this world, in a sense, as aliens.
[00:27:32] We're passing through, but we're here for a purpose.
[00:27:37] And Lord, it all leads to that certain hope through faith in your son, Jesus, when all things will be made right.
[00:27:46] There will be that day.
[00:27:50] Lord, as Moses delivers the message this morning, please speak in and through him.
[00:27:56] I thank you for his giftedness.
[00:27:57] I thank you for the time he spent preparing for this morning.
[00:28:02] Please speak to us through your Holy Spirit.
[00:28:07] I pray not only for a deeper understanding of the passage this morning, but through that, that we may draw closer to you.
[00:28:14] And now with one voice, we offer you a prayer that Jesus taught his disciples.
[00:28:20] our father who art in heaven hallowed be thy name thy kingdom come thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our debts
[00:28:34] as we forgive our debtors and lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil for thine is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever amen if able please stand and join

[00:28:50] [SPEAKER SPEAKER_02]
[00:28:50] us in this hymn. Good morning, everyone. I'm trying to gather my thoughts after my glorious entrance over there, so I still don't know what you were talking about, but I guess it was great timing. Let's see, we're covering the last half of Judges, and I'll be honest, when I would read
[00:30:51] commentaries and notes, people were torn over Samson. They were treating him too harshly. Maybe they weren't treating him hard enough. And so I was inspired when, in the midst of trying to do my biblical research I decided maybe I should look beyond the books and do some cultural research
[00:31:08] my favorite tool is Facebook and Facebook allows you where you can look at reels and look at videos and I get stuck there longer than I care to admit today but I saw a video of a kid who's about to
[00:31:20] riding a dirt bike and he's about to go and he's like five or six years old no small motorbike do a race of some sort or a time trial in this mud path in front of him and he's nervous you can tell
[00:31:32] in the way he's kind of shaking.
[00:31:33] There's a camera on his helmet.
[00:31:35] And a voice comes from behind the camera.
[00:31:38] It's his mother.
[00:31:39] And his mother is telling him, baby, you got this.
[00:31:43] Just find your line.
[00:31:44] Dig in.
[00:31:45] Don't be afraid.
[00:31:46] You got this, baby.
[00:31:49] An alarm goes off and he takes off, right?
[00:31:52] He revs the engine.
[00:31:54] Mud is spewing everywhere on the camera.
[00:31:56] There's other people guiding the kid along the track.
[00:31:59] But there's a voice that you can hear clearly.
[00:32:02] it's the kid's voice you know what he's saying you got this baby you got this baby you got this baby and I thought that was so cute and I just I wish I knew more about this kid's story but I
[00:32:17] picture him interacting with other kids right I picture him you know seeing those kids who are less scared than him less intimidated maybe you know children being children some are judging him because he's nervous or scared, and all it took for this young boy to have enough courage and
[00:32:35] boldness was to hear his mother's voice replaying in his mind, in his heart. Today we're going to look at the last half of Samson's life. He's again the last judge. He judged Israel for 20 years,
[00:32:50] and the way the author structured his story as to the second half of his story, and it'll repeat he judged Israel for this long, is to showcase the final days of this judge, the strong deliverer.
[00:33:04] And his life is not pretty. In the 20 years that he's been a judge, he's made some pretty rough choices, right? And then he seemed to suffer very little for them. Well, what we're going to read
[00:33:17] today, he's going to be suffering now. And the rotten cherry on top is that the enemies that he was supposed to conquer the Philistines, they're the ones singing now over him, his defeat, mocking him, humiliating him. Their plan is to make Samson their prisoner, their source of
[00:33:40] entertainment for the rest of his life. My friends, there is an enemy in our lives that desires to keep us prisoners, that wants nothing more than to keep you in the mud, to keep you enslaved and
[00:33:54] feeling hopeless. There's an enemy that wants to shame you and make you believe that you're broken, worthless, and that you don't got this baby. What we're going to talk about today though is also that God had a different plan in mind for Samson. God has a different plan in mind for you
[00:34:16] that you would know your worth in his eyes. Tell the enemy to shut up because his words have no power here. The big idea for us today is that when the enemy names us by our failures, we answer
[00:34:33] with Christ crucified. Our passage for today is Judges chapter 16, reading from verse 21 to 31, the end of the chapter. Please hear now the word of the Lord. So the Philistines seized him and
[00:34:48] gouged out his eyes. They brought him down to Gaza and bound him with bronze shackles.
[00:34:54] And he ground at the mill in the prison.
[00:34:58] But the hair of his head began to grow again after it had been shaved.
[00:35:03] Now the lords of the Philistines gathered to offer a great sacrifice to their god, Dagon, and to rejoice.
[00:35:10] For they said, Our god has given Samson, our enemy, into our hand.
[00:35:15] When the people saw him, they praised their god.
[00:35:19] for they said, Our God has given our enemy into our hand, the ravager of our country, who has killed many of us. And when their hearts were merry, they said, Call Samson and let him
[00:35:31] entertain us. So they called Samson out of the prison, and he performed for them. They made him stand between the pillars. And Samson said to the attendant who held him by the hand, Let me feel
[00:35:44] the pillars on which the house rests so that I may lean against them. Now the house or this temple of Dagon was full of men and women. All the lords of the Philistines were there. On the roof alone
[00:35:59] there were about 3,000 men and women who looked on while Samson performed. Then Samson called to the Lord and said, Lord God, remember me and strengthen me only this once, O God, so that with
[00:36:15] this one act of revenge I may pay back the Philistines for my two eyes. And Samson grasped the two middle pillars on which the house rested, and he leaned his weight against him, his right
[00:36:28] hand on the one, his left hand on the other. And then Samson said, let me die with the Philistines.
[00:36:33] He strained with all his might, and the house fell on the lords and all the people who were in it.
[00:36:41] So those he killed at his death were more than those he had killed during his life.
[00:36:48] Then his brothers and all his family came down and took him and brought him up and buried him between Zorah and Eshtiol in the tomb of his father Manoah.
[00:36:59] He had judged Israel twenty years.
[00:37:03] This is the word of the Lord.
[00:37:05] And thanks be to God.
[00:37:08] When we arrive to this point in the story of Judges, in this point in chapter 16, Samson has lost everything.
[00:37:15] His strength, his freedom are gone.
[00:37:18] His sight and dignity are gone.
[00:37:21] The Philistines have captured him through the devious, treacherous work of Delilah.
[00:37:26] They've shaved him.
[00:37:28] They turned him into a public spectacle.
[00:37:31] and now he's chained in front of thousands of people weak and vulnerable and we all know how he got here Samson knows how he got here he compromised his acts of disobedience he ignored the warnings every moment of pride and as Samson is standing in chains I wonder what was he thinking
[00:37:55] was he replaying the story of his life and all the choices he had made that led him here Was he asking, how did I become this man?
[00:38:08] Samson is most likely beating himself up because as he's remembering his former life, he's also now being shamed publicly by his enemies.
[00:38:17] He was feeling guilt and shame.
[00:38:21] And my argument for us today is that one is definitely worse than the other.
[00:38:26] You see, there's a big difference between guilt and shame.
[00:38:29] Guilt is the thing that says, I made a bad choice.
[00:38:33] But shame.
[00:38:35] Shame is the thing that says, I am a bad person.
[00:38:40] Guilt says, I sinned, but shame says, I am my sin.
[00:38:46] See, I think guilt can be a gift.
[00:38:49] Guilt can be the thing that leads you to repentance and brings you back to God.
[00:38:53] But shame, shame does something very different.
[00:38:58] Shame convinces us that we are beyond redemption, that we're too broken, too dirty, too far gone, too disappointing for God to want anything to do with us.
[00:39:12] And standing there blind, humiliated, Samson has now become a picture of what the enemy wants to do to every sinner.
[00:39:22] See, the enemy is not content to see you destroyed and make you a martyr.
[00:39:27] The enemy is not content to see you fall and fail.
[00:39:30] No, he wants to shame you so that you believe your failure is your identity.
[00:39:37] He wants your sin to become your legacy.
[00:39:40] He wants your struggles to completely define you.
[00:39:43] He wants you to believe that who you were in your worst moment is who you will always be.
[00:39:51] See, I know what that feels like.
[00:39:53] I may or may not have told this story here before, but just in case, buckle up.
[00:39:58] I was about to tell you, and at 10, there's not much that a 10-year-old really wants or understands, like credit cards.
[00:40:06] I still barely understand how credit cards work, but I knew that when I was 10 years old, I wanted two things. I wanted toys and I wanted the money to buy said toys. And I knew where to
[00:40:17] get it. And so I went into my mom's purse, pulled out a shiny credit card, and I went on the world's best shopping spree anyone has ever seen. I think I spent about $2,000. Oh yeah. See, eventually the
[00:40:39] packages would arrive and and they're so with the receipts and my my parents didn't find out because they were they were working so friends would come and drop us off at home so i would
[00:40:47] get home i would i would see the packages on the doorstep i bring it inside open it up hide you know a real clever boy i would just tear it up and throw it in the trash because no one digs in
[00:40:56] the trash well one day i got home and i see my mom's car and yeah i was expecting a few packages that day. And so, of course, when I open that front door, I see all these boxes open, the toys laying
[00:41:13] around, and receipts and papers strewn about the floor as if it was all waiting for me. What I remember most that day, that evening, is not the punishment. It was the shame. See, that same
[00:41:31] evening, my sister and I, we had a school assignment given to us by our Bible class.
[00:41:35] You're going to go home and work with your parent on this piece of paper. And on this paper, the goal was to encourage how how to identify godly traits in you and you can see where i might be
[00:41:46] going on the other side of this paper again a teaching moment i think was their intent was to see all the ungodly traits that we want to avoid well you know as the evening unfolded i encountered
[00:42:01] a very tense quiet cold mother and it makes it even more terrifying knowing that knowing that she's a small latino woman and you can fill in the blanks there my sister explains the assignment and my mother tells my sister to start reading the positive list of traits tells her to start
[00:42:19] circling kind obedient selfless now don't judge my mom too harshly for this she was upset she could not possibly understand the impact that this would have had on me at the time and for a long
[00:42:39] time. But in her disappointment and her anger, she asked me to read the other side of the paper.
[00:42:46] And then she told me to start circling. Selfish, disobedient, ungrateful, dishonoring. Now let me be clear, I know I had done something wrong and I take responsibility for that. But what wounded me was not merely being confronted with what I had done, it was beginning to believe that what I had
[00:43:11] done was who I was. Imagine going to school the next day, being the only kid in the class who had even at least one negative trait circled, let alone almost all of them, and explaining that to my
[00:43:27] friends, to my teacher. See, at that time, at that point, I wasn't just a kid who made a selfish decision. I started believing I was selfish. I wasn't just a kid who had been disobedient. I
[00:43:41] started believing I was disobedience. I wasn't just someone who had failed. I was a failure.
[00:43:53] Church, that's what shame does. It takes a real failure, even a moment in your life, and it turns into this false identity, seeking to take something you did and convince you that that is who you are.
[00:44:06] now sin has consequences i mean samson's blindness is real his chains are real his humiliation is real all consequences of all his choices sin always leaves damage behind but shame that goes further than the consequences see the end of the consequences that you failed
[00:44:30] and you have to pay what is due but shame goes beyond that saying oh you're always a failure The enemy using it to convince us that our worst moments are the truest thing about us.
[00:44:47] And why shame?
[00:44:48] Why is this the most destructive thing?
[00:44:51] Well, I point you to chapter three of the holy book from the beginning.
[00:44:55] Adam and Eve, they eat the fruit, they sin, they hide, why?
[00:45:04] They felt ashamed.
[00:45:07] Shame convinced them to run away from the God who could restore them.
[00:45:12] shame always drives us away from grace power that shame has the enemy knew that as they sung over samson and today you know the enemy's still singing that same song the philistine saying look at samson look at the failure look at this disgrace this is israel's champion but for us the
[00:45:40] lyrics are just a little bit different to the exhausted parent you're failing your children to the young adult you'll never measure up to the widow you'll always be alone you've been forgotten to the divorced person you ruined it you're the black sheep to the retiree your usefulness is
[00:46:09] over the only thing awaiting you is death things that make you feel valueless worthless like nothing maybe you've been called ugly stupid dumb and now we say that we joke and we say i'm so dumb
[00:46:30] so dumb so stupid and we don't even recognize that voice anymore it's just for us we just assume it's true but church that song has always been a lie the enemy's greatest weapon has never
[00:46:45] been sin alone it's been convincing sinners that their sin is now their identity and there's no redemption for you. But not only is this song a lie, the Bible says there's always hope for you
[00:47:01] and me. Now, as we read this passage, we might think the hope is, well, Samson got his strength back. He destroyed the Philistines, killed more people in his death than his life, and you can
[00:47:12] make a good argument. But I think the better line is in verse 22, the hair on his head began to grow back after it had been shaved. See, I find that such a strange sentence and a strange detail to
[00:47:26] give because the story works without it. The narrator didn't have to include it. It almost seems pointless to have it in there. And yet, I have to ask, why? Why include that detail?
[00:47:41] Or for starters, it has nothing to do with hair. And all the bald people said amen. I think it's because the Philistines, while they're singing one song, the point is God is writing another song.
[00:47:57] See, a quick read of the story might suggest that Samson's strength was in his hair, but Samson's strength was the God who was with him. His hair growing back is just a reminder that God is strengthening him once again, a renewal of that Nazarite vow. See, the enemies
[00:48:17] of Israel, they were parading around this defeated champion thinking their story was finished.
[00:48:23] But God says, I'm not done with Samson yet.
[00:48:29] Above it all, God never took his eyes off Samson, even though they took Samson's eyes.
[00:48:36] The Philistines convinced themselves that Israel's story was over, their new chapter had begun, but we know something they don't.
[00:48:43] That God's mercy had already written how the story was going to go.
[00:48:50] Now notice what mercy does not do.
[00:48:53] Mercy does not rewind the story.
[00:48:56] Because Samson is still blind.
[00:48:59] He's still chained.
[00:49:00] He's still humiliated.
[00:49:01] Still carrying the scars from all the choices that he cannot undo.
[00:49:08] But God's mercy refuses to abandon people because of their worst moment.
[00:49:15] The enemy wants Samson's failure to become his identity and legacy.
[00:49:19] God refuses.
[00:49:21] The enemy wants Samson's last chapter to define the whole story.
[00:49:26] God refuses.
[00:49:28] The enemy wants the prison to become Samson's permanent address.
[00:49:32] God has a different home in mind.
[00:49:36] Because mercy is God's determination to keep pursuing sinners long after everyone else has given up on them, including themselves.
[00:49:48] My friends, these are things that we cannot fully understand.
[00:49:52] Isaiah chapter 55 says, His ways are higher than our ways.
[00:49:56] His thoughts are higher than our thoughts.
[00:49:58] sometimes God's grace begins moving long before we can ever see the outcome sometimes all we have is a strand of hair a small reminder that God has not abandoned you mercy does not always remove
[00:50:19] consequences but it stubbornly refuses to let you go God's grace over Samson had the final word And you know what that word was?
[00:50:30] Christ crucified.
[00:50:34] See, I've already mentioned last week, Samson has a remarkable story.
[00:50:38] It's the stuff of legends.
[00:50:40] But it leaves us wanting more.
[00:50:43] Samson remains a flawed deliverer.
[00:50:45] As we've read, the strength does come back.
[00:50:48] He conquers the enemy that he was meant to conquer all along.
[00:50:51] But Samson still dies with them because of his own sin.
[00:50:58] The deliverance is real.
[00:50:59] But it's incomplete.
[00:51:06] Through the authors, through the words of the Holy Word of God, is pointing beyond himself, pointing us to a better deliverer, Jesus.
[00:51:16] See, Samson suffered in part because of his own rebellion.
[00:51:20] Jesus suffered despite perfect obedience.
[00:51:24] Samson died because he was a sinner, but Jesus died for the sinner.
[00:51:30] Samson stretched out his arms in judgment, leaning against those pillars.
[00:51:36] And Jesus stretched out his arms in mercy, nailed hand and feet to a wooden cross.
[00:51:43] Samson died with his enemies.
[00:51:47] Jesus died for his enemies.
[00:51:51] I mean, who can say it better than Peter in 1 Peter chapter 2?
[00:51:55] He did not commit sin.
[00:51:57] And no deceit was found in his mouth.
[00:52:00] When he was insulted, he did not insult in return.
[00:52:03] When he suffered, he didn't threaten anyone.
[00:52:06] Instead, entrusting himself to the one who judges justly.
[00:52:10] He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, so that him having died to sins, we might live for righteousness.
[00:52:21] By his wounds you have been healed.
[00:52:28] He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree.
[00:52:34] Not his sins, our sins.
[00:52:38] The gospel is not merely that Jesus died for our guilt.
[00:52:41] The gospel is that Jesus took and entered our shame.
[00:52:46] Hebrews chapter 12, read it earlier in the service.
[00:52:51] For the joy set before him, he endured the cross, despising the what?
[00:52:56] The shame.
[00:52:58] Notice that.
[00:52:59] Not merely the pain, not merely suffering, not merely death, though he knew it was coming.
[00:53:06] Shame.
[00:53:07] The public shame.
[00:53:08] The mocking, the spitting, the stripping, the rejection, the humiliation, the being displayed before the world as cursed, being treated as though he were the failure, the guilty one.
[00:53:24] And on that cross, Jesus steps into the very place that shame had trapped you and me.
[00:53:31] He entered our darkness.
[00:53:33] He entered our accusations and the rejection.
[00:53:37] All so that no sinner would ever have to stand there alone again.
[00:53:43] I need you to listen carefully to me because this is important.
[00:53:49] At the cross, God answers every accusation by becoming us.
[00:53:55] On the cross, Jesus became everything that shame says about us.
[00:54:03] Rejected, condemned, hopeless, cursed, forsaken.
[00:54:12] Not because those things were true of him, but because they were true of us and because he took what belonged to us we receive what belonged to him christ was rejected so that we could be accepted christ experienced the separation from
[00:54:32] god so that we could be called beloved christ took on himself the penalty of death so that we could be forgiven. Christ was shamed so that you and I could know the honor of God. Christ became
[00:54:52] sin, filth, became all that the devil accuses us of so that we might become holy and be called the righteousness of God. This means the gospel is not about you and me trying to earn a better
[00:55:06] verdict among people than God. The gospel is all about how God has already spoken a better verdict over you. Where the enemy says of you, you're a failure, Jesus says, no, redeemed. The enemy says,
[00:55:22] you're condemned, Jesus says, forgiven. Where the enemy says, worthless, Jesus says, beloved, abandoned, Jesus says, mine. So whose voice are you listening to? Is it the verdict, the accusation of your worst moment? Is it the verdict of your regrets? The voice of your
[00:55:55] accusers? Perhaps the voice of your own shame? Or are you listening to the voice and the declaration of the risen Jesus Christ? Because if you belong to Jesus, his verdict is now your verdict.
[00:56:10] Which means the Bible says that his righteousness is your righteousness. His acceptance is your acceptance. His identity is now your identity. I mean, if we can demonstrate this a little bit differently, what if Jesus was sitting across a dining room table from you? And if you were to
[00:56:29] describe him to his face, would you ever call him a failure? Defeated? Worthless? Abandoned?
[00:56:40] no of course not he's victorious risen beloved by the father glorious and if you belong to him how could we ever entertain or even imagine him saying anything different about us the enemy's lies are drowned out by the voice of grace and power of our lord and savior christ jesus
[00:57:09] This is why Paul says in Galatians chapter 6, bearing the scars of his sufferings for Christ, he says, far be it from me to boast except in the cross of my Lord Jesus Christ.
[00:57:22] Why?
[00:57:24] Well, first, because every other boast eventually collapses.
[00:57:28] Your reputation can fail.
[00:57:30] Your accomplishments can fade.
[00:57:33] Your health, your victories, successes, relationships, all these things inevitably collapse.
[00:57:39] But the cross cannot be undone.
[00:57:44] I was watching a sermon by Timothy Keller where he asked a really interesting question on this same topic.
[00:57:50] When Satan accuses you, what evidence do you present in court?
[00:57:56] When shame comes, what is it that you point to as your defense?
[00:58:00] Your accomplishments?
[00:58:02] Your parentage?
[00:58:03] Your legacy?
[00:58:04] Your lineage?
[00:58:05] Your work?
[00:58:08] Or is it Christ?
[00:58:11] Because whatever functions as your defense attorney is what you're boasting in.
[00:58:16] It's functioning as your Savior.
[00:58:20] The Christian's answer is never to be, look at me.
[00:58:25] The Christian's answer should always be, look at him.
[00:58:30] When the enemy says, you are a sinner, we rejoice.
[00:58:34] Christ died for sinners.
[00:58:36] When the enemy says, you have failed and you deserve judgment, we say, Christ bore my judgment.
[00:58:43] When the enemy says that you will never succeed again, we say Christ has already succeeded on my behalf when the enemy says of you you are weak we get to sing that Christ's power is made perfect in my weakness
[00:59:07] that's what it means to boast in the cross all your shame your story the parts you're embarrassed about is that not at the foot of the cross now it's not about admiring it or glorifying his death
[00:59:30] I run to Jesus I hide in what he has done for you and me.
[00:59:37] I stand upon holy ground now because of his work on the cross.
[00:59:47] If you're like me, shame often circles back.
[00:59:51] To follow Jesus, there's no one-time event.
[00:59:54] That's not how the enemy works.
[00:59:57] He doesn't give up.
[00:59:58] But neither does Christ give up on you.
[01:00:01] Some days I'm still that 10-year-old boy figuring life out.
[01:00:09] I've made some strides.
[01:00:10] sometimes we let shame back in we struggle i struggle with those shame cycles but that's why every morning if you need some homework to do here's your homework every morning you wake up proclaim the gospel over your own lives boast in the cross of your savior jesus so that you
[01:00:33] are reminded of the truth of who you are beautiful worthy redeemed my brothers and sisters and let that wash over you because when the enemy names you by your failures we have one answer and that is my christ crucified see in romans chapter 8 verse 33
[01:00:58] paul says who can bring an accusation against god's elect god is the one who justifies who is the one who condemns christ jesus is the one who died and even more he has been raised
[01:01:16] from the dead. And he will go on to say, what could ever separate us from the love of Christ Jesus, our Lord? Whose voice, my friends, will define your life? Shame, the enemy, or Christ
[01:01:36] Jesus? The enemy sang their song over Samson, and perhaps they were singing a little too early.
[01:01:43] the enemy is still singing today but christ has spoken a better word one of my favorite verses in all scripture comes from zephaniah chapter 3 verse 17 the lord your god is among you a warrior
[01:02:01] who says he will rejoice over you with gladness he will be quiet in his love and he delights in you with singing. Therefore, we must stop listening to the song of the enemy, the song of our shame,
[01:02:20] and instead we must declare the victories of Jesus Christ, especially in the midst of our shame. Boast in the cross, O Christian, for Christ crucified has silenced every accusation against you amen please pray with me lord today we boast in the cross of christ he endured it
[01:02:54] despising it all for the joy set before him and what is that joy if it's not us he saw us in his heart's eye and he said for them all this over and over for them and once and for all he conquered
[01:03:12] sin and death forever. By his death, we live forever. Praise be to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
[01:03:23] Glorify yourself in us this day. In his name we pray. Amen. We cannot rewrite our pasts.
[01:04:19] Whether the mistakes were our own or the mistakes of those before us, we can't rewrite it. But mercy is the thing that meets us right now today the choice is placed before you where will you boast
[01:04:34] in and i invite you boast in the cross of your savior who loves you who glories in you who delights in you over singing my baby girl she turns one in a month and i could never ever think
[01:04:50] any lower of her i could never shame her into thinking you're not crawling fast enough you're not walking fast enough right now i say you got this baby you got this how much more does your
[01:05:04] father in heaven who made you informed you in his image says you got this baby so live into that let that peace and love and joy fill you to the bones and whenever your accuser comes after you
[01:05:19] you tell him to be quiet because you're too busy listening to the voice of your loving savior Amen?
[01:05:27] So as you go forth from this place, my friends, may the love of God your Father, may the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus and the fellowship and peace and presence of the Holy Spirit
[01:05:39] be with all of you now and forever and in the days to come.
[01:05:44] And all God's people say, amen.