The Consequences of Uncontrolled Weakness

Dr. Charles Stanley: Every single one of us has one or more areas of weakness in our life. It could be one of many things. Because remember, we all have strengths that God gave us to enable us to equip us to do what he wants us to do. He also has allowed each of us to have our weakness or weaknesses in order to remind us how dependent we are upon him. And it may be controlled and we can live our lives successfully and faithfully, fruitfully, and devotedly to God.
Guest (Male): Are you locked in a bad habit and you just can't seem to quit? Today's edition of In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley, offers motivation to break free. We'll hear a powerful example from Scripture of the danger we face when we continually give into sin. Stay with us and learn how to spot trouble and avoid the consequences of uncontrolled weakness.
Dr. Charles Stanley: All of us have areas in our life—areas of strength and areas of weakness. Those areas of strength God has given to us in order to be able to accomplish and to achieve those things that God has set out for us in our life. Somebody says, "Well, what about those weaknesses?" Those weaknesses are there in order to remind us how absolutely totally dependent we are upon God. And not only that, when we handle our weaknesses properly and carefully, what it does is they drive us into a relationship with God, a deeper intimate relationship with him because of our sense of dependence upon him and our need of him. And we find ourselves crying out for God to help us or to strengthen us in those particular areas. I want to take this passage of scripture today because the title of this message is simply this: the consequences of uncontrolled weakness. Because that's a problem in many people's lives. They know that there's something there, they can't quite figure out what it is, or they deny that there is some particular weakness in their life because they're too proud to admit it. And yet it is there. They don't know how to handle it. They don't know what's going on. And as a result, they find themselves oftentimes in great disappointment and disaster because they never learned how to deal with those areas of weakness in their life. When I think about that, I think about what can happen to a person whose weaknesses are unguarded, denied, undisciplined, and uncontrolled. The passage of scripture we're going to deal with is a very graphic illustration of what happens when a person does ignore that area of weakness and it is uncontrolled and when a person is undisciplined and does not recognize that what is a weakness could have been one of their greatest strengths if they had only responded in the proper fashion. I want you to turn, if you will, to Judges. And this is the account of a man who was known for his strength but who was destroyed as a result of his weakness. I want to give you a little background here, but I just want to read one verse to start that background in the 13th chapter and the first verse to give you a little idea of the kind of environment in which Samson grew up in and the kind of environment that's going on while he is one of the leaders of the nation of Israel in this time. So Chapter 13, verse 1 says, "Now the sons of Israel again did evil in the sight of the Lord so that the Lord gave them into the hands of the Philistines for 40 years." Now you recall that God told the nation of Israel, when you go into the Promised Land, destroy all the wicked. Now once in a while, somebody will ask you, more than likely, "How can God be a God of love and at the same time have him go in and destroy all these other people?" What you have to ask is, what's the purpose of God? The purpose of God for the nation of Israel was to bring up a nation through whom the truth that there is one true God could be spread throughout the world. And the Jews—that is, Israel—knew who that God was: Jehovah God, Adonai, Elohim—that is, Jehovah. And so God's purpose for them was to spread the truth that there is one true God when all these nations of the world believed in all kinds of gods. In order to keep that nation pure, he placed them in an area. In order to do that, to keep them from intermarrying and causing the race to become weakened... Or when the race became weakened by intermarriage and trade and so forth, what happens is also their ideology, their philosophy, and their theology also began to be weakened. Before long, they would no longer believe in one true God because there would be so many other nations that believed in all these other gods. And instead of staying pure, they'd become like them. Now the period of the judges was the Dark Ages for the nation of Israel. If you'll turn to the last chapter in Judges, the 21st chapter, here's what you'll find: you'll find a description of how the people in that day were thinking. And here's what the last verse says: "In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes." Anytime you have a society in which everyone's doing what's right in their own eyes, you have a society that is destined to bondage—all types of bondage—and certainly destined to the disciplined hand of Almighty God. Yet this is the kind of nation we find. Now the scripture says concerning that, that in those times, for example, that God chose to do something about it. And that is, if you will look at this 13th chapter and notice, if you will, beginning in verse 3: "Then the angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, 'Behold now, you are barren and have borne no children, but you shall conceive and give birth to a son. Now therefore, be careful not to drink wine or strong drink, nor eat any unclean thing. For behold, you shall conceive and give birth to a son, and no razor shall come upon his head, for the boy shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb; and he shall begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines.'" So God now speaks to this couple who could have no children, announces to them that they are to conceive and have a son. He's to be a Nazirite—that is, he is to be separated unto God. And one of the indications of that was that he could not cut his hair, could not drink any strong drink, and could not come close to a person who had died. So it was a very strict kind of relationship. And so God sends this son into their lives. And naturally, if you'll notice what he says, he says, "He shall begin to deliver Israel from the hand of the Philistines." And if you'll notice also in that same chapter in the 24th verse, it says, "Then the woman gave birth to a son and named him Samson; and the child grew up and the Lord blessed him. And the Spirit of the Lord began to stir him." What we find is we find God beginning to work in his life at some age, probably early. God beginning to work in his life because he came upon the scene for a very specific purpose. I don't want you to forget that. He didn't just get born; God sent him into that time and that season of the Dark Ages for the nation of Israel for a very specific reason. And that was to deliver them from the bondage of these ungodly, pagan, heathen Philistines who believed in many gods, one of whom was named Dagon. Don't forget that. Now Samson had an uncontrollable weakness. I want you to listen carefully. Don't think about somebody else's weakness. I want you to ask yourself the question: "What weakness do I have in my life?" Don't ask the question, "God, do I have one?" Yes, you do. Every single one of us has one or more areas of weakness in our life. It could be one of many things. It could be, for example, a problem with greed. You've just gotta have more and more and more. You say, "Well, I'm not a wealthy person." You know, you can be poor as you can be and still be greedy. Or you can be wealthy and be greedy. So it may be that that weakness is greed. Or it could be your weakness is gossip. You've just got to talk about somebody and tell something that you don't know or that you want people to think you know. Or it could be that the weakness in your life is you have to be number one. It doesn't make any difference what you're doing in life, you've gotta be number one. You've gotta be the best. You have to have some position or some authority or some place in life. Or it may be as Samson's weakness—and that is a lust of sexual lust. This was Samson's weakness: a lust, a sexual involvement that is gratifying something from within inside of him. And so whatever it may be, what you have to ask is, "What is that weakness within my life?" Because remember, we all have strengths that God gave us to enable us to equip us to do what he wants us to do. He also has allowed each of us to have our weakness or weaknesses in order to remind us how dependent we are upon him. And when we utilize and respond correctly, it drives us to God, motivates us to get into a deeper intimate relationship with him so that whatever this weakness is, it may be controlled. And we can live our lives successfully and faithfully, fruitfully, and devotedly to God. Now with Samson, it's very clear what his problem was. He had a very definite weakness when it came to his sexual lust. And so if you'll notice, there are three women here that are mentioned. There could have been 33 because the Bible nowhere tells us all the details that go on in any given instance. And so what you have is you have this woman at Timnah, and then you have this prostitute in Gaza, and then there's Delilah. There are only three of them mentioned. But all three of them—I want you to think about this for a moment—not a single one of these persons is good for Samson. But Delilah's not quite like the rest of them. She has this awesome overwhelming impact and effect in his life. The scripture says, verse 4: "After this it came about that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek, whose name was Delilah." Now each time, the Philistines have done the same thing. Watch this. The lords of the Philistines came up to her and said to her... You see, they've already been watching him and knowing that she being the kind of woman she was, what was going on between them. They knew it. And so they said, "Entice him." How do you think they expected her to entice him? Just talking to him? Not indeed. "Entice him and see where his great strength lies and how we may overpower him that we may bind him to afflict him. We will each give you eleven hundred pieces of silver." That eleven hundred—if it were just eleven hundred instead of each one, it would've been about five thousand dollars in our time today. So she had the opportunity of being a very wealthy woman. The scripture says he loved her—that is, she really made an impression on him. Delilah said to Samson—now can't you hear her saying this?—"Oh, please tell me where your great strength is and how you may be bound to afflict you." Now isn't that a stupid question? You think any man in his right mind would say, "Why would you want to bind me and afflict me? I thought this was supposed to be a wonderful relationship and we're both satisfying each other. Now you're asking me how you can bind me to afflict me." Watch this. Weakness blinds the human heart. Weakness, sin blinds the human heart, blinds the mind. Samson said to her, "If they bind me with seven fresh cords that have not been dried, then I will become weak and be like any other man." Then the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven fresh cords that had not been dried, and she bound him with them. Now she had men lying in wait in a room. And so she said to him, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!" But he snapped the cords as a string of tow snaps when it touches fire. So his strength was not discovered. You think, "Now wait a minute, what kind of woman is this?" They've been going to bed with each other, having sex—let's just face it like it is—and she wants to know how to afflict him. She told him, "How do I afflict you and bind you?" And so he gives her some deceitful answer, and sure enough, that's exactly what she does. This'll show you how deeply in bondage Samson was. His lust, his sexual lust was so strong. He had to know: "This woman is not good for me. There's something wrong." Blinded. Listen to what happens. Then Delilah said to Samson, "Behold, you've deceived me and told me lies. Now please tell me how you may be bound." He said to her, "If they bind me tightly with new ropes which have not been used, then I'll become weak and be like any other man." So Delilah took new ropes, bound him with them, and said to him, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!" For the men were lying in wait in the inner room. But he snapped the ropes from his arms like a thread. You'd think any man in his good common sense at all would say, "Two strikes and you're out. Two strikes and you're out." Listen to this. Then Delilah said to Samson, "Up to now you have deceived me and told me lies. Tell me how you may be bound." And he said to her, "If you weave the seven locks of my hair with a web and fasten it with a pin, then I will become weak and be like any other man." So while he slept, Delilah took the seven locks of his hair and wove them into the web. She fastened it with a pin and said to him, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!" But he awoke from his sleep and pulled out the pin of the loom and the web. Three times. What does it take to get your attention? Three times she does it. Somebody says, "I'd never let that happen to me." It depends upon how many times you've already given in to your area of weakness. Look at this. "It came about when she pressed him daily with her words and urged him, that his soul was annoyed to death." What happens between this man and Joseph are two different things. The Bible says that Potiphar's wife day after day came unto Joseph trying to entice him to go to bed with her, and he would not do it. So, same situation. "It came about when she pressed him daily with her words and urged him that his soul was annoyed to death. So he told her all that was in his heart and said to her, 'A razor has never come on my head, for I've been a Nazirite to God from my mother's womb. If I am shaved, then my strength will leave me and I will become weak and be like any other man.'" Then Delilah saw that he told her all that was in his heart, sent and called the lords of the Philistines saying, "Come up once more. He's told me all that's in his heart." The lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought her money in their hands. They believed him. She made him sleep on her knees, called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his hair. Then she began to afflict him and his strength left him. She said, "The Philistines are upon you, Samson!" He awoke from his sleep and said, "I'll go out at other times and shake myself free." But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him. What a tragedy. Over and over and over again, God warned him and warned him and warned him and warned him. And what happened? His weakness now was not cords and ropes and chains. His bondage now was that his heart, his mind, his spirit was absolutely totally given over to the indulgence of lust for sex. Absolutely bound him. And what happened when he gave away the secret? He jumped up to do the same thing he'd always done, and all of a sudden, he didn't have the strength. Now here is the strongest man destroyed by the weakness—one weakness—a lust for gratification by sex. Didn't work, never works, can't work. It's not the will of God for it to work. Weaknesses are not to be played with. They're not to be toyed with. They're not to be ignored. They're to be recognized. You say, "Well, how do I deal with it?" Here's what you do: you're honest enough to identify what that weakness is in your life. You acknowledge it and you confess it to God. "God, I just have to acknowledge this is an area, or these are areas of weakness in my life." And then you ask God to make you alert. "God, make me alert. God, make me alert to the first moment I see this weakness popping up in my life to express itself. Make me alert quickly to identify it." And then you cry out to God. "Oh, dear God, strengthen me, enable me to walk away from this, or not to look at that, or not to get that, or not to grasp this, or not to go there. Oh, God, strengthen me and enable me to walk in your will and your way." Crying out to God. How many times did David cry to God? He said, "This poor man cried out to God and God delivered him." And that's why he tells us to cry out to him to deliver us. And then listen: what you do is you walk away from, you turn your eyes from, you no longer seek after, you do not manipulate. You choose to walk in the will of God. You say, "But I just don't know that I can do that." If you're a child of God, you have within you the Holy Spirit who is there to enable you, strengthen you, guide you, guard you, protect you. Listen: you can be obedient to God if you choose to do so. But if you continually gaze at something that is an area of weakness in your life... You cannot continually gaze at it or go in that direction or become a part of or relate to something that is going to destroy you and pray, "Oh, God help me" on your way there. That's not the way it works. It is confession. And listen: trusting in the power of the Holy Spirit to enable you to walk away. That's how we deal with those weaknesses.
Guest (Male): As you heard today on In Touch, you can overcome your weakness. If you're a believer in Jesus, you have the privilege and power to acknowledge sin, confess it to God, and make the conscious decision to trust him to enable you to resist its pull. To know more about how to defeat temptation, stop by intouch.org or go back through this message again by clicking on the link to today on radio. And you can order a copy of Dr. Stanley's complete message over at the bookstore. Look for the message titled "The Consequences of Uncontrolled Weakness." Our web address again is intouch.org. To call or text, the number is 1-800-IN-TOUCH. You can also write to us at In Touch, Post Office Box 7900, Atlanta, Georgia 30357. Today's message pointed out the very real consequences of giving in to our weaknesses. We'll hear more on that just ahead in today's Moment with Charles Stanley.
Guest (Female): At times life can be stormy and each one of us will face many trials. Questions are asked and doubt may set in. The answers are found through faith in Jesus. He is within every believer, always ready to offer us comfort, hope, and peace in times of great trial. So you can trust him with any circumstance. To order Dr. Stanley's book, *How to Let God Solve Your Problems*, call 1-800-IN-TOUCH or go to intouch.org/store.
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Guest (Male): In Touch Plus, your streaming network for quality Christian programming 24/7. Now watch this. In Touch Plus, streaming free on Local Now. You're listening to In Touch. Emotions are part of being human, but they need to be controlled. With a caution for believers, here's a Moment with Charles Stanley.
Dr. Charles Stanley: I think you have to recognize that emotions are natural. Everybody has them. In other words, emotions are a very important part of our life. If you didn't have any emotions, you would never want to date somebody, you would never want to marry them. So God knows we all have emotions for things. So emotions are just natural and normal. The intensity of that emotion must be guided and guarded by the Holy Spirit. And he places within us the Holy Spirit to give us guidance and direction that we don't step across his boundaries. And when a person wants somebody, for example, and they want them so desperately and their emotions get the best of them and they override them. What you have to ask is, "God, am I going by my emotion or am I listening to your Spirit?" In other words, is this awesome love I have, is this from you, or am I just emotionally excited about all this? And this is why I say to people, when you get emotionally excited about anything, stop, take a little inventory. "God, is this of you? Am I moving too fast? Is this something I want in the flesh, or does this fit your plan and purpose for my life?" When you bring every thought into his will, then you're saying, "Alright, Lord, this is my desire, this is what I want, this is what I plan, but Father, I want what you want." When I say I bring it into captivity, it's captivity to his will. We'll say, "Well, Lord, alright, how do I know that?" He'll send you to his word. He will use his word to give you very, very clear direction. That's why you should love it, because it's God's guide book for life.
Guest (Male): Learn more about the Word of God and living the Christian life at intouch.org. And if today's program encouraged you to invest more deeply in your relationship with Christ, we'd love to hear from you. Upcoming on In Touch, God is love. And as his children, Christians ought to be people who clearly reflect that attribute. We'll begin a series of messages that remind us that believers have been liberated to love, on In Touch, the teaching ministry of Dr. Charles Stanley. This program is a presentation of In Touch Ministries, Atlanta, Georgia, and remains on this station through the grace of God and your faithful prayers and gifts.