Judges, chapter 16, verses 4 through 21. Afterward, it happened that he loved a woman in the valley of Sarek, whose name was Delilah. And the lords of the Philistines came up to her and said to her, entice him. and find out where his great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him, that we may bind him to afflict him. And every one of us will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver." So Delilah said to Samson, "'Please tell me where your great strength lies, and with what you may be bound to afflict you.' And Samson said to her, "'If they bind me with seven fresh bowstrings, Not yet dried, then I shall become weak and be like any other man. So the lords of the Philistines brought up to her seven fresh bow strings, not yet dried, and she bound and whipped them. Now men were lying in wait, staying with her in the room. She said then, the Philistines are upon you, Samson. But he broke the bow strings as a strand of yarn breaks when it touches fire. So the secret of his strength was not known. Then Delilah said to Samson, Look, you have mocked me and told me lies. Now please tell me what you may be bound with. So he said to her, If they bind me securely with new ropes that have never been used, then I shall become weak and be like any other man. Therefore Delilah took new ropes and bound him with them and said to him, The Philistines are upon you, Samson. And men were lying in wait, staying in the room. But he broke them off his arms like a thread. Delilah said to Samson, until now you have mocked me and told me lies. Tell me what you may be bound with. And he said to her, if you weave the seven locks of my head into the web of the loom. So she wove it tightly with the baton of the loom and said to him, the Philistines are upon you, Samson. But he awoke from his sleep and pulled out the baton and the web from the loom. Then she said to him, how can you say I love you when your heart is not with me? You have mocked me these three times and have not told me where your great strength lies. And it came to past when she pestered him daily with her words and pressed him so that his soul was vexed to death. that he told to all his heart, and said, No razor has ever come upon my head, for I have been a Nazarite to God from my mother's womb. If I am shaven, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak and be like any other man. When Delilah saw that he had told to all his heart, She sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, saying, Come up once more, for he has told me all his heart. So the lords of the Philistines came up to her and brought the money in their hand. Then she lulled them to sleep on her knees and called for a man and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to torment them, and his strength left them. And she said, the Philistines are upon you, Samson. So he awoke from his sleep and said, I will go out as before at other times and shake myself free. But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him. Then the Philistines took him and put out his eyes and brought him down to Gaza. They bound him with bronze fetters and he became a grinder in the prison. A life of sin, a life of sin will lead to destruction. Samson lived a life of sin and it led to his destruction. Sin is a dirty word to unbelievers. Sin is a topic that many believers, many believers, they don't want to hear about it. What do you really believe about sin? Does it bother you to hear about sin? Does it bother you to talk about sin? Could it be that you're a friend of sin. It bothers you to hear it, to talk about it. Samson's life of sin is about to catch up with him. Do you really believe that that sin that you embrace, that sin that you cherish, that sin that you love, that that sin will not eventually bring your destruction with it? Do you really want to hear about sin? Or would you rather be as the children of Israel, dancing around the golden calf? Do you really want to hear about sin? Do you really want to hear that your sin will find you out? Do you really want to hear that God is not mocked? Do you really want to hear that you will reap what you sow? Do you want to talk about sin? Do you want to hear about sin? You must heed the warnings of the Apostle John. In 1 John chapter 2, turn there with me. 1 John chapter 2, the beloved disciple, the one who laid on the master's bosom, tells us 1 John 2, verses 15 through 17. Samson would have done well to listen to these words. Do not love the world for the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world is passing away, and the lust of it. But he who does the will of God abides forever. If Samson would have heeded those words, he would have never experienced the agony of defeat. The Apostle John tells us point blank, there's no place to be dancing around the golden curves of Christianity today. We are not to love the world. We are to mortify the lust of the flesh. Samson refused to mortify the lust of the flesh. He refused to close his eyes to the lust of the eyes. And eventually the Lord said, I'll take care of that for you, Samson. I'll let the Philistines gouge your eyes out. You won't be looking at no pretty girls any longer. Love not the world, nor the things of the world. Here was a man of God, the prophet of God, the one set to judge the people of Israel. But he thought he could play with the lust of the world, the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and its allurements. And he also was prideful. He refused to destroy the pride of life. Samson loved the world. He lusted and he was prideful. You here today that love the world, that play with the world, have you not read what it says in the book of Revelation, how temporary that this world is? Look at Revelation 18. You that are putting your hopes in this world, in this world's system, in this world's Politics in this world, finances, everything of this world, you have your hope in this world? In Revelation 19, this is what happens to this world. You who find your security, you who love this world, Revelation 19 says this is what's going to happen to this world that you love. 1911 through 21. Now I saw heaven opened. And Father, I pray that you would open the eyes of your people, that you would open the eyes of the unbelievers. Now I saw heaven opened and behold the white horse. And he who sat on him was called faithful and true and in righteousness. He judges and makes war. His eyes were like a flame of fire and on his head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except himself. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood. And his name is called the Word of God, John 1, 1. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed him on white horses. Now out of his mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it he should strike the nations. And he himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He himself treads the winepress of the fierceness of the wrath of Almighty God. You know, that's Old Testament, Bill. And he has on his robe and on his thigh a name written, King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Then I saw an angel standing in the sun and he cried with a loud voice saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, come and gather together for the supper of the great God, the great God. that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great. And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and the armies gathered together to make war against him who sat on the horse and against his army. Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence by which he deceived those who received. the mark of the beast, and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire, burning with brimstone, and the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of him who sat on a horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh. You who trust in this world, who love this world, that is the end of the world. That is the one that you have to do with, that you will deal with. The world and its ways are temporary. The things of God are eternal. John warns us, do not love the world but he who does the will of God abides forever. Are you doing the will of God or are you doing the will of yourself? Just as Samson, Lord permitted Samson to have his will be done and in the end His eyes gouged, he was in fetters and he was a grinder in the prison. Samson had trouble learning this. The last we saw of Samson, if you remember from the last time I spoke in Judges 16 verses 1, 2, 3, Samson was playing games in Gaza with the harlot and just for a little fun, After the Lord was merciful to him, permitting him to get up in the middle of the night, whereas they were waiting to kill him in the morning, the Lord had mercy upon him, permitting him to get up in the night to leave. Well, for a little joke, he decided to take the gates of the city with him and take him over to Hebron for a little laugh. That was the last that we saw of Samson. But Samson's laughing is going to come. It's going to come to an end. You that would laugh, you that would laugh and mock about sin and repentance and righteousness and holiness, you laugh. It's funny. Samson, he played games too and everything was funny, telling riddles and telling jokes and playing games. But we're going to see what happens to Samson. Judges 4, I'm sorry, Judges 16, verse 4, you all can turn back to Judges from Revelation, even though keep your finger there, we're going back over there in a minute. Judges 16, 4 tells us, afterwards, after his game with the harlot down in Gaza, he still didn't learn his lesson. Afterward, it happened that he loved a woman in the valley of Sorek. whose name was Delilah. Afterwards, after playing his games, after committing his sin once again, and seemingly no consequences, I got over it again. God, he mustn't really care about this fornication stuff. God's probably winking his eye at my sin. I got over it again. As a matter of fact, he even woke me up in the middle of the night so I could slip out. But afterwards, after playing the games, after committing sin, afterwards it says he loved a woman. It doesn't say afterwards he loved the Lord. It doesn't say afterwards he loved the Lord for waking him up and showing him mercy. No, afterwards he loved a woman. Or should I say, he lusted after a woman. And I say this because as we go through the story, you're going to find out there's nothing about love in this story. except the love of sin. It's nothing to do with sin. Samson, it says, goes down to the valley of Sorek. Sorek means to intertwine and to entangle. Now he's going down to the valley to get intertwined, to get all entangled up. The Lord is not going to be mocked. The Lord is patient, but the very word patient means that there comes a time when he's no longer patient. The trap is being set for Samson, he's going down to the place to get entangled. Surek was on the border of the enemy. Here was Judah, here was the valley of Surek, and here were the Philistines. The valley separating Judah and the enemy. He's on the border, he's on the fence. Like many today throughout the church, they're lukewarm, they're on the fence. Here's the land of Israel, the land of praise, the land of the God of Israel. And the church today is in the valley of Sorek. And there's the enemy. Here's the Philistines. Let me get as close as I possibly can. Sorek even means the choice grapes. Here's a Nazarite. Can't drink wine, let me go down to the place of the choice grapes. Intertwined, entangled, let me go down on the fence. See what the Lord says about the fence in Revelation 3. This is Jesus Christ speaking. Those who would say, I follow the red letter edition. But this is Jesus Christ, matter of fact, it's even read in my Bible. I have a red letter edition. I don't like to talk about that hard stuff. Revelation 3. 15 to 19. I know your works, that you're neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth. Because you say, I am rich, I have become wealthy, I am need of nothing, and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked, I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire that you may be rich, and white garments that you may be clothed, that the shame No shame today, the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed, and anoint your eyes with eyesalve, that you may see, verse 19, as many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore, be zealous and repent. The Lord warns, why? Because He loves you. It's the most unloving thing to not be told of your sin. This is Jesus Christ speaking to a lukewarm church in the book of Revelation, in the New Testament, and he says what? As many as I love, as many as I love, I chasten and I rebuke. Not as many as I love, I tickle their ears. As many as I love, Christ is warning the Church, rebuking the Church, because He loves the Church. But when the Church is rebuked or chastened, they take it as hatred. The Bible says if you do that with your own children, if you spare the rod, that you don't love them. The very fact that the Lord is chastening and rebuking this apostate Church today, is the very love that He has for them. Samson should have heeded. But you read it in the chapters, he's never really rebuked. He's never really admonished about his sin. When Samson was down grinding, I'm sure at that time he would have been praying to God, I wish he had sent somebody to me to tell me of my sins. But the Lord let him persist in his sin. And the Lord eventually gave Samson over to his sin. Go back to Judges 16.4, the Lord will do the same with you if you would persist in your sin. Now it says in verse 4, it happened, he loved a woman in the valley of Sherek whose name was Delilah. whose name was Delilah. Delilah's name means to weaken, to impoverish, to bring you low. That's what Delilah means. He fell in love with the thing, with the one that was going to bring him low, that was going to weaken him, that was going to impoverish him. And the question is, what Delilah is in your bosom? What Delilah do you love? We're not talking about a specific woman here alone. That's the primary meaning of the text. The old Puritan spoke of it all the time. About the Delilah in your bosom. The Delilah that you love. The Delilah that will weaken you and impoverish you and bring you low. Look at verse 5. You're going to see the fall of Samson, the wages of sin, and the lords of the Philistines came up to her, entice him, and find out where his great strength lies, and by what means we may overpower him, that we may bind him to afflict him, and every one of us will give you eleven hundred pieces of silver. The lords of the Philistines, the lords literally means the tyrants, The tyrants of the Philistines, the Philistines were the enemy, the lords of the Philistines, the tyrants of the enemy come up to Delilah and they offer her money, entice him, find an opening. That Delilah in your life is there to find an opening, a point of vulnerability to lure you by bait. And the question is, what bait is Satan using? They want to know, tells by what means we may overpower him. By what means? What is it that's going to take you down? What is that Delilah? By what means? Notice that we may what? Bind him to afflict him. People think sin is their friend. Sin is to bind you to afflict you. And the question is, are you bound? Are you ineffective? Judges 5 says every one of us will give you 1,100 pieces of silver. The Delilers of this world, they're highly motivated. They're highly motivated by reward. Whatever form or shape they may take, be it financial reward, power, prestige, the list goes on and on and on. That Deliler in your life has promised something. They're highly motivated. Notice the technique that Delilah uses in verse 6. So Delilah said to Samson, please, please tell me where your great strength lies and with what you may be abound to afflict you. Now there's a real sweetheart of a woman. That's why I said this is not exactly a love story. Notice the technique that Delilah uses. Please, tell me. Please. Delilah uses sweet words. The advertisements are sweet. The boyfriend that would come to you someday is sweet. Please. Sin always comes sweet, soft-spoken, pleasing. Turn to Proverbs. If you would have wisdom, Learn, you who want to have your ears tickled, this is where tickling ears goes, Proverbs 2, verses 16 through 19. The question is not do you have your, is sin, hearing about sin, harsh or not, or do I want to hear about it? You have to ask yourself one question, one question, Lord. Is it the truth? Is it the truth that I'm hearing? Proverbs 2 verses 16 through 19, to deliver you from the immoral woman, from the seductress who flatters with her words, who forsakes the companion of her youth and forgets the covenant of her God, for her house leads down to death and her paths to the dead. That's where that smooth-talking Delilah will lead you to the paths of death. The paths of death. The smooth words. Proverbs 7 verses 1 through 5 says, My son, keep my words and treasure my commands within you. Keep my commands and live and my law is the apple of your eye. Bind them on your fingers, write them on the tablet of your heart, say the wisdom, you're my sister. And call understanding your nearest kin, verse 5, that they, brothers and sisters, may keep you from the immoral woman, from the seductress who flatters with her words. That doesn't just refer to immoral women. That refers to any kind of sin. That, specifically, to the church of Jesus Christ today, even on this Sunday morning, as they would sit under men who will flatter them with their words and tell them what they want to hear. Little do they know the very judgment of God is on the people because that's why they're embracing the false teachers. The Lord has sent these men to give them what they want to hear. They want to have their ears tickled. They don't want to hear about sin. They don't want to hear about if you persist in this sin, refuse to repent, you're going to wind up as Samson. They'll tell you smooth words. Everything is fine with your soul. Put the money in the basket and I'll go on your merry way and enjoy yourself with the world. Because I've got to get out of here. I've got to go enjoy myself with the world. Turn to 2 Corinthians 11. And I hear it all the time. Well, you know, he talks about Jesus Christ. I heard him mention Jesus Christ. Somebody sneezed. I heard him say, God bless you. 2 Corinthians 11. You who would want to sit under somebody with smooth words? 2 Corinthians chapter 11 verses 3 and 4 tells you about smooth talking preachers. Well, it shows you where they got their influence from. 2 Corinthians 11 verses 3 and 4. But I fear, lest somehow as the serpent deceived Eve by his frankness. How did he deceive Eve? With his words. Did God really say that? Does the Bible really say that? Did God really mean that? She was deceived by words, by small talk and words from a serpent. But I feel that somehow as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. These elaborate systems As opposed to the simplicity of the cross of Jesus Christ. Verse 4, for if he who comes preaches what? Another Jesus. They're not coming to you talking about Mohammed and Hinduism and Buddhism. They're coming to you talking about Jesus Christ. But he mentions Christ. He's a nice looking fella. Nice shoe. Nice car. Nice people. His wife looks nice. If he comes, preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel. It's a different gospel. It's not the wages of sin is death and the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus. It's another gospel with smooth words. You may well put up with it. Look over verses 13 and 15 of the same chapter. For such are false apostles. Deceitful work is what? Transforming themselves into apostles of Christ. Brothers and sisters, the problem is not Mohammed over in Iraq. The problem is the fellow on the TV screen with the smiling face. Transforming themselves into apostles of Christ, and no wonder! For Satan himself transforms himself into an angel of light. Satan himself. Therefore, it is no great thing if his ministers also transform themselves into ministers of righteousness, whose end will be according to their works. Nothing but words. Nothing but words were used from Delilah. You're going to see Samson going back with words. Rather than take heed to Delilah's word, bind and afflict you. Judges 16, 17. I mean, when Samson heard the girl that he loves say, listen, tell me what your weak part is. I want to bind you up and afflict you and turn you over to the laws of the Philistines. You know, that should have been a hint to get out of there. But what does he do? Like he's done for a few chapters in the book of Judges. He plays with words. He plays with words. Look at 1670. Right after she's done, we're back in Jersey, that I can bind you up and afflict you. Samson said, if they bind me with seven fresh bow strings, not yet dried, then I shall become weak and be like any other man. So now here he is playing with his words. Now here he is, he's lying. He knows that's not the truth, but he's into playing games. Samson's been playing games since day one. I said earlier that this was not a love affair. Notice, once again, verse 8. And she bound him with them. Okay? She binds them up. Verse 9. Not only does she bind them up, you talk about, really, you know, you better leave after this. Verse 9. Now men were lying in wait, staying with her in the room. But it shows you how blind did you become to sin. I mean, no matter how much he lusted after the woman, it's like, let me afflict you, let me bind you up, and now, verse 9, now men were lying in wait, staying with her in the room. But it shows you, when you play with Delilah, it doesn't matter. You are just blind to your sin. Lying in wait, the secret of the strength. Want to know that? And now look at verse 10. First, please, with the sweet words. Now look at verse 10. See, that's what happens after somebody, they try the sweet words with you. If that don't work, now verse 10. Delilah's going to change now. Then Delilah said to Samson, look, you mocked me. You told me lies. Now please tell me. Well, you may be bound. See, changing. Now, but her sin is blatant. Tell me what you may be bound with. Delilah cries out to you. What may you be bound with? You see all the signs. You see there's men lying in wait in the room. You see Delilah has said, I want to afflict you. And you're like, Delilah's so nice to me, though. I just love Delilah. No matter how blind, how, I said, No matter how dominant that thing is in front of you, you see it so clearly. But somehow, you think that you are greater than your sin, that you're greater than Samson, that you are greater than God himself. This chapter, if you would ever think that you can get away with your sin, this chapter should absolutely ruin that. Notice, Samson did not realize that when you live in sin, unrepentant sin, that you're just like any other man. Look what it says in verse 11. So he said now, he goes on, if they bind me securely with new ropes that have never been used, then I shall become weak and be like any other man. Brothers and sisters, if you live in unrepentant sin, you are just like any other man. Any other woman. That's what the world does. They live in their sin, their slaves of sin. The book of Romans says you're no longer to be slaves of sin, you're to be slaves of righteousness. Samson's strength was in the fact that he was separate, that he was set apart. That's where his strength lied. Because when people think of Samson, they think of this like the Hulk. This guy that's 6 foot 10, 500 pounds, or not 500, 350, all muscled up. Samson wasn't like that at all. What would be supernatural about that? You would expect. Here's a guy, 350, with all these muscles. He's pretty strong. His strength was in a supernatural God that he was set apart to. That's where his strength was. You know, when we see him, you see him. That's why the Philistines was like, what's the secret of his strength? If he was 350 all bugged out, they'd kind of get the hint. That's why he's strong. He was a little puny guy. That's it. Delilah's sin, verse 12, repeats itself. Verse 13, Samson's pride increases. Notice what will happen with your Delilah. Look at verse 12. Delilah took new ropes bound in Philistine, same thing over. It was bow strings, now it's ropes. Now notice, this is what will happen when you keep playing with your sin. Notice verse 18. Delilah said to Samson, until now you have mocked me, you told me lies, tell me what you may be bound with. And he said to her, if you weave the seven locks of my head into the web of the loom, if you weave the locks of my hair, his strength, see now, now, see, first he's down in the valley of Sorek, the choice red grapes, now he's getting around to the hair. The last thing that's left. He wants to get as close as possible to the forbidden. How many times have you heard somebody in the church say, well, can I do this? This questionable thing. I don't want to sin, of course, but I just want to get as close to sin as I possibly can. Is this really permissible for me? How far can I go? If I date, can I kiss, can I touch, can we hold hands? How far can I go? Can I go PG, G, R, X, Y, Z movie? How can I wear? How far with the skirt? How far? That's with Samson, he's right. Now he's to the hair. It's one, one step away. Samson is getting closer to the suddenly that is about to take place in his life. He keeps playing games. The bow strings, the ropes, now he's to the hair. Where the strength does lie. That's the last thing in his life that set him apart. The last thing that was left of the Nazarite vow that set him apart. And notice verse 15. Now the smoothest of all. The smoothest of all. Verse 15. See in verse 6, oh please tell me. I think she ratcheted it up a little bit. Look. You're mocking me now, dude. Tell me what it really is. Now. It's like the words of Satan. And I used these very words myself when I was younger. Verse 15. Then she said to him, how can you say I love you when your heart is not with me? You've mocked me these three times and have not told me where your great strength lies. She tried to have her way, Samson told her the bow strings. She tried to have her way, Samson tells her the ropes. She tries to have her way, Samson tells her, the hair, the baton, the loom, the web. She calls each time for the Philistines. But now, now, if you love me, if you love me, how many times do men and women do this to each other? How many times in marriages Do men and women do this to each other? How many times do parents do that to their children? If you loved me, you would do this. How many men here, when they were teenagers or in their early 20s, said that to a woman? If you really loved me, you would do this, wouldn't you? If you really loved me, you would do this. And I don't think that I'm just talking about one area, because we as Christians do this to the Lord all the time. If you love me, you would give me that thing that I want. You would give me that power, that prestige, that husband, that wife, that job, that money, my health, my wealth, my house, my car, my boat, whatever. If you love me, Well, matter of fact, we even dip it in sin and say, Lord, if you love me, you deliver me from this sin. When God says already in Romans 6, I have delivered you from that sin. But by faith, you're not counting that. It's true. And we make our sins godly, dipping them in gold. Certainly, Lord, deliver me from this sin. Sin shall no longer rule and reign in your life. God's told you already. He has delivered you from it. But by faith. You have to count that as true. Verse 16 tells us Delilah is the one who weakens and impoverishes and brings low and destroys. And notice what it says in verse 16, you keep playing with this sin. Verse 16, And it came to pass when she pestered him daily with the words that pressed him so that his soul was vexed to death. Sin will pester you daily. It will press you. It will vex you. It will act the same way that one of Samson's other girlfriends was, Judges 14, if you remember that, verses 15 through 17, when she wanted to know the riddle. But it came to pass on the seventh day that they said to Samson's wife, entice your husband. Quite a few lovely women. Entice your husband that he may explain the riddle to us, or else we'll burn you and your father's house with fire. Have you invited us in order to take what is ours? Is that not so?" Then Samson's wife wept on him and said, "'You only hate me. You do not love me. You have posed a riddle to the sons of my people, but you have not explained it to me.' And he said to them, "'Look, I have not explained it to my father or my mother, so should I explain it to you?' Delilah, if you really love me, pestering, vexing, keeps it up, keeps it up, keeps it up. The woman, his previous wife, kept it up, kept it up, kept it up. The Delilah in your life will keep it up. It will pester you. It will bother you until you put it to death once and for all. That sin will kill you as it did Samson or you will kill it. That's what the doctrine of mortification means. Let me give you an illustration. You're in Vietnam. You're an American soldier. The North Vietnamese have you surrounded. You have an M16. You come upon a North Vietnamese. And it's you or it's him. You're not to give it nice words, sweet words, play with it, do anything with it. You are to take that sin, and you're to kill it. Samson did not kill the sin in his life, and in the end, he winds up dead. Is that point blank enough? You kill your sin, or your sin kills you. And it's the grace of God that you're even hearing it. That's the grace of God. That you're able to hear it, that you're able to hear that illustration. When you go to sin the next time, when you put your hand out or open your eyes to, I want you to see a Vietnamese soldier standing there with a gun ready to shoot you. Shoot you dead. Because that's what sin wants to do. That's why we don't talk about it in the church today. Let's talk about sin. That's not pleasant. Wait a minute, say shooting, put to death, hacking, racking, killing. That's not going to pack out. But the question is, what do you get from reading Judges 16? You can't come away with any other thought but that. Here's a man who lived Chapter 14, Chapter 15, Chapter 16. Guess what? You wind up gouged out in fetish at the grinding mill. And remember, Delilah simply used words. That's all she used. It's only words that are going to take you down. People fail to realize that words are things. Words are things. You're never to forget that. Hitler almost conquered the world using words. All cults are just words. But words are not just words, they are things. Every word that comes out of your mouth is a thing. That's why I just told you about the doctrine of mortification. Why I said about sin that you hear death. It's a word that in your mind, that's what you're going to see. You're going to see a guy with a gun that's looking to kill you. Words are things. Delilah used words. And what happened? She took Samson down with her words. Every marriage I ever counseled anybody, the bottom line is the words. The husband said, the wife said, destroyed relationships with the children. The children said, the parents said to the children, the words destroy. They bring destructions. The word that comes out of your mouth is what is in your heart. People say about the drunk, oh well, you know, he didn't mean what he was saying, he was just drunk. No, that's what's in his heart. What comes out of your mouth is what's in your heart. The mighty man, the strongest man ever known to mankind was brought down by a couple of words. And Samson, he was strong in one area, being the strongest man. Carrying the city gates, 40 miles to Hebron, that's kind of a strong fella. And a couple of words was all it took. Please tell me. Please tell me. Please, if you love me, you'll do that. Please. Please, just doctor the books a little bit over there. Please, just, you know, this immoral act won't be no problem. Please, come on, if you love me. A couple of words. A couple of words. Look at verse 18 and 19. When Delilah saw that he had told of all that was in his heart, Let me show you in verse 17 what took him down, what I said about words. That he told her all his heart. He finally couldn't take it no more. She annoyed him enough that he said, that's it. I'd rather be dead. Verse 17, that he told her all his heart and said, no rage that has ever come upon me for I have been a Nazarite to God from my mother's womb. Child of the God. If you are a child of God today, you've been predestinated before the foundations of the world, you've been set apart. I nauseate to God from my mother's womb, if I am shaven, then my strength will leave me, and I shall become weak and be like any other man. When Delilah saw that he had told her all his heart, she sent and called for the lords of the Philistines, the tyrants of the enemies, saying, Come up once more, for he's told me all his heart. So the lords of the Philistines came up to her I brought the money in her hand. It was just words. Notice how many times it just said, said, said, said, called. Just words. Words are not just words. Why do you buy that product that you hear about? You hear the words of the product, so you go and you buy the product. Notice, they come with the money in their hand. Verse 19. Then she loathed to sleep on her knees. The question is, are you loath to sleep on Delilah's knee? And called for a man, and had him shave off the seven locks of his head. Then she began to torment him, and his strength left him. Rolled him to sleep on her knees. Delilah will do that to you, whatever that sin is. It will torment you, your strength will leave you. You don't know how many believers I've seen laying on the side of the road. And the bottom line with every one of them is, they heard some words somewhere along the line, and they gave in to that word. Whatever the thing was, you can put whatever sin, but it was originally a word that they heard. A word they heard that they gave in to. Lulled them to sleep, Delilah will do that. The wages of sin, reaping what you sow, your sin will find you out. You who will persist in playing with Delilah as I'm getting ready to close in a few moments. Verses 20 and 21, two of the most tragic verses in the scripture. As she said, the Philistines are upon you, Samson. So he awoke from his sleep. How many of you take heed to this, brothers and sisters? You that are listening on tape, please, I'm begging you. And she said, the Philistines are up on you, Samson. So he awoke from his sleep and said, I will go out as before. See, he's getting up, thinking everything is just like any other day. I will go out as before. At other times, see, you think, guy's just winking. He's just winking about that, Sam. I'll go out as before at other times. shake myself free. But, tragic, tragic, tragic, but he did not know. How many of you do not know? But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him. For you that would not want to talk about sin, that would not want to hear about sin, that would hate to hear the word sin even mentioned, But he did not know that the Lord had departed from him. Then the Philistines took him, realized this is a prophet of God, sent to deliver the people. The question is, who's going to deliver him? Then the Philistines took him out, took him and put out his eyes, those very eyes that he used to sin so many times. That's why the Lord says, you're going to reap what you sow. The Lord got a funny way of that very thing, that Delilah that you love, put out his eyes, brought him down to Gaza. You want to play in a place you don't belong? He brought him down to Gaza. They bound them with bronze feathers, and he became a grinder in the prison. Eyes put out, brought down to Gaza, bound with bronze feathers. and a grinder in the prison. Now that being said, there's a reason why I love being a minister of God. Because you can talk about sin and you can talk about the wages of sin, but just the same way that God has a funny way of causing you to reap what you sow, As I mentioned many times, the book of Judges is about the grace of God. And if you all noticed, this message was from verse 4 to verse 22. But I left verse 22. I didn't read it in the original reading, so I could show you verse 22, you who would be to the point of despair. You who would think that there's no hope for you, for you've played with Delilah for decades. There's hope for you. The simple fact that you heard it. But I'm going to show you the grace of God. But I just would hope that you don't have to have your eyes gouged out, bound up, fetish put on you, be brought down to the grinding stone. And just a little side note, he was grinding. Well, if you remember earlier with the Philistines, he burnt their wheat. So even with that, he reaped what he sowed. Now you're going to grind our wheat for us. But anyway, that being said, let me show you the grace of God. Verse 22. However, see that little word there? However, Samson had his eyes put out. brought down the Gaza, bound with bronze feathers, and he became a grinder in the prison, verse 22, which is a part of this section maybe you'll see in some of your Bibles. However, the hair of his head began to grow again after he had been shaven. You see the grace of God? After all of Samson's sin, however, That's the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ. However, even though you would be here today and be at Samson, first of all, you're herded so you don't need your eyes gouged out and fetters put on you and be brought down to the grinder. However, know that that however is here. The however is the very reason that you're hearing this message. That's why when sin is in the text, you must preach about sin. If it's there, you can't make Samson 16 a prosperity message. I don't know how, I'm sure it's done, I just don't know how you do it. But I mean, Judges 16 is in your Bible the same as mine. 14 is there, 15 is there, 16 is there. You have two options. Either you learn your lesson from the judges, or you rip it out of your Bible. Be like Thomas Jefferson. He's the one that cut out the supernatural out of the Bible, right? You can cut out Judges 14, 15, and 16, or you can heed the warning so that you don't get bound up in fetters and your eyes gouged out and your Christian life ruined for you. However, like I said, you're going to see the grace of God, however, but in the next message, kind of the however, Is that the end? And I actually even heard somebody say that to me one time. Well, see, at least, you know, he came to realize the grace of God. Now he's on his way to his death, you know.