Ten Minute Bible Talks Devotional Bible Study - Is Your Hero a Villain? | Historical Books | Judges 13

Episode Date: March 11, 2025

Do you worship the wrong hero? Do you determine good and evil based on your feelings? Was Samson faithful or disobedient? In today's episode, Tanya shares how Judges 13 encourages us to save our worship for the hero that truly saves: Jesus. We love to hear from you all! If you're listening on Spotify, drop a comment below and tell us your biggest takeaway from today's episode. Read the Bible with us in 2025! This year, we’re exploring the Historical Books—Joshua, Judges, 1 & 2 Samuel, and 1 & 2 Kings. Download your reading plan now. Your support makes TMBT possible. Ten Minute Bible Talks is a crowd-funded project. Join the TMBTeam to reach more people with the Bible. Give now. Like this content? Make sure to leave us a rating and share it so that others can find it, too. Use #asktmbt to connect with us, ask questions, and suggest topics. We'd love to hear from you! To learn more, visit our website and follow us on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter@TenMinuteBibleTalks. Don't forget to subscribe to the TMBT Newsletter here. Passages: Judges 13

Welcome to 10-minute Bible Talks, where we connect the Bible to your life. In the time it takes to get to work. I'm Tanya Wilmeth. Who is your hero? We teeter on the edges of hero worship and hero deconstruction in our culture today. Look no further than the most recent Super Bowl when Taylor Swift recently named Times Person of the Year entered the stadium to a chorus of booze. Now, this is the same person who sold out concerts in the U.S. with crowds surpassing NFL attendance records. night after night while police officers, kids, moms, and Swifties exchanged friendship bracelets

in the streets surrounding those stadiums. We want our heroes, and we also want to tear them down. We want them to save us from our boredom and our regular everyday lives, but we also want them to be like us, so we don't have to feel like our own lives and work do not matter. This struggle is not new. It was present in ancient Israel during the time of the judges, particularly in the story of Samson. The people of Israel were searching for deliverance, but they were also caught in a cycle of disobedience and destruction. Judges 13-1 tells us that the people did what was evil in the sight of the Lord again,

and we're going to hear that again. So he gave them into the hands of the Philistines for 40 years. This phrase is repeated over and over in judges. The writer makes it clear. The people no longer saw their actions as a problem. idol worship became normal to them. In their own eyes, everything seemed fine, but in God's eyes, their behavior was wicked. How often do we determine what is right and wrong, based in our own understanding rather than God's standard? We tell ourselves, do what feels right, do that because

it feels right. But God's standard for holiness is something we can never meet on our own. Thomas Brooks, a Puritan writer once said, Satan paints sin with virtues colors. We justify our actions just as the Israelites did, but in the midst of Israel's rebellion, God was still working. Samson, this is where he comes in. Now, Manoa and his wife had no children. See, Judge's 13. Interestingly, we have no evidence that anyone actually cried out to God for deliverance, yet God intervened anyway. An angel of the Lord appeared to Manoa's wife and told her she would have a son who would be set apart as a Nazright. Now, this meant three things. One, no razor could touch his hair.

Two, he could not eat or drink anything from the vine. And three, he could not come into contact with a dead body. Now, the purpose of this vow was to show dependence on God, usually for a limited time. But Samson was to be a Nazarite for life. His birth was a direct response to Israel's suffering. He was going to be set apart to be their hero. Now, Manoa, to his credit, believed God. He prayed for more instruction on how to raise his son.

so the angel returned and confirmed everything again. Later, as they offered a burnt sacrifice, the angel of the Lord ascended in the flames, leaving Manoa and his wife in awe and worship. Then Samson was born. God kept his promise. And as he grew, the Lord's spirit began to stir in him, showing him, stirring in him,

what he would do for Israel. Now, Judges 13-5 states that Samson would begin to save Israel from the Philistines. God fulfilled this promise. even within this chapter, as he stirred Samson's heart for the work he was appointed to do. Now, though Samson's deliverance would not be immediate or complete, God was setting the stage for Israel's eventual salvation. Samson was unique among the judges of Israel. As the 12th and final judge, he stood at the transition from the time of the judges to the era of kings.

Unlike his predecessors, he did not lead an army but fought the Philistines single-handedly. His life was deeply entangled with the very people he was meant to oppose. This is what led to his downfall. And despite his flaws, breaking the Ten Commandments, violating the Nazarite vow, and acting impulsively, he was still used by God to begin Israel's deliverance. Samson's story mirrors Israel's own struggle, inconsistency, unfaithfulness, and divine intervention at every turn. Samson's story mirrors our own struggle, inconsistency, unfaithfulness, and divine intervention at every turn. Even in his failure, Samson was a part of God's plan. His incomplete deliverance pointed to a greater hope, one that would be fulfilled in David and ultimately in Jesus Christ.

So, was Samson a flawed hero? And if so, who is our perfect savior? Now, the story of Samson is one many of us have heard since childhood, but how do we explain to anyone, especially children, the failings of someone sent to be a, quote, savior for Israel. Samson obeyed in some ways and completely failed in others. He fought the Philistines, but his personal relationships with them totally complicated his mission. And he's not alone. Many biblical heroes were deeply flawed. Noah's turned firm in faith while he was building the ark, but afterward he fell into drunkenness and embarrassed his family. Abraham

followed God's call to leave Err, but then he lied to the Egyptians about Sarah being his wife. Moses boldly confronted Pharaoh, but later let pride lead him to disobedience when he hit on the rock for water. Now, it's not just biblical heroes, it's us. In our families, our marriages, our parenting, it's in our churches, it's in our words. A shadow of inconsistency follows us all. So what do we do? Well, we need a better hero. Samson was one of many saviors God used to stir Israel's heart for a better king.

A savior who would never fail, never sin. never betray his father. Of course that Savior is Jesus Christ. And unlike Samson, he never fell into sin. Unlike Noah, Abraham, and Moses, he never made a mistake. He lived the perfect life we never could, then died to break the chains of sin and death that entangle us. He offers us a resurrected life, a sinless eternity with our father. So what are we teaching our kids about hero worship? who are we pointing them to as their ultimate example? Who are we tearing down in front of them? Why are we so inconsistent with our words and actions?

We need a Savior to rescue us, not a human leader, not a cultural figure, not a sports star, not even ourselves. We need Jesus. Let's ask God to clarify in our hearts and minds that he is our true hero, that we would not place our hope in flawed leaders, but in the only one who will never fail us. Let's not settle for lesser saviors. Let's point our children, our families, and ourselves to the king who reigns forever. As Jesus himself said in John 1246, I have come as a light to shine in this dark world, so that all who put their trust in me will no longer remain in the dark. May we turn to that light, may we trust him alone to lead us out of darkness into eternal life.

Thank you.