Conflict & Courage

Chap. 129 - A Sure Crop      My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not. Proverbs 1:10.  {CC 135.1}        Samson in his peril had the same source of strength as had Joseph. He could choose the right or the wrong as he pleased. But instead of taking hold of the strength of God, he permitted the wild passions of his nature to have full sway. The reasoning powers were perverted, the morals cor...

Chap. 128 - This is the Secret      And he wist not that the Lord was departed from him. Judges 16:20.  {CC 134.1}        Day by day Delilah urged him, until "his soul was vexed unto death;" yet a subtle power kept him by her side. Overcome at last, Samson made known the secret: "There hath not come a razor upon mine head; for I have been a Nazarite unto God from my mother's womb: If I be shaven,...

Chap. 127 - What's the Secret?      And Delilah said to Samson, Tell me, I pray thee, wherein thy great strength lieth. Judges 16:6.  {CC 133.1}        The Israelites made Samson judge, and he ruled Israel for twenty years. But one wrong step prepares the way for another. . . . He continued to seek those sensuous pleasures that were luring him to ruin. "He loved a woman in the valley of Sorek," no...

He shall begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines. Judges 13:5.  {CC 132.1}        God's promise that through Samson He would "begin to deliver Israel out of the hand of the Philistines" was fulfilled; but how dark and terrible the record of that life which might have been a praise to God and a glory to the nation! Had Samson been true to his divine calling, the purpose of God co...

Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? 2 Corinthians 6:14.  {CC 131.1}        The town of Zorah being near the country of the Philistines, Samson came to mingle with them on friendly terms. Thus in his youth intimacies sprang up, the influence of which darkened his whole life. A young woman dwelling in the Philistine town o...

Teach us what we shall do unto the child that shall be born. Judges 13:8.  {CC 130.1}        God Himself appeared to the wife of Manoah and told her that she should have a son, and that he should be a great man and should deliver Israel. Then He gave her special instructions regarding her diet. . . . Let us regard this as instruction given to every mother in our world. If you want your children to...

And Gideon made an ephod . . . which thing became a snare unto Gideon, and to his house. Judges 8:27.  {CC 129.1}        The people of Israel, in their gratitude at deliverance from the Midianites, proposed to Gideon that he should become their king, and that the throne should be confirmed to his descendants. This proposition was in direct violation of the principles of the theocracy. . . . Gideon...

And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people are yet too many; bring them down unto the water, and I will try them for thee there: and it shall be, that of whom I say unto thee, This shall go with thee, the same shall go with thee; and of whomsoever I say unto thee, This shall not go with thee, the same shall not go. Judges 7:4.  {CC 128.1}        The people were led down to the waterside, expecting...

And the Lord said unto Gideon, The people that are with thee are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hands, lest Israel vaunt themselves against me, saying, Mine own hand hath saved me. Judges 7:2.  {CC 127.1}        It had been made a law in Israel that before they went to battle the following proclamation should be made throughout the army: "What man is there that hath built a new...

And the Lord looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might . . . : have not I sent thee? Judges 6:14.  {CC 126.1}        To Gideon came the divine call to deliver his people. He was engaged at the time in threshing wheat. A small quantity of grain had been concealed, and not daring to beat it out on the ordinary threshing floor, he had resorted to a spot near the winepress; for the season of rip...

And the children of Joseph spake unto Joshua, saying, Why hast thou given me but one lot and one portion to inherit? Joshua 17:14.  {CC 124.1}        Another claim concerning the division of the land revealed a spirit widely different from that of Caleb. It was presented by the children of Joseph, the tribe of Ephraim with the half tribe of Manasseh. In consideration of their superior numbers, the...

 I am as strong this day as I was in the day that Moses sent me. . . . Now therefore give me this mountain. Joshua 14:11, 12.  {CC 123.1}        Before the distribution of the land had been entered upon, Caleb, accompanied by the heads of his tribe, came forward with a special claim. Except Joshua, Caleb was now the oldest man in Israel. Caleb and Joshua were the only ones among the spies who had...

Lying lips are abomination to the Lord: but they that deal truly are his delight. Proverbs 12:22.  {CC 122.1}   Lying lips are abomination to the Lord: but they that deal truly are his delight. Proverbs 12:22.  {CC 122.1}  Lying lips are abomination to the Lord: but they that deal truly are his delight. Proverbs 12:22.  {CC 122.1}   Lying lips are abomination to the Lord: but they that deal truly...

He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. Proverbs 28:13.  {CC 121.1}        Achan acknowledged his guilt, but when it was too late for the confession to benefit himself. He had seen the armies of Israel return from Ai defeated and disheartened; yet he did not come forward and confess his sin. He had seen Joshua and the elders of Israel...

Neither will I be with you any more, except ye destroy the accursed from among you. Joshua 7:12.  {CC 120.1}        The sin of one man caused Israel to be beaten before the enemy. Something more than prayer was required. They were to get up and cleanse the camp of Israel.  {CC 120.2}        Have you considered why it was that all who were connected with Achan were also subjects of the punishment o...

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have. Hebrews 13:5, R.S.V.  {CC 119.1}        Achan had fostered covetousness and deception in his heart, until his perceptions of sin had become blunted, and he fell an easy prey to temptation. Those who venture to indulge in a known sin will be more readily overcome the second time. The first transgression opens the door to the...

All the people shall shout with a great shout; and the wall of the city shall fall down flat. Joshua 6:5.  {CC 118.1}        At the taking of Jericho the mighty General of armies planned the battle in such simplicity that no human being could take the glory to himself. No human hand must cast down the walls of the city, lest man should take to himself the glory of victory. So today no human being...

I will be with thee: I will not fail thee, nor forsake thee. Joshua 1:5.  {CC 117.1}        Study carefully the experiences of Israel in their travels to Canaan. . . . We need to keep the heart and mind in training, by refreshing the memory with the lessons that the Lord taught His ancient people. Then to us, as He designed it should be to them, the teachings of His Word will ever be interesting a...

This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night, that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein; for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success. Joshua 1:8.  {CC 116.1}        If men will walk in the path that God has marked out for them, they will have a counselor whose wisdom is far...

For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life: to keep thee from the evil woman, from the flattery of the tongue of a strange woman. Proverbs 6:23, 24.  {CC 115.1}        The crime that brought the judgments of God upon Israel was that of licentiousness. The forwardness of women to entrap souls did not end at Baal-peor. Notwithstanding the pun...

"Be on your guard against covetousness in any shape or form. For a man's real life in no way depends upon the number of his possessions." Luke 12:15, Phillips.  {CC 114.1}        The curse which Balaam had not been permitted to pronounce against God's people, he finally succeeded in bringing upon them by seducing them into sin.  {CC 114.2}        Balaam witnessed the success of his diabolical sche...

But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof. Proverbs 1:25.  {CC 113.1}        In the night season the angel of God came to Balaam with the message, "Thou shalt not go with them; thou shalt not curse the people: for they are blessed." . . .  {CC 113.2}        A second time Balaam was tested. In response to the solicitations of the ambassadors he professed great conscient...

They have abandoned the right road and wandered off to follow the old trail of Balaam, son of Beor, the man who had no objection to wickedness as long as he was paid for it. 2 Peter 2:15, Phillips.  {CC 112.1}        Balaam was once a good man and a prophet of God; but he had apostatized, and had given himself up to covetousness; yet he still professed to be a servant of the Most High. He was not...

I besought the Lord at that time, saying, ... I pray thee, let me go over, and see the good land that is beyond Jordan, that goodly mountain, and Lebanon. But the Lord was wroth with me for your sakes, and would not hear me: and the Lord said unto me, Let it suffice thee; speak no more unto me of this matter. Deuteronomy 3:23-26.  {CC 111.1}        Never, till exemplified in the sacrifice of Chris...

They angered him at the waters of Meribah, and it went ill with Moses on their account; for they made his spirit bitter, and he spoke words that were rash. Psalm 106:32, 33, R.S.V.  {CC 110.1}       Had Moses and Aaron been cherishing self-esteem or indulging a passionate spirit in the face of divine warning and reproof, their guilt would have been far greater. But they were not chargeable with wi...