Momentary and timely enablement - Ruminating in the Word of God

The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing,
majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of
him and what came to my mind and heart in Judges 14:14-15,

"As he [Samson] approached Lehi, the Philistines came toward him
shouting. The Spirit of the Lord came upon him in power. The ropes on
his arms became like charred flax, and the bindings dropped from his
hands. Finding a fresh jawbone of a donkey, he grabbed it and struck
down a thousand men."

In the many stunning exploits of Samson, we read of the Spirit of the
Lord coming upon him "in power". In this instance Samson had been
bound by his own countrymen who had been threatened by the Philistines
for Samson's actions, and taken to the Philistines who were seeking
revenge for the devastation of their crops and the vicious slaughter
of many of them by Samson. Samson had done these things because he, in
turn, took revenge on the Philistines for their burning his Philistine
wife to death. All this was preceded by previous instances of offences
and revenge between Samson and the Philistines. It really is a
fascinating read.

I note that it was not until the men of Judah had led the bound Samson
to Lehi did the Spirit of the Lord come upon him for what he would
need in his fight against the Philistines that day. Only when they
arrived near with the Philistines shouting and coming at him did this
special enabling of the Spirit of the Lord reach Samson. It was not
until that moment the ropes that bound him dropped from his hands. It
was not until that very point in time the Spirit of the Lord came upon
Samson that he was able to strike down a thousand Philistines with a
donkey's jawbone. Although the Spirit began to stir within Samson at a
younger age, the Spirit of the Lord was not constantly empowering him
24/7 in such a way, but at the occasions when necessary. The
empowerment, the enablement Samson needed to slaughter the Philistines
came at that very point in time.

I am reminded that Samson did not take a "spiritual inventory" at his
local church on Sunday to determine what special gifts he had to offer
in service to God on that day. Had he, it would not have been evident
as the momentary power of the Lord would not have been present. The
power, the ability, the determination all came when it was needed,
precisely timed.

I'm not going to draw the conclusion that this is the way it is
whenever God "gifts" us with abilities to do things to further his
kingdom. But the story of Samson suggests there are those times when
we may find ourselves imbued with the Holy Spirit in a way that
enables and empowers us to do things for him at some point in time
that was not manifest previously, and possibly not afterward. I recall
Jesus words to his disciples, "When you are brought before synagogues,
rulers and authorities, do not worry about how you will defend
yourselves or what you will say, for the Holy Spirit will teach you at
that time what you should say." Luke 12:11-12. Here we see a similar
working of the Holy Spirit: enabling certain ones in that which was
not manifest the day before, and quite possibly not later. A momentary
enablement by the Holy Spirit at the time of need.

In any event, I am reminded that as believers we are all enabled to do
those things the Lord expects of us. He provides us gifts through the
Holy Spirit and dispenses his grace through us using what he has given
us, "Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve
others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms." 1
Peter 4:10.

The Holy Spirit's momentary enabling of us to do things for the Lord
is one of the many mystical contacts we have with God's kingdom as we
await the Lord's return. Quite possibly you may be able to identify a
time in your life when the Holy Spirit enabled you in a specific way,
in a specific instance. How might he use you this week? Or, next?

Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share
what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to
hear from you!

Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com