Judges 13-16 (The Daily Walk Bible).

It can be hard to serve God. Our own desires war against the Spirit of God who lives within us. We don’t always do what is right. Too often we do what is wrong.

And here we come to Sampson. Sampson, chosen by God, empowered by God, but not living a lifestyle worthy of God! But it shouldn’t necessarily surprise us. We seem to have an advantage that he didn’t. Many believe that, while the Holy Spirit empowered people in the OT, the Spirit didn’t necessarily indwell them permanently. Jesus says this in John 14: “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you” (14:16-17).

Is it correct to see this distinction between the Old and New Testaments when it comes to the ministry of the Holy Spirit? It does seem that there is a qualitative difference regarding the Spirit between believers in the OT and the NT, and I would guess that it is because we have been cleansed by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross. Which actually makes us worse than Sampson. We, who know better, and have God’s Spirit indwelling us so that we can be better, still sometimes choose to sin. And we should not live that way!