Forgive as we have been forgiven is a command, not an option that we can ignore. Kindness is a fruit of the Spirit, and reveals a heart that is submitted to obey God’s word. Let’s take a quick snapshot of the Lord. Luke 6:35 closes with, “…For He is kind to the unthankful and evil.” Have you noticed that one with an unforgiving heart is usually not kind or thankful? They grumble and tend to remain in the negative. Disobedience sows weed seeds that propagate quickly.

Joshua obeyed every word that the Lord gave him. His last words to the children of Israel are found in Joshua 23:14. He wanted to remind them of God’s faithfulness. It says, “…not one thing has failed of all the good things which the Lord your God spoke concerning you. All have come to pass for you; not one word of them has failed.”

Here is how we put on humility. Colossians 3:13 says, “Bearing with one another, and forgiving one another, if anyone has a complaint against another; even as Christ forgave you, so you also must do.”

1 Peter 5:5-6 says, “…Yes, all of you be submissive to one another, and be clothed with humility, for God resists the proud, and gives grace to the humble. Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you in due time.”

An unforgiving heart is the epitome or embodiment of pride. We are forgiven each one of our sins: past, present, and future. If the one who has sinned against us is a believer, then they have also received forgiveness for all their sins as well. All means everything without exception. We are to interact with grace through our mutual gift of forgiveness.

Ephesians 4:32 says, “And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you.” A heart that is kind, tenderhearted, and forgiving pleases the Lord.

There is a warning for us in Hebrews 10:38 Amplified. It says, “But the just shall live by faith (My righteous servant shall live by his conviction respecting man’s relationship to God and divine things, and holy fervor born of faith and conjoined with it) and if he draws back and shrinks in fear, My soul has no delight or pleasure in him.”

The seeds of rebellion flourish in the soil of a proud heart. Remember satan’s rebellion. In pride he lifted himself up, only to be cast down because of his haughtiness. Proverbs 16:18 says, “Pride goes before destruction, and a haughty spirit before a fall.”

Humility is the forerunner to obedience. Pride is the forerunner to disobedience. Each is a choice made in our heart. 

Colossians 3:12 says, “Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, put on tender mercies, kindness, humility, meekness, longsuffering.” 

Joshua 11:15 says, “As the Lord had commanded Moses His servant, so Moses commanded Joshua, and so Joshua did. He left nothing undone of all that the Lord had commanded Moses.” Paul said in 2 Timothy 4:7, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.”

On the other hand, we see a disobedient heart in the life of king Saul. In 1 Samuel 15, he took matters into his own hands and lost his kingdom. Verse 23 says, “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry. Because you have rejected the word of the Lord…”

The root to disobedience is a rebellious heart. Again, we must look to Jesus as our example. Isaiah 50:5 says, “The Lord God has opened My ear; and I was not rebellious, nor did I turn away.”

Samson had no inner strength to resist the temptations, because he disobeyed God’s word. Do you remember how Rebekah’s mother and brother blessed her? She was about to depart with Abraham’s servant, to go be Isaac’s bride.

Genesis 24:60 says, “…may your descendants possess the gates of those who hate them.” We have a hateful enemy. He sets traps to ensnare us through irresistible temptations. Let’s look to Jesus as our example.

in John 14:30 Jesus said, “…the ruler of this world is coming, and he has nothing in Me.” The Amplified says, “…there is nothing in Me that belongs to him, and he has no power over Me).”

How was Samson defeated? He deceived, he waffled, he flirted with the enemy. How was Joshua victorious? He instantly obeyed all that the Lord commanded him. He didn’t question the Lord, nor delay following His orders.

When we walk in our holy calling, our desire will be to please the Lord by obeying His word.

Hebrews 10:36 says, “For you have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise.” Our endurance comes from being deeply rooted in God’s word. 

I want to highlight a warning from the parable of the sower. In Mark 4:16-17, seeds were sown on stony ground. It says, “…they have no root in themselves, and so endure only for a time. Afterward, when tribulation or persecution arises for the word’s sake, immediately they stumble.”

What part of God’s word have you conveniently ignored? That is why Paul said in Acts 20:27, “For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God.” As we read systematically through our Bible, we are to observe to do (Joshua 1:8) so that we do not get derailed through disobedience.

I noticed something else as I read the account of Samson. He didn’t have the endurance to prevail when repeatedly tempted, because he was walking in disobedience. His wife nagged him repeatedly. Judges 14:17 says that she wept on him seven days, “…he told her because she pressed him so much…”

In Judges 16:16-17 Delilah pestered him daily with her words and pressed him, “…so that his soul was vexed to death, that he told her all his heart…” Verse 20 makes me so sad, but it also warns my heart. It says, “…he did not know that the Lord had departed from him.”

His folly cost him his life. They bound him and put out his eyes. He became a grinder in the prison. In the end, his hair grew out. The  Lord used him to accomplish His purpose one last time. 

Proverbs 26:2 says, “Like a flitting sparrow, like a flying swallow, so a curse without cause shall not alight.”

Samson gave some to his parents, but he did not tell them where he had gotten it. As a side note, Joshua 9:22-23 says that when we plan to deceive we are cursed. Proverbs 11:3 says, “The integrity of the upright will guide them, but the perversity of the unfaithful will destroy them.”

Samson’s heart was filled with pride. He went on in his own way with total disregard to God’s calling on his life. The story with Delilah is another example. I only want to pick up one part.

The leaders revealed their evil plan in Judges 16. Yet Samson was in the enemy’s camp. Verse 6 says, “…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…”

Every time I come to this passage in my daily reading, I pause and reflect. What has unknowingly enticed me to lead me away from my Strength? I do not want to be overpowered, bound, and afflicted because of hidden pride in my heart.

Though was set apart for God’s use, Samson got derailed because he disobeyed. Hmm. Think about this in your own life. Our disobedience is like the train that left its track.

Samson was to have no wine, not eat anything unclean, nor was a razor to be used on his head. We know also that no Hebrew was to marry one who was not a Hebrew. Note: the Philistines speak of our flesh.

First thing that Samson did was obtain a Philistine wife. On the way, a young lion came roaring against him. He tore the lion apart with his hands. Keep this in mind. 

He withheld information from his parents, he lied numerous times, and he disobeyed God’s commands for his life. In Judges 14:8-9 he discovered that in the carcass of the lion were a swarm of bees and honey. It says, “…He took some of it in his hands and went along, eating…” 

Now watch this carefully. Verse 19 says that the Angel did a wondrous thing while they watched. The offering was laid upon the rock. Verse 20 says, “It happened as the flame went up toward heaven from the altar—the Angel of the Lord ascended in the flame of the altar!…”

I want to bring your attention to Strong’s definition of a wondrous thing. To perform a miracle, marvel, wonder, or supernatural deed, that is, something beyond the human ability to grasp, do, or achieve. Consider this in light of your situation. As I’ve been thinking about it for several days, I marvel at how the Bible is a wondrous thing.

Psalm 119:18 would be a good prayer for you (and for me). It says, “Open my eyes, that I may see wondrous things from Your law.” May the Lord prosper our thoughts.