Judges 16:23 Then the lords of the Philistines gathered them together for to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice: for they said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.
Who Defines Sin?
The world is so man-centered that even sin is defined by its consequences to people and not by its definition as stated by God. Oftentimes we try to warn people against the dangers of sin by referring to its consequences to people. For example, we might say, “Young person, you shouldn’t drink because if you do, this is the heartache that it will bring.” I’m not saying that this is wrong. Sin has consequences, and it’s not wrong to highlight those. I will say, however, that sin is defined by the words of God and not by its consequences to people.
In Judges 16, Samson had lived in rebellion and faced the consequences of it. He had lost his sight, his strength, his freedom, and his future, yet in verse 23 we see the real consequences of Samson’s rebellion. It says, “Then the lords of the Philistine gathered them together for to offer a great sacrifice unto Dagon their god, and to rejoice: for they said, Our god hath delivered Samson our enemy into our hand.” When Samson fell and the weakness of his muscles matched the weakness of his character, the enemies of God attributed their victory over Samson to Dagon’s victory over Jehovah. They were wrong about that, but we attribute weakness to God when we ignore His strength.
What did sin cost Samson? It cost him many things, but sin is not defined by what it costs you but by the Words of God. That is why it is so important that we do not ignore sin that we consider “victimless sin.” Sin is sin whether it hurts people or not. Sin does hurt people, but what is God to think about a person who only cares about sin when it hurts other people?
We often say about our sin, “Well, it’s not hurting anyone,” as if we are the ones who define sin. When we define sin that way, what does that say about our esteem for God? God loves us, but God hates sin. The question is, “How much do we hate sin, and how much do we love God?” Perhaps the first and greatest consequence of sin is that it is against God and hurts a God Who loves us and offers us strength to live better.