A Little Bit of a Stretch

The other day I preached in my Preaching Lab on Judges 13. I spoke about the divine visitation that Samson's parents received heralding his birth. One of the interesting aspects of this divine visitation is that was totally undeserved. The Israelites not only were doing evil in the sight of the Lord (v. 1) but this is the first point in the book of Judges were that phrase is not followed by "And the people of Israel cried out to the Lord..." (see 10:10, 6:7, 4:3, etc...). The apostasy of Israel had spiraled down in such a way that they no longer even cared to repent. Sin was just a part of life. The sinfulness of sin had completely escaped their minds and hearts.
Consequently, the Israelites found themselves at the altars of Baal and Ashteroth, the local fertility gods, and worshipping by having sex with temple prostitutes. It's easy from our 21st Century perspective to look down on their gross immorality...but we're not that different, just more sophisticated.
Every day we are bombarded with the a gospel. It's a gospel message that says consume me and you will find happiness. The whole Marketing and Advertising profession is built on a gospel message that says, "Your life is deficient. This product bring fullness to your life." Check out the claim on the back of my Gobstoppers package:

"Inside this scrumdiddlyumptious package you will find mystic & marvelous surprises that will entrance, intrigue & delight you beyond measure."
That's pretty bold coming from a glob of dextrose, maltodextrin, and less than 2% corn syrup.
But, we fall for these false gospels everyday. Lord, would you give us the faith to repentant of our desires to find satisfaction apart from you and turn to you through Christ, who alone is our satisfaction.