When considering the term Nazirite, the name Samson often comes to mind. However, his situation didn’t accurately reflect the typical Nazirite vow. It’s common knowledge that He didn’t keep the vow very well at all.
My friend Rudy Ross took the Nazirite vow, and you can hear him explain it on today’s YouTube video. Rudy’s experience with the Nazirite vow is more reflective of what we find in the Book of Numbers.
The Nazirite vow was an act of exceptional devotion to God, undertaken by both men and women. It stemmed from a deep desire to live in close fellowship and obedience to the Lord.
The Nazirite vow was considered the ultimate act of total devotion to the Lord’s person and work. It superseded certain typical and expected behaviors.
The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: When either men or women make a special vow, the vow of a nazirite, to separate themselves to the Lord,
They shall separate themselves from wine and strong drink; they shall drink no wine vinegar or other vinegar and shall not drink any grape juice or eat grapes, fresh or dried.
All their days as nazirites they shall eat nothing that is produced by the grapevine, not even the seeds or the skins.
“All the days of their nazirite vow no razor shall come upon the head; until the time is completed for which they separate themselves to the Lord, they shall be holy; they shall let the locks of the head grow long.
“All the days that they separate themselves to the Lord they shall not go near a corpse.
Even if their father or mother, brother or sister, should die, they may not defile themselves, because their consecration to God is upon the head. 8 All their days as nazirites they are holy to the Lord” (Numbers 6:1-6).
There were three main restrictions:
- Complete abstinence from all products of the vine (ordinary pleasure(.
- Total avoidance of cutting or grooming one’s hair (ordinary personal care).
- Absolute separation from contamination by any contact with a dead body (ordinary obligations).
Reflections
Richard Foster, in his writings on spiritual disciplines, emphasizes that they are not an end in themselves but merely a means to an end. While we may not adopt the specific practices of the Nazirites in our lives, we can embrace certain spiritual disciplines that focus on deeper devotion to the Lord.
By doing so, we transform ordinary actions into extraordinary ones, all to draw closer to the Lord.
My friend’s prayer life was quite ordinary, but God intended for it to become extraordinary. One night, a sound like a train horn blared outside his bedroom window, waking him. Though he knew no train was there, he couldn’t fall back asleep. He decided to go to his living room, open his Bible, and dedicate about an hour to prayer.
The following night, the same “train horn” sound recurred, prompting him to pray again. This pattern continued for a few more days until he finally asked God, “What do you want from me?”
God’s clear message was, “I want your time.”
In response, my friend began to use his usual lunch hour in a different way. Instead of dining out or socializing with friends, he would pack a lunch, sit in the front seat of his car, and spend that hour in communion with God.
He truly transformed an ordinary part of his day into something extraordinary. It is interesting that the train horn sound ended when he began meeting with God during his lunch.
Not long after this experience the man sold his business and entered full-time Christian service to high school and university athletes.
The question for us is whether we desire to draw closer to God, and if there’s an ordinary part of our lives we can transform into something extraordinary to achieve that closeness.
YouTube Discussion
Rudy Ross, Bruce Kirby, and I discussed this passage on YouTube today.
Real Voices 