Judges 14

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TALKS FOR GROWING CHRISTIANS

God Uses Samson Despite his Shortcomings

BACKGROUND NOTES



DOCTRINAL POINT(S)

  1. Compromise can ruin a life of great potential

  2. Compromise cannot ruin the law of God's providence.

PRACTICAL APPLICATION

  1. Don't use the Samson method of finding a spouse.

QUESTIONS

  1. Did Samson reach his full potential as a servant of God?

  2. Was Samson a man of faith?

  3. When Samson referred to his wife as a heifer, what did that imply?

  4. Samson had godly parents who loved and worshipped the Lord, and gave Samson good and godly counsel. Was it their fault that Samson failed to live up to their expectations?

  5. How did Samson compromise God's law and his Nazarite vows?

  6. What was the riddle that Samson posed to the Philistines?

ANSWERS

  1. No. For all of his physical strength, he was a morally weak man. He could not control his passions and lusts. He had no self-control, and as a result he broke his Nazarite vows more than once.

  2. Yes, Samson was a man of faith in spite of his glaring weakness of self-discipline. He is in the "Hall of Faith"l in Hebrews 11.

  3. That she was an untamed and stubborn woman who had betrayed him.

  4. No. See Lesson 21, Discuss / Consider #3. It was Samson himself who compromised God's law because he had no self-control, no self-discipline.

  5. He compromised God's law by intermarrying with the Philistines. He compromised his Nazarite vow by drinking wine at the seven-day Philistine wedding; he touched a dead lion; and later he told the secret of his strength, allowing his hair to be cut.

  6. It was a riddle based on his experience with the lion and the honey. (See Judges 14:8-9, 14, 18.)

DISCUSS/CONSIDER

  1. Compromising God's law can ruin a life of great potential. This was true in the case of Samson because of his wilfulness, and lack of self-control and self-discipline. What he wanted, he wanted, and he wanted it right then. What was true for Samson can be true for us. God blesses His people with gifts and talents, but compromise can cut short a life of potential for God.

  2. Regardless of Samson's irreverent behavior, God used him. Does that mean it's OK to disobey the Lord and go against God's will if something good comes out of it? Does that mean that God's plans will be thwarted? Read Ephesians 1:11.

CHALLENGE

  1. Do you want a Samson-type marriage, or do you want a Scripture-type marriage? Christians who are considering marriage would do well to take time to build a Christ-honoring relationship.

KEY VERSES

  • "Samson saw a Philistine woman and said to his parents, 'Get her for me, for she pleases me well." Judges 14:1-3

  • "The Spirit of the Lord came upon Samson." Judges 13:25; 14:6, 19; 15:14

Talks, Old Testament, JudgesRon Reid