Powerless To Fight
For the last several weeks I have been teaching through the story of Samson with my family. Found in the Old Testament book of Judges chapters 13 through 16, God led me to begin building a comprehensive lesson that would be highly interactive for both adults and children, informative and presented from a New Covenant perspective. The idea is that this would not be another children’s Bible story filled with linear facts but would be more of a dialog between adults and children as they work through the lesson together openly discussing the many facets of Samson’s problematic life that God worked for good.
What a joy is was for me to dig out the many truths found within these few chapters and now that joy is revisited and even amplified as I get to participate in the wonderful discussions about these truths. I know I have said this before but children can be amazingly insightful if given time to participate without pressure or time restriction. They possess an unfiltered simplicity that many adults have learned to replace with a complexity that rivals quantum mechanics. As a Bible teacher and daddy I can learn so much from The Teacher within my own children as long as I continually reinforce their freedom in Jesus Christ and then afford them opportunity to express His inner workings.
As we work through the story of Samson, instead of concentrating on his story I shifted the focus on what God intended for him, God’s provisions for him during his struggles and the accomplishments of God’s plan in spite of Samson’s human failures. It really turns the story of Samson on its ear and brings the wonderful truths of God’s grace into the present moment. We can begin to better understand our own relationship with God and all that He intends for us in spite of our human failures, selfishness and stubbornness. God desires that we respond to Him now as He is accomplishing His plan and not waste time striving to feel a certain way or get our needs met.
Samson spent so much time and energy trying to fulfill his own needs. In fact, it wasn’t until I started developing this interactive lesson that God revealed a principle to me… new for the first time. Samson was truly an awesome human specimen that bare handedly ripped a lion into pieces, caught 300 foxes, killed more than 1,000 men in hand-to-hand combat and carried city gates that weighed more than today’s average car. Yet, he was so consumed with himself that he didn’t know that the power of God he possessed had left him once his hair was cut (Judges 16:18-22).It wasn’t until he rose to fight the enemy that realized he was powerless. What an awful time to find out you have no power… when you need it the most.
Many Christians today although sealed by the blood of Christ are powerless when fighting “the enemy”. Many do not even know they are powerless until spiritual wickedness rises up in attack. Our strength is only found in the Lord who equips us, readies us, trains us to stand in courage against all that seeks to undermine the victorious message of God’s grace. Those attacks will come folks… they will come. Are you ready to stand in courage and faith on your own if called upon?
