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Objective

In this lesson, we’ll see that our own ability is nothing without the power of the Holy Spirit.

Key Verse

Judges 13:25: And the Spirit of the Lord began to move upon him at Mahaneh Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.

Introduction

Perhaps no other leader in the Bible had as much natural ability as Samson. He possessed supernatural strength that made him legendary throughout Israel and among her enemies. But despite his incredible physical gifts, Samson also experienced great weaknesses and defeats that ultimately led to his downfall.

What made the difference in Samson’s life? The answer lies in understanding the source of his strength and the importance of his upbringing. Samson had godly parents who understood God’s calling on their son’s life even before he was born. When the angel of the Lord appeared to announce Samson’s birth, his parents received clear instructions about how to raise this special child. They were told that Samson would be a Nazirite from birth—completely dedicated to God for the purpose of beginning to deliver Israel from the Philistines.

The importance of godly parents cannot be overstated. Samson’s mother and father knew that their son’s strength would come not from his natural abilities, but from the Spirit of the Lord working through his complete dedication to God. They understood that raising a child who would serve God’s purposes required careful attention to His specific instructions. (Notebook Moment: How might Samson’s story have been different if his parents had not understood God’s calling on his life? What does this teach us about the vital role parents play in preparing their children to serve God?)

As we examine Samson’s life together, we’ll discover three essential lessons that apply to every believer who wants to be used by God:

• We need the Holy Spirit’s power
• We need to stay separate from the world
• We need to finish strong

We Need the Holy Spirit’s Power

Samson was a Nazirite from birth, which meant he was completely set apart for God’s service. The Nazirite vow, described in Numbers 6, involved three main commitments: abstaining from wine and strong drink, never cutting one’s hair, and avoiding contact with dead bodies. These outward signs represented an inner dedication to God that was total and uncompromising.

God honored Samson’s dedication by giving him supernatural strength through the power of His Spirit. This wasn’t mere physical prowess—it was divine enablement for a specific purpose. Samson used this Spirit-given strength to perform incredible feats that demonstrated God’s power over Israel’s enemies. He killed a lion with his bare hands when it attacked him. He defeated hundreds of Philistine soldiers single-handedly, once using only the jawbone of a donkey as his weapon.

But here’s what we must understand: Samson’s strength came entirely from his dedication to God and the Holy Spirit’s power working through that commitment. Three times in the book of Judges we read specifically about the Spirit of the Lord empowering Samson for these mighty acts.

Judges 13:25: And the Spirit of the Lord began to move upon him at Mahaneh Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.

Judges 14:6: The Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat. But he told neither his father nor his mother what he had done.

Judges 14:19: Then the Spirit of the Lord came powerfully upon him. He went down to Ashkelon, struck down thirty of their men, stripped them of everything and gave their clothes to those who had explained the riddle. Burning with anger, he returned to his father’s home.

Samson’s long hair wasn’t magical—it represented his covenant with God. When Delilah finally succeeded in cutting off his hair while he slept, she wasn’t just removing his physical strength. She was breaking the outward sign of his dedication to the Lord. The power of God’s Spirit left Samson because his commitment to God had been compromised.

Judges 16:20: Then she called, “Samson, the Philistines are upon you!” He awoke from his sleep and thought, “I’ll go out as before and shake myself free.” But he did not know that the Lord had left him.

The most tragic words in this entire account are “he did not know that the Lord had left him.” Samson had become so accustomed to having God’s power available that he didn’t realize when it was gone. This teaches us a sobering truth: God doesn’t share His glory with anyone. He will withdraw His power from our lives and service if we are not completely yielded to Him.

Joshua 7:12: That is why the Israelites cannot stand against their enemies; they turn their backs and run because they have been made liable to destruction. I will not be with you anymore unless you destroy whatever among you is devoted to destruction.

1 Samuel 16:14: Now the Spirit of the Lord had departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from the Lord tormented him.

2 Corinthians 3:5: Not that we are competent in ourselves to claim anything for ourselves, but our competence comes from God.

This pattern of the Spirit’s empowerment wasn’t unique to Samson. Throughout the book of Judges, we see the Holy Spirit enabling God’s chosen leaders. The Spirit came upon Gideon when he was called to deliver Israel from the Midianites (Judges 6:34). The same divine enablement that gave Samson strength also gave Gideon courage and wisdom for victory.

Even more significantly, Luke’s Gospel emphasizes repeatedly how Jesus Himself was Spirit-filled and Spirit-led throughout His earthly ministry. Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, filled with the Spirit at His baptism, led by the Spirit into the wilderness, and empowered by the Spirit for His public ministry (Luke 1:35, 3:22, 4:1, 4:14). If Jesus needed the Spirit’s power for His mission, how much more do we?

Are you relying on your own strength and abilities today? Are you asking daily for the power of the Holy Spirit to work in and through your life?

We Need to Stay Separate from the World

A Nazirite was called to be completely separate from the world—totally devoted to God without compromise. But Samson made many compromises throughout his life. He didn’t exercise proper control over his desires, and these seemingly small compromises eventually led to his downfall.

1 John 2:15-17: Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.

We can see a vivid picture of Samson’s compromise in the story of the lion he killed. After the Spirit of the Lord gave him strength to tear apart the lion that attacked him, Samson made a crucial error in judgment. Later, when he returned and found that bees had made honey in the lion’s carcass, he took some of the honey and ate it.

Judges 14:8-9: Some time later, when he went back to marry her, he turned aside to look at the lion’s carcass, and in it he saw a swarm of bees and some honey. He scooped out the honey with his hands and ate as he went along. When he rejoined his parents, he gave them some, and they too ate it. But he did not tell them that he had taken the honey from the lion’s carcass.

This might seem like a minor incident, but it reveals something dangerous about Samson’s character. The lion represents our spiritual enemy, who seeks to destroy us (Notebook Moment: In what ways does Satan act like a roaring lion in our lives today? How can we recognize his attacks before they overwhelm us?)

1 Peter 5:8: Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.

The Holy Spirit had given Samson power to defeat the lion completely. But by returning to take honey from its carcass, Samson was taking something sweet from what should have remained his defeated enemy. This violated his Nazirite vow and showed that he was willing to make compromises with what God had called him to avoid completely.

This is exactly how sin progresses in our lives. We should give no place whatsoever to our spiritual enemy. We cannot make any compromise with sin, no matter how small it might seem.

Ephesians 4:27: And do not give the devil a foothold.

2 Corinthians 2:11: In order that Satan might not outwit us. For we are not unaware of his schemes.

Samson’s compromises started small, but they grew progressively larger until he finally gave in completely to Delilah’s persistent temptations. This is precisely how sin works in our lives—it rarely begins with major violations but rather with seemingly insignificant compromises that gradually weaken our resistance.

James 1:14-15: But each person is tempted when they are dragged away by their own evil desire and enticed. Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.

The apostle Paul understood that God requires a pure vessel for His service. Paul disciplined himself rigorously because he didn’t want to become disqualified for the very ministry he was proclaiming to others.

1 Corinthians 9:27: No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

Satan’s ultimate goal is to destroy us completely. He wants to destroy our character, our relationships, our marriages, and our effectiveness in serving God. Sin will accomplish this destruction if we allow even small compromises to take root in our lives. But God has provided everything we need to resist temptation and live in victory over sin.

1 Corinthians 10:13: No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.

Psalm 119:11: I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.

We Need to Finish Strong

Even after all of Samson’s failures and compromises, God had one final task for him when he was a prisoner among the Philistines. In his darkest hour, blind and bound, grinding grain like an animal, Samson finally learned the lessons that his life had been trying to teach him.

Judges 16:23-25: Now the rulers of the Philistines assembled to offer a great sacrifice to Dagon their god and to celebrate, saying, “Our god has delivered Samson, our enemy, into our hands.” When the people saw him, they praised their god, saying, “Our god has delivered our enemy into our hands, the one who laid waste our land and multiplied our slain.” While they were in high spirits, they shouted, “Bring out Samson to entertain us.” So they called Samson out of the prison, and he performed for them.

What a tragic scene this presents! The man who had once been empowered by God’s Spirit to defeat entire armies was now reduced to being entertainment for God’s enemies. The Philistines were giving glory to their false god Dagon for what they believed was their victory over Israel’s champion.

But something remarkable was happening during this time of apparent defeat. Samson’s hair had begun to grow back, and with it, his heart was returning to the Lord. When the moment came for God’s final purpose to be accomplished, Samson was ready.

Judges 16:28-30: Then Samson prayed to the Lord, “Sovereign Lord, remember me. Please, God, strengthen me just once more, and let me with one blow get revenge on the Philistines for my two eyes.” Then Samson reached toward the two central pillars on which the temple stood. Bracing himself against them, his right hand on the one and his left hand on the other, Samson said, “Let me die with the Philistines!” Then he pushed with all his might, and down came the temple on the rulers and all the people in it. Thus he killed many more when he died than while he lived.

What can we learn from Samson’s final act? Three crucial truths emerge from his ending:

First, he repented and turned back to God. After years of compromise and rebellion, Samson finally acknowledged his complete dependence on the Lord. His prayer shows genuine humility and faith.

Second, he recognized the true source of his power. No longer did Samson assume that strength would automatically be available to him. He asked God specifically for the power he needed, acknowledging that it came from the Lord alone.

Third, he was willing to sacrifice his life for God’s glory. Rather than seeking personal comfort or escape, Samson chose to give his life so that God’s enemies would be defeated and God’s people delivered.

God used Samson one final time to pull down the strongholds of the enemy. This is God’s desire for us as well—that we would be instruments in His hands to tear down Satan’s strongholds in our world.

2 Corinthians 10:4-5: The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.

The apostle Paul provides us with a beautiful example of someone who finished strong in his service to God. Unlike Samson, Paul remained focused on his goal and never wavered in his commitment to Christ.

1 Corinthians 9:24-27: Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.

2 Timothy 4:7-8: I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.

What should we do when we fail? How should we handle spiritual defeat? The answer is the same today as it was for Samson: we should seek God’s forgiveness and restoration. (Notebook Moment: Think about an area where you feel you’ve compromised or failed in your Christian walk. What would it look like for you to seek God’s complete restoration in that area?)

1 John 1:9: If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

Conclusion

The judges of Israel served as deliverers and redeemers for God’s people. In this way, they give us pictures of how Christ defeats the enemy and delivers us from spiritual bondage. Samson had many faults and weaknesses—he was certainly not perfect like our Savior. But he was like Christ in several important ways that point us to the greater redemption we have in Jesus.

The birth of Samson was announced by an angel (Judges 13:3-5), just as Jesus’ birth was announced by the angel Gabriel to Mary. Both births were miraculous interventions by God for the purpose of delivering His people.

The life of Samson was devoted to God and blessed by God (Judges 13:24-25), just as Jesus lived His entire earthly life in perfect obedience to the Father and was blessed with the fullness of the Spirit.

The death of Samson defeated the enemy (Judges 16:30), just as Jesus’ death on the cross accomplished the ultimate defeat of Satan and delivered us from sin and death.

Despite all his failures, Samson is remembered in Scripture as a great hero of faith.

Hebrews 11:32: And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthae, about David and Samuel and the prophets…

This teaches us that God can use us too, despite our weaknesses and failures. But we must learn the lessons that Samson’s life teaches us. We must be completely yielded to the Holy Spirit, understanding that all our strength comes from Him. We must remain separate from the world’s compromises and temptations. And we must stay focused on finishing well, no matter what failures we may have experienced in the past.

The same God who empowered Samson for supernatural service wants to work through your life today. The question is not whether you have the natural ability or strength to accomplish great things for God. The question is whether you are willing to be completely dedicated to Him, trusting in His Spirit’s power rather than your own abilities. When we learn to depend fully on God’s strength instead of our own, there is no limit to what He can accomplish through us for His glory and the good of His people.

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[Revision Notes: for “Go Deeper” this would be a good lesson to explore the Philistines a little more. They factor significantly into the story of David and Saul, which we’ll be getting to shortly.]