Slide 2 Lesson 25: Samson, Primary 6: Old Testament, (1996),110
Slide 3 Now everyone else, try to see if you can feel your own
muscles. How do muscles help us? What happens when we exercise our
muscles and what happens when we do not use them? Exercise helps us
develop strong muscles. Slide 4 Our spirits also need to grow
stronger. How can we become stronger spiritually? By keeping our
baptismal covenants, obeying our parents, praying, attending
church, reading the scriptures, and so on. Slide 5 Why is it
important to become spiritually strong? So we can avoid temptation,
be guided in our decisions by the Holy Ghost, and know good from
evil. We need to develop spiritual strength just as we need to
develop physical strength. Slide 6 In this lesson we will learn
about Samson. He was a judge in Israel who could have been one of
the greatest leaders in Israel if he had remained faithful to his
vows with the Lord. Slide 7 The story of Samson shows he had great
courage and physical strength. Samsons remarkable strength was a
gift from God for the covenant Samson made. Slide 8 Gideon lived a
good long life. But after he died, Israel turned away from God
again. Soon they were captured by the Philistines. Philistines
worshipped false gods. Slide 9 WWWWhy were the Philistines able to
defeat the children of Israel? LLLLets read Judges 13:1 The
Israelites had become spiritually weak. Slide 10 Slide 11 There was
a man named Manoah whose wife was unable to have children. An angel
appeared to her and told her she would have a son. He would begin
to deliver the Israelites from the Philistines. The angel told her
not to drink any wine or strong drink and not to eat anything
unclean. Slide 12 She was told her son would be a Nazarite while
still in her womb. Nazarites made a covenant to separate themselves
from the things of the world and become holy unto the Lord. As part
of this covenant, each Nazarite made a vow not to drink alcoholic
drinks or cut his hair (see Numbers 6:26, 8; Nazarite in the LDS
Bible Dictionary [p. 737]). Slide 13 WWWWhat message did an angel
of the Lord give to Manoahs wife? LLLLets read Judges 13:35 WWWWhat
did the angel say her son would be called to do? Slide 14 Manoahs
wife went to her husband and told him what the angel had said to
her. Manoah prayed to God that the angel would come back to them to
teach them how to raise the child. The angel returned and told them
to do exactly as she had previously been told. Slide 15 When Manoah
heard what the angel told his wife, what did he do that showed he
had spiritual strength? LLLLets read Judges 13:8 HHHHow can prayer
help us develop greater spiritual strength? Slide 16 JJudges 13:24:
And the woman bare a son, and called his name Samson: and the child
grew, and the Lord blessed him. WWWWhen Samson kept his covenants
he was blessed with the ability to help his people, but when he
broke his covenants he lost both his spiritual and physical
strength. Slide 17 Samson grew up to be an incredibly strong man.
He was called by the Lord to help free the Israelites from the
Philistines. The Lord made a covenant with Samson that as long as
he obeyed the Lord, he would be physically strong. Samsons long
hair (Judges 13:5) was a sign of this covenant. Slide 18 The angel
had told his mother that her son shall begin to deliver Israel out
of the hand of the Philistines (Judges 13:5 ). When he was a young
man, he was attacked by a lion. He killed it with his bare hands.
He used the jawbone of a donkey to kill 1,000 Philistine soldiers.
Slide 19 Samson was able to use his physical strength many times to
protect himself and to fight against the Philistines. Where did
Samson get this physical strength? LLLLets read Judges 14:56;
15:1314 Slide 20 The Lord blessed Samson with physical strength to
accomplish his mission. When Samson kept his covenants and was
strong spiritually, he was blessed with this physical strength. How
are we blessed when we keep our covenants and are spiritually
strong? Slide 21 I have written a note to each of you about a
strength I have noticed in each of you. Dont read it until you are
by yourself. Heavenly Father needs us to use these strengths to
serve him and to serve others. Enrichment Activity #4 Slide 22
Without naming any names, these are some of the strengths Heavenly
Father has blessed you with that I have noticed. Mention other
strengths you have observed in other class members. Develop these
and other strengths during the coming week. Enrichment Activity #4
Slide 23 Samson served as a judge in Israel for twenty years. He
fell in love with a woman named Delilah. He didnt know that the
Philistines had offered her a lot of money to trick him to find out
the secret to his strength. Slide 24 What did the Philistines offer
Delilah if she would help them capture Samson? Lets read Judges
16:45 Why do you think people are sometimes tempted to do wrong for
money? How can we avoid being tempted by riches? Slide 25 Finally,
after she told him he didnt love her or he would share his secret,
he told her that it was his vow to God. Although she begged him,
Samson wouldnt tell her. He never cut his hair or his strength
would go. Slide 26 Delilah told the Philistines and while he slept,
they cut his hair off. Samsons strength was gone. The Philistines
tied him up and blinded him. Slide 27 WWWWhy did Samson finally
give in and tell Delilah the secret of his strength? LLLLets read
Judges 16:16 WWWWhy did Samson lose his strength? LLLLets read
Judges 16:1920 SSSSamsons strength was not actually in his hair.
His hair was a sign of his covenant with the Lord. When Samson
broke his covenant by sinning, the Lord took away his physical
strength. (See Samson in the LDS Bible Dictionary [p. 768].) Slide
28 Samson was taken to the prison house and forced to grind wheat
at the prisons mill. He had been a man of great strength, but had
broken his vows with the Lord. When he broke his vow, his strength
left him. Slide 29 While Samson was in prison his hair began to
grow again. Samson renewed his vows with the Lord. The Philistines
threw a big party where they showed off the captured Samson. Samson
prayed that the Lord would return his strength. Slide 30 Samson
asked a boy there to guide him to the main columns of the building
they were in so he could lean against them. Samson pushed hard
against them. The roof fell in and everyone inside was killed
including Samson. Slide 31 WWWWhat did the Philistines do to Samson
after they captured him? LLLLets read Judges 16:21 LLLLater, when
they brought him out of prison for their own amusement and
ridicule, what did Samson pray for? LLLLets read Judges 16:28 Slide
32 Which kind of strength is more important, physical or spiritual?
Why? It is good to be strong physically, but it is much more
important to be strong spiritually. Some people are unable to
develop physical strength, but anyone who tries can develop
spiritual strength by keeping covenants and obeying commandments.
Slide 33 What happens when people become spiritually weak? They
give in to temptations, they sin, they lose the guidance of the
Holy Ghost, and they lose the ability to fulfill their callings and
bless others. Slide 34 How can we develop the spiritual strength we
need to live the way Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ want us to
live? Slide 35 IIIIll write your answers on the board. Enrichment
Activity #1 Slide 36 Now that you have a few ideas I want you to
write I can be stronger spiritually by: Then write down one or more
spiritual muscles you would like to exercise, or ideas you would
like to work on, during the coming week. Put the paper where you
will be able to see it often. Enrichment Activity #1 Slide 37
Choose one of the ideas from the board and either act it out or
draw it on the chalkboard. The others will try to guess which idea
it is! Enrichment Activity #2 Slide 38 Samson made a covenant with
the Lord but did not keep it. What covenants did you make with
Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ when you were baptized? LLLLets
read Mosiah 18:810 Enrichment Activity #3 Slide 39 How does keeping
these covenants help us be spiritually strong? You will make
covenants when you go to the temple. Making and keeping these
covenants provides great spiritual strength in our lives. Prepare
now for this great blessing by keeping the covenants you have
already made. Enrichment Activity #3 Slide 40 HHHHow were these
people were spiritually strong? Enrichment Activity #5 Adam &
EveNoahAbrahamRebekah JosephMosesJoshuaGideon Slide 41 Next, we
have a special guest who will share an experience with us that
helped develop spiritual strength. Enrichment Activity #6 Slide 42
TTTThe Lord needs valiant servants, To do his work in the latter
day, Who follow the teachings of Jesus And serve his people in a
loving way. I will be his servant And keep my covnants valiantly.
Ill stand for truth. Ill stand for right. The Lord can depend on
me. WWords and music: Vanja Y. Watkins, b. 1938. 1981 IRI
Enrichment Activity #7 Slide 43 I testify to you of the importance
of developing spiritual strength and living so that we can someday
return to be with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ. Slide 44 Images
and clipart are from lds.org, sugardoodle.net, bing & google
images and Microsoft Office. Hymn and lesson materials are from
lds.org. The lesson and activities are from the Primary 6 Old
Testament manual. No copyrighted materials were knowingly used in
this presentation. Please do not use this presentation for
commercial use.
