Samson is one of those characters in the Bible you don’t easily forget. He was strong, handsome, successful, and blind. He is what in literature is called an anti-type. He is a type of Christ in all the wrong ways. Samson was consecrated from an early age yet disobeyed his covenant promises and dishonored his parents. When tempted, he gave in rather than resisting. 

Before Samson was physically blinded, he was blind to his weakness and to the source of his strength. Samson should have turned the nation’s eyes from themselves and pointed them to God; instead, he lived for his own appetite by doing what is right in his own eyes. God used him despite his flaws and failures. The sad reality of Samson’s life was that it wasn’t until he was captured by his enemies who gouged out his physical eyes that he truly started to “see.” 

Unlike Samson, Jesus came into the world not “to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Matt. 20:28). Jesus not only obeyed His Father but obeyed in such a way that we have a model for what obedience to God looks like.  

Jesus is more than a model; He is also our substitute who lived a perfect life and died in our place for our disobedience. He, like Samson, placed His hand on the twin pillars of sin and death and destroyed them. But unlike Samson, Jesus didn’t stay dead. He lives, and He opens the eyes of those who are blind to see the beauty of God in the face of Christ. 

This week, pray that God will open the eyes of kids you lead so that they would see Jesus as more beautiful than anything else. Pray that rather than running from Him and doing what is right in their own eyes, they will run to Jesus and find mercy in time of need. (Heb. 4:16) 

Every week, members of The Gospel Project for Kids team offer guidance to help you as you prepare to teach every session to preschoolers and kids. Listen in as we discuss:

• The big idea of the session
• Any areas of caution or requiring additional prep time
• What we hope God will do through this session

Podcast (kidsleadertraining): Play in new window | Download

This training is available on Ministry Grid, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Stitcher, and other podcast platforms.