Samson and the Lion Bible Story and Sunday School Lesson

Samson and the Lion
Bible Story
Photo courtesy of Joachim Huber, Wikimedia Commons

The bible story of Samson isn't as well-known as many others, but that doesn't mean it shouldn't be told. In fact, Samson has some unique stories (all true, I might add) that kids will love. You'll find that with most of the bible stories of Samson, you will need to be prepared to answer many, many questions as quite a few aspects of his life are things children have never heard of before.

In this Sunday school lesson, we will cover what it means to be a Nazarite and tell the story of Samson and the lion. This story sets the scene to show children just how strong Samson was.

To read this story in full, turn to Judges 13 and 14. Use this time to study the bible for yourself as it is very important not only as Sunday school teachers, but as Christians to study God's word.

Samson and the Lion Sunday School Lesson

Before Samson was born, the Angel of the Lord appeared to the wife of a man named Manoah. The bible does not tell us her name, but it does tell us that she had been unable to have any children.

When the Angel of the Lord appeared to Manoah's wife, he said, "You have never been able to have children, but now you are going to. You are going to have a son."

Can you imagine what it must have been like to have an angel appear out of nowhere to give you a message?

Ask the kids, "Do you think you would have been scared? What about excited? Maybe you would have thought you were dreaming."

Wait for the kids to think about this. Let them talk about this for a moment, then begin again.

Before the Angel of the Lord left, he gave Manoah's wife a few rules to follow as she raised her son.

1. She was not allowed to cut his hair.
2. He wasn't allowed to eat anything that was unclean.
3. He was not allowed to drink wine or other strong drinks.

Note: If you have older children, you may want to elaborate on each one. We will discuss number one below.

What Is a Nazarite?

Samson was to be a Nazarite from birth. A Nazarite did not cut his hair at all, eat anything that was unclean (or touch anything that was dead), or drink alcohol.

A Nazarite's long hair let people who saw them know that they were doing God's will and that they were a Nazarite.

The Angel of the Lord even told Manoah's wife that she was not allowed to drink certain things while she was pregnant with the baby.

After the Angel of the Lord left, she ran to tell her husband what the angel had said to her.

Then, Manoah asked God to let the Angel of the Lord come back again to teach them how to raise their son. God heard Manoah.

One day when Manoah's wife was sitting in a field, the Angel of the Lord returned but Manoah wasn't with her this time either.

Quickly, she ran to get her husband and he followed her to back to the angel and he said, "While your wife is pregnant, she is not allowed to drink anything containing grapes. When she has the baby, he is not to drink anything containing grapes, he is not allowed to touch anything dead, and he is not to cut his hair."

Get the Samson and Lion Maze.
Get the Book of Judges Coloring Page.

Samson is Born

Samson - Nazarite
Peter Trimming, Wikimedia Commons

When Samson was born, Manoah and his wife did as the Angel of the Lord instructed.

They did not allow Samson to eat or drink anything that had grapes or grape juice in it, he did not touch anything that was dead, and he never cut his hair.

Samson grew into a man still following these rules from God.

Samson and the Lion

One day, Samson was walking along and came to a vineyard (where grapes are grown). Samson didn't know it, but there was a lion in the vineyard.

As Samson came near, the Spirit of the Lord came to Samson making him very, very strong.

You see, Samson didn't have a sword or a staff that he used to fight off the lion. Instead, when God made him extremely strong, he used only his hands to kill the lion.

Imagine, being so strong that you could take on a lion all by yourself and with no weapons at all!

Of course, without God's help, Samson couldn't have beat the lion. The bible tells us that:

Philippians 4:13 KJV

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me.

As the years passed, Samson's hair grew. As long as Samson did not cut his hair, he stayed strong. If he ever cut his hair or his hair was cut at all, he would become weak and his strength would leave him.

Guess what.

There was one time when a girl tricked Samson and his hair was cut! But, that is another Sunday school lesson for another day.


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Samson and the Lion Maze - Sunday School Activity

Here is a cross between an activity and a coloring page. As you can see, on the left the kids can color the letters and the lion and on the right, the kids can work the maze.

In our Sunday school class, we have kids who like to color and others who do not like it at all.

So, to help please everyone, we've come up with a two-for-one. Well, sort of.

The good news is that instead of having to print out two different sheets, you only have to print the one. You can choose to give everyone a whole sheet or cut the sheet in half and let the kids choose which they'd like to do. Of course, you could give half the page to the kids to color as they arrive and the other half after you tell the story. It's completely up to you.

Get the Samson and the Lion Sunday school lesson to go along with the activity/coloring page below!

 

Sunday school Activity/Coloring Page

Be sure to share this page with others and let us know what you think!

 

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Joshua in the Bible - Sunday School Coloring Page Craft

Here is a Sunday school coloring page you can use as a quick, easy and fun craft for younger kids. All you need to do is print out the coloring sheet below and have a few other items ready for the kids to use.

The coloring page below is basic and simple on purpose. It is designed to let the kids express their creativity!

Get the FREE Joshua Sunday school lesson!

First Sunday School Craft Idea

If you have smaller kids, go ahead and cut out the rocks as a whole below. There is no need to cut the rocks out separately.

If your kids are old enough to cut themselves, let them color Joshua's memorial rocks below first. Then, let them cut them out and paste them to a colored piece of construction paper.

Have the kids cut out the words at the top and paste it on the construction paper.

Second Sunday School Craft Idea

Another option is a bit messy, but is sure is fun! If it is warm outside, you may want to do this craft outside!

You will need to have the kids cut out the rocks and glue them to the construction paper. Next, have the kids put glue on one rock at a time. Have colored sand ready for the kids to sprinkle onto the glue making different colored 'sandy' rocks!

See idea number three down the page!

Third Sunday School Craft Idea

Follow the first part of the craft above, except have tissue paper or small cut up colored paper for the kids to glue onto the rocks instead.

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Joshua in the Bible - Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho

I love to read about Joshua in the bible. So many times as I read through his bible story, I wonder what it must have been like to have been him. Imagine, not only did Moses appoint him to take over for him, Jesus himself came to talk to him face-to-face!

The Sunday school lesson below tells of that one time when Jesus came to Joshua to tell him exactly how he was going to defeat Jericho!

Instead of having to come up with a complicated (and maybe wrong) plan as to how to overthrow the city, Jesus said, "Listen up, Joshua. This is what we are going to do!"

While we can't see Jesus face-to-face yet, he still talks to us. We need only to quiet our minds and listen.

Having a relationship with our heavenly father is more than attending church once a week and reading a bible verse every now and then. It's about talking to him daily and listening as he talks back.

It may not be the way we hear those here on earth, but it could be in nature all around us, in the verses we read each day, in the whispers we hear in our hearts, in the song that just played, through other people, or any number of other ways God speaks with us.

As you prepare for this Sunday school lesson, talk with God to ensure that he helps you deliver the bible story the way he wants you to.

Show your kids the Battle of Jericho Song to get them up an moving!
You can also find more FREE material about Joshua!

You are free to print the images on this page to use in your Sunday school class. The license for using these pictures are located at the bottom of this post.

Joshua in the Bible - Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho Bible Story

In this Sunday school lesson, we are going to do more than just tell a bible story about Joshua. We are going to engage our kids to think about what it was like all those years ago when the Israelites fought the battle of Jericho!

You will want to see how to get your kids thinking like Joshua and the Israelites by doing this Sunday school activity!

Whether you choose to use the link above to get the kids fully involved in the story or not, you can still get them moving by following along with the suggestions in parenthesis below.

To begin your story, have the kids sit in a circle in the middle of the room or pull their chairs into a circle. You can either stand or sit in the middle to tell your story or even just pull yourself up a chair to sit with them.

The Bible Story

The Israelites had been wandering in the wilderness for 40 years and it was finally time to enter into the land that God had promised to them.

Of course it hadn't been easy to get to this point and it wasn't going to be easy now.

They had to cross the Jordan River to get to the other side. Now, that may not seem like a big deal, right? They could just jump on a boat and sail to the other side or find a bridge to cross - wrong.

They didn't have any boats or any bridges to cross and the river was flooded at the time. Its waters were probably rushing fast and would have swept them away.

Another thing was that there wasn't just a few people. There were hundreds of thousands of people who had to cross the river. Of course, we can't forget about all the animals and the fact that they had to carry all of their belongings with them. So, how do you think they were going to get across?

Joshua told the people, "The priests carrying the ark will go first. Everyone will wait and follow along behind the priests.

Ask the kids, "Joshua said the priests were going first and everyone was going to follow. How do you think they are going to get across?"

A miracle happened that day. When the priests' feet who were carrying the ark touched the water's edge, the water stopped flowing and was held back. The people got to cross the Jordan River on dry ground!

As the people crossed, Joshua told 12 men to pick up one rock each from the river's bottom and carry it to the other side. When they reached the other side, Joshua had the men pile the rocks up. Then he said, "This pile of rocks will serve as a reminder to you all. When your children or grandchildren ask why this pile of rocks is here, you can tell them about this time. The time when we crossed the Jordan River on dry ground!"

The river didn't start flowing again until the priests came out of the river. You see, they had to stand in the middle and wait for all those people to cross before they could come out of the river bed themselves.

Now, Joshua and the Israelites were faced with another problem. They were to take over the city of Jericho, but the walls were so high and thick they couldn't get over them, or around them, or through them. How were they going to get into the city?

One evening, Joshua walked by himself trying to figure out a way to take over the city.

To his surprise, a man holding a sword appeared out of nowhere! Joshua asked, "Are you for us or against us?"

The man said, "I am the captain of the Lord's host." Does anyone know who the captain of the Lord's host is?

It was Jesus before he ever came to earth as a baby! Joshua was talking to Jesus himself!

Jesus told Joshua to take off his shoes because the ground where he was standing was holy and Joshua did as he was told. Then, Jesus said, here is how you are going to defeat Jericho."

(Tell everyone to stand up on the outside of the circle of chairs or a make believe circle of chairs.)

Jesus said, "On the first day, the people will walk around the city walls one time. They are not to speak at all. On the second day, they are to do the same. They are to do this every day for six days. On the seventh and final day, they are to walk around the city walls seven times. On the last time, the priests will blow their horns loud. When the people hear the horns, they are to SHOUT very loud!"

Jesus went on to tell Joshua not to worry or be afraid. Jesus was going to go before Joshua and he was going to be right with him through the whole thing. Joshua had nothing to fear!

(Have the kids walk around the chairs seven times without speaking. This will be hard. Stress how it must have been for all those people to walk around the great city of Jericho seven times without talking. On the last time, have the children shout!)

Joshua followed Jesus orders and on the seventh day when they walked around the city walls of Jericho seven times, the people shouted when they heard the priests blow their horns and the walls of Jericho came tumbling down!

The people of Israel overtook the city.

Photos of Joshua courtesy of Wikimedia Commons and Distant Shores Media/Sweet Publishing.
 

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Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho Sunday School Activity

Joshua fought the battle of Jericho is a very well known bible story that kids love to hear. Our Sunday school kids normally say, "Tell it again" just as soon as I've finished. While I love that they want to hear it again, we very seldom have time to tell it again.

That's why I've come up with the Sunday school activities below.

Give the kids more than just a bible story - give them the excitement of learning the word of God!!

Here's the FREE Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho Sunday school lesson.

Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho Sunday School Activity

 

You'll need a few items before getting started.

• cardboard boxes or other building materials (pillows, paper bags, etc.)
• empty toilet paper rolls, paper towel rolls, or wrapping paper rolls to use as horns (you can also purchase real horns at your local dollar store or order them online)
• chairs
• rocks (real or pretend)

You can either choose to do this activity during the story or after to reinforce what the kids have learned depending on how much time you have.

First, you'll need to line up chairs in two rows. Leave only enough room between the lined up chairs for the kids to walk through easily.

Next, place the rocks halfway down the row of chairs in the floor.

This is going to serve as your Jordan River and the rocks in the center of it.

You can choose to already have the walls of Jericho built using the cardboard boxes or other building material (hint: you can also use small plastic chairs) or let the kids help you make a round wall.

Now, have the kids walk through the Jordan River just like in the Sunday school lesson of Joshua picking up one rock on their way through.

After they have passed through all the chairs, have the place their blocks in a pile just as Joshua did.

Now, give the kids their horns.

Have them walk around the 'walls of Jericho' six times quietly, then on the seventh time have them blow their horns and SHOUT!

After they shout, let the kids knock down the walls!

If you have time, reset and start again.

Photo courtesy of erix! on Flickr.

 

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Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho Criss-Cross Puzzle

We loving having extra stuff for our kids to do in Sunday school. We especially love extra games and printouts that not only reinforces what they've learned in class, but it's great when they can take the sheet home to tell their parents or other family members what they've learned.

This is our first criss-cross puzzle we've done. We hope you like it.

There are two different versions below. One is for younger kids who are in their early reading years and the other is for middle grade kids and teens. You can also use the bottom one for adults if you'd like.

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Tell us what you think so we can make more of the criss-cross puzzles. Also, tell us what you'd like to see on our site so we can help you as you teach children about the word of God.

Easy Criss-Cross Puzzle

Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho

 

 

 

 

 

Older Kids Criss-Cross Puzzle

Joshua Fought the Battle of Jericho

 

 

 

 

 

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The Lost Coin - Parable of Jesus Sunday School Activity

Parables of Jesus are earthly lessons with heavenly meanings. These lessons not only helped those Jesus was talking to at the time, they can help us on a daily basis.

To go along with the parable about the lost coin, we've come up with a couple of activities for you to do with your Sunday school class.

You can find the parable about the lost coin in Luke 15.

Sunday School Activities

In this first activity, you'll only need three things:

• coins
• white copy paper
• crayons/pencils

Each child will need one sheet of paper. Let each child place a coin under the sheet of paper. Let them use the crayon or pencil to make a stencil of the coin by rubbing the crayon over the coin until you can see the coin design on the paper. On the top of the paper, let the kids write:

The Lost Coin

Luke 15

The kids can take this home as a reminder of how we are to look for that lost person we can tell about our Lord and savior.

 

 

In the second activity, you will need either a real coin or a paper coin you've drawn or printed out. Have the kids close their eyes while you hide the coin in the room. Once you've hidden the coin, tell the kids to find the 'lost' coin.

 

Whichever child finds the coin, let them hide the coin the next time. Continue playing until every child has a chance to hide the coin.

 

 

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Parables of Jesus - The Lost Coin - Sunday School Lessons

Jesus sets example after example for us to follow in the bible. For one, he doesn't avoid sinners or people nobody likes. In this lesson, the people no one likes are tax collectors. In case you didn't know, tax collectors were hated during this time. Many would take more money than they were suppose to from the people just so they could put more money in their own pockets which made them hated.

If you look in Luke 15, the chapter begins with Jesus sitting and eating with sinners and publicans (or tax collectors). The Pharisees and scribes began talking about Jesus saying, "Can you believe Jesus is eating and talking with those sinners?"

Let's think about this for a minute - aren't we all sinners? They had no business judging when they were sinners too, but they did.

This Sunday school lesson begins when Jesus starts telling the parable of the lost coin. You can get the FREE Sunday school lesson about the lost sheep, as well. The lost sheep parable comes just before the lost coin parable in Luke 15. You can use them hand-in-hand or as two separate lessons.

Just this weekend, I told both parables during the same lesson since they express the same point Jesus was trying to make.

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The Parable of the Lost Coin - Sunday School Lesson

This parable is very short. If you have children that can read, have the children turn to the passage in their bibles or have bibles ready for them to read from.

Here is the lesson:

Ask the kids, "Would you want to be around a sinner?"

Wait for answers.

Most kids will respond with the answer - no.

Ask them, "Why wouldn't you want to be around a sinner?"

Wait to hear what the kids will respond.

Now say, "Did you know that you are a sinner?"

This will get their attention. Then, say, "What if no one wanted to be around you? What if no one wanted to talk to you?"

You see, if no one wanted to talk to you, you wouldn't have any friends. You wouldn't have had someone to tell you about Jesus. If you didn't know about Jesus, you wouldn't be here today.

We are sinners because we've all done something that we shouldn't. Maybe we've told a lie. Maybe we've taken something that wasn't ours. Most of us haven't minded our parents at one time or another. What about complaining or griping? Did you know those were sins too?

Philippians 2:14 KJV

¹⁴ Do all things without murmurings and disputings:

We have all complained about something in our life, haven't we?

When the Pharisees and the scribes started to talk about Jesus being around sinners, Jesus said this:

There was a woman who had 10 pieces of silver. If she lost one of those pieces, wouldn't she light a
candle, sweep the house and keep looking for it until she found it?

Think about this for a minute - If you had 6 puppies and one got lost, wouldn't you want to look for it? You may even have called your grandparents or your friends and told them one of your puppies was missing.

You would look and look and look and look some more.

When you found it, wouldn't you tell all of your friends or grandparents that you found it? You would be so happy and want them to be happy with you, right?

That is exactly what the woman did in this parable of Jesus.

She looked until she found it. Then, she called her friends and neighbors together to rejoice with her.

What This Teaches Us

This parable was told to help us understand that we are to talk to those who need to hear about Jesus. We are to spread his word.

At the end of the parable, Jesus concludes...

There is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth.

Whenever someone gives their life to the Lord (is saved), the angels rejoice in heaven. Imagine, for any of those who have asked Jesus to be their Savior, the angels in heaven were rejoicing with you!

If we don't tell others (sinners) about Jesus, how will they ever know.

We need to spread God's word to whoever we can and then, if they accept Jesus as their Savior, we can rejoice with them along with all of the angels in heaven!



Photo of puppy was taken by Sigismund von Dobschutz (Wikimedia Commons).


 

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Parables of Jesus - One Lost Sheep - FREE Sunday School Lesson

A parable is a earthly story with a heavenly meaning. Jesus used parables to help get his point across. In one parable of Jesus, he talks about one lost sheep.

This is a great story for all ages to help them understand the importance of trying to find that one person who needs to come to Jesus.

The parable begins when the church leaders start to talk bad about Jesus. Why were they talking bad about him?

Jesus was eating and talking with sinners (which we all are) and tax collectors. Tax collectors were hated during this time because many of them took more money from the people than they were suppose to.

The point of this Sunday school lesson and this parable is to help the kids understand the importance of bringing people to Christ. If we don't tell people about Jesus, who will?

Just as Jesus' disciples spread the word of God, we too should tell as many people about him as we can.

This Sunday school lesson can be found in Luke 15: 1-7 KJV.

You can start your lesson by having the kids turn to the verses in the bible. If they are old enough, let them read along with you. It is good practice to show the kids that the bible stories you teach are found in the bible and where.

Parable of Jesus - One Lost Sheep

Jesus told this parable to the church leaders who were saying bad things about him spending time with the sinners and tax collectors.

The parable of Jesus began with a question to the leaders. It went like this...

If you had 100 sheep and one got lost, which one of you wouldn't leave the 99 sheep and go out to look and find the one lost sheep?

When you find the lost sheep, wouldn't you put it on your shoulders and rejoice (be happy) because you found it?

Then, when you got back home, wouldn't you call all your neighbors and friends and say, "Rejoice, with me. I have found my one lost sheep?"

Just as you would be happy about your one lost sheep, all of heaven will rejoice when one sinner turns to God (repents)? They will be more happy that the one comes to God than 99 people who do not need to repent.

You see, Jesus wants us to go looking for that one lost sheep.

Of course, this doesn't mean that we are to go buy a bunch of sheep and wait until one gets lost so we can find it.

In the bible, the Lord is called the Shepherd and we (people) are the sheep.

Psalm 23

The Lord is our shepherd; I shall not want.

For very small children, have them learn the first part of this verse. For older kids, have them learn the whole verse and discuss what it means to 'not want' (more on that below).

If you are teaching teens, have them learn the whole 23 Psalm. Maybe even offer them a prize for whoever can recite it the following week. It doesn't have to be a big prize - a bag of chips, a pack of gum, a sucker or even a book mark.

Not only does this verse give us the assurance that the Lord being our shepherd will find us if we are lost, it shows us that he will provide. We do not need to want things. He will give us what we need.

As part of his flock, we are to search for those people (or sheep) who do not know him as their savior. We are to tell them how much Jesus loves them and wants to be a part of their lives.

What We've Learned

From this parable of Jesus, we learn that we are to go looking for that lost sheep, or friend that doesn't now about him.

We can pray for them. We can invite them to church or Sunday school. If your parents can, how about picking them up and bringing them with you. Maybe their parents will start coming if their children do.

If you have youth meeting or VBS, invite them to that as well.

This week, tell the kids it is their job to be a shepherd and look for one lost sheep to tell about Jesus or invite to church. As a Sunday school teacher, do the same. It's not good enough to tell the kids what they should do. We have to set the example and invite someone too.

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One Lost Sheep Coloring Page - Sunday School Coloring Pages

Jesus' parable about 'one lost sheep' explains that when one person is lost, he needs to be found. While the parable is using an earthly story to explain the importance of leaving 99 sheep to find the one lost sheep, the heavenly meaning behind the parable is much deeper.

The deeper meaning is so that we can understand that when one lost person is brought to Christ, the heavens rejoice! Imagine playing a part in all of heaven rejoicing!

Each day, we go about our busy lives and think only about the tasks at hand.

As Sunday school teachers, we may think about getting our Sunday school lesson ready for the following week or maybe even about what snacks we are going to serve.

But, guess what.

These things aren't nearly as important as spreading God's word and looking for that one 'lost sheep' that God is waiting for to join his flock.

It is our job as Christians and as Sunday school teachers to go looking for that one 'lost sheep' and teach our class to do the same.

Below is a coloring sheet with the words "ONE LOST SHEEP' written on the side. Have the kids color the page and take it home.

Tell them to hang it somewhere they will be able to see it every day.

If they hang it on their door, they will be reminded to talk to someone about Jesus each day. If they hang in over their bed, they will be reminded to pray for someone each night.

Make sure to encourage them to move the sheep around the house to keep reminding them of their job for Christ - finding the lost and leading them to salvation!

Sunday School Coloring Page

The Sunday school coloring page below can be colored and left as is or use your imagination and let them cut it out and paste it on a colorful sheet of paper. Maybe even let them add cotton balls to the sheep. If you don't mind a mess, let them use glitter!

Let the kids have fun as they will hopefully use it as a reminder for a long time to find the 'lost sheep'.

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I found this great site that offers amazing ideas for the lesson of One Lost Sheep.
I hope you like it!

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