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New Beginnings: Biblical Characters

Overview

The "New Beginnings: Biblical Characters" series examines how God works through flawed individuals to accomplish His purposes. Through four weeks of study, the series explores themes of redemption, grace, and second chances despite human failure. The first lesson focuses on Samson, a complex figure who demonstrates both the consequences of sin and the possibility of redemption. The third lesson examines biblical women, particularly Eve and Ruth, showing how God's grace extends even to those who seem excluded from His people.

The Time of the Judges

The series begins by establishing the historical context of the Book of Judges, a period characterized by spiritual and moral decline. Following the death of Joshua, Israel repeatedly fell into cycles of abandoning God, experiencing judgment, crying out for deliverance, and receiving rescue through judges whom God raised up (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 1:41).

As described in Judges 2:11-19, the Israelites "did what was evil in the sight of the Lord and worshiped the Baals," abandoning the God who had brought them out of Egypt. This pattern repeated throughout the period: Israel would turn from God, face oppression from enemies, cry out in distress, receive deliverance through a judge, then return to sin once the judge died (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 2:16).

Samson: A Study in Contrasts

Divine Calling and Human Failure

Samson's story begins with divine intervention. His barren mother received an angelic announcement that she would bear a son who would be a Nazirite from birth, dedicated to deliver Israel from the Philistines (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 6:25). The Nazirite vow, detailed in Numbers 6:1-5, involved separation from wine and strong drink, avoiding anything from the grapevine, and never cutting one's hair as signs of dedication to the Lord.

Despite this miraculous beginning and divine blessing, Samson consistently violated God's commands (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 9:51). The teacher notes: "Every time I read Samson's story I think why would God choose him... he is not just a strong man" (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 9:56).

Pattern of Disobedience

Samson's failures included:

  1. Intermarriage with foreigners: He demanded to marry a Philistine woman, violating God's command in Deuteronomy 7:3-4 against intermarrying with pagan nations (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 10:24).

  2. Ritual defilement: He ate honey from a lion's carcass, violating cleanliness laws by touching an unclean dead animal and consuming food from it, even giving some to his parents without telling them its source (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 11:52).

  3. Sexual immorality: He visited a prostitute in Gaza, contrary to the moral law (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 13:42).

The pattern reveals a man driven by immediate desires: "What he sees he wants and what he wants he knows he will get" (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 17:23).

The Delilah Episode

Samson's relationship with Delilah epitomized his weakness for forbidden relationships. Despite her repeated attempts to discover the source of his strength and obvious betrayals, he remained with her until finally revealing that his uncut hair was connected to his power (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 15:45). When she had his head shaved, "the Lord had left him" and he was captured by the Philistines (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 19:19).

God's Sovereignty in Human Failure

Despite Samson's consistent disobedience, God continued to work through him to accomplish His purposes. Even his first forbidden marriage was part of God's plan, as Judges 14:4 reveals: "His father and mother did not know that this was from the Lord, for he was seeking a pretext to act against the Philistines" (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 21:15).

The teacher emphasizes: "God in each of these instances overcomes the Philistines in spite of or despite Samson's error... God continues to use him in order to save Israel" (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 21:41).

Redemption Through Brokenness

The Moment of Truth

After his capture, the Philistines gouged out Samson's eyes and made him perform at a feast honoring their god Dagon. In this moment of complete humiliation and brokenness, Samson finally turned wholly to God. He could no longer rely on his own strength or even his sight (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 24:17).

His prayer marked a transformation: "Samson called to the Lord and said, 'Lord God, remember me and strengthen me only this once, O God'" (Judges 16:28). The teacher notes: "He set his... eyes upon the Lord alone and he trusted in the Lord alone, he relinquished his own desire, he relinquished his own will and he sought God's will to be done" (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 24:59).

A Shadow of Christ

Samson's final act prefigures the work of Christ. Both were seized by enemies, mocked, and appeared defeated. Yet through apparent defeat, both accomplished victory over God's enemies (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 27:40). However, while Samson's death delivered Israel from the Philistines, Christ's death conquered the ultimate enemy - death itself, as Hebrews 2:14 declares (New Beginnings: Lesson 1, 29:11).

Women of Faith: Eve and Ruth

Eve: The Beginning of All Beginnings

The third lesson explores biblical women, beginning with Eve, the first woman and "the mother of all living." (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 1:42). Eve's story demonstrates both the perfection of God's original design and the devastating consequences of sin.

Created as man's "helper as his partner" in Genesis 2:18, Eve began in perfect relationship with God, Adam, and all creation (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 2:58). Her beginning represents exactly what we desire - perfect communion with God without sin or shame (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 8:13).

The Nature of Temptation

Eve's temptation reveals the deceptive nature of sin. Rather than appearing obviously evil, sin often presents itself as desirable and good (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 5:25). As described in Genesis 3:6, "when the woman saw that the tree was good for food and that it was a delight to the eyes and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate."

The teacher observes that we don't always recognize when we're choosing between good and evil: "sometimes the bad looks really enticing and looks like it should be good but it doesn't mean that it is" (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 6:17).

God's Provision for Fallen Humanity

After the Fall, Adam and Eve attempted to cover their nakedness with fig leaves, which can be seen as representing our futile attempts to cover sin through good works (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 6:46). However, God sees through these inadequate coverings and provides proper garments for them, symbolizing how He clothes believers with Christ's righteousness (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 7:49).

Ruth: Redemption Beyond Boundaries

Background: The Moabites

The story of Ruth begins with understanding the Moabites' origins and their relationship to Israel. The Moabites descended from the incestuous relationship between Lot and his eldest daughter, as recorded in Genesis 19:36-37 (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 12:11). This shameful beginning, combined with their later hostility toward Israel during the wilderness wandering, led to their exclusion from God's assembly.

Deuteronomy 23:3 clearly states: "No Ammonite or Moabite shall be admitted to the assembly of the Lord, even to the tenth generation, none of their descendants shall be admitted to the assembly of the Lord" (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 14:23).

A Desperate Situation

During a famine in Judah, Elimelech took his wife Naomi and their two sons to sojourn in Moab. After Elimelech's death, both sons married Moabite women - Orpah and Ruth - but produced no children before they too died (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 15:39). This left Naomi widowed and childless in a foreign land, with no male relatives to provide for her (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 16:09).

When Naomi heard that food had returned to Judah, she decided to return home and released her daughters-in-law to find new lives among their own people. The beautiful relationship between Naomi and her daughters-in-law is evident in their tearful reluctance to part (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 16:54).

Ruth's Remarkable Loyalty

While Orpah eventually returned to her family, Ruth "clung to" Naomi and refused to leave her (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 21:32). This decision was remarkable because Ruth had no legal or practical reason to remain with Naomi. As a Moabite woman, she had no place among God's people, and there were no available kinsmen for her to marry under the levirate marriage law outlined in Deuteronomy 25:5-6 (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 22:01).

Divine Providence Through Boaz

When Ruth and Naomi returned to Bethlehem during barley harvest, God's providence became evident through Boaz, a wealthy relative of Elimelech (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 23:12). Boaz showed extraordinary kindness to Ruth, providing protection, food, and generous provision for gleaning in his fields (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 24:49). His generosity extended beyond normal expectations, instructing his workers to leave extra grain for her and ensuring her safety (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 25:07).

The Role of the Kinsman-Redeemer

The concept of redemption operates on multiple levels in Ruth's story. Under Levitical law outlined in Leviticus 25:23-25, when family property was sold due to hardship, the nearest relative had the right to redeem it (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 31:31). When the nearest relative declined to redeem both Naomi's field and Ruth (understanding this would involve the responsibility of levirate marriage), Boaz stepped forward as the kinsman-redeemer (New Beginnings: Lesson 3, 32:28).

This redemption provided new beginnings for both women - Naomi regained her family property and security, while Ruth gained a husband, a home among God's people, and ultimately a place in the lineage of King David and Jesus Christ.

Application: New Beginnings for All

Learning from Samson

The lesson concludes with practical application. Like Samson, believers sometimes find themselves "being very samsony" - trusting in