This month our series is entitled: Who Are They?
We are looking at the lives of 4 women who were all mothers. The stories of these women and of all the Bible characters are given to us as examples so we can learn valuable lessons from their lives about God and humanity. All of these lessons can then be applied to our own lives.

How many of you have a scar from a physical injury?
How many of you have an emotional scar from some action or event?

In today's message, we're looking at people who would have suffered this type of scarring. A mother and father who served God and tried to guide their son toward the Lord, but whose child didn't have that desire and so often lived differently.

We'll look at a little background before we get into the message.
Judges 2
The children of Israel had come to the Promised Land after many years.
The Lord gave the people a warning in Judges 2:6-7, 10-19.

The book of Judges describes Israel's downward spiral throughout about 400 years. The characters we're looking at today lived near the end of that time period.
Several times this era is described in plain language.
Judges 17:6 and 21:25

In Judges 13:1-5, 24 we are introduced to our main characters.
The woman's name is not given but based on what we know about her, we could give her the Hebrew name of "Mariah" meaning, "the Lord is my teacher."
The name of her husband is Manoah and their child is Samson.

As we read this chapter we can make a number of observations about this family:
- Israel has sinned and been under the rule of the Philistines for 40 years (the number associated with testing).
- Over hundreds of years Israel has been conditioned to sin and worship idols of their culture and not the one true God.
- God intervened on behalf of His people and sent The Angel of the Lord.
- We learn of a person called a Nazarite. This could be a priest, Levite, a man, or a woman. A person who made a vow to live totally committed to God for a specific period of time so as to accomplish some task to honor God. They would realign their normal pleasures, earthly pursuits, natural passions, and spiritual priorities.
- The Lord told Mariah that she was to be a Nazarite throughout her pregnancy and the boy was to be a Nazarite for life. This implied an incredible purpose for his life span.
- Manoah pursued God's will for clarity and to know what his role should be. It's wonderful when a husband and wife have the same spiritual passion, sense of commitment, and work in the same direction to raise their kids for the Lord. Psalm 127:3

Together Mariah and Manoah commit themselves to teaching Samson the things of God, about life in general, and how he is expected to serve the Lord.
But as you go on with this family's story in Judges 13-16, you see there is a problem. God had a plan and purpose for the life of Samson. His parents were committed to working with God to accomplish this purpose. But Samson had to make a choice to obey. He was stubborn, thick-headed, driven by his emotions, resistant to authority, prideful, arrogant, and angry.
What it must have been like to have a child say "No" to those who have their best interests at heart.
The parents obeyed God and did what they did for Samson's benefit even though he would suffer the consequences for his actions.

It's not very likely that you will go through life without having your heart scarred by others.
- It began in the Garden of Eden as God's kids turned away from Him.
- It continued at Mt. Siani when God's people turned away to false idols.
- Throughout the Judges and the Kingdoms people showed how selfish and fickle they are; demanding their own way.
- In the New Testament it continued as Jesus wept over the city of Jerusalem and kissed the cheek of those who rejected Him.
- And it continues today, hard-hearted and self-willed people in our families, churches, and culture who reject those in authority who represent Him.

The parents (just like the Lord) could not force their son to think right, do right, or be right...but they kept doing the right thing.
- They obeyed God's will for their life.
- They lived a lifestyle that demonstrated love for God, each other, and their son.
- They taught their son the truth, even though he was stubborn and rebellious.
- They believed in him and the destiny for which God had created him.
- They persevered, they would have prayed, prepared him, and they pointed their son toward the true God and not the gods of the culture.
- They understood that their son, their child, those they sought to influence, would have to give an account to God for their choices, attitudes, behaviors, and response to the God-given authorities in their life.

In spite of the scars inflicted upon them, they remained faithful.