HEARING THE LORD'S VOICE

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In Christ, Mark

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The scriptures. May God bless the reading of His holy word.

The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days, the Word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions.

One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was.

Then the Lord called Samuel.

Samuel answered, "Here I am." And he ran to Eli and said, "Here I am; you called me." But Eli said, "I did not call; go back and lie down." So he went and lay down.

Again the Lord called, "Samuel!"

And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, "Here I am; you called me."

"My son," Eli said, "I did not call; go back and lie down."

Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: The Word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.

The Lord called Samuel a third time, and Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, "Here I am; you called me."

Then Eli realized that the Lord was calling the boy. So Eli told Samuel, "Go and lie down, and if He calls you, say, 'Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.'"

So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, "Samuel! Samuel!"

Then Samuel said, "Speak, for your servant is listening."

And the Lord said to Samuel…

1 Samuel 3:1-11a

This ends our reading from God's holy word. Thanks be to God.

Unlike Eli’s wicked sons, Samuel grew up as a servant of the Lord and ministered to Him under Eli’s guidance.

In our passage today, we read where “the Word of the Lord was rare” in those times and “there were not many visions”. This provides an important backdrop for our scripture passage today and helps us better understand how “Samuel did not yet know the Lord” because “the Word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him”.

As we will see, that was about to change.

For we read where one night as Eli and Samuel were settling down at the end of the day and lying in the temple under the glow of the “lamp of God”, the Lord entered the scene and called to Samuel who thinking it was Eli goes to him saying:

“Here I am; you called me."

Surprised because he hadn’t called Samuel, Eli at first must have thought that Samuel was having a dream, replying:

“I did not call; go back and lie down."

And so Samuel did, only to have the same thing happen…not just once but twice. And in both subsequent instances, he went back to Eli, certain that it must have been him calling as he couldn’t see anyone else. It was only after Samuel’s third visit that we see Eli finally figure out what was happening and so he gave Samuel the following instructions:

"Go and lie down, and if He calls you, say, 'Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.'"

And so Samuel did exactly what Eli told him to do and when the Lord called for Samuel the fourth time, he asked God to speak because he (Samuel), the Lord’s servant, was listening. With this, we see the Lord begin to speak to Samuel directly, a conversation we’ll look at in tomorrow’s message.

But for today, I want to zoom in on the matter of the Lord speaking to us because He continues to do so each and every day. When He speaks, some will recognize Him and be ready to communicate, eager to receive His Word and will. But sadly, there are others who don’t know the Lord and aren’t interested in knowing Him. They willingly choose to not have a relationship with Him and so when He tries to call them, they tune Him out of their lives.

Thank goodness that Samuel had Eli to help him understand what was happening that night, helping Samuel to open the doors of communication with the Lord he served. Believers today carry the same responsibility but their tasking is directly from Jesus as commanded in the Great Commission. Every day, their chief goal is to actively seek to make disciples of all nations. For when we are actively seeking to make disciples, we are actively seeking to connect people to the Lord through His Word and the power of the Holy Spirit. And after that connection happens, the Lord takes over, ever providing instruction and guidance.

As you read this today, where do you find yourself?

Are you like Samuel, hearing the Lord’s call but unable to recognize that it is Him calling you?

Or are you like Eli, able to discern when God is speaking and always ready and able to help others connect with Him when they might have trouble perceiving the Lord’s voice?

Whether we are like Samuel or Eli, one thing is certain…the Lord is calling His people who should always be listening for His voice. Let us open our ears, our hearts, and our minds to receive Him while giving thanks that our Maker and Master loves us so very much and longs to have a personal relationship with us…now and forever.

Amen.

In Christ,

Mark

PS: Feel free to leave a comment and please share this with anyone you feel might be blessed by it. Send any prayer requests to TheChristianWalkPrayers@gmail.com.