Pastor Josh is back and continuing the Set Apart series, diving into the story of Samuel hearing from the Lord.
The background of 1 Samuel 3 is truly baffling when its examined. The people had grown so cold and corrupt to God that visions and revelations were rare in the time. Even Eli, the prominent leader, had sons who defiled the temple and used their positions of influence to manipulate people. He was losing his ability to hear from God and even refused when a prophet told him to fix the situation. Samuel, on the other hand, slept by the ark of God and was close to Him both physically and spiritually. Like him, we must put ourselves in the position to hear from the Lord so that He will speak to us. If we refuse to listen, we will never hear God speak the way we want. Samuel woke up in the middle of the night several times and ran to Eli, who he thought was calling him. Obviously, it was God. But the faithfulness to obey the voice, even if the details weren’t perfectly accurate, is a great lesson for us. We must obey God so that we can know His voice and trust that He has all of the issues we face figured out! In the last part of the passage, Samuel is ready to receive whatever the Lord wanted to speak to him. This attitude is important in hearing the voice of God: be ready to receive what He speaks!
Scripture References:
1 Samuel 3:1-10
