Thought for the Week 2021 – Lent 3

1 Samuel 3: 1 - 14

¹ The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions.

² One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. ³ The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was. ⁴ Then the Lord called Samuel.

Samuel answered, ‘Here I am.’ ⁵ 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.

⁶ 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.’

⁷ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.

⁸ A third time the Lord called, ‘Samuel!’ And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, ‘Here I am; you called me.’

Then Eli realised that the Lord was calling the boy. ⁹ 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.

¹⁰ The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’

Then Samuel said, ‘Speak, for your servant is listening.’

¹¹ And the Lord said to Samuel: ‘See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears about it tingle. ¹² At that time I will carry out against Eli everything I spoke against his family – from beginning to end. ¹³ For I told him that I would judge his family for ever because of the sin he knew about; his sons uttered blasphemies against God, and he failed to restrain them. ¹⁴ Therefore I swore to the house of Eli, “The guilt of Eli’s house will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.”’

Lent 3 – God Speaks, God Calls, God is With Us

This story of the boy, Samuel, who hears the voice of God one night, is a very well-known story that we use to illustrate the fact that God talks to his people, and we need to be listening. Those of you who went to Sunday School as a child no doubt first heard this story way back then. But I wonder whether your Sunday School teacher included verses 11 to 14 – what God’s message actually was. So often, when we look at this story, we stop at the end of verse 10: ‘Speak, for your servant is listening.’ Ironically, when teaching about the fact that we should listen to God, we often fail to include the (quite serious and severe) message that God actually gives to Samuel!

This Lent period, we are examining ourselves in the light of the life, death and resurrection of our Saviour. When Jesus was born, he fulfilled the prophecy of the birth of Immanuel – God With Us. And today, God is still With Us when we trust in him and follow him, and he speaks to us and calls us. And sometimes, the message he has for us, like the message that he gave to young Samuel, is not a simple or even pleasant message. God speaks to us, and at times he has something difficult for us to do. In verse 15 of 1 Sam. 3, it says that the following morning Samuel was afraid to tell Eli what the vision was – not surprisingly!

Where was Samuel sleeping? Where was his bedroom? Verse 3: “Samuel was lying down in the house of the Lord, where the ark of God was.” Probably not in the Most Holy Place, with his bed right alongside the Ark, but definitely nearby. Remember, this was before the temple was built, so the ‘House of the Lord’ was the tabernacle. It was basically a tent. And one compartment of the tent was the Most Holy Place, where the ark of the Lord, was, and where God was believed to dwell. Samuel was sleeping as close to the presence of God as was possible. When you go to sleep, do you rest in the presence of God? Do you go to sleep at peace knowing he is right with you? And are you prepared to hear his voice and his call?

God speaks, God calls, and God is With Us. Are we listening, and are we aware of how close we are to him? Do we seek to get as close as possible? How can we get closer to God and be more aware of what he is saying? The principle way that God speaks to us is through his Word. He has given us the Bible, and it is called the Word of God. Regular reading of the Bible is the main way God speaks to us – and it can help to read it with other people, in church, with daily study guides, with commentaries and so on. Persevere with your Bible reading if you want to have open ears to what God is saying, and you want to get closer to him! Every morning, pray like Samuel: ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’ Be prepared to hear God’s call on your life each day. Remember Ephesians 2: 10 – “For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.” How will we know what God is calling us to do each day, unless we listen?

 

Prayer

Heavenly Father, I thank you that you have never just left me to ‘get on with’ living the Christian life in my own strength. I thank you that you speak, you call and you are with me. May the Holy Spirit today fill me and help me to open my ears to your Word and your Call. May I always trust that you are with me at all times. Amen.