1 SAMUEL 3 - HEARING FROM GOD
1 Samuel 3
As this Chapter begins, we are told that the Word of the Lord was rare in those days, but as it progresses, we hear much truth and wisdom from God. Samuel, while still a young boy, is living in the temple of the Lord, which housed the Ark of the Covenant that contained the stone tablets on which the 10 Commandments were written. He was there under the supervision of Eli, the priest of the temple. Eli was elderly & losing his eyesight, and his wayward sons had been such a disgrace that they were under God’s judgment of death. Yet, God was still working through Eli to raise up and train young Samuel in the ways of the Lord.
As this Chapter opens, we see in Vs. 1 that Samuel is ministering to the Lord in the Temple, and in Vs. 3 that he is laying down (for it was nighttime) near the Ark of the Covenant. In verses 4-8, Samuel hears a voice calling out to him three separate times, and thinking it is Eli calling him, he runs each time to Eli. Although it is the voice of the Lord, Samuel does not recognize it as such, because he is not yet familiar with God’s voice. However, Eli understood that it was God calling out to Samuel, so he tells Samuel that the next time he hears the voice to respond by saying “speak, Lord, for your servant hears.”
In Vs. 10, God calls out Samuel’s name twice at the same time, like He had done earlier when He called Abraham in Gen. 22:11, and Moses in Exodus 3:4, and this time Samuel responds as Eli had instructed him. Then, God declares that He is going to bring judgment on the house of Eli. Samuel was initially afraid to share this prophecy with Eli, but, in Vs. 17 Eli insists that Samuel tell him. So, Samuel tells him, and Eli responds in Vs. 18 by saying “It is the Lord. Let Him do what seems good to Him.” As the Chapter ends, we are told that God continued to bring revelation to Samuel, and that Samuel became established as a prophet.
This Chapter presents us with some extremely valuable lessons on how to hear from God. First, just as Samuel was laying down near to the Ark of the Covenant, which contained the 10 Commandments, we need to cling to the truth of God’s Word. As we do that, we will be able to recognize the will of God for our lives. God’s Word reveals His will and His character to us, and although He can do that through other means, such as through prayer, fellowship, worship, service, and even the circumstances of life, He will never contradict His Word.
Second, just as Samuel was willing to hear God speak, and beyond that to truly hear what He had to say, we need to have a teachable spirit and be willing to be changed, if we want to truly learn and understand God’s Word. When our Lord Jesus would teach, He often would say that he who has an ear to hear, (meaning someone who is truly willing to listen to God and do what He says), let him hear. God is looking to reveal Himself and His truth to those who have hearts willing to obey what He is going to reveal. This is the point that Jesus was making in John 7:17 when He declared that he who is willing to do God’s will shall be given the understanding of what He is saying, and it is what the Psalmist meant in Psalm 119:100 when he said “I understand more than the aged, for I keep your precepts.”
Third, even though Samuel was a young boy, he models something that is essential for being a preacher of God or for any of us when we declare God’s Word, and it is that he does not shrink bank from declaring the whole council of God’s Word, even though what he had to share was very difficult. Samuel did not try to tailor the message that God had given him to his audience, and he did not dumb down, add to, or change what God had told him to say, just to suit his own preferences or taste. Because Samuel was faithful to reveal exactly what God told him to reveal, he was blessed with more revelation.
Finally, in Eli, we see a man, who although his life had been far from perfect, God was still willing to use for His purposes. Eli had not raised his own sons to turn out well, but God gave him a second chance in allowing him to train up Samuel. Our God is a God of a thousand second chances. Furthermore, even though the news God delivered to Eli through Samuel was not pleasant from a human perspective, Eli received it with the right heart, trusting that God knew what He was doing and that His will was, as Rom. 12:2 says, good and acceptable and perfect.
Samuel dwelled near to the Word of God, and guarded it. Those who stay close to the Word, and highly value it, will hear from God. Samuel was listening and had a desire to hear from God, and so God spoke to him. Samuel faithfully proclaimed what God had told him, and so God revealed more to him. And Eli, even though he was a flawed man, was still capable of being used by God, and he demonstrated a humble acceptance of God’s will. Both of them teach us valuable lessons about what our hearts need to be like if we want to hear from God.
Even though both Samuel and Eli were only men, and thus not perfect, they each give us a picture of what was to come in Jesus. Eli was a priest, although not always a very good one, and Samuel was a prophet, who still had a lot to learn about God. But, in Jesus, we have the God/man who perfectly fulfilled the roles of not only priest & prophet, but also of King. To Him be all the praise, honor, and glory.