I have been particularly excited about preaching this particular section of 1 Samuel since we've begun the series.
And that's because when I was younger, a friend of our family's who was an artist gave me this picture,
which was his summary of basically the chapter.
Obviously, my name being Samuel, it was his gift to me.
I could see Tarshi questioning the artistic credibility of this with that facial expression,
but he's famous and you're not.
But I will equally accept a gift from you if it's a summary of a chapter of the Bible.
Let me pray and we're going to get stuck into this chapter.
Father God, we do thank you for your word.
We thank you that you give it to us so that we might know you.
And God, we ask that as you speak tonight that you would help us to listen,
that you would help us to recognize the things that we do or the ways that we approach your word
that maybe prevent us from hearing what it is you have to say.
And I pray that the result will be that as we hear you speak, we will see you clearly and we will live accordingly.
Amen.
Have you ever had a one-sided conversation?
I have a gift which some of you have heard about before and if you're really lucky have seen in action.
Basically, that gift is when the television is on, nothing else exists.
When I was a teenager or maybe just out of high school, so maybe I can't claim youthful ignorance,
but I was dating a girl and we were having a conversation as you do.
This was before you could sit on Facebook all the time and do that sort of stuff.
So we were actually on the phone and I was watching TV and a really, really significant thing came on.
It was an ad or an infomercial or something, something equally life-changing.
And I got sort of really involved in this ad and then at the end of the ad, the show came back on.
I noticed that I was holding a phone to my ear, but there was no one there,
so I put it down and just continued watching the show.
It turned out that my girlfriend at the time had been chatting away and pouring out her heart.
I got in a fair bit of trouble off the back of that.
But a one-sided conversation doesn't really work.
It's necessary that there is two people both giving, both talking, both communicating.
But as we open this chapter of 1 Samuel, it kind of feels like Israel and God are having a one-sided conversation.
The word of the Lord is rare.
There's not many visions.
And we've got to be careful not to let that slip past easily.
We need to remember that this chapter is happening within a historical context.
And if you've missed what we've been looking at throughout this series,
basically God's agenda throughout human history is that he wants a relationship with his people.
That's what he's doing in creation.
That's why there's priests.
That's why there was a tent for them to meet at.
And God's word, which is particularly rare, is a way of just referring to what God has revealed of himself.
His word, if you like, is not so much word as in sit or run or jump or whatever.
It's the stuff that he has shown of himself for us to know.
And it's essential, if people are going to know him, that they get his word, that they get what he reveals of himself.
And so into that context, with a God who wants a relationship and people who want that relationship back,
God is being strangely quiet.
Don't you think?
God's agenda is, I want to know people.
And then we hear at the beginning of this chapter,
in those days, the word of the Lord is rare and there's not many visions.
Now, it's not that he's completely silent,
because just last week when we were looking in chapter 2,
he delivered his word that Eli was about to be judged,
because he'd failed to restrain his sons.
But his word is still rare.
And when it does come, it's almost like people don't want to listen.
They don't want to hear it.
And the problem's not with God.
It's with the priests.
It's where we were last week.
Their job, they're supposed to be the ones who hear God's word and then pass it on.
They're the representatives.
But of course, the problem with that is,
the priests, Hophni and Phinehas, don't even know God.
So they haven't got much hope of introducing God to everyone else,
or teaching everyone else about God.
Now, look at verse 7.
Samuel did not yet know the Lord.
Samuel has been living at the temple.
This is God's house, if you like.
Samuel has been training as a priest.
He's been under Eli's leadership.
And when God actually speaks to him,
like audibly speaks to him,
Samuel doesn't know what's going on.
Because he doesn't yet know the Lord.
He doesn't yet know God's word.
The priests in Israel, the priests of God's people,
have failed so significantly
that a priest in training
doesn't even know who God is.
Doesn't even have a relationship with God.
He hasn't even yet heard the word of the Lord.
That is the whole priestly responsibility,
to bring the word of the Lord to the people.
And yet one of their own in training
doesn't know what the word of the Lord is.
Now, we need to put that in a bit of context.
So last week in chapter 2,
we saw that Samuel is already ministering before the Lord.
He's already growing in the presence of the Lord.
He's already growing in favor with the Lord.
Yet at the same time,
we've just read in chapter 3,
he did not know him.
How can he be in his presence,
be growing in his favor,
but not know him?
The key word comes in verse 7.
It's revealed.
Look at verse 7 again.
Samuel did not yet know the Lord.
The word of the Lord
had not yet been revealed to him.
Now, in spite of the fact that Samuel's in the right place,
he's at the temple,
he's where God's going to speak if he does,
in spite of the fact that he's being trained personally
by God's priest,
the word of the Lord has not yet been revealed to him.
So Samuel's learnt all the right moves.
He's learnt about the sacrifices and the prayers.
He's learnt about what things he's supposed to wear.
But the priests have failed to show him,
this priest in training,
that everything he does,
points to God.
Everything is trying to teach him something about God.
God gave them this whole tent
and this sacrificial system
as a means of revealing himself.
That's the whole point of it.
And the priests are there to maintain it,
to oversee it,
to ensure that it's continuing.
And so they're like a conduit,
if you like,
of God's revelation.
But the priests that we've got at this point in Samuel
are not a conduit,
they've become a barrier.
It's almost like a mirror has been installed backwards.
The whole function of a mirror is for light particles
to hit it and bounce back so that you can see something
that you couldn't see before.
But if you flip that mirror around,
it's completely non-functional.
It's still a mirror,
but the light particles hit it and stop.
You don't see anything extra.
See,
the priestly system is supposed to show people
God that they can't see,
that they can't just approach and know for themselves.
But it's like they've flipped it around backwards
and what was supposed to help
is now blocking their vision
of something that they need to see
if they're going to know God.
And God hasn't yet dealt with that barrier.
He's about to,
but so long as these priests stand there as a barrier,
Samuel does not and will not know the Lord.
He's in the right place,
but with the barrier there,
he cannot know the Lord.
God hasn't revealed himself yet,
at least not directly.
And for Samuel to know God,
in fact,
for anyone to know God,
God has to take the initiative to reveal himself.
You can't take hold of God by force.
God has to come and introduce himself to you.
I was wasting some time last night,
actually,
in front of the television
and just the fantastic show,
The Bachelor,
was giving an encore episode,
Bachelor Australia.
Now,
for anyone who hasn't had the opportunity
to waste some time watching this show,
let me give you the basic premise.
There's some guy who apparently used to be
a topless waiter,
and apparently that's really appealing.
And then there's 20 girls
fighting for his affection.
And it's just,
it's comical to watch.
These girls are sitting there
and they're devastated
because they haven't had their chance
to get some time with this guy.
I'm like,
there's 20 of you,
that's the whole point.
But every single one of them
is getting really emotional
and really catty,
and, you know,
the word above,
catty.
They're getting very aggressive
towards one another
because they want their chance
to get to know this guy.
And you watch them scheming.
And so the guy will come in
and pick the girl
he wants to talk to,
and he'll take them for a walk
off to the other side of the house
and they'll sit down and talk.
And the other girls
kind of try and sneak in
and hover
as if somehow
they can force their way in
to having a conversation
with this guy.
And it just keeps not working.
And these girls are left awkwardly
kind of standing next
to a conversation
that's happening
just trying to hope
they can get into it.
And it's like
the bachelor's sitting there
and he's like,
hi.
Just keeps talking to the girl
that he wants to talk to
because he has all the power
in this scenario.
It's all about
who he wants to get to know.
If he doesn't want to get to know,
you don't get your flower,
you go home
and you've made an idiot
of yourself on TV
and that's all that you've gained.
But in a relationship like that,
one person has the power
and it's all about
his initiative.
And it's not exactly the same,
but on some level,
God has all the power
when it comes to relating to him.
No matter how clever you are,
no matter how,
what ways you invent
to come and start
a relationship with God,
actually it only begins
if he chooses
to reveal himself to you.
And so Samuel's
in the right place.
Samuel's training as a priest.
Samuel's doing
all the right things.
But until God reveals himself,
Samuel will just continue
going through the motions
without ever actually
having a relationship.
But thankfully,
God is about to remove
the barrier.
Verse 4.
Then the Lord called Samuel.
We can't underestimate this.
It's just a few words,
but we've just heard
in verse 1,
the word of the Lord
is rare.
We know that we've got
three dodgy priests
standing in the way
and making it really difficult
for Israel to know God.
And God punches through
and breaks the drought,
not with Eli,
the most senior priest,
not with Hophni,
not with Phinehas,
but with Samuel.
He bypasses the dodgy,
failing priesthood
and calls a new one instead.
I mean,
look at Samuel in this story.
Even as someone who doesn't
know the Lord yet,
he's ready to listen.
He's eager to obey,
unlike everyone else.
Eli is asleep in his usual place.
Now, we don't know exactly
where that usual place is.
It doesn't say.
It just says Eli is in his usual place.
But we do know that Eli's
usual place for sleeping
and Samuel's usual place
for sleeping are different.
Because each time Samuel hears his voice,
he has to get up and run
to get to where Eli is
and say,
Eli, you called me.
So we don't know exactly,
but it's in a different place.
But where's Samuel?
Samuel is in the house of the Lord.
Samuel is sleeping where the ark is.
Samuel is where God is.
Now, the ark,
if you're not familiar with that,
is basically a fancy box.
It's a pretty big box.
It's covered in gold.
It's something that Israel
carried with them as they went.
And inside this box
was the tablets of stone
from when God gave
the commandments to Moses.
So this is significant
for their history
because those tablets
represent God's covenant
or God's contract,
if you like,
with Israel.
This was in writing
that God had chosen them.
This is God's way
of committing to them.
And so they carried it around.
It mattered to them.
And it represented
this box and the stuff
that was in it,
God being present
with his people.
So this was in the middle.
This was the centerpiece
of the tent
that Samuel works at.
And this tent
was in the centerpiece
of the country
that Israel had control of.
It was everything to them
because it was God with them.
And so if you wanted
to meet God,
if you wanted to talk to God,
if you wanted to interact
with God,
you did it in the house
of the Lord
where the ark was.
And so Samuel,
at least,
out of all the other priests,
is in the right location
to hear from God.
He's actually there.
If God's going to speak,
Samuel's going to be
the first one to hear it.
Now, that's not to say
God is limited to a room
or a box.
It's not to say
there is a specific country
we need to go
if we want to hear from God.
But it is important
that Samuel is the only one
we find
in the right location
to hear from God.
This was the place
God had told them
he would be.
It was the place
that he had chosen
to limit his dwelling
for them.
And if and when
he does speak,
Samuel is at least
ready to hear.
Now,
I wonder,
for those of us
who call ourselves Christians,
I wonder if we're waiting
for God to speak
into some circumstances
in our life.
I wonder if there's answers
that we're after,
if there's direction
that we want.
But we're kind of like Eli
and we're just in our usual place.
We're not actually going
to look
in the obvious place
where God has said
he's going to be
and he's going to speak.
We sit there going,
God,
I really want to know
what your will is
for my life
with our Bibles closed.
Being in the right location
matters.
But as well as being
in the right place
at the right time,
Samuel's attitude matters.
He sits under authority here
almost before he even
recognizes who the authority is.
He sits under the imperfect
authority of Eli
who we know is already
getting judged by God.
I mean,
after Samuel hears
his name called out,
what's his response?
Verse 4,
have a look.
The Lord called Samuel,
Samuel answered,
here I am.
And then he ran to Eli
and said,
here I am,
you called me.
Samuel's ready to do
whatever is required of him.
He's ready to go.
He's eager.
He doesn't say,
shh,
I'm trying to sleep.
He doesn't say,
temple will be open again
tomorrow about nine
if you can come back then.
Even in the confusion
of running to Eli
three times.
I mean,
can you imagine?
He gets up,
he hears a voice,
goes to Eli,
no,
it wasn't me.
He goes to bed,
what was that?
Again,
runs to Eli
over and over and over
but every time
he says,
here I am.
What do you need?
I'm ready,
I'm willing.
And then finally
when Eli figures out
what's going on,
sends Samuel back
and how does Samuel
respond to hearing from God
knowing that it's God
the very first time?
Verse 10,
the Lord came
and stood there
calling as at the other time
Samuel,
Samuel.
Then Samuel said,
speak for your servant
is listening.
His first response
to the word of God
is I am your servant.
He hasn't even seen
what it looks like
to serve God.
His only model
is three dodgy priests
who use their position
for power
and for abusing women,
forgetting food,
and his first response
to God
when he speaks
is I am willing,
use me.
But calling yourself
God's servant
and actually serving him
are two pretty
different things.
Again,
if you follow Jesus
I'm sure
that you would say
you're ready to obey him.
I'm sure you would say
that your agenda
is to do
what he would have you do.
But do you ever
come to God's word
with a bit of an attitude
of I'm going to see
what it says
before I commit
to doing it?
Do you actually
approach God's word
every time
before God speaks
to you
and say
I'm your servant
just tell me
which way to go?
Or do you open
the Bible
do you come to church
thinking
I'm going to hear
what God has to say
and then I'll consider
whether or not
I think that's the best
thing for me?
When you open
the Bible
and God says
I want you to be
generous
with the things
I've given you
is there a part
of you that goes
not this week
I'm really keen
on a pair of shoes?
Is there a part
of you that goes
let me just have a look
at my situation
my finances
and I'll think about it?
When God calls you
to purity
sexually
do you hear that
and you go
I understand why
but God
I'm just in this
great relationship
me and this girl
we just
we make each other
so happy
physically
it's just great
so I hear what
you're saying
but not for me
right now
or when you open
the Bible
and God calls you
to sacrifice
for Him
calls you
to put Him
first
calls you
to forsake
everything else
in your life
and love Him
more than anything else
do you hear that
and go
God
whatever you need
or do you go
God
just let me think
about whether or not
I'm actually in for that
calling yourself
a servant of God
saying you are following Him
saying you love Him
and actually doing it
are two very
different things
and I wonder
will Samuel still be so eager
when he hears the message
that God's got for him
I mean imagine this
this is Samuel's first
assignment
as a prophet
this is the first message
that God
gives him
listen to it
verse 11
the Lord said to Samuel
see I'm about to do
something in Israel
that will make the ears
of everyone who hears
about it tingle
at that time
I will carry out
against Eli
everything I spoke
against his family
from beginning to end
for I told him
that I will judge
his family forever
because of the sin
he knew about
his sons
blasphemed God
and he failed
to restrain them
therefore I swore
to the house of Eli
the guilt of Eli's house
will never be atoned for
by sacrifice
or offering
Samuel lay down
until morning
and then opened
the doors
of the house
of the Lord
he was afraid
to tell Eli
the vision
this is the moment
of truth
in this chapter
God has broken in
God has spoken
God has called Samuel
and the first message
Samuel gets
is basically this
go and tell
the man who raised you
go and tell
your father figure
Eli even calls
Samuel his son
in this passage
go and tell
that guy
that God
is about to judge him
and there is no hope
for forgiveness
I mean did you catch
that in verse 14
the guilt of Eli's house
will never
be atoned for
judgment is definite
Samuel's not giving
a message to Eli
hoping that Eli
will turn around
and fix his life
and come back to God
Samuel is telling
his father figure
that God's judgment
is coming
and it cannot
be escaped
no wonder
Samuel was scared
this is his first
word from the Lord
and he has to go
to somebody
he cares for
and tell them
that they
will face
the judgment
of God
but this is
the moment
of truth
is it just
lip service
from Samuel
that he's a servant
of God
is it just lip service
that he loves him
that he wants
to follow him
or will he bear
the weight
of speaking
God's word
no matter
what it costs
him personally
look at verse 15
Samuel lay down
until morning
and then he opened
the doors
of the house
of the Lord
he was afraid
to tell Eli
the vision
but Eli
called him
and said
Samuel my son
Samuel answered
again
here I am
what was it
he said to you
Eli asked
do not hide
it from me
may God
deal with you
be it ever
so severely
if you hide
from me
anything
he told
you
so Samuel
told him
everything
hiding nothing
from him
then Eli
said
he is the Lord
let him do
what is good
in his eyes
the Lord
was with Samuel
as he grew up
and he let
none of Samuel's
words fall
to the ground
and all Israel
from Dan
to Beersheba
recognized
that Samuel
was attested
as a prophet
of the Lord
the Lord
continued
to appear
at Shiloh
and there
he revealed
himself to Samuel
through his word
Samuel's faithfulness
in those few verses
there shows
that the situation
has changed
the beginning
of the chapter
we have dodgy
priests
we have a fairly
silent God
and now
they have a prophet
things are about
to be different
for Israel
Samuel is growing
up as somebody
who now knows
God
as somebody
who will speak
God's word
even if it costs
him personally
and it tells us
that God is with him
and God empowers
him
so that the words
he speaks
are effective
but the really
exciting and important
thing in this whole
chapter comes there
in the last verse
we open the chapter
with a quiet God
not many visions
and Samuel
not even knowing
the Lord
and everything
that comes with that
all the problems
now we get to the end
we have the Lord
continuing to appear
at Shiloh
we have God
revealing himself
to Samuel
in a way that
Samuel can pass
the message on
we've got a God
speaking again
a God who wants
to be known
a God who has
pushed over the
barrier of dodgy
priests
and is making
himself available
to his people
now it's tempting
given the focus
on Samuel
in this story
and given the book
is called
One Samuel
to think
that the key
thing to take away
is wow
thank God for Samuel
what a great guy
he's better than
those dodgy priests
we had before
he's the saviour
he's fixed everything
but look again
the big change
both in Samuel
and in all of Israel
is there
the difference between
verse 1 and verse 21
look at them
verse 1
in those days
the word of the Lord
was rare
verse 21
there he revealed
himself to Samuel
through his word
the thing that
changes in this
passage
is not so much
Samuel
it's the word
of the Lord
it's God's word
that makes a
difference to people
it's God revealing
himself
that changes
circumstances
that changes
attitudes
I mean if you
take God's word
out of this chapter
you've still got
Samuel
but he doesn't
know God
nothing changes
you just get
another generation
of dodgy priests
no matter how hard
they try
who can't do the
job that they're
supposed to do
I mean without
God's word
Samuel is useless
he's pointless
I mean he can open
the doors of the
temple
that was one of his
jobs
he can probably tidy
up around the place
but as a priest
he's about as useful
as a comb is
to a bald person
he can't actually
fulfill the function
that he needs to
as a priest
he can't point
people to God
he can't hand on
the revelation
that God has
entrusted to him
God's word
is what matters
God himself
is what matters
and only as God
reveals himself
can Israel
come to know him
now for Israel
at this point
in history
God reveals
God's revelation
of himself
is kind of limited
there's just a
small number of
people that he's
working through
there's a very
specific system
with the tent
and the sacrifice
and all that
and now it was
still sufficient
to define their
whole existence
as a nation
they revolved
around who God
had shown himself
to be
but we get
so much more
than they had
let me read to you
a couple of verses
out of Hebrews
chapter 1
it says
in the past
God spoke to
our ancestors
through the prophets
at many times
and in various ways
but in these last days
he has spoken to us
by his son
whom he appointed
heir of all things
and through whom
he also made the universe
the son is the radiance
of God's glory
and the exact
representation
of his being
sustaining all things
by his powerful word
after he had provided
purification for sins
he sat down
at the right hand
of the majesty
in heaven
God used to speak
in bursts
he used to have
the odd revelation
the odd special event
where he would show himself
with fire
or with thunder
or with whatever it was
but now
in Jesus
God has blurted
it all out
there's no more secrets
there's nothing more
he has given us
everything that we need
to know
Jesus is
the word of God
the word that Israel
so desperately
wanted to know more of
we get it all
in Jesus
he is God
on display
he is the window
the mirror
into the glory
of God
Jesus came
so that we could know
the God of heaven
Jesus has sacrificed
himself
so that we can be
forgiven
so that the temple
and the sacrifices
that we read about
in 1 Samuel
and all through
the Old Testament
can be replaced
by a group
of forgiven people
gathering around
God's word
in scripture
Jesus has come
to take away
the barriers
to make the access
easy
to make the access
possible
everything you would
ever need to know
about God
is found in Jesus
he is the full
revelation of God
he is the answer
to every prayer
and desire
of your heart
he is God's
full
and final answer
to whatever it is
that you need
to ask him
sometimes I think
we have selective
hearing
we hear
what it is
that we want
to hear
what if God
is already
speaking to us
and we are just
not listening
what if
we are so
convinced
that there is
a specific
answer
that we want
from God
that we refuse
to hear
the one
that he is
giving to us
what if
you are like
me
and God
is speaking
down the phone
and you are
distracted
by something
trivial
and unimportant
I know it
doesn't feel
trivial
or unimportant
but what if
God is speaking
to you
and you are
just
not listening
here is why
all this stuff
matters
here is why
this matters
when you go
to work
tomorrow
when you go
to uni
when you go
to school
here is why
this matters
when you have
a fight
with your
friends
when you are
overwhelmed
with stress
when you can't
afford your
bills
when you are
wrestling
with a big
decision
about your
future
or a job
or a career
as you cry
out to God
searching for
his answer
wanting him
to speak
to you
wanting him
to be specific
about your
circumstance
and your
situation
God's word
which changes
everything
has already
been spoken
to you
in Jesus
that is
God's answer
to unemployment
to singleness
to heartache
to sickness
Jesus is
God's word
to you
Jesus is
the best
answer that
God has
for your
situation
he's the
answer to
the questions
that you're
asking
Jesus
will give
you the
vision
of God
which is
firmer
than the
foundation
that you're
standing on
now
Jesus
will give
you the
vision
of God
that can
allow you
to pray
like Hannah
did
when she
still didn't
have any
kids
remember
she'd had
her one
she'd given
him back
she's still
a childless
woman
and she
prays
I rejoice
in my
God
because there
is no
one like
him
in Jesus
God looks
in your
situation
and says
I love
you
in Jesus
God says
never will
I leave
you
never will
I forsake
you
in Jesus
God says
in everything
you're going
through
I'm working
for your
good
not just
some vague
idea of
good
your good
in Jesus
God says
I'm sufficient
when you're
weak
when you're
struggling
when you're
suffering
and in
Jesus
God says
someday
soon
I'm going
to fix
it all
someday
soon
I'm going
to right
every wrong
I'm going
to wipe
every tear
I'm going
to end
all the
pain
God is
not silent
anymore
God has
spoken
decisively
and fully
in his
son
the question
for you
isn't
what will
God say
in my
situation
the question
is
are you
listening
to what
he is
saying
in Jesus
because
Jesus
changes
everything
he changes
barrenness
for Hannah
he changes
unemployment
he changes
sickness
he changes
death
Jesus
is God's
word to
you
in your
situation
whatever
that situation
is
the question
is
are you
listening
let's
pray
father
god
we want
to
admit
that we
take for
granted
that you
have
given
us
free
access
to
your
word
we want
to admit
that we
waste
so much
time
and
opportunity
that you
have
given
us
to have
you
speak
into
our
lives
we
want
to
admit
that we
distract
ourselves
with our
own
desires
or with
what we
think
the
answers
should
be
and we
want to
admit
that sometimes
we just
don't listen
to the
better
answers
that you
have
offered
us
in your
son
God
God I
want to
pray for
all of
us
in this
room
whether
we're
wrestling
with
stress
loss
plenty
whatever
it is
that is
in our
situation
right now
show us
how Jesus
changes
that
show us
how Jesus
redefines
that
God I
want to
pray for
people who
are hurting
right now
that you
would open
their ears
to hear
that you
love them
in Jesus
for those
who feel
sufficient in
themselves
open their
ears to
hear that
they need
you
and that
Jesus is
the only
way that
we can
know you
and we
can call
you our
heavenly
father
God I
want to
pray that
we would
be people
who are
so firmly
fixed on
what you
have done
for us
in sending
your son
so focused
on his
death and
his resurrection
in our
place
that our
lives would
also speak
your word
to the
world around
us
may people
hear of
your love
because of
the hope
and the
foundation
that we
have
father speak
to us
your servants
for we
are listening
amen