May 20, 2007  •  Pastor Randy Smith

We begin in the darkness. Soon the quest for light begins. It is the ultimate pursuit of every human being, whether they acknowledge it or not, to know and worship a "higher power." Whether that higher power is Mother Nature, a religious god, an abstract concept or even oneself, each of us vigorously pursue this need, and once found spend the remainder of our lives trusting and supporting and defending our results. Our higher power, whatever it might be, gives us meaning and purpose in life.

Despite the legion of false gods that people choose, the Bible makes no apologies for the existence of the true and living God. It does not provide scientific proof nor does it cater to the objections of finite man. Since there is no higher court of appeal, it simply states that God exists as the eternal Creator to whom we owe our total allegiance. The sixty-six books of the Bible, written over a span of 1,500 years simply open with these following words: "In the beginning God" (Gen. 1:1).

We have been wired to seek the true God, but all too often we end up worshipping the wrong "higher power." Obviously this is a problem, as the Bible repeatedly warns us about our natural default mode, our disposition toward idolatry. Sure, God has revealed Himself in nature and in our conscience, but due to our sinfulness we so easily miss His fingerprints. We need more light. If we are to come to know this God and His plan for salvation, His spoken word must pierce the darkness.

Today, the voice of God is found in the word of God, the Bible. Five hundred years ago when the Scriptures were being neglected and distorted, the Protestant Reformers rediscovered the Bible and began to teach God's word. Lives were directed toward their Creator. Light once again began to penetrate the darkness. Hence they coined the expression: "After Darkness, Light."

Times of reformation were needed then, and times of reformation were definitely needed in Israel during the days of Samuel as well. It was the period of the judges when "every man did what was right in his own eyes" (Jud. 17:6; 21:25). It was a dark time noted for gross sin and idolatry. If the nation were to have any hope, light was necessary. God's word would have to pierce the darkness.

1. THE ABSENCE OF GOD'S WORD

Our account this morning begins (as we start the first point) with an absence of God's word. Verse 1, "Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD before Eli. And word from the LORD was rare in those days, visions were infrequent."

For the Old Testament saints, God spoke in a variety of ways. Most notable was His use of a prophet. A prophet would receive God's revelation and then by divine mandate share that revelation with the people. Jeremiah, Isaiah, Elijah, Ezekiel and Zechariah are just some of the prophets with whom we are familiar. But preceding these prophets would be the father of them all, a man by the name of Samuel. Soon he would be first in the prophetic line.

Verse 1 informs us that a word from the Lord was rare at this time. There were three periods when God did give the predominance of new revelation: The period of Moses and Joshua, Elijah and Elisha, and Jesus and the Apostles. But now Israel was experiencing a period of relative silence (cf. Lam. 2:9). Chosen by God's own sovereignty, but probably attributed to the people's own disobedience, the light of God's word was absent during their rebellion. They stumbled in the darkness that they apparently preferred.

Listen to these chilling words from the prophet, Amos: "'Behold, days are coming,' declares the Lord God, 'When I will send a famine on the land, not a famine for bread or a thirst for water, but rather for hearing the words of the LORD. People will stagger from sea to sea and from the north even to the east; they will go to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, but they will not find it'" (Am. 8:11-12).

Yet verse 1 alludes to a spark in the darkness, a glimmer of hope. In contrast to the absence of God's Word, we read about young Samuel "ministering to the LORD." Was God about to inaugurate a new era? Would the word of the Lord return to Israel? Would God once again speak to His people?

We will come back to these questions, but for now allow me to fast-forward roughly 3,000 years to our present time. Question: Do we still experience an absence of God's voice now that the canon of Scripture is complete and most American homes have a Bible?

A little background and then I will return to that question. In Hebrews 1 we read, "God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son" (Heb. 1:1-2a). For a lengthy period, God spoke through the prophets. But in these latter days, God has chosen to send His Son, Jesus Christ to be the prophet par excellence. He is the physical incarnation of the word of God. Therefore He has surpassed and made obsolete all the former methods God used to communicate in the past. Jesus is the final word. Jesus had the final say. God still speaks today, but He speaks today through His Son in the finished infallible work called Holy Scripture.

So back to my original question. With God's complete revelation contained in the Bible and the Bible still the top selling book in our nation, can we say, like Israel, we have a shortage in the word of God? Is there as Amos said, a famine in the land?

My answer is "yes."

I could easily go down one road and say there is a shortage of the faithful proclamation of God's word in our pulpits. There are many church leaders feeding God's sheep with human wisdom, comedic antidotes and emotional stories. Churches may appear to be busy, but the word of God no longer stands at the heart of their activities. There is an epidemic. The flock is languishing because of their steady diet of junk food. So yes, there is an absence of God's word as more and more teachers of the Bible teach less and less of the Bible.

Though this is true, I would like to assert that there is also another shortage of God's word, and it is found not only in the delivery but also on the receiving end.

Missy came home on Wednesday evening after sitting in on the youth group and informed Julie what a wonderful job Sal did with his presentation and explanation of God's word. We have a tremendous youth group with faithful leaders, yet the overwhelming bulk of adolescents in our community have no interest in attending. The same could be said for Jim Freda and his fine work with the FCA students at Manasquan High School.

But compare this with the young man I witnessed last Thursday at the restaurant. More than once he came in overjoyed and excited about the fortuneteller he discovered in the parking lot. Walk through the mall. Stores that profile dark spiritual paraphernalia are magnets, but a teen would much rather have mom attend his 8^th grade dance than cross the threshold of a Christian bookstore - And I add, the few that are still in business!

There is an absence of God's voice today and the problem is primarily on the receiving end. Jesus often spoke of "ears to hear" (Mk. 4:7). We have grown deaf and indifferent and callous to God's voice. Has the judgment of God fallen upon our nation, producing apathetic hearts unaware of their own self-starvation? Are we dying of spiritual hunger not due to a lack of food but rather to a lack of appetite? Even in the church, few have a deep hunger for Scripture.

Look at the world. Look at the church. Look at the nation, Israel. Aimless wandering results when the meat of God's word is not received.

John Piper said, "When there is a famine of the word of God in the land the spiritual nutrients that enable the eye to spot sin as sin is gone. And the spiritual protein that gives strength the moral muscle of the soul to do what is right is missing. The spiritual eye becomes diseased through malnutrition, and the clear lines between sin and righteousness begin to blur. The moral muscle of the will atrophies, and weakens, and the result is that the beckoning of the world wins because there is no strength to stand against it. When the ministry of the word goes wrong, many are caused to stumble. (Let None be Faithless to the Wife of his Youth, Sermon, Nov. 22, 1987).

2. THE RECEPTION OF GOD'S WORD

Let's move to the second point.

Although verse 1 declares a word from the Lord was rare, light was about to arrive. Verses 2-14 announce that God's word is about to pierce the darkness.

Please follow along in your Bibles. I will make some comments for clarification along the way. Beginning in verse 2:

"It happened at that time as Eli was lying down in his place (now his eyesight had begun to grow dim and he could not see well)."

Eli's poor eyesight was a physical reality due to his age (4:15), but I believe this is also inserted as a metaphor for his lack of spiritual vision as well.

Verse 3, "And the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple (tabernacle) of the LORD where the ark of God was."

The tabernacle was a semi-permanent structure used prior to the building of the temple. Eli and Samuel slept at the tabernacle, probably in the outer court in rooms designated for the priests. Most likely they were close enough for Samuel to help Eli with his poor eyesight during the night. The ark of God was kept in a different room in the heart of the tabernacle called the Most Holy Place.

The lamp referred to in verse 3 could be the seven-branched candlestick but is most likely a night lamp used to illuminate the outer portion of the sanctuary. The lamp would burn from evening to morning. So the fact that it had yet to run out of oil, informs the reader that this event occurred sometime in the early morning.

The setting has now been established. Samuel hears a voice. A new era is dawning. Light begins to pierce the darkness.

It was at this time that the following verses inform us, "That the LORD called Samuel; and (Samuel) said, 'Here I am.' Then he ran to Eli and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.' But (Eli) said, 'I did not call, lie down again.' So he went and lay down. The LORD called yet again, 'Samuel!' So Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.' But he answered, 'I did not call, my son, lie down again'" (3:4-6)

Twice Samuel heard the voice of the Lord. Twice he ran to Eli. Twice he was mistaken. Notice the intimacy of their relationship as Eli refers to Samuel as, "My son" (3:6, 16). Did a strong bond occur between he and Samuel once his own sons betrayed his trust and fidelity? Nevertheless, Samuel was confused about the identity of the one calling him. So why did he mistake the voice of God for the voice of Eli? The answer is found in verse 7. "Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, nor had the word of the LORD yet been revealed to him."

Young Samuel had not entered this depth in his relationship with the Lord. Since God had never spoken to Him in audible form, he was navigating his way through uncharted waters. His inexperience led to confusion. The verse says, "Samuel did not yet know the LORD," in the sense of a deep relationship that would make him one day a great prophet. In 2:12 we learned Eli's two sons "did not know the LORD," but that was a much different kind of ignorance. Unlike the assessment of Hophni and Phinehas, verse 7 is there to explain the situation, not blame Samuel for any spiritual weaknesses.

Beginning in verse 8, the dialogue continues: "So the LORD called Samuel again for the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, 'Here I am, for you called me.' Then Eli discerned that the LORD was calling the boy. And Eli said to Samuel, 'Go lie down, and it shall be if He calls you, that you shall say, 'Speak, LORD, for Your servant is listening.'' So Samuel went and lay down in his place. Then the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, 'Samuel! Samuel!' And Samuel said, 'Speak, for Your servant is listening'" (3:8-10).

Samuel is prepared to hear God's word. He is about to enter a ministry with God that neither of Eli's rebellious sons had attained. With Samuel's heart prepared and attentive, the Lord speaks in verse 10, not just by word—for "the LORD...stood"—apparently by vision as well (cf. 3:1). Samuel will respond in childlike fashion, but the message of doom is anything but childlike.

Beginning in verse 11, "The LORD said to Samuel, 'Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which both ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. In that day I will carry out against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. For I have told him that I am about to judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knew, because his sons brought a curse on themselves and he did not rebuke them. Therefore I have sworn to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever'" (3:11-14).

This sounds a lot like what the unnamed "man of God" said to Eli in chapter 2, verses 27-36. It was a message of judgment - one that was severe, and in this case, irreversible. As the head of his household, Eli would bear the brunt of the responsibility for his two rebellious sons.

Yet before we see what Samuel does with these highly volatile words from the Lord, let's take a brief look at the willingness of his heart to receive the word of God. Are there some lessons for us today? I do not want to over-spiritualize these verses, but this week I asked myself the following questions.

First, notice how Samuel was awoken from his physical sleep to hear God. Do I need to wake up from my spiritual slumber? Do I need to be aroused from my spiritual lethargy and mediocrity to wake-up, hear the Lord and be willing to leave my spiritual bed of comfort? In Isaiah 66:2 God said, "But to this one I will look, to him who...trembles at My word."

Second, notice Samuel's desire for immediate obedience. Though he thought Eli at first was calling him three times in the middle of the night, he was prepared to serve, to immediately meet the demands of his master. Do I have the same eagerness to hear from my Master, the Lord Jesus Christ, drop everything and serve Him obediently? As we tell our children, delayed obedience is disobedience.

Third, notice Samuel's readiness to receive God's Word. Verse 10, "And Samuel said, 'Speak, for Your servant is listening.'" Am I approaching Holy Scripture everyday with this attitude? "Speak, for Your servant is listening." Someone once said, "God speaks to those who take time to listen." And another, "God speaks through His Word to those who listen with their heart." May we pray that God will make our hearts more receptive to His word. "Speak, for Your servant is listening."

Listen to the great Reformer, Martin Luther: "The rule is: Listen and allow the Word to make the beginning, then the knowing (God) will nicely follow. If, however, you do not listen, you will never know anything. For it is decreed, God will not be seen, known, or comprehended except through his Word alone. Whatever therefore one undertakes for salvation apart from the Word is in vain. God will not respond to that. He will not have it. He will not tolerate any other way. Therefore, let His Book in which He speaks to you be commended to you. For He did not cause it to be written to no purpose. He did not want us to let it lie there in neglect, as if he were speaking with mice under the bench or with flies on the pulpit. We are to read it, to think and speak about it, and to study it, certain that He Himself, not an angel or a creature, is speaking with us in it."

Thomas a' Kempis (1379-1471) summed it up well when he wrote: "Blessed indeed are those ears which listen not for the voice sounding without, but for the truth teaching inwardly. Blessed are the eyes that shut to outward things but intent on things inward. Blessed are they who are glad to have time to spare for God, and who shake off all worldly hindrances. Consider these things, O my soul, and hear what the Lord your God speaks."

Fourth, do I see the greatness of God's character in these verses? Do I see His patience (as one Commentator said) how "God is not heaving an exasperated sigh; He is not ready to berate Samuel for being so dense; He does not launch into a tirade about how Samuel 'never gets anything right'" (Davis, 1 Samuel,p. 45). Do I see God's kindness? His holiness? His justice? His love?

3. THE PROCLAMATION OF GOD'S WORD

As we move to our third and final point of the message, we will see what Samuel did with his revelation. He was just given God's word, and it contained some hard-hitting judgment against his spiritual father, Eli. Would he convey the material to Eli or keep God's word to himself? What would you do?

Verse 15, "So Samuel lay down until morning."

I believe the implication is Samuel remained in his bed. He hemmed and hawed, tossed and turned. He dreaded telling Eli the information. Look at the remainder of the verse: "Then he opened the doors of the house of the LORD." He could wait no longer. "But Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli"(emphasis added).

Remember Eli was aware that God was speaking to Samuel (3:8-9). No doubt he had trouble sleeping as well. It was on his heart. At daybreak he could no longer wait to hear what God had communicated.

Beginning in verse 16, "Then Eli called Samuel and said, ' Samuel, my son." And he said, 'Here I am.' He said, 'What is the word that He spoke to you? Please do not hide it from me. May God do so to you, and more also, if you hide anything from me of all the words that He spoke to you" (3:16-17).

Notice the ironic reversal. Before, Samuel was totally dependent on Eli to receive God's word, now Eli is totally dependent on Samuel. Before Eli assists Samuel to hear God's word, now Eli and his household are judged for rejecting God's word. Before, Eli nurtured Samuel's faith, now Samuel is about to replace Eli to nurture the faith of the nation Israel.

Verse 18, "So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And (Eli) said, 'It is the LORD; let Him do what seems good to Him.'

Eli graciously accepts all that the Lord has for him. Even in judgment, Eli does not protest, but resigns to the sovereignty and goodness of God.

Samuel must have had a difficult responsibility before him. Oswald Chambers put it well, "Should I tell my 'Eli' what God has shown to me? This is where the dilemma of obedience hits us. We disobey God by becoming amateur providences and thinking, 'I must shield 'Eli,' who represents the best people we know. God did not tell Samuel to tell Eli - he had to decide that for himself. God's message to you may hurt your 'Eli,' but trying to prevent suffering in another's life will prove to be an obstruction between your soul and God" (My Utmost for His Highest).

Imagine how difficult it must have been for Samuel to speak God's words to Eli, the man who provided for him, the man whom he respected so much. But Samuel displayed the mark of any prophetic voice. When entrusted with the word of God, as all of us are, we must speak it faithfully and accurately, regardless of how others may respond. As Samuel was tested so are we. Faithfulness or fearfulness? God-pleaser or man-pleaser? Samuel was maturing as a mouthpiece for God. Earlier in this chapter he did not know the Lord. Now he is a bold spokesman of God's words to the elder priest.

From 3:19-4:1, the writer describes the making of a mighty person for God. He explains how Samuel was used greatly by the Lord to give Israel an established prophet in residence. At the beginning of the chapter, Israel had no word from the Lord, now through the Samuel; God was once again speaking to His people (compare 3:1 and 4:1).

"Thus Samuel grew and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fail. All Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the LORD. And the LORD appeared again at Shiloh, because the LORD revealed Himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the LORD. Thus the word of Samuel came to all Israel."

This morning we have witnessed the power of the word of God. The same word brought condemnation on the ones who rejected it and comfort on the one who received it. We went from the absence of God's word to the reception of God's word resulting in the faithful proclamation of God's word.

Ask yourself, is the word of God absent from your life? Do you receive God's word with great eagerness? And are you faithfully proclaiming God's word to others? In other words, has the light of Scripture penetrated your heart? And is the Lord using your mouth as His vessel to pierce a world engulfed in darkness groping to find not just a "higher power," but the living God Himself?