PROPERLY RESPONDING TO GOD’S CALL
I Samuel 3:1-21
As Christians, we have the amazing privilege to be able to communicate directly with God. We talk to Him through prayer, and He speaks to us through His Word. Many people claim that they want to know God’s will for their life. However, they are not in a position where they can hear from Him. Others have heard from the Lord, but they did not like what He had to say. Perhaps He called them to go somewhere they don’t want to go or do something that they don’t want to do. Tragically, instead of responding in obedience, they rebelled and went their own way.
The Lord has a purpose, a plan, and a specific calling for each of His children. It is imperative that we respond accordingly when the Lord calls our name and reveals His plan for our lives. Our selected text concerning the life of the Prophet Samuel shows us how we can properly respond to the call of the God. His story shows us: how to hear from God, how to talk to God, and how to know His specific plan to use us for His glory.
The Father desires to show His children exactly where and how He would have them serve Him. I would like to look at a special moment in the life of Samuel and preach on the subject “Properly Responding To The Call Of God”
God desires for you to advance His Kingdom and bring Him glory. For this to happen, you must first be where He would have you to be. Thus, it is important it is for us to abide in the Lord’s presence. Samuel was one who dwelt continually in the presence of the Lord.
- His story shows us:
TO PROPERLY RESPOND TO GOD’S CALL, WE MUST BE IN A POSITION TO HEAR HIS VOICE
When anyone seeks to reach us with important information, the first step is for us to be able to hear them. For God to be able to communicate His will to us, we must abide in His presence. Samuel was one who dwelt continually in the presence of God. Notice:
v1 Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD in the presence of Eli. And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision. 2 At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place. 3 The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was.
Notice that Samuel was in the Temple of God. He was in this position because of the prayers and devotion of his mother Hannah. Before he was conceived, Hannah was barren, yet she possessed a great desire to have a child. In time, she became discouraged and was heavily burdened because she was unable to conceive. One day, filled with sorrow she entered the Temple and prayed.
1 Samuel 1:10 (Hannah) was deeply distressed and prayed to the LORD and wept bitterly. 11 And she vowed a vow and said, “O LORD of hosts, if you will indeed look on the affliction of your servant and remember me and not forget your servant, but will give to your servant a son, then I will give him to the LORD all the days of his life, and no razor shall touch his head.” 12 As she continued praying before the LORD, Eli observed her mouth. 13 Hannah was speaking in her heart; only her lips moved, and her voice was not heard...
When the priest, Eli saw Hannah he thought she was drunk. (v14 Eli said to her, “How long will you go on being drunk? Put your wine away from you.” 15 But Hannah answered, “No, my lord, I am a woman troubled in spirit. I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have been pouring out my soul before the LORD.) She went on to say, “I have been speaking out of my great anxiety and vexation.” Upon hearing this Eli said, “Go in peace, and the God of Israel grant your petition that you have made to him.”
God honored her request and in time she gave birth to a son, and called him “Samuel”. After she had weaned Samuel, she took him to Eli at the Temple and “she said, “Oh, my lord! As you live, my lord, I am the woman who was standing here in your presence, praying to the LORD. 27 For this child I prayed, and the LORD has granted me my petition that I made to him. 28 Therefore I have lent him to the LORD. As long as he lives, he is lent to the LORD.” And he worshiped the LORD there.”
Samuel was in the presence of the Lord because of the actions of his mother. What an example Hannah is to all parents today. Our children are a blessing from God, and we should dedicate them to Him. Because of Hannah, Samuel was in a place of great privilege. He dwelt in the Temple with the Ark and in the presence of the Lord. Many of us abide in the presence of the Lord today because of the devotion of our parents and grandparents. As a result of their faithfulness and godly examples, we now have our own personal relationship with God. We belong to Him; He is our Father, and we are His children. Due to this intimate relationship, we can enter and abide in God’s presence.
Samuel dwelt with the Lord, he was able to hear His voice, and his life was about to change as a result. Many people desperately need to hear from the Lord. Some even profess that it is their desire for Him to speak and reveal His will to them. However, they are simply not in a place where they can hear His voice. If you truly want to hear from your Father, you must be in a position to hear Him!
- Samuel also shows us that:
TO PROPERLY RESPOND TO GOD’S CALL, WE MUST LISTEN WHEN HE SPEAKS
Samuel was in a position to hear the voice of God, but it would have been of no benefit if he was not willing to listen to what He said. We may regularly attend church where we hear the Word of God proclaimed, we may spend ample time in prayer, and we may search the Scriptures daily, but these things will not bring about God’s desired result if we fail to listen to what He is saying.
These things are not only admirable, but they are also expected of God’s people. However, if we are not careful, they can become mere rituals or habits. As a result, we may find ourselves simply going through the motions rather than communing with God. There are also times when we are genuinely seeing to communicate with our Heavenly Father but because it is such a supernatural phenomenon, we may convince ourselves that it is not really the voice of the Lord that we are hearing. Be encouraged, for it took Samuel a while before he grasped exactly what was happening in his life.
- Notice:
v4 Then the LORD called Samuel, and he said, “Here I am!” 5 and ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down. 6 And the LORD called again, “Samuel!” and Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” 7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, and the word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him. 8 And the LORD called Samuel again the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the LORD was calling the boy. 9 Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant hears.’ ” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
Understandably, Samuel was confused when he first heard the Lord call his name. Verse 7 says “Samuel did not yet know the LORD, and the word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.” This was the first time that he had received a revelation from Him. Likewise, when God speaks to us in such a real and powerful way, it can be confusing. Furthermore, hearing a Word from the Lord is something that is excessively intimidating. Let us not forget that we are talking about communicating with the living God. While this is fascinating, astonishing, and exciting, it is also very humbling and sobering to think that the Creator of the Universe would speak directly to us.
As was the case for Samuel, God seems to call us when we least expect it. Even when we open the Bible with an earnest expectation of communing with the Lord, there are times when He speaks with such clarity that it “rocks our world” so to speak. When Samuel heard the voice of God, he assumed that it was Eli calling out to him. So, he gets up and goes to the priest and says, “here I am!” Eli essentially says, “go back to bed boy, I didn’t call you”. This happened three times. On the third occasion Eli realized what was happening.
It is interesting to note that Eli did not hear the voice of God, Samuel did. This is because God was not calling Eli, He was calling Samuel. However, Eli was wise enough to discern what was happening and he instructed Samuel to make himself available to the Lord. God does not need to employ a “middleman”. When He has a specific plan for your life, He will call you personally. He will make it abundantly clear where He would have you go and what He would have you to do.
We also see through His work in the life of Samuel that God’s call is a persistent one. He will call and if you do not respond accordingly, He will call again. Furthermore, there are times when He will employ drastic measures to get your attention. In Samuel’s case, God called until he answered. When Samuel realized that he was hearing the voice of the Lord, he responded by saying “speak Lord, for your servant is listening”. We find a great example of surrender in Samuel’s response. This young man placed himself at the feet of the Lord and indicated that whatever God had to say, he was ready to hear it. As a result, God confirmed His call on Samuel’s life. He spoke to him, revealed his plans for him and gave him explicit direction and guidance.
If we truly want to be in the center of God’s will, we must be where we can hear His voice and we must listen when He speaks. There are times when God doesn’t speak until He knows that we are willing to truly listen! How do you know when you are truly ready to listen? It is when you are ready to hear what He says and obey His words even if it is not what you want to hear.
- This leads us to the fact that:
TO PROPERLY RESPOND TO GOD’S CALL, WE MUST OBEY HIS WORDS
v10 And the LORD came and stood, calling as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant hears.”
Samuel did what Eli told him to do, he humbly replied “speak Lord, for your servant is listening.” It was only after he reached this place of surrender that God revealed His plan to him. We cannot ignore the fact that what God said was not something that Samuel wanted to hear. The Lord informed him of the judgment that was soon to come against Eli’s family.
v11 Then the LORD said to Samuel, “Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. 12 On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. 13 And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever, for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them. 14 Therefore I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli’s house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.”
Samuel would have the difficult task of delivering this news to Eli. (v15 Samuel lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the LORD. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.) The next morning, Eli demanded to know what God had revealed to Samuel. (v16 But Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” And he said, “Here I am.” 17 And Eli said, “What was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also if you hide anything from me of all that he told you.”) Samuel did not add to or take away from what God had told him. He simply delivered the word of the Lord as He had heard it. (v18 So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him.)
For the rest of his life God would use Samuel as a prophet. He would go forth as a representative of God and declare His words to the people. I cannot tell you what specific task the Lord has for you, but I can assure you that He has a special plan for your life. It is a plan with the ultimate purpose of bringing Him glory. His plan may be completely different from what you would have chosen if given the chance. Regardless, you should be humbled and honored that He would choose you to serve Him in any capacity whatsoever. Therefore, when He reveals His plan for your life, when He calls you to serve Him, go forth and do it to the very best of your ability.
God may use this message to speak to some who are actively seeking His will for their lives. He may use it to confront others who are currently rebelling against His call. But some of you have heard His voice and obeyed His words; rest assured He has a message for you today as well.
- I would like to close by examining the fact that:
TO PROPERLY RESPOND TO GOD’S CALL, WE MUST CONTINUE IN HIS SERVICE
v19 And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. 20 And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the LORD. 21 And the LORD appeared again at Shiloh, for the LORD revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the LORD.
When God initially called Samuel, he was a young man. In time, the people recognized that he was indeed a prophet of God. The Lord spoke to him, and He spoke through him. God greatly used him for His glory. It is the Father’s purpose and desire to use you as well. For this to happen, you must properly respond to His call on your life. How do you do this? To properly respond to God’s call: you must be in a position to hear His voice, you must listen when He speaks, you must obey His words, and you must continue in His service. When God calls, like Samuel, we must humbly say, “speak Lord, for your servant is listening”.
If you have never surrendered to Christ, this could be the day that you hear the greatest call you will ever hear. I am referring to the call to receive the salvation that is only available through Jesus Christ. I encourage you to respond accordingly. Repent and surrender to Jesus as Lord. If you have done this, know that He has a plan for your life. When He reveals His will to you, ensure that you properly respond to His call.
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