Initially Samuel did not realise that God was speaking to Him.
1 Samuel 3:7 ‘Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD: The word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.’
– He thought it was the old priest Eli.
1 Samuel 3:10 The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
If we have this attitude, it won’t be long and He will begin to speak to us. Samuel’s answer indicates an attitude of heart. It indicates a willingness to wait, to be still, to listen and to hear. You and I should ask the Lord to speak to us. The Bible tells us that we have not because we ask not. Here we see Samuel saying to the Lord: ‘SPEAK LORD!’ When last did you ask the Lord to speak to you? When last did you wait long enough to hear His gentle voice, that still small voice? When last did you read the Bible with the intention and request that God would speak to you through His Word? This should be a part of our daily lives. The Lord can use a myriad of ways to speak to each one of us. We should be willing and prepared to receive His word in whatever form it may come, even if it comes from a child.
TAKE UP THE RESPONSIBILITY
The word that Samuel received from God was a difficult word. Not every word we receive is going to be easy. Sometimes the word of God ‘cuts to the heart’. I read this quote recently: ‘There was a time when people went to church, heard the truth, and wept over their sins. Today … people go to church, hear a motivational speech and ignore their sins.’ We need to take responsibility for our lives so that there is:
1. Nothing that hinders us hearing from God. (As was the case with Eli)
2. That we take what God says seriously and respond to it in obedience.
Samuel did just this. He did not just hear the word of the Lord and roll over and go to sleep. Sometimes we come to church, hear the word of the Lord and by the afternoon we cannot remember what we have heard. We need to take time to process it and internalize it in our hearts and minds. It reminds me of Mary after the angel had brought her the message from God.
Luke 2:19 ‘Mary kept all these things in her heart and (pondered) thought about them often.’
She thought about what she had heard, she let her mind dwell on what she had heard, in her heart she tried to capture and understand the meaning of what she had heard. Samuel seems to have done the same.
1 Samuel 3:15 ‘Samuel lay down until morning…’
The implication is that this young boy did not sleep that night. He was, in all likelihood, troubled and thought extensively about what the Lord had said and he probably was considering the implications and what he would have to face in the morning when he saw Eli. Possibly he even tried to memorize the exact words that God had said so that he would not add too or subtract from what God had said. He realized that when God speaks it must never be taken lightly. Another aspect is that when God speaks we are changed. Samuel went from being a boy to being a man. After God had spoken, nothing would ever be quite the same again. When God speaks it is always designed to move us forward and on into what He has in store for us.
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