Hearing The Call Of God

1 SAMUEL

3:1-20

Hearing the Call of God

HearingtheCall

of God

Some people hear only what they want to hear.

HearingtheCall

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When it comes to Scripture, many only hear what they want to hear.

HearingtheCall

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Paul told Timothy to preach the Word, for “the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Tm 4:3-4, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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Paul told Timothy to preach the Word, for “the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Tm 4:3-4, ESV).

“Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ”(1 Pt 3:21, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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Martin Luther’s preface to James: “Therefore I will not have him in my Bible to be numbered among the true chief books.”

HearingtheCall

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Tonight’s passage is about hearing God.

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“Then the Lord called Samuel, and he said, ‘Here I am!’ 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. 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.’ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.

HearingtheCall

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“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 young man. 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.

HearingtheCall

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“And the Lord came and stood, calling as at other times, ‘Samuel! Samuel!’ And Samuel said, ‘Speak, for your servant hears.’ 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. On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. 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. 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.’

HearingtheCall

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“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. But Eli called Samuel and said, ‘Samuel, my son.’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ 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.’ So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. And he said, ‘It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.’

HearingtheCall

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“And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord. And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord” (1 Sm 3:4-20, ESV).

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Throughout this passage, God is calling Samuel to service.

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This was in an era where God spoke directly to the prophets.

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God no longer does so.

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“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world” (Heb 1:1-2, ESV).

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“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world” (Heb 1:1-2, ESV).

Samuel, as a prophet of God (1 Sm 3:20), receives direct communication from God.

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God continues to call people.

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“I therefore, a prisoner for the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling to which you have been called” (Eph 4:1, ESV).

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God “saved us and called us to a holy calling, not because of our works but because of his own purpose and grace” (2 Tm 1:9, ESV).

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Like the call to Samuel, God’s call today continues to be verbal (in word form).

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“To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thess 2:14, ESV).

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“To this he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thess 2:14, ESV).

God called Samuel through a spoken word; he calls us through the written word.

HearingtheCall

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Tonight, we want to learn about hearing God.

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VV 4-9

The Call of God is Often MISUNDERSTOOD.

HearingtheCall

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“Then the Lord called Samuel, and he said, ‘Here I am!’ 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. 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.’ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. 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 young man. 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” (vv 4-9, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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The Lord calls Samuel 3 times.

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However, Samuel gets up & runs to Eli.

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Samuel mistakes the voice of God for the voice of Eli.

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Why?

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Why?

“Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him” (v 7, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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Why?


Samuel did not yet know the Lord.

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Why?



Hebrew term means to distinguish, to perceive.

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Why?



Hebrew term means to distinguish, to perceive.

The Lord had not yet revealed himself in a special way to Samuel.

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Why?



The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to Samuel.

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Why?



The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to Samuel. God had not yet spoken directly to Samuel.

HearingtheCall

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I wonder if part of it isn’t the influence of Eli.

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“I declare to [Eli] 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. 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” (vv 13-14, ESV).

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Eli failed miserably with Hophni & Phinehas.

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Eli failed miserably with Hophni & Phinehas. I seriously doubt he failed much better with Samuel.

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So many today misunderstand God’s call.

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Why do so many misunderstand God’s call?

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IS IT NOT BECAUSE THEY MISUNDERSTAND THE

SCRIPTURES?

Why do so many misunderstand God’s call?

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The Scriptures are not always easily understood.

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“Count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction” (2 Pt 3:15-16, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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“Count the patience of our Lord as salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him, as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters. There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction” (2 Pt 3:15-16, ESV).

“How can I?” (Acts 8:31, ESV).

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VV 8-9

Guidance is often needed to understand God’s call.

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“Eli perceived that the LORD was calling the young man. 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” (vv 8-9, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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There are many who need help understanding God’s call.

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The Ethiopian eunuch: “How can I, unless someone guides me?” (Acts 8:31, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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The Ethiopian eunuch: “How can I, unless someone guides me?” (Acts 8:31, ESV).

When the people recommitted to the Law, Nehemiah lists several names who “helped the people to understand the Law, while the people remained in their places. They read from the book, from the Law of God, clearly, and they gave the sense, so that the people understood the reading” (Neh 8:7-8, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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There are two things we need to understand.

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There is no shame in asking for guidance.

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What if the eunuch had been too ashamed to ask Philip for help?

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Are we too ashamed to ask for help?

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We also need to be those who are willing to help others understand the Scriptures.

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Philip willingly taught the eunuch.

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In order to help others, we must study.

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In order to help others, we must study. “Though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need

someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food” (Heb 5:12, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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In order to help others, we must study. “Though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need

someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food” (Heb 5:12, ESV).

Are we helping others understand the Scriptures.

HearingtheCall

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VV 11-15

The Call of God is often Difficult

HearingtheCall

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“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. On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. 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. 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 lay until morning; then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli” (vv 11-15, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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The Lord did not give Samuel an easy word to swallow.

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The word was that God was about to judge Eli’s house & that their sin could not be atoned for.

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The word was so difficult that Samuel had difficulty sleeping.

HearingtheCall

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The word was so difficult that Samuel had difficulty sleeping.

Samuel had difficulty sleeping, for he “was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.”

HearingtheCall

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God’s words are often difficult to hear.

HearingtheCall

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When the Jews heard the preaching of Peter at Pentecost, “they were cut to the heart” (Acts 2:37, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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“The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb 4:12, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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“The word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb 4:12, ESV).

Mark Twain supposedly said, “It’s not the parts of the Bible I don’t understand that bother me; it’s the parts I do understand.”

HearingtheCall

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The difficulty of the call does not invalidate the call.

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Just because God’s words are difficult doesn’t mean we don’t need to obey.

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Although Samuel was afraid, he told Eli the vision.

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God intended Samuel to tell Eli the vision.

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God intended Samuel to tell Eli the vision. “I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever,

for the iniquity that he know, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them” (v 13, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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“He who brought the news answered and said, ‘Israel has fled before the Philistines, and there has also been a great defeat among the people. Your two sons also, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God has been captured.’ As soon as he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell over backward from his seat by the side of the gate, and his neck was broken and he died, for the man was old and heavy. He had judged Israel forty years” (1 Sm 4:17-18, ESV).

HearingtheCall

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Even the most difficult words of God are intended

to be kept.

HearingtheCall

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Are we seeking to follow even God’s difficult words?

HearingtheCall

of God

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