When God Called Samuel

Faithfulness to God never happens by default. Faithfulness to God is a matter of choice. Eli chose not to discipline his sons Hophni and Phineas very well because, as the Bible implies, Eli was far too lenient with his boys. Hophni and Phineas chose to gratify their own desires rather than be faithful to what God required of priests. They (Hophni and Phineas) seemed to think that righteousness and piety came automatically with the office of the priests. They paid no attention to doing what was right as if to believe that their faithfulness would happen by default.

It has been said that "Men expect too much of the religious life. In every other realm they are ready to train themselves in order to gain insights. They know they will not understand great music unless they prepare themselves for it. They are ready to study literature to understand it. They would rarely dream of practicing medicine without understanding anatomy and pathology and all the rest. They would not build a bridge without some knowledge of engineering. But they expect religious insights to come with no effort on their part. …" (George A. Buttrick. Ed. The Interpreter’s Bible. Volume 2. 33rd Printing. John C. Schroeder. "Exposition I Samuel." Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1987, p. 892). Are we in tune with God?

Have you ever seen someone singing along with their favorite songs while they were driving? "No doubt you’ve had this experience yourself. You’re driving in the car going on a trip, listening to your favorite tunes, beboppin’ and singing to the music, when suddenly the music stops. Depression sets in. "Now what am I going to do?" you wonder aloud. "This is going to be any fun now. It’s just static." (John D. Schroeder and Shane M. Groth. Dear Lord. They Want Me To Give The Devotion Again. Nashville: Dimensions For Living, 2001, p. 105). How about our spiritual lives? Are we experiencing any "static"? Are we in tune with God and His will? Prayer helps us to stay in tune with God and helps with the "static". That is why spending time in prayer and devotion with God on a daily basis is so important.

How do we heed God’s call of us? We are a chosen people, a royal priesthood (First Peter 2:9). God chose us to be active in the priesthood of all believers which means that God has something for each of us to do---a calling to heed, a mission fulfill. If there is anything that First Samuel 3:1-10 tells us it is that we cannot serve God in a vacuum. Hophni and Phineas were busy, but they were busy about their own business rather than God’s business. We have to be at work at God’s business. "One often sees a sign on the highway, "Danger---Men at Work". However, the real danger is in men not working. …. Without work, men decay and die early; unless men work, the world has economic depressions and loses every good and desirable thing. A man’s work is his witness in life". (Leonard Cochran. Man At His Best. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1952, p. 121). There is always work for us to do because there is always a harvest that is waiting for the opportunity to be reaped for the harvest is plentiful and laborers are so few (Matthew 9:37).