January 6, 2008

Study Checklist: http://www.emailbiblestudy.com/Weeklychecklist.htm

Good Evening Brothers and Sisters,

1 Samuel 3:1-10 (NASB95)
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. 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), ³ and 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, ⁴ that the Lord called Samuel; and he said, “Here I am.” ⁵ Then he 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 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.” ⁷ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, nor had the word of the Lord yet been revealed to him. ⁸ 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. ⁹ 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. ¹⁰ Then the Lord came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for Your servant is listening.”^[1]

Most people are familiar with this story.  It is often told as a child's Bible story.  Our familiarity with the story can blind us to the truths it contains, so let's look carefully at it.  While we are looking at this story, think about the church today.  Consider also the snooze button on the alarm clock.  It is easy to wake up, hit the button, and roll back over.  Eli was in this position as he dealt with Samuel in this story.

Verses 1-3:  During that day, God did not speak to the people through visions.  He also did not speak to the people.  God was silent.  This is demonstrated in the story by Eli, who was in a heavy sleep that night.  Samuel was in the temple, also asleep.  The point being that everyone was comfortable sleeping.  The nature of "those days" also indicated that the entire nation was in a spiritual slumber.  Imagine, a sleeping nation of people.  What does this look like?  I recently read a book by Ted Dekker called The Slumber of Christianity.  It is an excellent book, it discusses the comfortable state that Christians have entered which is like sleep.  This is difficult to discuss because many today refuse to acknowledge that sleep has engulfed most of Christianity today.

What is sleep?  Let's look at the story so far and look for the symptoms of sleep in church.  People are not seeking the Lord for a "word" or a fresh vision to drive them.  People are tolerant of sin, just as they were tolerant of the sin of Eli's sons.  It is common for believers to follow their own convictions in life.  Religion is accepted as an institution which involves rituals, such as Hannah and Elkanah keeping the yearly sacrifice.  Spiritual sleep resembles regular sleep.  You have entered a place where you are comfortable, warm, and are not threatened.  Most of all, sleep lulls us into a place where we no longer communicate with others.  In that day, people stopped hearing from God and they did not move by His leading.

By the way, I do not think that Samuel sleeping by the Ark of God was an accident.  In the first place, it should not have been in a place where a boy could sleep close to it.  Secondly, it emphasizes the idea that the entire nation was asleep.  So much asleep that they did not fear God which is demonstrated by treating the Ark as though it were a piece of furniture.  God simply was not taken seriously.

Verses 4-9  God called Samuel four times.  Three of the times, Samuel woke Eli to ask him if he called.  This is more than just a funny part of the story.  It took three times to cause Eli to realize that Samuel was having more than a dream.  Look also at his response to Samuel, the reply indicates that Eli understood how to address the Lord.  He also understood that Samuel was hearing from the Lord and coached him in prayer.  The point being that Eli knew what to say. 

I wish we could ask Eli about his experience that he drew from.  In my experience, the tools and lessons that are learned by senior believers should be taught to younger believers.  However, what do you do when people are not interested in hearing about the lessons that you have learned in life?  I would wager that when advice has been rejected, senior believers will stop giving it.  Discipleship has fallen by the wayside in many churches today.  Try to mention "witnessing," "prayer" or "quiet time" and you are often treated like you have a plague.  Have we become a community of people who know how to perform these tasks by osmosis?  Somehow, it is implied that we should know God's will, how to pray, and how to tell others about Him.

I was in the area of an old church that I was previously a member of this morning.  It struck me funny that the message centered on the gospel, the reason why Jesus died on the cross, and the hope of the resurrection.  Yet, no one was invited to make a decision to follow Christ... They were interested in promoting the bowling league, and other groups that involved church related activity. Have Christians stopped having interest in evangelism?  Or perhaps, do Christians expect that God will magically draw people to Himself like He did with Samuel?  In some cases, God may draw a person to repentance.  Most of the time though, He uses His people to do this work.  If our congregations are asleep, it's time to wake up.  I can't point a finger at the pastor and say that he failed in his job.  He's doing what many other churches are doing, they simply are not interested in drawing others to Christ.  They are more interested in offering programs which provides services for the community of believers. 

Is this only typical of Southern California?  Not hardly.  I had a brief discussion with Steve Hays, a great evangelist on the church camp circuit (www.sa2.org).  He has started painting houses because interest has fallen off regarding outreach ministries.  Another friend of mine, Ralph Porter, struggles to fill the role of an evangelist/mentor to Marines.  His struggle includes trying to find ways to disciple believers in a compromising world.  Sleep includes a move toward inactivity.  People may wake up to hit the snooze button, but they desire to sleep. Speaking out about what God has told us is not comfortable.  Telling others about what God has done is not easy.  Church activities are fun though, bring them on.   

In closing, how many of us can say "Speak, for Your servant is listening"?  When God speaks, are we willing to move on His word?  Let's let these thoughts rest for a while.  I realize I deviated from the story a long way.  I apologize for that.  On the other hand, I may not have deviated very far at all if you consider that the people of that day were very similar to the churches of today. 

Father, as we consider Your word, wake up the believers who are sleeping.  Move us toward action, and a determination to follow Your will.

In Him,

Joe Turner.

January 14, 2008

Study Checklist: http://www.emailbiblestudy.com/Weeklychecklist.htm

Good Evening Brothers and Sisters,

It's a new week!  I have updated the study schedule on the internet.  If you wish to join me in reading through the Bible in a year, click on it.  If you are behind a bit, now is an excellent time to catch up. 

I've also included suggested memory verses.  This week, I want to focus on forgiveness, both the forgiveness that we receive from God and the forgiveness that we give to each other, Ephesians 1:7-8b and 4:32.

1 Samuel 3:11-21 (NASB95)
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. ¹² “In that day I will carry out against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. ¹³ “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. ¹⁴ “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.” ¹⁵ So Samuel lay down until morning. Then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. But Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli. ¹⁶ Then Eli called Samuel and said, “Samuel, my son.” And he said, “Here I am.” ¹⁷ 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.” ¹⁸ 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.” ¹⁹ Thus Samuel grew and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fail. ²⁰ All Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was confirmed as a prophet of the Lord. ²¹ And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh, because the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord.^[1]

The scriptures do not indicate how old Samuel was when he received this vision.  I want to focus on a few things in light of that.  God sets the example for us in this story.  Samuel is not given all the information; he is given enough to carry the message from God to Eli.  When God speaks to our hearts, we do not need to hear the entire message again; often it is simply a reminder of what God already told us.  This is worth considering.  God's word does not return void, the convictions that He places on our hearts are as true today as they were when He impressed us with them.  How often do we have to return to the basics simply to be reminded of the simple things that God has already told us?  Another equally important question is: are we listening to God as we were from the start?  If we aren't, then what stepped in the way? 

Verses 11-14:  Look carefully at these verses.  Samuel was given a prophecy concerning Eli.  Look at the content though; he was not given the details of the previous prophecy.  Samuel was simply told that the word that was previously given was about to be carried out.  Then Samuel was given "shop knowledge", the knowledge of the sin of Eli's sons and Eli's refusal to correct it.  You can be sure that this was general knowledge in the community. 

What was not general knowledge was that God was about to act.  Imagine how the word would ring out through the neighborhood when God puts an end to the evil in the temple. 

Mark 3:28-29  “Truly I say to you, all sins shall be forgiven the sons of men, and whatever blasphemies they utter; ²⁹ but whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit never has forgiveness, but is guilty of an eternal sin”—

1 Samuel 2:17 Thus the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for the men despised the offering of the Lord.

1 Samuel 2:29  ‘Why do you kick at My sacrifice and at My offering which I have commanded in My dwelling, and honor your sons above Me, by making yourselves fat with the choicest of every offering of My people Israel?’

Consider though, what is the unforgivable sin?  Jesus referred to the unforgivable sin as that of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit.  I think that if we look carefully at this passage, it is clear that Eli's sons committed the same sin.  It was not a matter of failing to offer a sacrifice for their sin; they treated the sacrifice as if it did not matter.  How often do we sin knowingly and treat Jesus' shed blood as if it is an insurance policy against our sin?  We are not that different from Eli's sons, except that we have the option of confessing our sin to be forgiven, 1 John 1:9.  God gave Eli ample opportunity to do the same.  A word of warning though, this is extremely dangerous territory to be playing in.  The Bible has a lot to say about intentional sin, and none of it is good.

Verses 15-18:  This is a huge test for Samuel.  If you were in his shoes, would you have wanted to repeat what God had told you?  I doubt it.  Eli informed Samuel that if he did not give him the whole story, that God would give him the same judgment.  Samuel told all he knew.

Verses 19-21:  Here is the point of the lesson.  Samuel grew in the Lord.  Samuel grew because he was willing to be a mouthpiece for the Lord.  Take a close look though; Samuel certainly was not happy about telling Eli about the judgment that was coming.  The message that he carried was not easy to carry.  Samuel trusted God's word, acted upon what he knew and God blessed him.  That's where each of us live at on a daily basis.  We are not responsible for knowing all there is to know about the Bible.  We are simply responsible to be responsible for what God has shown us. 

For a brief recap, consider that Eli knew that he was in sin but did nothing about it.  He ran out of chances and God sent the message that Eli was going to be judged.  Eli and family treated God's sacrifice as if it were not important in their lives.  After that, God brought judgment on them.  Samuel carried God's word and acted upon it.  God honored his simple faith.  The faith that Samuel displayed was not necessarily in delivering the message to Eli, the faith involved believing that the message was absolutely true.  If Samuel did not believe God, then he would not have told all after being threatened with the same consequences. Either we act on God's word or we ignore it.  This passage gives us a lot to think about.

Father, as we consider Your word, speak to each of our hearts and draw us to follow You.

In Him,

Joe Turner.