The Voice Among the Many
I cannot stand busy places…especially restaurants. That sounds funny coming from a guy who worked in restaurants for 13 years huh? They get so jam-packed, sardine tight that I feel like I have to yell at the person I’m talking to just to have a normal conversation. Forget being in the kitchen. You think the dining room is loud? Kitchens are horrid. Usually they are 300-500 square feet with over 50 people jammed into that space. Equipment running, fans blowing, servers yelling, dishes clanging, cooks swearing, Manager trying to keep a lid on it all to give customers the best service possible as quickly as possible. Places like that get me because too many voices really upset me. I have a hard enough time hearing people when they talk thanks to the noisy kitchens, let alone when you add 75 other people to the mix. But in today’s world, it seems that is what all companies are after. To see how many people they can jam into their “Super-Saver Mart with Restaurant One-Stop You’ll Never Have to Go Anywhere Else for Anything Again Club”. Places like Disney-World are great fun…when there isn’t 1500 others waiting in the line for Space Mountain like you are. Our world is one over flowing stimulation after another. It’s no wonder we can’t hear God calling us. It’s too noisy! Now, Quincy isn’t as bad as some of the other cities, but it still gets a little crazy for me.
Today we are going to look at the concept of hearing God’s voice. We’re going take a look at 1 Samuel 3:1-10. This is the verse where Samuel first hears God calling him in the night. If you would, read along with me.
The boy Samuel ministered before the LORD under Eli. In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions.
2 One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual 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. 4 Then the LORD called Samuel.
Samuel answered, “Here I am.” 5 And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down.
6 Again the LORD called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
“My son,” Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.”
7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD: The word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.
8 The LORD called Samuel a third time, and Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
Then Eli realized that the LORD was calling the boy. 9 So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’ ” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
10 The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”
Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
I love this passage. For a long time, centuries in fact, God rarely gave visions…communications to Israel and the priests because they had been disobedient to God’s Word. Disobedience does that; if we are impure and disobedient, it will help drown out the voice of God.
Eli, the chief priest was getting older, had difficulty seeing and needed to be attended to by Samuel, the son of Hannah whom was dedicated to the Lord. Samuel was to be used as an instrument of God. He had spent time with Eli in the temple and been doing things in obedience with God, unlike Eli’s sons. So, Samuel, tending to Eli and the duties in the temple, laid down to rest after completing tasks very near to the inner sanctuary where the Ark of the Covenant was, where God dwelled among the Hebrews.
We know it is night because in verse 3, it says that the lamp of God had not yet gone out…this lamp was to be lit all night long in the inner sanctuary. It was lit at sundown and went out at sunrise. It was about morning time, because of the wording here. Pre-Christ and NT, if God was to address his people, in the inner sanctuary is where it would have been. Samuel was sleeping so close that he was awakened by the calling of his name.
Naturally, being the good servant he was, he got up to go see what Eli needed. Unfortunately, it wasn’t Eli that called. Three times this happened…God called, Samuel got up to see what Eli needed and Eli told him to go back to bed. Now, in the Hebrew language, because they have no punctuation like exclamation points, they have different techniques to emphasize importance. Such as naming things three times. For example, Genesis 1:27 reads, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” This is stated 3 times, referencing the importance that God created man in his own image. Another example is Isaiah 6:3, which reads, “3 And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Again, the word holy is stated 3 times, emphasizing the importance that Lord God Almighty is holy. Here, it is to emphasize the importance that God was calling Samuel. Samuel had heard, but made the mistake of not realizing it was God. He was obeying, but it even says in the passage that he had not yet heard from God yet. That is why the confusion.
Samuel, because he was faithful in his service to Eli and more importantly, God, God had chosen to visit Samuel and give him revelations and visions. And that’s the key…being obedient. There have been many times where I am struggling with disobedience and it is extremely hard to hear God and make the right decision. It’s because our minds are too cluttered with sin…the voices of this world telling us what to do that they drown out the whispers of God.
It took Eli to realize that God was calling Samuel. Samuel didn’t realize it, but by the 3rd time, Eli told Samuel just what to do. “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” Samuel needed the guidance of a mentor…someone with more experience to guide him to the voice of God. Samuel had to prepare to hear the voice of God…and that is what Eli did.
The whole key to God calling Samuel is that Samuel had learned how to obey. The best leaders are the ones who have learned to obey. Samuel was the first prophet of a line of prophets. Samuel was exactly what Israel needed.
If we are going to hear the voice of God, we have to first learn that our disobedience pushes us further away from God. Even though we have the atoning blood of Christ over us, we are still prone to wandering by our disobedience to the Word of God. Every day we have a choice to follow or not. Too many days of surrounding ourselves in the world’s voices and we will eventually be led astray.
Secondly, we have to realize that we need training. We need a mentor that is further in their spiritual walk than we are. We need them for accountability purposes…to help guide us in the disciplines so we can grow toward God.
Last, we need to learn where and how to listen for God. God’s voice does not come in the midst of chaos. It comes when we are still. In 1 Kings 19:11, the author writes, “Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.” Likewise, Psalm 46:10 reads, “Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations; I will be exalted in the earth.” Both bring to the point that it requires us to be still and listen for the gentle whispers of God. The big dramatic fashion in which most think God speaks…isn’t the case. Most time he speaks in such soft terms that if we are submerged in the world, we will not hear him.
How many times have you heard God beckoning you, only to realize that it wasn’t who you thought calling you? Has anyone told you to go and be still, then next time respond, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” My friends, pastors aren’t the only ones who are supposed to hear the voice of God. God is speaking to you. It may be in a different way that someone else, but nonetheless, God will speak to you. The dream I had that made me become a minister was one, most of the time, it’s a very small voice in the back of my head that I hear and comes out through discernment or as a thought. For you, only you can know that. I can guide you where to look; but where you find his voice is going to be up to your finding. Undertake the task of listening for God’s whisper…take time to get away from the hustle and bustle of life to be with God in quiet…and listen for that gentle whisper among the many voices of life.
Today we are going to look at the concept of hearing God’s voice. We’re going take a look at 1 Samuel 3:1-10. This is the verse where Samuel first hears God calling him in the night. If you would, read along with me.
The boy Samuel ministered before the LORD under Eli. In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions.
2 One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual 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. 4 Then the LORD called Samuel.
Samuel answered, “Here I am.” 5 And he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
But Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.” So he went and lay down.
6 Again the LORD called, “Samuel!” And Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
“My son,” Eli said, “I did not call; go back and lie down.”
7 Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD: The word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him.
8 The LORD called Samuel a third time, and Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am; you called me.”
Then Eli realized that the LORD was calling the boy. 9 So Eli told Samuel, “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’ ” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.
10 The LORD came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!”
Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”
I love this passage. For a long time, centuries in fact, God rarely gave visions…communications to Israel and the priests because they had been disobedient to God’s Word. Disobedience does that; if we are impure and disobedient, it will help drown out the voice of God.
Eli, the chief priest was getting older, had difficulty seeing and needed to be attended to by Samuel, the son of Hannah whom was dedicated to the Lord. Samuel was to be used as an instrument of God. He had spent time with Eli in the temple and been doing things in obedience with God, unlike Eli’s sons. So, Samuel, tending to Eli and the duties in the temple, laid down to rest after completing tasks very near to the inner sanctuary where the Ark of the Covenant was, where God dwelled among the Hebrews.
We know it is night because in verse 3, it says that the lamp of God had not yet gone out…this lamp was to be lit all night long in the inner sanctuary. It was lit at sundown and went out at sunrise. It was about morning time, because of the wording here. Pre-Christ and NT, if God was to address his people, in the inner sanctuary is where it would have been. Samuel was sleeping so close that he was awakened by the calling of his name.
Naturally, being the good servant he was, he got up to go see what Eli needed. Unfortunately, it wasn’t Eli that called. Three times this happened…God called, Samuel got up to see what Eli needed and Eli told him to go back to bed. Now, in the Hebrew language, because they have no punctuation like exclamation points, they have different techniques to emphasize importance. Such as naming things three times. For example, Genesis 1:27 reads, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” This is stated 3 times, referencing the importance that God created man in his own image. Another example is Isaiah 6:3, which reads, “3 And they were calling to one another: “Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.” Again, the word holy is stated 3 times, emphasizing the importance that Lord God Almighty is holy. Here, it is to emphasize the importance that God was calling Samuel. Samuel had heard, but made the mistake of not realizing it was God. He was obeying, but it even says in the passage that he had not yet heard from God yet. That is why the confusion.
Samuel, because he was faithful in his service to Eli and more importantly, God, God had chosen to visit Samuel and give him revelations and visions. And that’s the key…being obedient. There have been many times where I am struggling with disobedience and it is extremely hard to hear God and make the right decision. It’s because our minds are too cluttered with sin…the voices of this world telling us what to do that they drown out the whispers of God.
It took Eli to realize that God was calling Samuel. Samuel didn’t realize it, but by the 3rd time, Eli told Samuel just what to do. “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” Samuel needed the guidance of a mentor…someone with more experience to guide him to the voice of God. Samuel had to prepare to hear the voice of God…and that is what Eli did.
The whole key to God calling Samuel is that Samuel had learned how to obey. The best leaders are the ones who have learned to obey. Samuel was the first prophet of a line of prophets. Samuel was exactly what Israel needed.
If we are going to hear the voice of God, we have to first learn that our disobedience pushes us further away from God. Even though we have the atoning blood of Christ over us, we are still prone to wandering by our disobedience to the Word of God. Every day we have a choice to follow or not. Too many days of surrounding ourselves in the world’s voices and we will eventually be led astray.
Secondly, we have to realize that we need training. We need a mentor that is further in their spiritual walk than we are. We need them for accountability purposes…to help guide us in the disciplines so we can grow toward God.
Last, we need to learn where and how to listen for God. God’s voice does not come in the midst of chaos. It comes when we are still. In 1 Kings 19:11, the author writes, “Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake. 12 After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire. And after the fire came a gentle whisper.” Likewise, Psalm 46:10 reads, “Be still and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations; I will be exalted in the earth.” Both bring to the point that it requires us to be still and listen for the gentle whispers of God. The big dramatic fashion in which most think God speaks…isn’t the case. Most time he speaks in such soft terms that if we are submerged in the world, we will not hear him.
How many times have you heard God beckoning you, only to realize that it wasn’t who you thought calling you? Has anyone told you to go and be still, then next time respond, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.” My friends, pastors aren’t the only ones who are supposed to hear the voice of God. God is speaking to you. It may be in a different way that someone else, but nonetheless, God will speak to you. The dream I had that made me become a minister was one, most of the time, it’s a very small voice in the back of my head that I hear and comes out through discernment or as a thought. For you, only you can know that. I can guide you where to look; but where you find his voice is going to be up to your finding. Undertake the task of listening for God’s whisper…take time to get away from the hustle and bustle of life to be with God in quiet…and listen for that gentle whisper among the many voices of life.
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