Is God Calling You?

Let's begin our worship by singing to God's praise. We're going to sing in Psalm 119

in the Scottish Psalter version, page 407. We're going to sing from verse 89 to 96,

the section of the psalm. Psalm 119 at verse 89, page 407. As we sing from this psalm,

we're often reminded as we were, we sang from it this morning. We're reminded of God's word,

how it stands and endures forever, and how God's word ministers to us. The word, thy word forever

is, O Lord, in heaven, settle fast, and to all generations thy faithfulness doth last. The

earth thou hast established, and it abides by thee. This day they stand as thou ordainst,

for all thy servants be. We'll sing this section, 89 to 96, the tune is,

Evan, and we sing to God's praise.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

...

Oh

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

CHOIR SINGS

But I might just take only to consider with joy.

Amen, no overation, here I sing, O Lord.

But I must pour my heart, amen, it is a seeing road.

Let's come to God in prayer.

Let us pray.

Amen.

And we thank you, O Lord.

There is nothing that can change it, nothing can take away from it, nothing can add to it,

for it is your word complete and finished.

We thank you that it is a word that directs us and teaches us.

We thank you for all that it's done to instruct us in all our lives.

Whether we have been listening or not, we thank you to have been, many of us, under your word for many years.

And knowing the blessings of it, knowing the real privilege it is to have it.

For the more we see our world now and the turmoil that exists all around us,

we see the rejection of your word and what that causes, what it brings upon us.

It brings that sense of judgment, that sense of rebuking from you.

And yet we thank you that your word is still a word that speaks to us.

And reminds us that we are to come, to come to you in order to know a blessing once again.

And so as we turn to your word this evening, we pray that as we read from it and as we study it together,

remind us of the power of your word.

It is a power that gives light to the world in which we live.

And even at times when the light almost seems to have gone out,

we thank you that there are so many promises in your word that continue to uphold us and to strengthen us.

For you remind us that your word will endure forever.

And that your word is fulfilled in you sending your own son, the word that became flesh and dwelt among us.

And we marvel at that, Lord, that you continue to remember us,

even despite our sin, despite our rejection of you so often,

that you remember us, that you have remembered many of us individually.

You have called us by name.

You have called us to yourself.

We thank you that you remember us collectively as a church, as a congregation here,

that you are faithful to us,

that you are the God who blesses and blesses in abundance.

We thank you that you are the God who reminds us,

that you are working in our midst,

that you are speaking to people,

that you are calling our people to yourself.

And help us, Lord, to be your witnesses here.

Help us to speak a word in season,

to remind ourselves of the precious truth that we have in your word,

that Jesus Christ is a Savior for this world that is perishing,

and that there is eternal life to be found in him.

And so we thank you for that precious truth that we have,

a truth that may bring rejection to us as a people,

may bring mockery, may bring persecution,

but yet a truth, O Lord, that we hold dear to,

for there is nothing in this world that compares to knowing Christ Jesus as our Lord.

And so help us, Lord, as we are your people here,

to hold fast to your truth,

to hear your voice through it,

instructing us, building us up,

challenging us and rebuking us as that is required,

but all the time building us up in the faith.

And we pray for those who are maybe hearing your voice calling,

but not understanding it,

that they would have understanding,

have understanding of the one who is speaking,

the one who is calling,

the one who is saying,

come to me and I will give you rest.

We know, Lord, that even as your word goes out,

whether it's here or far and wide,

there are so many who are deaf,

who do not listen,

who do not want to listen to your word.

But we thank you that we are reminded

that you have a power with you,

the Holy Spirit,

the one that you have poured out into this world,

the one who brings us to yourself,

the one who this evening throughout this place

and all places where your word goes out

is ministering in a powerful way.

And we pray, Lord,

for the Spirit,

the Holy Spirit,

to open ears,

to hear the word of God.

And so we do pray, Lord,

that you will bless

all the proclamation of your word today,

the ministry of it,

near and far,

to all ends of the earth.

We thank you

that your word goes out far and wide.

And we do thank you too, Lord,

that your word reminds us of

the privilege of prayer,

the privilege of coming to you in that way,

calling upon your name,

coming just with the words of our hearts

and pouring out our hearts to you.

We thank you that as we are gathered here just now

that you hear every prayer offered up,

even the groanings of our hearts are not,

they're all known unto you.

And we thank you

that nothing is hidden from you in that way.

And even before we open our mouths,

Lord, you know the words that we will speak.

And so we come to you this night anew.

We come thankful,

thankful that you hear us

and that you listen to us,

that you answer our prayers.

And we pray, Lord,

that you will help us to pray in that way

that your will would be done.

We so often come thinking

we know the answer to all our problems,

that we know what we need

and how things should be done.

But your answer is maybe so often different

to what we might have wanted.

or what we might have expected.

The answers are not always easy for us.

But we thank you that your ways are greater than ours,

that your understanding of our needs

is so much more

than even we think we know ourselves.

And so, Lord,

guide us in our prayers

to ask what is right

according to your grace

and to your mercy.

And we do pray for one another, Lord.

We thank you

that that is a great privilege we enjoy,

to be able to remember one another

in all our different needs.

We thank you that we can remember

those unable to be with us

for a great many reasons.

We thank you that

you are with people near and far

who are going through difficulties

and trials of different kinds.

We thank you that we can commit them

to you in prayer,

knowing that you are near to them,

knowing that they can call upon you

themselves as well.

And even if they feel unable,

that there are many people

praying for them,

those who are unwell,

those who are confined to their homes,

those who are struggling

in different ways.

Oh, Lord,

you know each one of us

and we thank you that

together,

as we offer up our prayers,

that we can

commit them to you.

And we do know, Lord,

the struggles in this world

are so many.

We are such a fragile people.

We are so easily tempted

and let us stray.

We are weak in ourselves

in so many ways.

But we thank you

that you are able to give strength.

And we pray, Lord,

for those who feel

a particular weakness just now,

for you to be their strength

and their help.

We remember your world as well,

oh Lord.

We pray for our nation

at this time.

We pray, Lord,

for those who govern us

and rule over us

in different ways.

Remember our royal family.

We continue to pray for them,

for our king,

as he continues to go

through treatment at this time.

Lord,

may your hand be upon him

for good.

may you restore him in health

and be with his family

at this time too

in all their different needs.

Lord,

give them your wisdom.

Give them your strength.

Give them your presence,

oh Lord,

to know

that they are but

feeble in themselves,

but that you are a God

who is full of mercy.

Lord,

watch over them,

watch over our prime minister

and first minister

and the governments.

We pray,

Lord,

for wisdom and guidance

in these days.

We know,

Lord,

that our world

is just in such dire straits

at this time

with so much grief

and anguish

all around us,

so much fear

and worry.

Lord,

we pray,

have mercy upon us

and come in your power,

Lord.

Revive us,

restore us,

we pray.

Hear your praying people

throughout the world,

Lord,

those who are persecuted

for their faith,

those who are

in many parts

of the world

unknown by many

and heard of by many

and yet known unto you,

Lord.

We pray for your mercy

and your grace upon us.

We pray,

Lord,

for ourselves

as a people here

in the week ahead.

Go before us in it,

Lord,

lead us,

encourage us

and strengthen us

day by day.

Pray for our fellowship

this evening

and thank you for Donnie

who will be with us.

We thank you for his life

and testimony

of your grace

to him

and through him

to many others as well.

We pray for him

and his family,

Lord,

bless him

and be with him.

Use him even this evening

as he comes

to minister to us,

to encourage us

and to build us up.

May you bless him

and be with him in that.

So go before us,

Lord,

in all things

as we commit ourselves

into your hands now,

as we open up your word

and your truth,

as we sing your praise,

may we do all

for your glory

as we thank you

for all your precious gifts

to us.

May we be ever thankful

and ever praise your name.

And we ask all,

acknowledging all our sin

as we fall short so often,

Lord,

have mercy we pray,

cleanse us anew

and we ask all these things

in Jesus' precious name.

Amen.

We can sing again

to God's praise

this time in Psalm 138

in the Singed Psalms version,

page 179.

Psalm 138.

We'll sing from verse 1

to verse 6,

page 179.

The tune is Rockingham.

I'll praise you, Lord,

with all my heart

before you,

the gods.

I'll sing your praise.

I'll bow towards

your holy place

and bless your holy name

always.

We'll sing from verse 1

to 6

to God's praise.

Amen.

I'll praise you, Lord,

with all my heart

Before the Lord and Savior's place

I vow to watch your holy place

And bless your holy name away

I wish you for your faithfulness

And for your God and love, O Lord

For over all things you have raised

Your holy name and faithful word

The very day I call to hear

You give an answer to my need

You lead me whole within myself

With beauty so you strengthen me

O Lord let all that kings embrace

When from your love they hear your word

Let there may stone the ways of God

Are raised and lowly of the Lord

Although the Lord God dwells on high

The holy person he protects

Where else the blood that Lord be upon

He knows the heart of the hand he cares

We're going to read together in the Old Testament

And in 1 Samuel

1 Samuel chapter 3

1 Samuel 3 · chapter mention

You'll find this around page 274

Of the church Bibles

1 Samuel chapter 3

1 Samuel 3 · chapter mention

And we can read the whole of this chapter

Now the young man Samuel was ministering to the Lord

Under Eli

And the word of the Lord was rare in those days

There was no frequent vision

At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim

So that he could not see

Was lying down in his own place

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

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 you

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

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

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

But Eli called Samuel

And said

Samuel, my son

And when

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

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

Amen

And may God bless that reading

From his word

We'll sing again

Before we turn back

To this passage

In Psalm 130

In the Scottish Psalter

Page 421

Psalm 130

We'll sing the whole of this psalm

We'll sing the whole of this psalm

We'll sing the whole of this psalm

To thee I cry

Lord from the depths

To thee I cry

And to my supplications voice

Give an attentive ear

We'll sing the whole of this psalm

Psalm 130

To God's praise

Lord from the depths

To thee I cry

Lord from the depths

To thee I cry

Thy voice for you

Thou hear

Unto my supplications

Lord

Give an attentive ear

Lord who shall stand

If the Lord

Choose my name

For iniquity

And yet will be

For inlessness

But be here

The giving us thee

I pray for God

Lord from the preparers

On my soul

My soul

Thou hath

My soul

Thou hath

My own

LI dec Whether

My soul

Thou hath

May

Yes

Lord

For match

For

Lord

the Lord.

I say

more than

they have

to watch

the

glory

might

to see.

Let

Israel

open

the Lord.

I

,

And from all his lilies, the Israel shall redeem.

We turn back to our reading in 1 Samuel, chapter 3.

1 Samuel 3 · chapter mention

1 Samuel, chapter 3.

1 Samuel 3 · chapter mention

We'll be looking at the whole of this chapter.

We'll just read at the beginning again at verse 1.

Now the young man Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli.

And the word of the Lord was rare in those days.

There was no frequent vision.

The word of the Lord was rare in those days.

It may sound quite strange to us to read in God's word itself, to read of a time when God had blessed his people so much and been with them through so much,

as we're reading here in 1 Samuel, to read these words.

It says the word of the Lord was rare in those days.

There was no frequent vision.

Because what does it mean when something is rare or scarce?

We hear it used in so many different ways.

We hear it used quite often these days, things that are becoming more rare or scarce.

We hear it about resources that are becoming scarce.

We hear it about jewels or things that are worth a lot of money becoming more rare.

Or animals or birds become rare to be seen in different places.

There are times when we hear these words used.

And what it means is that there's something going on, as it were, behind the scenes that is causing them to become rare.

And very often it's because, in the instances of a resource, a jewel or animals,

that it's something that's very often of great value to people.

People use these resources.

They want these resources.

And they become rare because they become so popular.

Now, we're not here to speak about animal rights or anything like that.

But it's interesting when you look at some of the things that are written and said about the world in which we live.

And things are becoming scarce and rare.

One animal protection website puts it like this.

All we have to do is to do exactly what we have been doing.

We are in the middle of a major mass extinction event.

In our willful pursuit of excess, we are pushing the other species off a cliff into non-existence.

That's talking about the animal kingdom and the devastation that's being caused by our pursuit of excess.

But can we not think about how that would apply to the gospel as well?

And especially as we look at this passage together this evening, when you see this word used in verse 1,

the word of the Lord was rare in those days.

Why is it that we see it in our own day today?

Could we not say, today, the word of the Lord is rare?

Why is that?

Well, as that website said, that if we want to see animals perishing and going extinct,

what we have to do is just exactly what we have been doing.

What we see right in our own eyes, as it were, is what we see in the scriptures as well.

It's exactly what was taking place in the days of this young man Samuel and Eli,

who had been ministering in the temple with him.

Hannah, Samuel's faithful mother, who you read of at the beginning of this book,

who gave birth to Samuel in a miraculous way,

and how she devoted Samuel to the service of the Lord.

There was good people, but on the whole, it was a generation that was doing what was right in their own eyes.

The word of the Lord was rare because it was being rejected and just pushed away.

In the days of the judges, the time of the judges, that's this period here.

With Samuel, we have the book of Judges just before this,

and it says in the book of Judges chapter 21, verse 25,

Judges 21:25

in those days there was no king in Israel.

And then it goes on to say,

everyone did what was right in their own eyes.

Everyone did what was right in their own eyes.

And isn't that the kind of world in which we live today?

A world where the word of God is rare.

We don't need it.

We don't want it.

We don't see how precious it is

because we just do what is right in our own eyes.

We all have our own opinions.

Friends, we all have our own ideas,

and no one can tell me how to live my life otherwise.

And especially not the word of God.

And what's the result of doing what is right in our own eyes?

What's the result?

What's the consequences?

Well, we see it time and again throughout Scripture,

and we see it in our own day as well.

The chaos that ensues.

The moral decline that comes.

The things that were once held precious

are no longer precious.

Things like the sanctity of life.

Things like looking after people all around us.

It all becomes about me.

And number one.

And the result is the word of the Lord

becomes rare.

Rarely do we hear it spoken publicly.

Rarely do we hear it mentioned

as something that is so important for us.

Rarely do we hear a call for prayer.

Rarely do we hear the word of God.

And for it to become rare

is to keep doing as we are doing.

Doing exactly what we think is right

in our own eyes.

But sometimes we need change.

And today, just like in Samuel's day,

we need change.

Change in the sense of

not pushing God's word away,

but actually coming to listen

to what he's saying.

The word of the Lord was rare.

But thankfully,

the word of the Lord was there.

And God was about to call

in a powerful way.

I want us to see three things

from this chapter.

Three things that we can think of

for our own day as well.

And the first is just this,

the word was rare.

The second thing is,

the word was calling.

And the third thing is,

the word was not wasted.

The word was rare.

The word was calling.

And the word was not wasted.

And that's what we see

about this young man, Samuel.

And how God used him

in the midst of everything

that was going on

to be faithful to God's word.

And to pray that we as a people

would have that courage of Samuel too,

that faithfulness of Samuel

to listen to God,

to hear God,

and to do as the Lord is asking.

So let's see first of all

how the word of the Lord was rare.

Hannah gave birth to Samuel.

But we ask,

what kind of world

did she bring Samuel into?

Well, as you read through

the book of Judges

and as you read in the early chapters

of Samuel here

and the book surrounding it,

this time period was a period

when God was being shunned

and rejected.

The amazing things that he had done

for his people

were being forgotten.

forgotten.

New leaders,

new rulers

were coming in

and the old

were being forgotten.

And with them

was all that the Lord

had done.

The ways that he had led them

out of Egypt

through the wilderness

into the promised land.

The way that he had been

with them throughout

and blessed them

in so many ways.

The warnings that he gave

to them

of not forgetting

the Lord

had become a reality.

they had started

to forget the Lord

and just,

as Judges says,

do what was right

in their own eyes.

We forget God

at our peril.

It was a time

of spiritual neglect.

It was a time

of just God's word

just being pushed away

subtly maybe at first,

gently and slowly,

but more and more

it was just getting pushed

out of society.

All of these things

were taking place

in these days

just as they are

in our own day.

God's word

just subtly

pushed out

little by little.

But what's coming in

is what's important

as well.

It's the decline

in society.

The way people

are treated.

You see it with

Eli the priest here

who had two sons,

Hophni and Phinehas.

They were turned away

from God

and just doing everything

immoral in life.

And Eli was not

saying anything

to them.

It's almost as you look

at Eli's life,

he's old now,

he's become blind

as we've read here

and he's just

so discouraged

by what he's seeing.

It's almost like

he's lost heart,

he's lost hope.

And as we'll see later,

what comes from God's word

almost doesn't surprise him.

But this is the kind

of society

that they were living in

just decline

all around them.

There were no

great preachers,

there were no

great prophets.

So that as we see

God calling Samuel

in this chapter,

it's a time when

God hasn't really spoken.

The word of the Lord

was rare,

it says in verse 1,

and there was no

frequent vision.

God had left them

to their own devices.

God had just given them

over to their own

heart's desire

at this point.

What kind of world

had Hannah brought

Samuel into?

A very similar world

to the one in which

we live in ourselves.

but that challenges

us to ask a question.

What kind of world

do we want to leave

for our children?

Or our grandchildren?

Or great-grandchildren?

What kind of world

do we want them

to have?

Not just

in an environmental

sense,

as we see

so much being said

of today,

but when it comes

to the word

of God.

Because it's often

asked in the terms

of the greed

of mankind.

What kind of world

are we leaving

our children

and our grandchildren?

How we're destroying

so much

of this world

through greed

and how the climate

is changing

and all of these

things that come

to the fore.

But the word

of the Lord

is rare.

it's not being

heard in the sense

of what are we

leaving for our

grandchildren?

So what needs

to change?

Just this week

there was

the world's

richest people

list produced.

Elon Musk

had been

at the top

number one

position for some

time now,

but he's moved

down to number

two.

He's been replaced

by Jeff Bezos

as the director,

the main man

in Amazon

as the world's

richest person.

And you look

at the value

of these people

and it just

fills you

with a sense

of horror.

200 billion

dollars,

Jeff Bezos.

198 billion

dollars,

Elon Musk.

These figures

are just

crazy.

and you think

to yourself,

what needs

to change

in our

world

is that the

rich don't

just continue

getting richer,

but that this

is somehow

shared throughout

our world,

that there is

the need

recognized all

around us

and that people

are taken care

of.

We see that

as something

that would need

to change.

change.

But what about

the sense of

the word of

God being rare?

What needs

to change

for that?

Well, again,

it's a heart

change.

It's not about

giving away

all our possessions

in that sense,

but recognizing

what is precious

and what is

important.

There was an

old Christian

man who knew

he didn't have

long to live

and he wanted

to put everything

in order before

he would pass

away.

And he came

to the point

where he was

able to say,

I've now dealt

with everything

that I own.

All my property

is to be shared

out through

the family.

But he said,

there's one more

thing I wish

I could give

them,

and that is

faith in

Jesus Christ.

Everything that

he had,

his greatest

desire was

that he could

give his

children faith

in Jesus Christ.

Faith in the

Christ that he

knew himself.

And he said,

if they had

that,

and I had not

given them a

single penny,

they would have

been rich.

And if they

had not that,

and I had given

them all the

wealth in the

world,

they would be

poor indeed.

Our hearts

need to

change.

The word of

the Lord was

rare in

Samuel's day.

It needed a

change of

heart among

the people.

And in our

day, it

needs a change

of heart as

well.

To see what

is precious,

to see what

is important.

We can

mourn the

lack of the

word in

people's lives

or in public

places today.

And we

should.

We mourn

over it.

But we can

also make the

most of the

opportunities that

we have.

We have the

word of God.

And when you

look at verse

three here,

although the

word of the

Lord was

rare, in

verse three it

says, the

lamp of God

had not yet

gone out.

God had

not removed

the lamp

stand from

their midst.

Something you

see reflected

in the book

of Revelation

as it speaks

to the

churches there.

The lamp

stand being

removed.

It's like God

taking everything

away from us.

But here we

read, the

lamp of God

had not yet

gone out.

And praise

God today,

the lamp of

God has

not gone

out.

light.

The word

of the

Lord is

rare, but

there is

still that

light.

When you

look at the

church down

through the

generations, you

think of the

New Testament

and the

book of

Romans.

It's so

similar to

this time

of Samuel.

Again, God

gave them

over to the

desires of

their own

hearts, it

says in

Romans chapter

one.

Why?

Because they

exchanged the

truth about

God for a

lie.

They pushed

the word

of God

out.

You see

it down

through the

centuries in

the 16th

century, the

time of the

Reformation.

It was a

dark time.

The word of

the Lord was

rare.

And what

was the

motto in

the 16th

century at

that time of

Reformation?

After

darkness,

light.

The lamp

of God

had not

gone out.

And that's

true for

ourselves today

as well.

The word

is rare,

but we

praise God

the lamp

has not

gone out.

And that's

what God

is about to

remind the

people of

here in

Samuel's

day.

Samuel

would become

a prophet

who would

speak God's

word to

the people.

The

commentator

Dale Ralph

Davis

commenting on

this passage,

he has a

play on

words that's

very clever.

He says

this,

God's

people find

no profit

without a

prophet.

And God

is about to

profitably

profit them.

What's he

saying there?

No profit

in the sense

of no gain.

God's people

find no profit,

no gain,

without a

prophet,

one who

speaks the

word of

God.

but God

is about

to

profitably,

i.e.

Samuel

would be

the prophet

who will

speak,

profit them.

He will

give them

gain.

He will

give them

the word

of God.

And that's

what we

have for

our own

day as

well.

We have

no profit

without

the word

of God.

And the

only way

to profit

is through

the word

of God.

and the

word of

the Lord

stands

forever.

The word

was rare,

but the

lamp had

not

gone out.

And so

the second

thing we

see is

the word

of God

was

calling.

About to

lose

something,

what do

we do?

We have

to do

something

differently.

And in

the midst

of the

deafening

silence,

of the

absence

of God

here in

1 Samuel,

God is

about to

call.

God is

about to

speak.

And what

needs to

happen then?

What needs

to happen

when God

does call?

We need

to listen.

We need

to listen.

And we need

to recognize

who it is

that is

speaking.

God is

calling.

And what's

interesting

here is

that when

the Lord

called

Samuel

three times,

he didn't

recognize it

was God.

He ran

to Samuel

and said,

here I

am.

And

Samuel

said,

I didn't

call you,

just go

back.

How

did he

recognize

the voice

of God

calling?

Well,

it just

shows us

what had

come,

become of

the temple.

It was

a place

where God

was not

worshipped,

where God

was not

heard.

So he

didn't

recognize

the voice

of God.

He thought

it was

Samuel

calling him.

Two things

of interest

to us

here.

One is

Samuel

himself.

You read

in verse

seven,

after the

second time

that he'd

called,

now Samuel

did not

yet know

the Lord

and the

word of

the Lord

had not

yet been

revealed

to him.

He didn't

understand.

He didn't

know the

word of

the Lord.

Even though

he'd been

around it

for so

long,

he still

didn't

know it.

And I

think there's

a warning

to ourselves

there as

well.

Whatever

age and

stage we're

at,

whether we're

young,

middle-aged

or old,

how often

we can be

around the

word of

God.

How often

we can

hear the

word of

God and

yet still

not

understand.

We can

just let

it flow

past us,

go away

from us.

But there's

also a

challenge to

ourselves as

believers too.

How do we

deal with a

world in

which the

word of

God is

rare?

What are

our

expectations?

What are

our assumptions?

Christians?

When we

speak to

people around

us,

we so

often think

they'll

know what

the Bible

is.

They'll

know when

I speak

to them

about the

word of

God.

If I

tell them

to read

in the

book of

Matthew

or Mark

or Luke

or John,

we assume

they'll

know.

When we

speak of

characters in

the scriptures,

whether it's

Samuel,

whether it's

David,

whether it's

Paul,

Noah,

Ruth,

whoever,

we expect

they'll

know.

Even when

we speak

of God

and Jesus,

we think

they will

know who

we're

speaking

about.

We assume

they know.

And this

may come

as a

shock,

but there

are people

around us

who do

not know,

who do

not know

what the

word of

God is,

who do

not know

who Paul

or Noah

or Samuel,

who they

were or

what they

mean.

And sadly,

people who

hear the

word God

and who

hear the

word Jesus

and think

of it only

as a

swear word.

That's all

they know

of these

names.

We think

these people

cannot exist

in our own

midst.

They do.

And so

there's a

challenge there

for us.

how do

we deal

with a

world in

which the

word of

the Lord

is rare?

Well,

like Samuel

here,

like Eli,

was to

come back

to the

word of

God,

to look at

the word

of God,

to study

the word

of God,

to be able

to share

the word

of God

in an

informed

and an

instructed

way.

just this

past

Wednesday

at our

Bible study

in the

hall next

door,

we started

a study,

six steps

to speaking

about Jesus.

And one of

the questions

I asked at

the start

was,

hands up

if you want

to be able

to speak

to people

about Jesus.

and of

course we

all do.

But if you

ask who

feels able

to speak

about Jesus,

we so

often feel

that we

can't.

And so

that challenges

us.

If we want

to be a

light in

our community,

a people

who witness

in our

community,

are we

learning

from the

word of

God?

Are we

trusting

the word

of God?

Are we

listening

to the

word of

God

ourselves?

Samuel

was young.

But it

doesn't matter

what age

we are.

We cannot

just assume

that people

will have

a knowledge

of everything

that the

Bible teaches.

So we

need to

learn

together.

The word

of the

Lord is

rare.

Today,

people don't

know it.

And so

we have

to teach

it and

come around

it in

a way

that people

can

understand.

But what

else do we

notice here?

Well,

we see

that Samuel

was called

by God

by name.

And this

is something

that should

thrill us.

this is

something that

we should

marvel at

because God

today knows

our name.

He knows

your name.

He knows

my name.

And what

he does is

he still

calls us.

God knows

your name.

He knows

you personally.

Maybe tonight

you say,

but he's not

calling me.

I haven't

heard God

call out

my name.

Samuel here

we read of,

he heard,

he heard

someone who

he thought

initially was

Eli saying,

Samuel.

but it was

God.

But I

haven't

heard God

calling me

by name.

But he

does.

And you

ask,

well,

how?

Well,

he calls

you through

his word.

He speaks

to each

of us here

this night

by his

word.

In John,

the gospel

of John,

Jesus reminds

us of this.

He says,

my sheep

hear my

voice.

And I

know them.

And they

follow me

because they

hear my

voice.

And I

give them

eternal

life.

And they

will never

perish.

And no

one will

snatch

them out

of my

hand.

The word

of God

calls you.

And what

is it

saying

tonight?

It is

saying

to come.

To come

and hear

what I

have to

say.

To come

and hear

what the

word of

God is

telling you.

It is

talking about

a world

that is

perishing.

A world

that is

in chaos.

Days

when people

are doing

right in

their own

eyes.

That's

Samuel's

day.

That's

our day.

The word

of God

is relevant.

The word

of God

is speaking.

And as

God's

word

speaks,

what is

it telling

us?

It's

telling

us to

respond.

To come

and listen

to what

God

has to

say.

Samuel

was young.

Eli

was old.

But he

knew what

Samuel had

to do.

He said

Eli recognized

that the

Lord was

calling

Samuel.

Excuse

me.

In

verse

8 he

said,

the third

time he

had been

called,

here I

am for

you called

me.

Then Eli

perceived

that the

Lord was

calling the

young man.

Therefore

Eli said

to Samuel,

go and

lie down

and if

he calls

you shall

say,

speak

Lord for

your servant

hears.

He has

the wisdom

to guide

Samuel.

And that's

what we

need to

do as

well,

to guide

people,

to listen

to God

and to

understand

how God

is calling

and how

God is

speaking to

us in

a powerful

way.

The word

of God

is calling

tonight.

But the

question is,

are you

listening?

Are you

listening to

what the

Lord is

saying?

the

final thing

I just

want to

take from

this is

the word

was not

wasted.

The word

was not

wasted.

You see

it at the

end of

this chapter

in verse

19,

but it

ties into

everything

that comes

before it.

Samuel

grew and

the Lord

was with

him and

let none

of his

words

fall to

the ground.

He let

none of

his words

fall to

the ground.

Nothing

was wasted.

We often

say to

ourselves,

maybe,

what's