SUNDAY May 15, 2022

Hearing the Voice of God

The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the LORD, where the ark of God was. Then the LORD called Samuel. Samuel answered, “Here I am.”
1 Samuel 3:3-4 NIV

Samuel had never heard the voice of the Lord, but, it is believed, at the age of 11, he did. One evening as he was going to bed, all of a sudden, in the midst of darkness, he heard a voice. Thinking it was the voice of Eli, he went obediently to him. Eli told the child to go back to bed. Yet Samuel heard the voice again. Once more Samuel thought Eli called to him, and he submissively went to him, but he was told to lie down again.

The third time Samuel came, Eli realized that this was the voice of God speaking to the child. Eli instructed Samuel that the next time He called to him say, “ ‘Speak, LORD, for Your servant hears’ ” (I Samuel 3:9). Eli gave good counsel to Samuel.

The Lord spoke to Samuel; a message was given to a child. It was not a message of love, grace and mercy, but of judgment. Samuel was told that Eli’s children would die, and God gave to Him the reason:

For I have told [Eli] him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knows, because his sons made themselves vile, and he did not restrain them. And 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” (1 Samuel 3:13-14).

The next morning, Eli the priest eagerly inquired of Samuel what the Lord had spoken to him. As Eli pressed him, Samuel did not hold back, but told him everything––judgment was coming. The Lord was with Samuel. He listened to God’s voice. When Samuel spoke, God made sure none of his words failed––everything he said came to pass.

Have you taught you child how to listen for the voice of God? It is simple. God speaks to them through His Word. It is important for children to learn God’s Word, and for parents to teach them to hear what God is saying to them personally.

To me the Bible is not God, but it is God's voice, and I do not hear it without awe.
~C.H. Spurgeon~

For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!