Light Service Sermons for the Month

"Getting to Know the God Who Loves You"
Getting to Know the God Who Speaks to You
DATE: March 1, 1998
TEXT: 1 Samuel 3

A mother was observing her little girl saying her bedtime prayers. She said, "Dear God, thank you for mommy. Thank you for daddy. And dear Lord I prayer that Flagstaff be the capital of Arizona!" Her mother was surprised, "Honey, why did you pray that Flagstaff become the capital of Arizona?" The little girl said, "Well, mommy, because that's the answer I put on my test today at school!"

Each of us in our own way would like to have some kind of special connection with God. Some kind of communication that lets God know and lets us know that we're together. Yet there exists among us lots and lots of confusion about how God communicates with us.

Some would say that God is like the clock maker. God set this world in motion. And we're on our own. God never speaks.

Others would way that God is like an energy force that moves in mysterious ways to let us know that something out there cares about us.

Others would say that God is like a doting parent who tells us when to get up in the morning, what to eat for breakfast and when to go to work.

What is God like? How does God communicate with us?

Today as we start our series, "Getting to Know the God Who Loves You," we're going to focus on the theme, "Getting to know the God who Speaks to You." We're going to look at the story of Samuel. Before we do that, let's pray.

Send forth your Word, O faithful God, that it may water the earth. Let it accomplish what you purpose and succeed in that for which you send it. Let righteousness spring forth and thrive. O Lord, replenish us with your Word. AMEN

I Samuel 3: A great story about a little boy named Samuel. It's a miracle that Samuel was even born. His mother prayed, prayed and prayed. Hannah prayed that someday she could give birth to a child. And it seemed that God wasn't listening. And so one day she stood in the temple and cried out with all her heart to God. Across the room, the high priest, Eli, noticed her lips moving. And in good pastoral form he came over to her, and in so many words said, "Hannah, quit flapping your mouth. You must be drunk, Hannah. Get out of here!" Just the kind of pastor you'd like to have, right?

But Hannah persisted. She said, "No Eli. I'm crying out to God because I want a child."

God heart that cry. And a short time later Samuel was born. Because of that great miracle, Hannah decided to dedicate Samuel to the Lord's work. She when he was old enough, she brought him to the temple to live and to grow and to learn.

You might imagine that a temple would be a pretty positive environment for a child to grow up with all the religious education and the religious environment. But not so. In fact, here it was just the opposite. You see, Eli, had some extremely, evil sons. And these sons did some very dastardly deeds.

First of all, as people brought their sacrifices to the temple, according to the tradition of that time the people put the meat of the animals into a huge boiling bot. As the fat burned off the meat, the priests enjoyed the privilege of lifting a three-pronged fork and sticking it into the boiling water. Whatever they pulled out on the fork they could keep. They had to eat, too! (As a little side-note, archaeologists have discovered in that location, dating to that time period, HUGE three-pronged forks.)

Now, it that wasn't bad enough, these sons of Eli stood at the door and if they saw an animal they liked (the best animal that came to the door) they said, "You must give that to us!" If the common people refused, the sons threatened them. Spiritual abuse!

Worse than that, these sons sexually abused the female workers in the temple. And even worse than that, when God spoke to Eli, the sons of Eli said, "Stop it!" They blatantly ignored the voice of the Lord.

In chapter 3 of Samuel 1 we read, "In those days, the word of the Lord was rare." No wonder. It's not that God didn't want to speak. Unlike EF Hutton, when God spoke, no one listened! And so the word of the Lord was rare. There were not many visions. And it was in this kind of environment Samuel grew as a boy.

Somehow by the grace of God, Samuel was protected from all this. And one night as he was sleeping, the Word of the Lord came to Samuel, "Samuel!" Of course, Samuel ran to Eli the priest and said, "Here I am." Eli said, "I didn't call you. Go back to bed." A second time, "Samuel!" "Yes, Eli, here I am!" "I didn't call you. Yes, you can have Fruit Loops this time. Now go back to bed." A third time, "Samuel!" "Here I am." "I didn't call you."

But this time, again in his wonderful pastoral manner, Eli started to surmise there was something strange going on here. Maybe this was the Lord trying to speak. And so he said to Samuel, "This time say, 'Speak Lord, your servant hears. Your servant is listening.'" And this time when Samuel went back to bed and heard this voice, "Samuel! Samuel!" Samuel said, "Speak Lord, for your servant hears." And the Lord, so excited and so delighted that someone finally listened, spoke a Word. It wasn't an easy word. It was a tough word. Eli heard this word, "Eli, I have some bad news and I've some REALLY bad news. What to you want to hear first?"

It was an important word. It was a word that brought healing and hope to the nation. It was a word of new beginnings for the people of God. And that wasn't the last time that God spoke to Samuel. Samuel heard the word of the Lord as he helped Saul become king. Then as Saul fell away from the Lord, God spoke through Samuel.

And probably the most important word Samuel ever heard came as he saw a little shepherd boy, David. As every one else ignored him, the Lord spoke to Samuel and said, "He's the one." And David became the King of Israel. One of their greatest kings. Kind David, one of the greatest kings that ever lived.

And so, God was searching. He was looking for someone who would listen to his voice. God wanted to speak! God wants to be heard! And it was in the terrible atmosphere around Samuel, this tragic environment that God wanted to speak.

Friends, you and I live today in a world that needs so desperately to hear the word of the Lord. And what is more we need the word of the Lord. In a world where pole get angry and shoot each other on the freeway. When people blow up abortion clinics. When gang violence and teenage pregnancy is higher than ever before…. we need the word of the Lord! And God is willing, ready, and able to speak to us. We need God's word of encouragement.

In your personal life, if you're feeling discouraged and empty. If your family is falling apart. Your finances are crumbling. If we have no hope for the future, we need the word of the Lord. And God wants to and will speak to us.

Now God spoke to Samuel. How does God speak to us today? First of all, God speaks to us through the written word. What we call the Bible. The Bible is filled with tremendous, wonderful promises. God's Word is loaded with words of encouragement. Words of hope. Words of healing. Words of forgiveness. God's Word is loaded with words of direction and guidance. And that's why it's so important that we read God's word.

We can time to come to the Wednesday evening Soup Suppers so that the Bible can become our friend.

We can take time in small groups to learn about God's word and what it says to us today. Or with Jim Shook's class on Sunday mornings. We can listen to the Bible or read it on our own. Someone said, we should read the Bible until it becomes a part of us. God's word is alive and active. It can speak to us.

Secondly, God speaks to us through his Holy Spirit.

There are two words in the Bible for "the Word of the Lord." First, "LOGOS." Jesus Christ is the written word. Secondly, "Rhema." The Rhema means God's new word. God takes the word from these pages and speaks them directly to our lives. God gives us specific words for direction and guidance and hope and encouragement. We need both.

Honestly, I've never heard the physical voice of God…that I know of. Probably the closest that I've come is the voice I felt when standing on the steps of the temple mount in Jerusalem. But God often speaks to me through other people. God speaks to me like a tap on shoulder, a little nudge, a little thought that I never could have dreamed up myself. There are many ways that the Holy Spirit speaks to us.

It's important that we keep the written word and the word from the Spirit of the Lord in balance. If someone says to me, "The Lord told me to do something evil." I would say that's not the Lord that I know. Because it's inconsistent with the written word. There are many people today saying, "God said this..God said that…" Is it in line with the written word?

If we have the Spirit without the Bible, we blow up. If we have just the written word without the spirit, we dry up. But with the written word and the Spirit together, we grow up. That's what God wants to do in and through each of us.

So God speaks to us through the written word. Through his Spirit. But most importantly, God speaks to us through the cross.

There's a true story about a young farmer back in the Old West. He rode his wagon into town behind a team of horses. He tied up the horses on the hitching post and stepped into the General Store.

As he walked into the store, some teenage boys lit a firecracker, and threw it under the horses. Boom! The horses reared back. They snapped the line of the harness. The force of them rearing pushed the wagon back and they dashed down the dirt street out of town toward the desert.

Just them hearing the noise, the young farmer stepped out of the General Story. He saw what was happening. Without a second thought he raced toward the horses and he lunged with all his might and with his steel fist he grabbed the harness. The horses dragged him many feet.

Finally the man slowed them down enough that he moved in front of the horses. But the horses were still spirited and they reared back and one of the hooves came down right across the forehead of that young farmer. He fell to the ground. His iron fist softened.

The townspeople ran over, they picked him up and they brought the horses back. And then one man cried, "He's dead!" And then after a long pause and many tears someone said to the dead farmer, "You food! You crazy fool! You should have let those horses run! They would have run into the desert and eventually stopped." But just in that moment they heard a voice. They heard a voice in the wagon. And then they saw a little blond head and blue eyes peer over the edge of the wagon. It was the farmer's son. This young farmer knew what he had to do. His actions spoke louder than words in the moment. He knew that he had to give his life to save his son.

Our loving Lord's actions speak louder than any word we will ever hear. If you are wondering, "Is God there? Is God silent? Is God speaking to everyone else but me?" You can look to the cross and know beyond a shadow of a doubt beyond any words that you will ever hear with your ears or read in the Bible that because of the cross, God is there for you and speaking ever so clearly that he loves you.

So God speaks to us through his written word. God speaks through the Spirit. And most importantly God speaks to us through the cross that he's there. That he loves you.

AMEN

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