Here I am

Then the Lord called Samuel. Samuel answered, “Here I am.” (1 Samuel 3:4)

 

Samuel the prophet, the last judge of the period of judges in the Old Testament, was prominent among all the judges. He went to Saul the first and David the second, in order to oil them to take the throne of Israel. Baby Samuel was sent to the temple of Jehovah after being weaned by his mother, and he was raised under Eli the priest. Elkanah and Hannah, the parents of Samuel, were great people who devoted the son to God. Samuel, who lived away from the parents in his childhood, was also not an ordinary person. And Eli the priest, who raised Samuel with all his heart, was great too. In fact, all those things had been made so in the hand of God.

 

In a case, each of us can be placed in a position of parent or child, teacher, student, and etc. Every position has a different role, and the attitude of position changes accordingly. All those relationships, roles, and attitudes of life are subjectively decided by God. So we don’t have to worry and fear in any position, about all ultimately. The people of Israel lived in Canaan, but their fight against the foreign peoples continued. In the absence of a national system, the rule was made by the judges who sometimes appeared among the people. But God the Lord led the judges and the people behind the scenes.

Long ago and now, most children grow up under parental care. There are many children in the world who have lost their parents or suffered from hardships. Samuel had a wealthy parents’ family, but he was sent to the temple and raised from an early age. That was a process of God’s special will and plan being fulfilled. The hand of the Lord, who governs life, is spread to be same for anybody. Someone may think that God or the world is unfair, but from God’s perspective, everyone is equally precious. Therefore, we should think that I also can be as right and great as Samuel. However, the said does not mean that you must be a prominent figure like Samuel.

Little Samuel was so proud enough to live in the temple, sleeping alone there. Even though he was young and in difficult circumstances, he endured all the inconveniences well. It reminds me of the saying, “A tree that is likely to be a good lumber is different from a sprout.” I feel it really affirmative does too. No matter how many children or adults, a promising person of success tries to have a faithful life by enduring the conditions given to oneself, instead of blaming the surrounding environment. Then God will surely open another way for him. And one night, little Samuel heard a voice calling himself, “Samuel, Samuel.”

When Samuel heard the voice, he thought that Eli the priest had called himself, so he went to Eli. But that wasn’t what Eli called him. When Samuel again heard the voice third time he came to Eli, only then did Eli realize that God had called Samuel. So Eli told Samuel to answer when He calls Samuel next, “Jehovah, I’ll listen to your attention.” God called Samuel fourth time as before, and Samuel answered Him as Eli the priest had ordered. Then God told Samuel a prophecy that the children of the families of the priests will be punished for their sins.

We sometimes say this, “Have you ever heard the voice of God?” The voice that God calls for people clearly exists. And each of the forms is not the same according to the listener. The voice that Samuel heard in the temple would be the same one we can hear in general. No matter what people’s situation and language they are in, God calls them so that anyone can know the voice. The situation like Samuel heard was not universal at that time in the Old Testament.

 

When Jesus spoke the heavenly lessons and often added, “He who has ears to hear will hear.” For anyone who is awake by the Spirit of Christ can understand God’s voice at any time and in any form. Samuel, who was full of the Holy Spirit, could hear the voice of Jehovah. However, due to lack of faithful education and experience, he could not distinguish yet what it was. We should have the responsibility as parents or teachers to make the children with spiritual discernment in God.

 

(Written by Koonoh, Pastor of JDO Presbyterian Church in Korea, on May 3rd 2020)