"Speak, for Your Servant is Listening" ~ 1 Samuel 3:1-10 ~ 2nd Sunday of Epiphany ~ January 15, 2012

“The Word of the Lord was rare in those days…”

For a believer, this statement is bone-chilling…

It sounds as though God stopped caring about people… 

But in reality, quite the opposite was true…

The Word of the Lord was rare…because people stopped listening.  Many just did whatever was right in their own eyes.  Whatever they felt like… 

The times were so tough and the hardships so great that many simply gave up on God.  People abandoned the faith of their ancestors.  Some even began worshipping other gods.

And the religious leaders of the day certainly weren’t helping the situation any…

There was the priest by the name of Eli.  A mediocre priest at best…  He had two sons by the name of Hophni and Phineas who were also priests—but they were the kind of priests who used their position of power and influence to exploit other people for their own benefit.  Pure scoundrels. 

With these buffoons tasked with proclaiming God’s Word, it was little wonder why the Word of the Lord was rare in those days…

But now more than ever, God was determined to speak and be heard …

So God spoke—not to Eli or his wicked sons, but to a small boy, whose mother had dedicated him for the service of the Lord.

Three times, the boy hears a voice calling to him in the night.  But not once did he think it was the voice of God.  Samuel didn’t even know God existed—even though he was being raised by priests.  Samuel thought it was Eli calling to him—and Eli thought Samuel was just hearing things.  He wasn’t expecting God to speak.  The Word of the Lord was rare in those days.  It wasn’t until the third time Samuel came into his room that Eli finally wised up to the possibility that maybe; just maybe, it was God who was speaking to the boy.  And sure enough—God spoke—and Samuel listened.

Do you believe that God speaks?  Do you believe that God can actually speak to you?

We know by common sense that God does not speak directly to us as God speaks to persons in the Bible, like Samuel.  We don’t have angels who visit us at night who tell us what God is going to do or that God wants us to do this or that. 

So how does God speak to us?  Or does God really speak to us at all?

It’s easy for us to believe that people who hear God speaking are just hearing voices—or they’re just fanatics who belong in the so-called “Holy Roller” churches…

On the other hand, we may, in fact, believe that God does speak to persons—but we doubt that God would speak to someone like us.  God only speaks to people of great faith; someone whose life is all in order; someone whose faith and conduct are above reproach…

We look at ourselves; we consider our dire circumstances; we remember all the bad things we’ve done—and despair just takes over.  We conclude God has nothing to say to us—or even worse, we conclude that faith in God is nothing but a delusion…

But the God we hear about today is one who speaks to be heard.  God will do whatever it takes to be known among people.  God will do whatever it takes to change people’s hearts.  God will keep speaking until we listen…

So the question for us today, is: are we listening? 

God speaks to us is in God’s Holy Word.  There should be no dusty Bibles, either in our church or in our homes.  We must read it; we must hear it proclaimed; we must teach it to each other; we must know it by heart. 

In the bread and the wine God says “the body and blood of Jesus Christ, broken and shed for you…”

God speaks to us in our prayers.  Prayer is not a one-way conversation.  God answers all prayers.  Even if you’re prayers are not answered in the way you’d hoped, God is still speaking to you…

And God even speaks to us through our neighbors; through our sisters and brothers in the faith; through people of no faith; and sometimes even in people we don’t even like…

The church exists for more than just proclaiming God’s Word.  We’re here to listen together as God speaks to us.  And one of the marks of a strong church is one whose people are in conversation with one another about what they hear God speaking to them.  We help each other to listen and discern that which is spoken to us by God—versus that which is not… 

One of the greatest challenges to our faith is listening to the voice of God when there are so many other voices speaking to us; calling for our attention; trying to influence us to do this—or believe that.  Our schedules are so packed with commitments and obligations that it takes a great deal of effort for us to listen to God.  We have to be deliberate.  We have to be intentional—not just in taking time to listen, but in listening with our family of faith. 

When was the last time you asked someone to pray with you?  When was the last time you shared with someone else what you learned in Scripture?  When was the last time you shared your faith struggles with someone else? 

When was the last time you called someone you know is going through a tough time—and you offered to listen to them—and pray with them? 

If it’s been a while since you’ve done any of these things, make it a point to start today.  Don’t wait any longer to listen as God speaks.  Do it now.

God is speaking.  There’s no debating this fact.  God is speaking words of promise and hope as we face the challenges and endure the hardships that this life brings our way.  God is speaking words of comfort as we grieve our losses and face uncertain tomorrows.  God is speaking words of redemption and forgiveness even as we sin daily and stubbornly refuse to obey God’s will.  God is speaking words of guidance and wisdom as we face our most difficult decisions.  God is calling you to himself—even if you’ve always believed that you’re not good enough to be loved by God.  God is calling you to live a life of purpose, a life through which the love of Jesus Christ can shine through you. 

So let’s be a listening people.  Let’s be a people who come together to hear God speak—and let’s be a people who speak God’s Word of life in a world so full of darkness.