Please turn with me to that passage you read earlier in 1st Samuel, 1st Samuel and chapter number three, which will be our text for this evening's message as we continue our series through this book of 1st Samuel and chapter number three as we're looking at here this evening. And our title is this, called to serve, called to serve, In recent years, I fear that there's been what I would call a neglect of the preaching of the Old Testament. It's something that many have noticed in recent years and possibly decades now. Wonderfully, there are wonderful exceptions. There are some men who are wonderfully gifted at teaching from the Old Testament and trying to change this direction, which is very much leaning towards only preaching from the New Testament. I was blessed in my own training by professors who would challenge us with very challenging passages from the Old Testament. So I praise God for that. But generally, In much of the Western world, in the evangelical world, we're not as comfortable in the Old Testament as we are in the New. In fact, without the Old Testament, how do we understand the New Testament? As Augustine said this, the new is the old concealed. The old is the new revealed. What's he saying here? It's really the same truth in both Old and New Testaments. And yes, there's a greater clarity in the New Testament, no doubt about it. But it's the same truth in both. God speaks to us in both. If we're looking at the Old Testament and you'll see references to Moses going through the Red Sea, we may think, That's an interesting history lesson, but that doesn't have anything to do with me. But friends, it does. It is the history of God's people. Paul said this to the Corinthians. He said, now these things were written, were, now these things were our examples to the intent. We should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. That's in first Corinthians chapter 10 and verse six. And he uses the example of Moses, and they ate and drank the same spiritual food and drink. So, the Word of God, what was called the Law and the Prophets, both Old and New Testament, is profitable for doctrine, for proof, for instruction and righteousness. Which is why here this evening we're looking at 1 Samuel chapter 3. And we're seeking to learn from the example of Samuel. and his call to be a prophet of Almighty God. It is part of the word of God and to hear it and the application or the how we apply the truth to our own lives is a great blessing to our own souls. No, we're not Samuel. No, we are not called in exactly the same way. But at the same time, they are clear clear teachings for us all to follow in these things that are profitable. I guess what I'm pointing out here is there's a grave danger when you go through books like this it ends up like a history lesson. And maybe at the end you put in two or three points of application at the end. But this speaks of service. Samuel was taken from a very young age to serve the Lord. And now he's going to hear the audible, he can hear with his own ears, the audible voice of God. And it wasn't just so Samuel could go, look at me, look how special I am. It was a call to service, something that the sons of Eli fell badly in. So our first point that we're going to look at here this evening, our first point of three, is our prophecy to serve. Our prophecy to serve. Verse number one, the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord before Eli. And the word of the Lord was precious in those days. There was no open vision. And this passage at the beginning of this chapter really points out how special or rare or precious the Word of God was in those days. Now, it's not to say there may have been private individual messages for individuals. But what it says here that there was no open vision. The idea here is that it was not, there was no revelation for everyone that would bless everyone. It was very, very rare and it was not common. Now this word vision is very interesting and I think it's important that we don't misunderstand it. It says in Proverbs 29 and verse 18, Proverbs chapter 29 and verse number 18. Where there is no vision, the people perish. But he that keepeth the law happy is he. Where there is no vision. Which is it speaking about? What do we depend upon? What vision or revelation do we depend upon? See, I think in modern language we think of vision, you know, we think maybe a visionary like Steve Jobs. how he came out with the iPhone or something like that. That's what we think of vision today. And you'll even hear some modern pastors who will say, oh, I have a great idea and it's vision casting and all this kind of thing. No, the vision here spoken about is revelation from God. Without that, the people perish, not the clever ideas of the latest megapastor, or anybody else for that matter. So, this is special. It points to how special this is. It was very precious in those days. In Deuteronomy 29 and verse number 29, Deuteronomy 29, and verse number 29 says this, the secret things belong unto the Lord our God, but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law. It's one of my favorite verses from the Old Testament, but the secret things belong unto the Lord our God. God knows the end from the beginning. He knows everything. He has decreed everything, all-knowing. There's nothing that catches Him by surprise. The fall didn't catch Him by surprise or anything like that. We don't know everything. Not everything has been revealed to us. We know what is needed and what has been revealed in the Scriptures. And this is why it says, but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children. We don't know everything. It wouldn't help us to know everything. We don't know the time when we'll die. We don't know what's gonna happen tomorrow. But we do know that the Lord will return. We do know things that will encourage us about the future. And they belong to us by faith. do we know anything? God has revealed it to us. How does Samuel know anything here? God has revealed it to him. Verse number four, that the Lord called Samuel and he answered, here am I. Here am I. Our subheading here is prophecy. And you may This work can be frequently misunderstood. I think when we think about prophecy, and it's usually, there might even be TV channels and books, and they'll say prophecy. They're thinking about the future. Predictions about the future. But in the scriptures, it's not just talking about the future. It's really setting the truth of God before the people. It was a message for the prophets. Thus saith the Lord. Yes, it included parts about the future, absolutely. God declared the end from the beginning, and that's how you know that he is the true and living God, and that's how you know the other pretenders, the idols, are not. God predicts the future, God knows the end from the beginning, and the idols do not. But it's forth telling. of what is infallible. Infallible. And that word infallible means cannot fail. does not return void. In fact, it even says at the end of this chapter in verse number 19, and Samuel grew and the Lord was with him and did let none of his words fall to the ground. In other words, they didn't fail. The Word of God does not fail. It does not return void. It does exactly what it sets out to do. It is all mighty. God's word is all mighty and all powerful. We must see how important the word of God is, how we know what we know. God has revealed it. Now, this is very important in this day because in the day of Eli, in the days of Elkanah, in the days of Hannah, in the days of Hophni and Phinehas, these are dark days. This comes right after the days of the judges. And one thing I often say with the book of Judges, especially in church family worship, it's one of the hardest books to read through because it's so dark. Why? Because there was no king in Israel and every man did that which is right in his own eyes. That's why it's such a dark book. Why are we in such a dark place in our own society? Every man does that which is right in his own eyes. So this is the period we're in. Life, you could say, is fading. And you can even see in verse number two, Eli's own physical eyesight is fading. It says in verse number two, and it came to pass at that time that when Eli was laid down in his place and his eyes began to wax dim that he could not see. Eli, in Eli, you could say, was very imperfect, especially with his dealings with his own children. He fell well short in various areas, but not in every single area. I remember a man years ago, he used to teach us college, he would always say this, and he would talk about Old Testament saints, and it's hard to finish well. That phrase always stuck with me. It's hard to finish well. You see, we've got mentors around us at the beginning of our walk, people helping us. In the middle, we're maybe seeking or we're maybe more diligent, but we've got to make sure we finish our race well. And while Eli knew the Lord, it didn't really end well. And things can, we can be born again of the Spirit of God, truly saved, but have consequences in this world for our actions. You see it with Solomon. Solomon was a godly man who wrote much of the Bible. But what happened after he died? Because of his sin, the kingdom was split into two. There was consequences, temporal consequences in this world. In many ways, he does not see clearly spiritually. He doesn't see clearly physically, and he doesn't see very clearly spiritually by this point. The light of God's word now shines forth. It shines forth to a young child. Talk about a way of humbling a man of advanced years, you say, a young child like Samuel. Talk about a way of humbling us. There are times when young children will say something to us, and they'll see something in the Word of God, and say, I've never seen that before. Iron sharpens iron. Even a child who knows the Scriptures can be far wiser than us at times, especially when that light grows dim. See that light is the light that shineth in the dark place. It points toward God as our master. Psalm 119. Psalm 119 verse 105. It says this, thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my heart. And it's in this where the Word of God comes to Samuel. Verse 3, And ere the lamp of God went out in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep. And I think it's important for us to realize as well, no matter how dark things get, and things were pretty bleak at this point, the light never goes out. The gates of hell will not prevail against the church. There will be light that shines forth, no matter how bad things may become." And Samuel hears his name being called. What does he do? Now, what could he do? It's very late at night. He's probably worked all day. And he lays down. He's probably seeking some rest. What do you often feel like, you know, when you're tired and you hear your voice being called? Maybe you could ignore it. He believes it's Eli. What does he do? He gets up immediately. The Lord calls Samuel and he answered, here am I, a godly young man. And immediately, with a very imperfect mentor, And immediately he goes. Now he doesn't discern at the first that he thinks it's Eli. He doesn't think it's the Lord at all. And the reason for this is because this open vision, this vision is not common at all. It's so rare that even Eli doesn't discern it at first. It takes a bit of time. a couple of times before Eli realizes what is going on, verses 8 and 9. And the Lord called Samuel, and again the third time, and he rose and went to Eli and said, Here am I, for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived that the Lord had called the child. Therefore, Eli said unto Samuel, Go lie down, and it shall be, if he call thee, that thou shalt say, Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth. So Samuel went and lay down in his place." However imperfect Eli was, and however godly Samuel was, you see, a young person may think, well, he gets a lot of things wrong, doesn't he? I don't need to listen to him. But that's not how Samuel responds to this. He takes the counsel, you actually can see he takes this in verse number 10, not everything, but mostly. And the Lord came and said in verse 10, and stood and called as at other times, Samuel, Samuel, then Samuel said, speak for thy servant heareth. There's a slight difference is he doesn't say speak Lord for thy servant hereth, he says speak. For thy servant heareth." He seems to have a slight doubt whether this actually is God speaking. I suppose he realizes too that Eli, as much as he does take his advice, is not infallible himself. Samuel is not dismissive of Eli and thinks, what does he know? Look what he's doing what his own children are not doing. And the thing is, Eli's already been warned about this in chapter number two, about the state of his own sons, and Hophni and Phinehas, and the scandalous sins they were involved with. And he says, ready to serve, speak, for thy servant heareth. While older believers in the faith And you're gonna see this at times, and you're probably gonna spot imperfections in people. Does it mean you don't take advice from them? Does it mean you don't ask them when things are getting difficult? Samuel discerned that this was the voice of the Lord through the counsel of Eli. I think it says a lot sometimes. We shouldn't look for counsel or for advice from perfect people. They don't exist outside of the Lord. And this is an example, I think, where older saints can help us with the experience and the wisdom that they have of walking many years with the Lord, even with all the obvious defects that Eli had. Now, we must test everything against the Word of God, of course. Of course, because Eli got things wrong, and guess what? Samuel even got things wrong at times. If we turn to Hebrews chapter 1, verses 1 and 2. Hebrews chapter 1, verses 1 and 2. speaks about revelation in the Old Testament and revelation in the New Testament. It says, God, who at sundry times, in indiverse manners, spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son. And we'll stop there, midway through verse number two. But in the past, in various different ways, He spoke unto the fathers by the prophets. But in these last days, and the last days, if you take that phrase and go throughout the Bible, it's always referring to that period of time, to the second coming of Christ. Paul was writing these last days. He's not talking about the last generation. He's talking about the last period of time from that time until the end of time. It's spoken unto us by his son. So we've got to be careful here. There are many people who will claim to have visions and dreams and all sorts of things, and there'll be people who are what I would see as self-appointed apostles. Who are we to listen to? Is God the author of confusion? Whatever the reality may be, Peter gives us an idea of what we're to do with People who claim to maybe, I've heard a vision, I've heard all these kind of things. If we turn briefly to 2 Peter chapter 1 and verse 17. 2 Peter chapter 1 and verse number 17. Verse 17 it says, for he received from God the Father honor and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory. This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Now he speaks, Peter's here speaking about the audible voice of God. And he's saying nothing negative about this. Nothing negative at all. But then in verses 18 and 19 says this, and this voice which came from heaven we heard when we were with him in the Holy Mount, we have also a more sure word of prophecy, where unto you do well to take heed as a light shineth in a dark place until a day dawn and a day star rise in your hearts. Verse 20, "...knowing this, that no prophecy of the Scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man, but holy men of God speak as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." Sola Scriptura is the solution. It tests all things. It's not the only authority, it's the first authority by which we test all things. and know whether something is true or not. Our prophecy to serve is the Word of the Living God. This brings us on to our second point, our part to serve. Our part to serve. Samuel had a very particular role to play. I'm not Samuel, you're not Samuel, we're not Samuel. But Samuel plays the role of prophet. That is his role. That is what he was called to do. In verse 20 of this text, and all Israel, from Dan even to Beersheba, knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the Lord. And it was very clear. And God, in various different ways, whether it was in the Old Testament and indeed that transition from the Old Testament to the New, and the book of Acts and other places, that these were the channels of divine truth, and that it was very, very clear who they were. In verse number 11, it says this, And the Lord said to Samuel, Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of everyone that heareth it shall tingle. And also verse 19 as well, and Samuel grew and the Lord was with him and did let none of his words fall to the ground. This is the role that Samuel played and he was, it wasn't, I think sometimes you can think of being an Old Testament prophet as being very glamorous. But they were often given some of the most difficult messages to give. In fact, even Ezekiel when he's preaching He's told to preach, do not be afraid of their looks. Ezekiel, Jeremiah, they were hated for the message that they were to give people. Isaiah was to give a message that would essentially judge the nation, because hearing they would not hear, seeing they would not see. But we all play a role. Even Samuel as a young child has a position to play. And often when we're young, we have no idea. When we're young, we have no idea what we're gonna, you could say, be or do when we're older. How do we find out what we're good at? You know, what position we serve in the body of Christ? Just like anything, if you wanna know what you're good at, you go to school. You study, you develop, you find out where your gifting lies. Maybe you're good at math, maybe you're good at history, whatever the case may be. You serve, you learn about yourself. I mean, the most important thing is you learn about God, but you also learn about yourself through experience. In the church, there can be various different ways of serving. Giving out tracts, cleaning the building here, maintenance work perhaps, you're maybe a gifted at that. Maybe you visit the sick and the lonely. Maybe you're a person who comes alongside somebody who's discouraged and you're very good at encouraging with the word of God. All sorts of things that you probably maybe even do right now, you just don't realize that you're doing it. But you have all, as believers in Jesus Christ, a role to play within the body. Samuel had his role to play. He was called to serve. It wasn't about, oh Samuel's so special. That was his role. But friends, if you're a believer in Jesus Christ, you also have a role within the body. It just is a question of which one. Some roles in the body are more visible than others. If you think about it even physically, our heads are very visible, but our heart is not very visible on the outside. But you would never say the heart doesn't matter, or your brain doesn't matter. If we turn to Romans 12, Romans 12, verses four to six. Romans chapter 12, and verses four to six. For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office, so we, being many, are one body in Christ. And everyone members one of another, having then gifts, differing according to the grace that is given to us. Whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith or ministry." And it gives various examples. And you may be saying here this evening, I have no idea what that is. No idea. Well, just like anything, you're not going to know if you're a professional athlete if you don't exercise. If you say, well, I could be a professional footballer, I just don't exercise. Well, you're gonna have to discover, to exercise your gifting in various ways to see where that lies. To do the basics. to attend church, to read your Bible, to pray, to grow in the grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. In Hebrews chapter 5 and verse 14. Hebrews chapter 5 and verse number 14. But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even to those by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil. Friends, your goal, praise God if you're saved here this evening. Wonderful, praise God, that's wonderful. But don't just stop there. Have your goal to grow, that you're no longer going to be on spiritual milk. You want to be on meat. You want to grow in discernment so that you can serve within the body better. And you see this as well with Samuel. Samuel is not... He's a hard worker. He's a hard worker. Verse number 1, it says, And the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord. He was a young man serving. A hard worker. And he grew. And the Lord was with him. And sometimes it's the basics and the most mundane things that we must do before we go on and do the other things. Actually, that's nearly always the case. If you think of King David, he was pretty important, wasn't he? What did he do before he was a king? He took care of the sheep until his time came to come to the foreground. So let us, to the glory of God, whatsoever we eat or drink may all be done to the glory of God. And then when the time comes and the Lord's timing, that he may use you in various different ways that we wouldn't even have dreamt of in the past. It's special to be called by God. It's special to be a Christian. Because to be a Christian is to be called to serve. It's not just Samuel. It's not just the ministers. It's not just the elders. It's not just the deacons. We're all called to serve. This brings us to our third and final point. Our power to serve. Our power to serve. 2 Timothy chapter 1. 2 Timothy chapter 1 verse 19. mistake there on that one. If we turn there to chapter 3 verse 10. Chapter 3 in verse 10. And the Lord came and stood and called us at the other time, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, speak for thy servant heareth. What was the difference between Samuel and Hophni and Phinehas? What's the difference between those who serve and and those who don't. There's two distinct groups. Is it because Samuel was just a good boy? Or is it by grace? Is it by God's calling? Romans 1 16 tells us the gospel is the power of God unto salvation. And Revelation 19 verse 1 says this, Revelation 19 and verse number 1 And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven saying, Alleluia, salvation and glory and honor and power unto the Lord our God. Salvation and glory and honor and power unto the Lord our God. The reason why any of us are able to serve, the reason why Samuel was able to serve is because of the power of God. It wasn't something that was naturally in him. You'll hear people say, ah, yeah, he's just good. None are good. None of us are good by nature. See, none of us seek after God. Psalm 14 tells us that. And then that's quoted in Romans chapter three. And there's an outward call to a soul. It says many are called but few are chosen. There's an outward call for us all to repent and believe the gospel. But then there's what's the difference between one group and another group. One group that follows and serves the Lord. And another group that acts like Phinehas and Hophni, the sons of Eli. And do whatever pleases them. If we remind ourselves what Hophni and Phinehas The prophecy that was given to Samuel, verses 13 and 14 of our text, and I've told them that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which he knoweth because his sons made themselves vile and he restrained them not. Therefore I have sworn unto the house of Eli, that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged with sacrifice nor offering for ever." There is judgment upon the house of Eli because of these sins. And even Genesis chapter 8 and verse 21 tells us about from youth we are wicked. In Genesis chapter 8 and verse 21, The second half of that verse, for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth. And it's speaking about the flood, why the Lord will not curse the earth again with the flood. Neither will I again smite any more, every living thing as I have done. Why is another flood gonna come? Because the Lord has promised in His mercy and His grace to not do so. for the imagination of man's heart is evil from his youth." Why was Samuel different by grace? In our shorter catechism, it says in question 31, What is effectual calling? Effectual calling is the work of God's Spirit, whereby, convincing us of our sin and misery, enlightening our minds in the knowledge of Christ, and renewing our wills, He doth persuade and enable us to embrace Jesus Christ, freely offered to us in the Gospel. It's God's work that makes the difference. In 2 Thessalonians, chapter number 2. 2 Thessalonians and chapter number 2. And verses 13, especially verse 14. But we are bound to give thanks always to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth, whereunto he called you by our gospel to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. And when we see the Hophnes and the Phineas of our world, we say, well, I'm glad I don't do that. But for the grace of God, there go we. But for the grace of God. You see, Samuel had the Lord with him. If the Lord is on our side, that's what makes the difference. Without the Lord, we will be sons of Belial. And this judgment declared against the house of Eli for the wickedness that was seen within it will also come upon our own heads as well if we remain in unbelief. You see, it's not our power. We're helpless. We're dead in trespasses and sins. Ephesians chapter two and verse one tells us. It's God's power that makes the difference. I want to point out one other thing before we conclude. Samuel respects subordinate power. And what I mean by that is he respects Eli. Eli is kind of a mentor to him and has trained him in many things. And Samuel gets this bad news. What's going to happen to his house? Samuel isn't self-righteous about it. He doesn't just go up to him and say, you know, it's going to happen to you. I warned you. No, he's not about that at all. Verse 15, and Samuel lay until the evening and opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel feared to show Eli the vision. Samuel really cared about Eli. He really cared about him. And you see, No Christian who really loves orders with a tender heart gets his jollies from telling people they're going to go to hell. We don't, but we love people enough to tell them that. We love to tell them about Jesus and that he took our penalty, but that side of things is difficult, isn't it? And we try to do so lovingly, we must tell people this. But there's a gentleness that you see with Samuel. Verses 16, and Eli called Samuel and said, Samuel, my son. And he answered, here am I. And he said, what is the thing that the Lord has said unto thee? I pray thee, hide it not from me. And skipping on a little bit to verse 18. And Samuel told him every wit. That means everything. Samuel really cares. He's been given authority by God, but he doesn't seek to abuse it. He's given a message by God, but it's also important that we've got the message and we care about the message, but we also care about the people we're delivering the message to. We have to love God, that's part of the law of God, but the second table of the law is to love our neighbors as ourselves. What do you need to serve God? You need God. The word Emmanuel means God with us. Romans 8, 31 says, if God before us, who can be against us? And the reason Samuel grew, and none of his words fell to the ground, because God was with him. God's grace and his favor was with him. It's by faith alone, through grace alone, to the glory of God alone. And Samuel was made of the same stuff that we're made of. Sinner, saved by grace alone. Through the power of God alone, to the glory of God alone. And once we've been saved, let us be like Samuel. Give him everything. Give him your whole life. Because that's what we'll do in heaven. We'll spend an eternity of eternities thanking Him and never in any way able to pay Him back. We can't. It's all by grace alone, for the glory of God alone. Let us give God all the glory as we sing praise to Him.