Review Of 1Samuel 3

– by Victor Fawole

In an environment where corruption was normalized by the men on pulpit, the Bible repeatedly and wonderfully emphasizes that Samuel ministered to the LORD (1Sam. 2:11, 18,1Sam. 3:1). In an era when the revelation of the Word of God became very scarce, we read how Samuel was ministered unto by the LORD. Dear GOGOlights, welcome to 1 Samuel Chapter 3.

It’s Review o’ Clock. Let’s enjoy…

FROM SILENCE TO SOUND, SAMUEL WAS FOUND

1Sam. 3:1,4 Now the boy Samuel ministered to the Lord before Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no widespread revelation… that the Lord called Samuel. And he answered, “Here I am!” 5 So he ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.”

Whenever the revelation of God became scarce, it was usually a form of judgment for Israel (Amos 8:11-12, Lam. 2:9, Micah 3:6-7). It’s usually a dark time that is characterized by apostasy, idolatry, and sinful pollution especially amongst the priests. If the people who are appointed to deliver the Word of God begin to despise the God of the Word, they will lose their spiritual sensitivities in getting revelations from God. But our gracious God will always have a remnant in every generation. He changed the situation and chose the young Samuel as His mouthpiece.

The silence from God would now be broken by a sound from God – His terrible judgment. It would be as though someone clanged a cymbal in your ears. It would shake Israel up. In Chapter 2, God had sent a messenger to Eli that he and his sons had forfeited their right to priesthood, and that Hophni and Phinehas would die on the same day. 

I love how God explained the “why” of His Judgment to Samuel. The young boy probably had some questions in his heart. Although God did not need to explain this to justify His actions, He gave the young prophet a clear picture of His mind. God told him He had already told Eli of the imminent judgment. The gross evil of Eli’s sons trended in the sight of all Israel. They had no one to blame for the coming judgment. They had made themselves a curse. Eli also contributed to the curse because he failed in his fatherly duty, thus blowing his only chance to hold back God’s wrath. The Law already had punishments for his son’s sins, but Eli overlooked the Law.

FRIGHTENED YET FAITHFUL – SAMUEL’S FIRST TASK

1Sam. 3:15 So Samuel lay down until morning, and opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel was afraid to tell Eli the vision.

Samuel was not just a boy who ministered before the Lord… he was not just a youth who listened to the Lord… he grew into a man who spoke for the Lord. His first prophetic assignment was to share God’s declaration of judgment on His “adopted father”. He was now officially God’s mouthpiece. However, it is understandable that he was reluctant to share this revelation with Eli. Not only did he not want to tell Eli, he clearly did not go about broadcasting in the city of Shiloh. 

• No Tiktok live videos to share prophecies. 
• No X tweets to narrate the coming judgment of Eli and his sons.
• No Instagram reels to flaunt his promotion with hashtag #ServantToSeer.
• No Facebook posts with flashy selfies taken at the temple, to farm likes with the caption “Called From The Womb”.
• No WhatsApp statuses with fire emojis captioned “God Just Spoke To Me”.
• No YouTube masterclass titled “How to Hear God: Samuel’s Secret.”
• No LinkedIn updates about his promotion as “National Prophet – Israel | Heaven’s Mouthpiece | Open to Divine Engagements.”
• No WhatsApp broadcasts forwarding the “judgment prophecy” with emojis and “send to 7 people if you’re not Eli.”
• No Spotify podcast titled “The Prophet’s Corner: My First Word from Yahweh.”

Instead of all these, the testimony about Samuel was this:

1Sam. 3:19 So Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground.

“and the LORD was with him…” Nothing else compares to this! To have the LORD with you, and to know you have the LORD with you. Every believer should know and enjoy this truth (Rom. 8:31). This was the secret of Samuel’s success, and even for us believers! As believers, we should understand that any increase in wisdom, grace, or success is dependent on the presence of God with us. To learn FIVE major dimensions of Divine Presence in the life of a believer, I recommend that you listen to Pastor Dammy’s sermon titled: Dimensions of Divine Presence

“and let none of his words fall to the ground…” God honoured Samuel’s words as a prophet. His prophecies proved true, and were accomplished in their season. Talk of “yea and amen”. His status as God’s Prophet was acknowledged by all, throughout Israel. He was established – tested and trusted, dependable and reliable. What a testimony!

So far, we’ve seen Samuel’s credentials, and I love them! 

• He was asked of the Lord (1Sam. 1:20)
• He was consecrated to the Lord (1Sam. 1:28)
• He ministered before the Lord (1Sam. 2:18)
• He waited on the Lord (1Sam. 3:10)
• He was taught by the Lord (1Sam. 3:11–14)
• He witnessed for the Lord (1Sam. 3:18)
• He walked with the Lord (1Sam.  3:19)
• He was acknowledged as of the Lord (1Sam. 3:20)
• He was privileged by the word of the Lord (1Sam. 3:21)

My prayer for everyone reading this is that the LORD will beautify your life in a better fashion than Samuel’s in Jesus’ name. Amen.

God’s grace is multiplied to us all, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

See you tomorrow, beloveds.

Grace to you, Church!