Samuel the Hinge

Read 1 Samuel 3
 
1 Samuel 3:1 The boy Samuel ministered before the Lord under Eli. In those days the word of the Lord was rare; there were not many visions…3 The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was…10 The Lord came and stood there, calling as at the other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” Then Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” 11 And the Lord said to Samuel: “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make the ears of everyone who hears of it tingle…18 So Samuel told Eli everything, hiding nothing from him. Then Eli said, “He is the Lord; let him do what is good in his eyes.” 19 The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of his words fall to the ground. 20 And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the Lord.
 
IT is unlikely you’ve heard Samuel referred to as “hinge”. But he is one of several people in the Bible God calls to swing open the door to a new time – a new era – of God’s revelation to Israel and to the world. Recall that Moses prophesied in Deuteronomy 18:15 The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own brothers. You must listen to him. Samuel is the first of the prophets who will hear from God and repeat God’s words truly to Israel. Samuel was attested as a prophet of the Lord because he learned God’s voice, to listen to God’s messages and to speak the complete truth to Eli and Israel. Even with the most difficult messages of God’s judgment, the boy Samuel quickly learned to spoke the complete truth. He learned his lesson well. As Samuel grew, he let none of God’s words fall to the ground.
          Remember, several times Judges informs us, “In those days Israel had no king; everyone did as he saw fit.” (Judges 21:25) But God comes when the light of his Word is dim in his land. But thankfully the spiritual lamp had not gone out. The LORD God has chosen and called, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel has responded, “Speak, for your servant is listening.”  The boy will get up from his bed to begin a true revelation of God’s judgment and rescue for Israel. The LORD God is advancing his plan for your salvation. Think of it, God’s plan to save you hinged on his truth told to the generations.
          How about you? Are a hinge to the next generation? Are you opening the door of God’s judgment and salvation to a new generation? Are you listening, speaking the truth?
 
Matthew 5:18 I tell you the truth, until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished.