1 00:00:00,480 --> 00:00:02,950 Once you turn with me in your Bibles to the Book of First 2 00:00:02,960 --> 00:00:06,910 Samuel. Book of First Samuel, If you 3 00:00:06,920 --> 00:00:09,120 don't know where that is, I think it's coming up there on 4 00:00:09,130 --> 00:00:10,700 the screen. You can make your way there. 5 00:00:12,700 --> 00:00:14,550 I heard there was like a hockey game or something going on 6 00:00:14,560 --> 00:00:16,570 today, is that right? Did I hear that right? 7 00:00:18,970 --> 00:00:22,240 You are here. Well done. 8 00:00:22,290 --> 00:00:25,900 Like I'm serious, right? This is what worship is called. 9 00:00:26,070 --> 00:00:30,010 Great sacrifices need to be made for worship. 10 00:00:30,200 --> 00:00:33,760 Was talking to someone yesterday at the celebration of life 11 00:00:33,770 --> 00:00:38,240 service saying, you know, super big hockey fan saying they gave 12 00:00:38,250 --> 00:00:41,180 up cable last year and now they don't have to come to church. 13 00:00:41,190 --> 00:00:44,240 But you know, this is an act. This is an act of worship. 14 00:00:44,290 --> 00:00:49,670 So well done that you were here. Last week we began our Lenten 15 00:00:49,680 --> 00:00:54,860 series on the book of First Samuel, and I think we're off to 16 00:00:54,870 --> 00:00:57,050 a great start. Wednesday was the beginning of 17 00:00:57,060 --> 00:01:00,150 Lent. And so as Deb was mentioning, 18 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:04,250 these journals were given out and they are free. 19 00:01:04,260 --> 00:01:06,390 And there's still some left in the form if you'd like to take 20 00:01:06,400 --> 00:01:08,390 one. This will walk us through not 21 00:01:08,400 --> 00:01:12,690 just how to read first, like encouraging us to read First 22 00:01:12,700 --> 00:01:16,490 Samuel daily, just a little bit daily over the next 40 days, but 23 00:01:16,500 --> 00:01:19,370 also to reflect on the word and to engage that word. 24 00:01:19,440 --> 00:01:21,140 How do we get ready to read the word? 25 00:01:21,150 --> 00:01:23,440 How do we, how do we, how do we read it? 26 00:01:23,530 --> 00:01:26,060 And then how do we respond to that word? 27 00:01:26,070 --> 00:01:30,860 So I'm encouraging everybody to, to do a little bit of time every 28 00:01:30,870 --> 00:01:33,690 day in God's Word as we walk through the book of First 29 00:01:33,700 --> 00:01:36,820 Samuel. If you have not started, if you 30 00:01:36,830 --> 00:01:40,260 missed the Wednesday start, no problem. 31 00:01:40,270 --> 00:01:42,940 Just start fresh today. Don't even try to go back and 32 00:01:42,950 --> 00:01:44,340 catch up. Don't do that. 33 00:01:44,410 --> 00:01:47,500 Just start today and move on. And if you want to come back to 34 00:01:47,510 --> 00:01:49,720 it, I bet after you've read First Samuel, you're going to 35 00:01:49,730 --> 00:01:50,770 want to go back to the beginning. 36 00:01:50,850 --> 00:01:53,780 Well, it's just an awesome book. This is an awesome book. 37 00:01:54,490 --> 00:01:57,830 I'm so glad that you're here because the, the word, the the 38 00:01:57,840 --> 00:02:00,270 message and the, and the passage that we're gonna look at today 39 00:02:00,280 --> 00:02:03,830 has just been gripping me and and I hope that it's going to be 40 00:02:03,920 --> 00:02:07,090 gripping you as well. The book of her Sammy was said 41 00:02:07,100 --> 00:02:11,110 last week is an account of Israel's history in a very dark 42 00:02:11,120 --> 00:02:15,830 time is the time of the judges where there was no king and 43 00:02:15,840 --> 00:02:19,030 everyone did what they saw fit. What was right in my eyes, 44 00:02:19,040 --> 00:02:21,550 that's what I will do. And it was absolute chaos, 45 00:02:21,740 --> 00:02:25,450 absolutely devastating. And so in chapter 1, in the 46 00:02:25,460 --> 00:02:29,970 context of this, we hear the story of Hannah's account of 47 00:02:29,980 --> 00:02:32,110 Hannahs life. And Hannah is barren. 48 00:02:32,300 --> 00:02:36,190 She can't have children and she is distraught because she's 49 00:02:36,200 --> 00:02:39,710 being mocked and no one's understanding her and she is 50 00:02:39,720 --> 00:02:43,330 desperate and crying out to God. In fact, she makes a vow to the 51 00:02:43,340 --> 00:02:45,180 Lord. Lord, if you give me a child, if 52 00:02:45,190 --> 00:02:48,080 you give me a son, I will give him back to you. 53 00:02:50,530 --> 00:02:52,860 How many vows have we made? God, if you'll just Get Me Out 54 00:02:52,870 --> 00:02:56,260 of this pinch, I'll do this, this and this. 55 00:02:56,270 --> 00:02:59,110 But she was very specific. I will give this child back to 56 00:02:59,120 --> 00:03:00,560 you. Well, she gets pregnant, God 57 00:03:00,570 --> 00:03:03,670 answers her prayer. She pours out her heart to the 58 00:03:03,680 --> 00:03:06,980 Lord, answers the prayer. She has a son and she literally 59 00:03:06,990 --> 00:03:11,640 does after he is weaned about 3 or 4 years old, gives him over 60 00:03:12,520 --> 00:03:16,190 to the House of Shiloh under the priest Eli. 61 00:03:16,240 --> 00:03:18,430 Eli the priest to minister there. 62 00:03:18,440 --> 00:03:21,090 It's Deb was is referring to in the children's message. 63 00:03:21,340 --> 00:03:26,050 Wild, wild story. And then in chapter 2 she breaks 64 00:03:26,060 --> 00:03:28,810 out into song. And the song is not about 65 00:03:28,820 --> 00:03:32,600 thanking God for a child, even though she was very grateful, 66 00:03:32,670 --> 00:03:36,560 but a song of worship of it's a hymn of praise for the 67 00:03:36,570 --> 00:03:40,400 sovereignty of God who is up to doing things not just in my 68 00:03:40,410 --> 00:03:43,600 life, but in the world. Like this is what God does. 69 00:03:43,790 --> 00:03:48,200 He meets each one of us in our weakness, in our incapability, 70 00:03:48,210 --> 00:03:51,140 And he does, and he shows his strength and he brings about 71 00:03:51,150 --> 00:03:54,280 good things, all for his good purposes, all for our good. 72 00:03:54,450 --> 00:04:00,080 But this is the kind of God that we worship, no matter how bleak 73 00:04:00,190 --> 00:04:03,430 things look in life. And things looked very bleak 74 00:04:03,480 --> 00:04:07,280 right here. God is always at work working 75 00:04:07,290 --> 00:04:10,940 behind the scenes and doing many miracles, many miracles. 76 00:04:10,950 --> 00:04:12,720 And we want to be attuned to those things. 77 00:04:12,730 --> 00:04:17,940 So in verse 11 of chapter 2, it says then Elkanah went home to 78 00:04:17,950 --> 00:04:21,420 Rama. So Elkanah is is Samuel's father 79 00:04:21,510 --> 00:04:25,380 and his wife. But the boy that is Samuel 80 00:04:25,390 --> 00:04:28,060 ministered before the Lord under Eli, the priest. 81 00:04:28,070 --> 00:04:30,760 That's where we left off. So now we're heading into verse 82 00:04:30,770 --> 00:04:32,110 12. Everybody ready? 83 00:04:32,150 --> 00:04:34,580 Are you with me? You geared up, father. 84 00:04:34,590 --> 00:04:38,700 Thank you for this gift that You've given to us in Your Holy 85 00:04:38,710 --> 00:04:42,650 Word. Speak Lord for your servants or 86 00:04:42,660 --> 00:04:45,750 listen in Jesus name. Amen. 87 00:04:48,660 --> 00:04:50,530 First Samuel chapter 2, verse 12. 88 00:04:50,620 --> 00:04:59,940 Elie's sons were scoundrels. Wicked, disobedient, Dishonored. 89 00:05:02,870 --> 00:05:05,550 And they had. They had no regard for the Lord. 90 00:05:06,540 --> 00:05:09,490 Just pause there for a second. No regard for the Lord. 91 00:05:10,100 --> 00:05:13,210 Something translations may have a literal ESD. 92 00:05:13,520 --> 00:05:18,150 Literally, it means they did not know the Lord, They didn't know 93 00:05:18,160 --> 00:05:20,090 the law. They knew about God, but they 94 00:05:20,100 --> 00:05:24,620 didn't know God. They weren't in awe of who God 95 00:05:24,630 --> 00:05:26,620 was. They weren't delighting in who 96 00:05:26,630 --> 00:05:28,260 God was, and as a result, they weren't. 97 00:05:28,270 --> 00:05:34,170 They had no regard for Him. Totally messed up their 98 00:05:34,180 --> 00:05:36,670 ministry. Interesting that the priests 99 00:05:37,710 --> 00:05:40,400 didn't know didn't know the Lord and yet there were there were 100 00:05:40,410 --> 00:05:42,680 there were set in place to teach people about the Lord. 101 00:05:42,690 --> 00:05:45,470 So dismal situation going on there. 102 00:05:47,380 --> 00:05:50,450 Verse 13. Now it was the practice of the 103 00:05:50,460 --> 00:05:54,930 priests that whenever any of the people offered to sacrifice, the 104 00:05:54,940 --> 00:05:58,650 priest servant would come with a three pronged fork in his hand 105 00:05:58,660 --> 00:06:01,970 while the meat was being boiled, and would plunge the fork into 106 00:06:01,980 --> 00:06:04,030 the pan or kettle, or cauldron or pot. 107 00:06:04,340 --> 00:06:07,170 Whatever the fork brought up, the priest would take for 108 00:06:07,180 --> 00:06:09,950 himself. This is how they treated all the 109 00:06:09,960 --> 00:06:13,490 Israelites who came to Shiloh. But even before the fat was 110 00:06:13,500 --> 00:06:17,190 burned, the priests servant would come and say to the person 111 00:06:17,200 --> 00:06:20,480 who was sacrificing, give the priest some meat to roast. 112 00:06:20,680 --> 00:06:24,220 He won't accept boiled meat from you, but only raw. 113 00:06:25,220 --> 00:06:29,830 And if the person said to him, let the fat be burned first and 114 00:06:29,840 --> 00:06:33,980 then take whatever you want, the servant would answer no, hand it 115 00:06:33,990 --> 00:06:36,440 over now. If you don't, I'll take it by 116 00:06:36,450 --> 00:06:39,240 force. It's a great ministry going on 117 00:06:39,250 --> 00:06:43,590 there. This sin of the young men, Eli 118 00:06:43,600 --> 00:06:47,050 Sons was very great in the Lord's sight, for they were 119 00:06:47,060 --> 00:06:49,720 treating the Lord's offering with contempt. 120 00:06:50,820 --> 00:06:52,630 OK, what? What's what's going on here? 121 00:06:52,740 --> 00:06:57,650 Interesting scene. So it says here that this is 122 00:06:58,240 --> 00:07:00,340 this was the practice of the priests. 123 00:07:01,760 --> 00:07:05,230 It's not saying that this is what was required in the law. 124 00:07:05,240 --> 00:07:08,450 In fact, if we go back to Leviticus Chapter 7, we will see 125 00:07:08,460 --> 00:07:10,230 what's required of the law in the law. 126 00:07:10,240 --> 00:07:13,730 So we talked last week a little bit about fellowship offerings 127 00:07:13,740 --> 00:07:16,930 that were were given. An animal was presented and a a 128 00:07:16,940 --> 00:07:19,450 part of portion of that animal is burned. 129 00:07:19,540 --> 00:07:22,830 The choicest parts are burned. The fat parts are burned before 130 00:07:22,840 --> 00:07:24,510 the Lord. They're given to the Lord. 131 00:07:24,640 --> 00:07:27,540 Another portion is given to the priests in order to provide for 132 00:07:27,550 --> 00:07:30,740 them and their service. And then another portion was 133 00:07:30,750 --> 00:07:33,720 actually eaten by the family that that was offering this. 134 00:07:33,730 --> 00:07:36,640 So they sit down to a feast, have a BBQ, you know, let's, 135 00:07:36,650 --> 00:07:39,670 let's enjoy this together, be in the presence of God. 136 00:07:39,820 --> 00:07:43,750 Well, the priest would have received. 137 00:07:43,760 --> 00:07:47,200 So in Abicus Chapter 7 it says the priest gets the breast and 138 00:07:47,210 --> 00:07:50,120 the thigh. They would have got that here, 139 00:07:50,130 --> 00:07:53,660 but they wanted more. So they had Mr. Fork Man come 140 00:07:53,670 --> 00:07:57,040 and he's plunging his fork into the pots, taking whatever would 141 00:07:57,050 --> 00:07:59,350 come out. That was totally on top of what 142 00:07:59,360 --> 00:08:01,920 they were expected. What what what they should have 143 00:08:01,930 --> 00:08:04,340 been receiving. It's like little greedy guts, 144 00:08:04,350 --> 00:08:07,440 right? But that you know, it even gets 145 00:08:07,450 --> 00:08:10,800 worse than that because now they're saying, no, give us the 146 00:08:10,810 --> 00:08:13,080 portions we're going to take the portions that have the fat still 147 00:08:13,090 --> 00:08:16,020 on them, which was meant to be burnt before the Lord was a 148 00:08:16,090 --> 00:08:18,840 pleasing aroma to God. They were taking what was 149 00:08:18,850 --> 00:08:22,920 rightfully gods for themselves. So completely displacing God, 150 00:08:22,930 --> 00:08:26,540 Total disregard for him. Horrible situation. 151 00:08:27,430 --> 00:08:33,320 And then in verse 22, let's see here, verse 17 here where see, 152 00:08:33,330 --> 00:08:34,059 see here. Yeah. 153 00:08:34,070 --> 00:08:38,600 And then verse 22, it says that later on coming that they're 154 00:08:38,610 --> 00:08:42,620 sleeping with the women who are serving outside the tent of 155 00:08:42,630 --> 00:08:45,400 meeting. So in the very sacred place here 156 00:08:45,410 --> 00:08:48,500 is we have sexual immorality going on like it was. 157 00:08:48,510 --> 00:08:52,560 It was horrific. It says in verse 17, This sin of 158 00:08:52,570 --> 00:08:56,270 the young men was very great in the Lord's sight, for they were 159 00:08:56,280 --> 00:08:59,300 treating the Lord's offering with contempt. 160 00:09:00,070 --> 00:09:03,240 You know, it's often said, you know, sin is sin. 161 00:09:03,730 --> 00:09:06,820 All sin is the same, but it, it isn't really. 162 00:09:06,870 --> 00:09:11,240 It's the same in the sense that all sin is a result of our lack 163 00:09:11,250 --> 00:09:15,980 of trust in God, our refusal or, or, or, or or or failure to 164 00:09:15,990 --> 00:09:19,830 trust God, and all sin ultimately, even if I sin 165 00:09:19,840 --> 00:09:23,320 against you, Madeline, I'm actually sinning against God who 166 00:09:23,330 --> 00:09:28,280 created you in his image. But there are some sins that are 167 00:09:28,290 --> 00:09:30,040 worse than others in the sense that there's greater 168 00:09:30,050 --> 00:09:32,590 consequences, there's greater weight to it. 169 00:09:32,920 --> 00:09:36,850 And these guys in particular were completely disregarding 170 00:09:36,860 --> 00:09:41,650 God's like to his face and to God. 171 00:09:43,160 --> 00:09:46,800 This was great. This was a great sin and it 172 00:09:46,810 --> 00:09:48,800 needed to be needed to be dealt with. 173 00:09:49,030 --> 00:09:52,750 So we'll move on. Verse 18 A little bright moment, 174 00:09:52,760 --> 00:09:57,570 but Samuel was ministering before the Lord, a boy wearing a 175 00:09:57,580 --> 00:10:00,530 linen ephod. Each year his mother made him a 176 00:10:00,540 --> 00:10:03,930 little robe and took it to him. When she went up with her 177 00:10:03,940 --> 00:10:05,950 husband to offer the annual sacrifice. 178 00:10:06,340 --> 00:10:10,960 Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife, saying, May the Lord give 179 00:10:10,970 --> 00:10:14,410 you children by this woman to take the place of the one she 180 00:10:14,420 --> 00:10:20,080 prayed for and gave to the Lord. Then they would go home, and the 181 00:10:20,090 --> 00:10:24,020 Lord was gracious to Hannah. She gave birth to three sons and 182 00:10:24,030 --> 00:10:27,140 two daughters. Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew 183 00:10:27,150 --> 00:10:32,950 up in the presence of the Lord. See this contrast going on 184 00:10:33,420 --> 00:10:38,360 between the selfless devotion of Hannah and her family, and then 185 00:10:38,370 --> 00:10:40,710 the self indulgence of the priest. 186 00:10:40,720 --> 00:10:46,020 Complete contrast there. And so in the middle of the 187 00:10:46,030 --> 00:10:50,380 darkness of what is going on in the in the presence of God with 188 00:10:50,390 --> 00:10:53,740 the sons of Eli, we have this that the kindness of God being 189 00:10:53,750 --> 00:10:56,470 shown in the midst of it. That's what happens. 190 00:10:56,480 --> 00:10:59,010 There's so much darkness in the world, so much darkness 191 00:10:59,260 --> 00:11:03,010 surrounding us in our lives. And yet the kindness of God is 192 00:11:03,020 --> 00:11:07,880 just this ongoing thread that holds everything together. 193 00:11:10,270 --> 00:11:14,360 Here we have a mother who has made a little robe for her son. 194 00:11:14,590 --> 00:11:16,760 Like seriously, a little robe? Don't you love that? 195 00:11:16,770 --> 00:11:18,860 The pitch of that? He's like a little a little baby 196 00:11:18,870 --> 00:11:22,020 priest, right? He he's ready to serve, which I 197 00:11:22,030 --> 00:11:25,200 mean, the point that that Debs making is perfectly right. 198 00:11:25,270 --> 00:11:28,190 Like, we are never too young to serve the Lord. 199 00:11:29,240 --> 00:11:32,500 Remember Jacob, you know, how old were you, Jacob, when you 200 00:11:32,510 --> 00:11:34,770 were playing bongos? Like in the early days of Forest 201 00:11:34,780 --> 00:11:38,270 Field when we were in the senior centre, not very many people 202 00:11:38,280 --> 00:11:41,310 were out for the worship team. And Jacob, I think, what, four 203 00:11:41,320 --> 00:11:43,730 or five years old maybe at the most, playing bongos. 204 00:11:43,740 --> 00:11:47,030 He was our drummer and he was gifted with the beat. 205 00:11:47,040 --> 00:11:49,670 Like obviously right? Very talented, but using his 206 00:11:49,680 --> 00:11:54,630 gifts early on any young, I guess most of the young people 207 00:11:54,640 --> 00:11:56,850 are out, but we we need to encourage our young people, 208 00:11:56,900 --> 00:11:59,730 right? Serve in the Lord at whatever 209 00:11:59,740 --> 00:12:03,570 age, right? So God takes this very, very 210 00:12:03,580 --> 00:12:07,360 seriously. But there's a blessing in store 211 00:12:07,410 --> 00:12:11,000 for Hannah. So Eli prays a blessing over 212 00:12:11,010 --> 00:12:16,420 Hannah and Elkanah, and she gives birth to three more sons 213 00:12:17,030 --> 00:12:20,760 and two daughters. Like Elkanah is just shaking his 214 00:12:20,770 --> 00:12:23,200 head. I didn't have to marry Penina. 215 00:12:23,270 --> 00:12:25,620 Like I didn't have to marry a second wife, right? 216 00:12:26,010 --> 00:12:31,640 God was gonna provide, but what a blessing and it and it tells 217 00:12:31,650 --> 00:12:34,020 us a lot, right? Like there was a sacrifice, 218 00:12:34,070 --> 00:12:37,480 obviously. Like, think about Hannah, after 219 00:12:37,570 --> 00:12:40,620 all of what she went through and finally getting a son of her 220 00:12:40,630 --> 00:12:42,880 own, she gives him over to the Lord. 221 00:12:43,540 --> 00:12:49,450 That's a humongous sacrifice, but God, you know, he is he is 222 00:12:49,460 --> 00:12:54,190 never one to make us feel like we're getting shortchanged 223 00:12:54,240 --> 00:12:57,010 because he is every sacrifice we make, he's going to he's going 224 00:12:57,020 --> 00:13:00,230 to match it right. Remember GAIL very she actually, 225 00:13:00,240 --> 00:13:03,510 she continues to say it ongoing that when we first became 226 00:13:03,520 --> 00:13:05,340 Christians, it felt like everything was sacrificed. 227 00:13:05,350 --> 00:13:08,930 We were giving up so much because our lifestyle was over 228 00:13:08,940 --> 00:13:11,250 here and now we're giving that that and we're going here. 229 00:13:11,260 --> 00:13:14,750 It was a great sacrifice, but she would proclaim, continues to 230 00:13:14,760 --> 00:13:19,060 proclaim, like I never knew that we would receive so much, so 231 00:13:19,070 --> 00:13:22,160 much blessing again and again and again. 232 00:13:23,420 --> 00:13:26,890 You know, Jesus, you know, even speaks about this in Mark 233 00:13:26,900 --> 00:13:29,290 chapter 10. He says, truly, I tell you, no 234 00:13:29,300 --> 00:13:31,750 one who has left home or brothers or sisters or mother or 235 00:13:31,760 --> 00:13:35,250 father or children or fields for me in the Gospel will fail to 236 00:13:35,260 --> 00:13:38,470 receive 100 times as much in this present age. 237 00:13:39,170 --> 00:13:43,320 Like Jesus is not promising Christians at an easy life. 238 00:13:44,110 --> 00:13:47,400 But if you give up something, I'm going to give it back to you 239 00:13:47,410 --> 00:13:49,700 in spades. It may not come in exactly the 240 00:13:49,710 --> 00:13:51,560 same way, but you will be blessed. 241 00:13:51,630 --> 00:13:55,060 And Hannah knew this. And we see this so beautifully 242 00:13:55,070 --> 00:14:01,800 presented here in the middle of chapter 2, verse 22. 243 00:14:02,270 --> 00:14:08,220 Keep moving on. Now Eli, who was very old, heard 244 00:14:08,230 --> 00:14:11,260 about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they 245 00:14:11,270 --> 00:14:14,180 slept with the women who were Sir who had who served at the 246 00:14:14,230 --> 00:14:18,380 entrance to the tent of meeting. So he said to them, sitting his 247 00:14:18,390 --> 00:14:21,010 boys down. Why do you do such things? 248 00:14:21,890 --> 00:14:24,900 I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. 249 00:14:25,350 --> 00:14:30,420 No, my sons, the report I I hear spreading among God's people, 250 00:14:30,470 --> 00:14:34,760 the Lord's people, is not good. If one person sins against 251 00:14:34,770 --> 00:14:37,820 another, God may mediate for the offender. 252 00:14:37,830 --> 00:14:41,290 But if anyone sins against the Lord, who will intercede for 253 00:14:41,300 --> 00:14:44,810 them? Great argument. 254 00:14:46,660 --> 00:14:51,170 His sons, however, did not listen to their Father's rebuke. 255 00:14:51,180 --> 00:14:55,330 Absolutely No Fear of God whatsoever, for it was the 256 00:14:55,340 --> 00:14:57,100 Lord's will to put them to death. 257 00:14:59,580 --> 00:15:02,550 There's 26. And the boy, Samuel, continued 258 00:15:02,720 --> 00:15:07,090 to grow in stature and in favor with the Lord and with people. 259 00:15:09,430 --> 00:15:13,760 Here's Eli hearing all these rumours. 260 00:15:13,770 --> 00:15:17,640 He knows his sons, right? He raised his sons and he's 261 00:15:17,650 --> 00:15:20,020 sitting them down and he's giving them a harsh word, a 262 00:15:20,030 --> 00:15:23,220 strong word, a rebuke, but they're not listen. 263 00:15:24,850 --> 00:15:28,140 They're not listening at all. And and I think that it's really 264 00:15:28,150 --> 00:15:35,050 easy for us to kind of fly over verse 25 here, listen to this. 265 00:15:35,060 --> 00:15:39,470 So it's easy to read it like, OK, so here, you know, because 266 00:15:39,480 --> 00:15:44,450 they did not listen to Elie's rebuke, then the Lord determined 267 00:15:44,460 --> 00:15:47,910 to to put them to death. But that's not what it says. 268 00:15:50,830 --> 00:15:53,600 This sense, however, did not listen to their father's rebuke. 269 00:15:53,640 --> 00:15:57,860 For it's an important word. For there could also be 270 00:15:57,870 --> 00:16:02,310 translated, because it was the Lord's will to put them to 271 00:16:02,320 --> 00:16:09,960 death. Here they are going about doing 272 00:16:09,970 --> 00:16:13,390 things as they see fit, complete disregard for God. 273 00:16:13,400 --> 00:16:20,130 They have hardened their heart to our God, and now God has 274 00:16:20,140 --> 00:16:24,020 determined to put them to death. And because of that 275 00:16:24,030 --> 00:16:29,200 determination, because of that, they would not listen to their 276 00:16:29,210 --> 00:16:32,420 Father. There is a hardening that goes 277 00:16:32,430 --> 00:16:35,360 on in the human heart when we continue to resist God. 278 00:16:36,310 --> 00:16:39,820 But Scripture also speaks about a hardening that God does to the 279 00:16:39,830 --> 00:16:43,220 human heart. It's almost like God is saying, 280 00:16:43,290 --> 00:16:47,720 OK, is that what you want? I'm going to add to it. 281 00:16:48,700 --> 00:16:51,620 I'm going to give you more of what you want so that they're in 282 00:16:51,630 --> 00:16:54,870 the place where I'm not even going to listen to any sound 283 00:16:54,880 --> 00:16:56,470 teaching. I'm not even gonna listen to 284 00:16:56,480 --> 00:16:57,930 wisdom. I'm not gonna listen to a 285 00:16:57,940 --> 00:16:59,490 rebuke. I'm not gonna repent. 286 00:16:59,600 --> 00:17:03,870 There's a point in which there's no return, and that's what's 287 00:17:03,880 --> 00:17:06,079 being described here. And the reason why I want to 288 00:17:06,089 --> 00:17:09,819 just pause here is because we have a glimpse of the holiness 289 00:17:09,829 --> 00:17:13,609 of God that we need to let percolate in our minds and our 290 00:17:13,619 --> 00:17:15,170 hearts. We need to, we need to 291 00:17:15,180 --> 00:17:18,420 experience the gravity of a verse like this and say, I don't 292 00:17:18,430 --> 00:17:27,589 want to go anywhere near this. I want to honor the Lord Dale 293 00:17:27,599 --> 00:17:30,670 Davis. I liked how he he, he speaks 294 00:17:30,680 --> 00:17:34,570 about this verse. He was, he's saying that that we 295 00:17:34,580 --> 00:17:37,790 have to be very careful about how we respond to a verse like 296 00:17:37,800 --> 00:17:42,310 this, that we can approach it in a very critical way, in the 297 00:17:42,320 --> 00:17:45,910 sense of saying God, you're not very kind. 298 00:17:46,460 --> 00:17:50,150 I remember growing up thinking, you know, I just thinking God 299 00:17:50,160 --> 00:17:52,970 wasn't very nice. I don't know how I came to that 300 00:17:52,980 --> 00:17:55,400 conclusion, but I thought I'm nicer than God. 301 00:17:56,520 --> 00:17:58,280 I'm a much better person than God is. 302 00:17:58,290 --> 00:17:59,810 I mean, think about the arrogance of that. 303 00:17:59,820 --> 00:18:03,470 But anyway, there there there's a there's a, there's a way to 304 00:18:03,480 --> 00:18:07,350 approach a verse like this and say, well, God's not very kind 305 00:18:08,000 --> 00:18:10,010 and we can be critical of him for what he's doing. 306 00:18:10,440 --> 00:18:13,370 But there's on the on the other side, Davis was mentioning that 307 00:18:13,380 --> 00:18:17,310 there's a there's a there's an intellectual curiosity, 308 00:18:17,320 --> 00:18:20,030 curiosity that can drive us as well, insane. 309 00:18:20,040 --> 00:18:22,670 At what point would God harden somebody's heart? 310 00:18:23,700 --> 00:18:26,080 Where where is that? Like, technically speaking, 311 00:18:26,090 --> 00:18:28,810 there's talk about the technicalities of hardening. 312 00:18:28,850 --> 00:18:31,050 You know, a lot of theologians will get it, you know, spend 313 00:18:31,060 --> 00:18:33,830 expend a lot of energy and time trying to figure this out. 314 00:18:33,960 --> 00:18:36,970 And Davis is saying don't go on either one of those directions. 315 00:18:37,060 --> 00:18:41,730 They're just wrong. It's not our place to question 316 00:18:42,520 --> 00:18:47,170 or to comprehend all of what God is about. 317 00:18:48,580 --> 00:18:51,000 We're to tremble before a holy God. 318 00:18:51,640 --> 00:18:56,310 We need to acknowledge Him for who He is, our Creator, who is 319 00:18:56,320 --> 00:19:00,710 not harsh but His kind and merciful. 320 00:19:01,190 --> 00:19:05,540 All of this is God's mercy towards His people. 321 00:19:05,620 --> 00:19:11,620 This is unfolding here. So in verse 27 to 26, we're not 322 00:19:11,630 --> 00:19:17,790 going to read all of this, but the rebuke extends to Eli. 323 00:19:18,560 --> 00:19:23,230 There's a man of God that says in verse 27 who comes to see Eli 324 00:19:23,240 --> 00:19:25,610 and said to him, this is what the Lord says. 325 00:19:25,740 --> 00:19:31,240 So Eli, the father of the two boys, the priests, he's going to 326 00:19:31,250 --> 00:19:34,380 be called under the carpet here for not restraining his boys. 327 00:19:34,690 --> 00:19:36,950 And the way that the prophet speaks. 328 00:19:36,960 --> 00:19:40,730 So this is God speaking to Eli. The word of God coming into the 329 00:19:40,740 --> 00:19:44,550 middle of this scene is you've got it so good. 330 00:19:46,090 --> 00:19:49,770 The priest, you and the the priests or the your, your 331 00:19:49,780 --> 00:19:51,280 ancestors. You've had it so good. 332 00:19:51,290 --> 00:19:56,510 I've revealed myself to you and I've chosen you and I. 333 00:19:57,200 --> 00:20:01,060 I provided for you so much all of what you need and more. 334 00:20:05,690 --> 00:20:13,020 So then verse 29 he says this. Why do you scorn my sacrifice 335 00:20:13,090 --> 00:20:16,340 and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? 336 00:20:16,850 --> 00:20:21,800 Why do you honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves 337 00:20:21,810 --> 00:20:24,900 on the choice parts of every offering made by my people, 338 00:20:24,970 --> 00:20:29,650 Israel? There's a lot to this sentence. 339 00:20:29,660 --> 00:20:33,830 I just want to hone in on this one statement where God says to 340 00:20:33,840 --> 00:20:37,620 him, Why do you honor your sons more than me? 341 00:20:39,250 --> 00:20:44,710 Why do you honour your sons more than me? 342 00:20:48,690 --> 00:20:53,280 Eli had a love for God, but he loved his sons more. 343 00:20:56,060 --> 00:20:59,630 He honored God with his life. He was a priest, but he honored 344 00:20:59,640 --> 00:21:02,050 his sons more. He was not willing. 345 00:21:02,260 --> 00:21:05,470 He was unwilling to say what needed to be said, to actually 346 00:21:05,480 --> 00:21:08,170 do what needed to be done. He said what needed to be said 347 00:21:08,180 --> 00:21:10,430 at this point, but he didn't follow through on it. 348 00:21:11,470 --> 00:21:16,340 Now, he may not have been able to stop them from committing all 349 00:21:16,350 --> 00:21:20,220 kinds of immorality, but he still could have removed them 350 00:21:20,230 --> 00:21:24,080 from doing it as priests. And this is what he was being 351 00:21:24,090 --> 00:21:26,880 confronted about. You honored your sons. 352 00:21:26,890 --> 00:21:32,310 You weren't willing to say no, this is not going any further. 353 00:21:32,700 --> 00:21:37,170 It wasn't willing to do that. He loved his sons too much, 354 00:21:37,220 --> 00:21:42,370 loved his sons too much. We can love our children too 355 00:21:42,380 --> 00:21:44,680 much. Too much means that we're loving 356 00:21:44,690 --> 00:21:46,470 them over. We're loving the Lord. 357 00:21:46,820 --> 00:21:51,160 We can honor other people more than we can honor the Lord, and 358 00:21:51,170 --> 00:21:54,400 that ends in so much trouble. So much trouble. 359 00:22:00,780 --> 00:22:03,370 And so there's an invasion of God's Word. 360 00:22:03,780 --> 00:22:09,010 God is speaking directly to the situation, and he's going to do 361 00:22:09,020 --> 00:22:11,440 something about it. This is what God does with his 362 00:22:11,450 --> 00:22:14,870 Word because it's not saying, OK, I'm just gonna let this go. 363 00:22:14,880 --> 00:22:17,480 I'm gonna fold my hands, I'm gonna pout and I'm be frustrated 364 00:22:17,490 --> 00:22:20,060 or whatever. Know God is gonna move into the 365 00:22:20,070 --> 00:22:24,210 middle of it and start bringing the healing that He brings. 366 00:22:28,100 --> 00:22:33,660 Isaiah 55 speaks of God's word, says as the rain and the snow 367 00:22:33,670 --> 00:22:36,970 come down from heaven and do not return to it without watering 368 00:22:36,980 --> 00:22:41,520 the earth and making it bud and flourish, so that it yields seed 369 00:22:41,530 --> 00:22:44,970 for the sower and bread for the eaters, so is my word that goes 370 00:22:44,980 --> 00:22:48,300 out from my mouth. It will not return to me empty, 371 00:22:48,900 --> 00:22:52,470 but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose 372 00:22:53,440 --> 00:22:57,310 for which I sent it. God is speaking His Word and 373 00:22:57,320 --> 00:23:01,540 it's gonna do something. Now he's he's cleaning house, 374 00:23:03,310 --> 00:23:05,100 he's confronting where it needs to confront. 375 00:23:05,110 --> 00:23:06,920 Why? In order to make us miserable. 376 00:23:06,930 --> 00:23:09,100 Know the exact opposite. He wants to bring life. 377 00:23:09,170 --> 00:23:12,820 Verse 12, Isaiah 55. Here's the result. 378 00:23:12,830 --> 00:23:16,160 You will go out and joy and be led forth in peace. 379 00:23:16,170 --> 00:23:19,140 The mountains and hills will burst into song before you and 380 00:23:19,150 --> 00:23:21,760 all the trees of the field will clap their hands. 381 00:23:21,850 --> 00:23:23,560 Talk about a massive celebration. 382 00:23:23,910 --> 00:23:27,020 God speaks His word of life and this word that He spoke even to 383 00:23:27,030 --> 00:23:31,560 Eli, it seems like a harsh word, but it's a loving word. 384 00:23:31,570 --> 00:23:34,890 It is a merciful word. It is a protective word. 385 00:23:34,900 --> 00:23:38,290 This is what God's Word does, and each one of us needs to hear 386 00:23:38,300 --> 00:23:43,230 it on a regular basis. Let the Word of God cleanse us, 387 00:23:43,280 --> 00:23:47,530 wash us, confront us, hold us, comfort us, direct us, 388 00:23:47,540 --> 00:23:50,280 strengthen us. That's what the Word of God is 389 00:23:50,290 --> 00:23:56,970 meant to do. Well, this word ends with the 390 00:23:56,980 --> 00:24:01,870 greatest word of hope here in verse 35, God. 391 00:24:01,880 --> 00:24:07,270 So God's God is going to remove Eli and his sons and all their 392 00:24:07,680 --> 00:24:13,030 upcoming, all those who would, who would come after them, 393 00:24:13,080 --> 00:24:15,480 remove them from their service as priests. 394 00:24:16,300 --> 00:24:19,170 But he says in verse 35, the Lord says, I will raise up for 395 00:24:19,180 --> 00:24:23,410 myself a faithful priest who will do according to what is in 396 00:24:23,420 --> 00:24:27,010 my heart and mind. I will firmly establish his 397 00:24:27,020 --> 00:24:31,040 priestly house and they will minister before my anointed one 398 00:24:31,090 --> 00:24:36,880 always. Who's that faithful priest? 399 00:24:37,660 --> 00:24:39,930 Could be Samuel. Immediate context, even though 400 00:24:39,940 --> 00:24:43,090 Samuel was really a prophet. Could be Zadok, who was 401 00:24:43,100 --> 00:24:46,270 established just after David had passed away. 402 00:24:46,320 --> 00:24:49,460 But ultimately it's pointing to Jesus Christ. 403 00:24:49,620 --> 00:24:55,190 And this is what we read in in Hebrews, Hebrews chapter 2 verse 404 00:24:55,200 --> 00:24:57,610 17. It says for this reason, he, 405 00:24:57,620 --> 00:25:02,270 that is Jesus, had to be made like them, that is like us, 406 00:25:02,520 --> 00:25:05,850 fully human in every way, in order that he might become a 407 00:25:05,860 --> 00:25:10,810 merciful and faithful high priest in service to God and 408 00:25:10,820 --> 00:25:14,430 that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. 409 00:25:16,550 --> 00:25:19,340 Jesus is the faithful high priest and he's going to come 410 00:25:19,350 --> 00:25:23,870 and make everything right. He is the one that has been 411 00:25:23,880 --> 00:25:28,920 provided for us by the Lord human being so we can represent 412 00:25:28,930 --> 00:25:33,290 us before God and also God who can bear the weight of the 413 00:25:33,300 --> 00:25:35,730 judgment that we deserve for all of our sins. 414 00:25:35,740 --> 00:25:41,870 So that all who put their trust in Him will be cleansed, will be 415 00:25:41,880 --> 00:25:45,070 forgiven and will be strengthened to move on. 416 00:25:45,340 --> 00:25:52,810 So strengthen our wobbly knees and continue to walk faithfully. 417 00:25:52,820 --> 00:25:55,390 I want to, I want to leave you with three things that closes 418 00:25:55,400 --> 00:25:59,710 this message that we need to do in response to this number one, 419 00:26:00,020 --> 00:26:04,100 never despair. Never despair. 420 00:26:04,190 --> 00:26:09,260 Hold your head up high. God is in charge. 421 00:26:10,400 --> 00:26:15,260 All hell may be breaking loose, but God is working even in the 422 00:26:15,270 --> 00:26:18,490 midst of the darkness, no matter how dark things are looking. 423 00:26:21,070 --> 00:26:25,190 This text is giving continual reminders to us in the middle of 424 00:26:25,200 --> 00:26:29,160 the dark, as I call this the the Sammy sandwich, the Sammy, Sammy 425 00:26:29,170 --> 00:26:33,360 Samuel sandwich, all of the darkness that is spoken of and 426 00:26:33,370 --> 00:26:36,440 of the Elis sons. You have these, these 427 00:26:36,450 --> 00:26:41,490 sprinklings of, of Samuel in the middle of it, right, beginning 428 00:26:41,500 --> 00:26:51,670 there in verse 11 and then and then on again to verse 18 and 429 00:26:51,680 --> 00:26:55,760 then again in verse 26. And then even at the beginning 430 00:26:55,810 --> 00:27:00,770 of, of chapter 3, these little glimpses how bad things are 431 00:27:00,780 --> 00:27:03,630 looking in Israel. But then there's Samuel and God 432 00:27:03,640 --> 00:27:07,650 is raising up Samuel in answer to the prayers of his people. 433 00:27:07,660 --> 00:27:10,690 He's going to bring about something that's good. 434 00:27:10,960 --> 00:27:15,150 And these, these sections that speak of Samuel, they're just 435 00:27:15,160 --> 00:27:18,680 not, they're not filler. You know, sometimes, you know, 436 00:27:18,690 --> 00:27:22,130 the, the way that, you know, good movie makers will have an 437 00:27:22,140 --> 00:27:26,850 intense, super intense scene and then they'll lighten it up, 438 00:27:26,920 --> 00:27:29,240 maybe even bring a little humor because we can't handle this 439 00:27:29,250 --> 00:27:31,850 kind of intensity, right? And so it, it's just, it's all 440 00:27:31,860 --> 00:27:33,530 about carrying the intensity over. 441 00:27:33,540 --> 00:27:36,350 That's what this is about. This is about God instilling 442 00:27:36,360 --> 00:27:40,770 hope to us in the middle of dark times when things are looking so 443 00:27:40,780 --> 00:27:44,210 bad. You know, when you look self of 444 00:27:44,220 --> 00:27:49,470 the border, you think of what's Trump doing or you think of the 445 00:27:49,480 --> 00:27:51,950 Middle East and we get anxious about what's happening in the 446 00:27:51,960 --> 00:27:55,130 Middle East or even look at, you know, our own government, what's 447 00:27:55,140 --> 00:27:56,830 going on? You know, as Christians, how are 448 00:27:56,840 --> 00:27:59,860 we going to do this right? Even if we look within our own 449 00:27:59,960 --> 00:28:05,640 church, the Church of Jesus Christ, when leaders fall and we 450 00:28:05,700 --> 00:28:10,780 it's so easy to lose hope. We can know that even in the 451 00:28:10,790 --> 00:28:15,330 church, like judgment begins with the House of God, like God, 452 00:28:15,340 --> 00:28:18,890 it's cleaning house. God is doing his thing. 453 00:28:19,240 --> 00:28:22,470 And I think we need to get a little bit more in tune for 454 00:28:22,480 --> 00:28:26,970 looking for not just dramatic signs of God at work, but even 455 00:28:26,980 --> 00:28:29,990 in the little things, the quiet things, because in the midst of 456 00:28:30,000 --> 00:28:35,160 all this, it's going on quietly. Samuel is being developed as a 457 00:28:35,170 --> 00:28:38,770 priest and the trajectory of Israel is going to shift. 458 00:28:39,490 --> 00:28:45,930 Same for us #2 so never despair #2 Honor no one above Yahweh. 459 00:28:47,090 --> 00:28:51,660 I think that's a pretty, maybe a pretty obvious take away, but 460 00:28:51,670 --> 00:28:56,450 Eli honored his sons more than he honored Yahweh. 461 00:28:56,460 --> 00:28:58,670 He went easy on his sons, and there's a result. 462 00:28:58,680 --> 00:29:02,610 There were major consequences not just for them, but for all 463 00:29:02,620 --> 00:29:05,940 of Israel. So I think, OK, is there a 464 00:29:05,950 --> 00:29:08,080 parenting lesson here? There's there's gotta be a 465 00:29:08,090 --> 00:29:10,320 parenting lesson in here somewhere, right? 466 00:29:13,640 --> 00:29:21,620 Think about it, Hannah valued God more than her son and as a 467 00:29:21,630 --> 00:29:27,430 result she did what was best for her son and she was blessed and 468 00:29:27,440 --> 00:29:34,860 so was He. Flip side, Eli honored his sons 469 00:29:35,270 --> 00:29:40,920 more than God and as a result he was not willing to do what was 470 00:29:40,930 --> 00:29:44,190 best for his sons. It's funny how that works, huh? 471 00:29:45,130 --> 00:29:49,590 When our loves are out of order, life gets messed up. 472 00:29:50,530 --> 00:29:53,320 We can say I love my children, I love my children, I love my 473 00:29:53,330 --> 00:29:55,290 children, but we can love our children too much, as we said, 474 00:29:56,790 --> 00:29:59,770 and the consequences can be incredibly dire. 475 00:30:02,460 --> 00:30:04,600 We can be afraid to say no to our kids. 476 00:30:05,530 --> 00:30:08,120 We'll do everything OK, you know, to try to divert their 477 00:30:08,130 --> 00:30:14,150 attention or, or maybe we will, you know, try to say it lightly 478 00:30:14,160 --> 00:30:16,640 or to try to change the topic or whatever you might do. 479 00:30:17,380 --> 00:30:20,420 Our children really do need to be learned, learn that there are 480 00:30:20,430 --> 00:30:22,460 limits to things and that no is a good word. 481 00:30:23,120 --> 00:30:26,310 It's a good word, right? Elie's sons. 482 00:30:26,700 --> 00:30:30,090 How would they have turned out if they learned no early on? 483 00:30:31,800 --> 00:30:33,830 They just had more and more freedom. 484 00:30:33,900 --> 00:30:37,520 They were never held to account and looked at where things took 485 00:30:37,530 --> 00:30:42,960 them. Sometimes it's it's as parents, 486 00:30:42,970 --> 00:30:45,420 we need to lay down the law. Now, I'm not talking about being 487 00:30:45,430 --> 00:30:48,100 a harsh parent. This is, this is part of love, 488 00:30:48,110 --> 00:30:49,520 right? We want to be gentle with our 489 00:30:49,530 --> 00:30:51,930 kids, but we can be firm while we're gentle. 490 00:30:54,220 --> 00:30:56,650 We can't let our children dictate our calendars. 491 00:30:56,660 --> 00:30:59,370 We can't let our children dictate the agenda of our 492 00:30:59,380 --> 00:31:01,830 families because we love our kids. 493 00:31:03,090 --> 00:31:06,240 We feel like, oh, we can't deprive them of this activity 494 00:31:06,250 --> 00:31:09,290 and this and this and this. Yeah, we can. 495 00:31:09,830 --> 00:31:13,760 We, we, we, we have to, we have to put limits there in order 496 00:31:13,810 --> 00:31:17,490 that they would learn to love the Lord, to honor the Lord, 497 00:31:17,500 --> 00:31:20,240 that there's some things that are more important than other 498 00:31:20,250 --> 00:31:23,560 things in this world. And so those limits are very 499 00:31:23,570 --> 00:31:25,700 important for us to discern as parents. 500 00:31:26,330 --> 00:31:32,480 You know, Hannah, Hannah gave her son to the Lord. 501 00:31:34,380 --> 00:31:37,600 And even though we're likely not gonna be doing the same thing, 502 00:31:37,680 --> 00:31:41,750 I, I don't want your 3 to 4 year old child serving here without 503 00:31:41,760 --> 00:31:43,900 you here, OK? And you would break all of our 504 00:31:43,910 --> 00:31:45,960 P2P policies, right? It's just not going to work. 505 00:31:47,220 --> 00:31:50,690 But there is something about what she did that is for every 506 00:31:50,700 --> 00:31:54,340 parent, and that is to give over our child to the Lord. 507 00:31:54,480 --> 00:31:58,450 And it's only as we do that, it's only when we honor the Lord 508 00:31:58,460 --> 00:32:01,810 over our children, that we'll have the capacity to say what 509 00:32:01,820 --> 00:32:06,670 needs to be said to them, not worry about the fallout, and do 510 00:32:06,680 --> 00:32:09,740 what needs to be done for them, truly loving them. 511 00:32:10,460 --> 00:32:14,870 It's it's that that is the only way God is setting us, giving us 512 00:32:14,880 --> 00:32:19,760 a reset there, giving them over. I would say the same thing goes 513 00:32:19,770 --> 00:32:22,720 with just in our relationships outside of family, just 514 00:32:22,730 --> 00:32:26,120 relationships with people. Sometimes we can value others 515 00:32:26,170 --> 00:32:30,110 more than we value God. And as a result, when we do 516 00:32:30,120 --> 00:32:35,660 that, we will make compromises in our faith in order to please 517 00:32:35,670 --> 00:32:39,770 other people. And then we hear these lies. 518 00:32:39,860 --> 00:32:46,730 OK, if I if I draw the line here, I might lose this guy or I 519 00:32:46,740 --> 00:32:49,020 might lose this girl. I may never get another one. 520 00:32:49,030 --> 00:32:50,700 That's just the lies of the enemy. 521 00:32:54,170 --> 00:32:58,640 Or if I draw the line, if I say something here, if I don't enter 522 00:32:58,650 --> 00:33:00,470 into this, these kind of activities, I'm not going to be 523 00:33:00,480 --> 00:33:01,960 accepted, I'm not going to be respected. 524 00:33:02,430 --> 00:33:04,000 Those are just lies of the other one. 525 00:33:04,290 --> 00:33:08,240 And we need to stand up firm and say I'm going to honor God first 526 00:33:08,530 --> 00:33:11,690 over other people, over all my other fears. 527 00:33:12,350 --> 00:33:14,510 And does he bless? This is the message. 528 00:33:15,210 --> 00:33:16,760 This is the message of this text. 529 00:33:17,000 --> 00:33:20,920 God will bless. He will meet us and comfort us 530 00:33:20,930 --> 00:33:24,850 because He is a kind and holy God. 531 00:33:25,690 --> 00:33:30,120 Last thing, last one. Since God knows best, does he 532 00:33:30,130 --> 00:33:34,080 know best? He he knows best. 533 00:33:34,150 --> 00:33:37,370 Let his words speak. That's the other thing that I 534 00:33:37,380 --> 00:33:42,290 pull from this passage. We need to expose ourself daily 535 00:33:42,380 --> 00:33:47,170 to the Word of God. I look at my own life and I 536 00:33:47,180 --> 00:33:50,740 think my resistance to reading and and pondering the Word. 537 00:33:50,750 --> 00:33:55,910 And this is not just about my short sightedness. 538 00:33:56,510 --> 00:33:58,260 There's just not a very wise thing to do. 539 00:33:58,270 --> 00:34:02,220 But it's more arrogance to think that I could do my life better. 540 00:34:02,570 --> 00:34:05,540 I mean, that's what that's how I stumbled into the Kingdom is 541 00:34:05,550 --> 00:34:07,770 realizing I don't know how to lead my life. 542 00:34:08,440 --> 00:34:12,330 And one of the the the first admissions for CR is I don't 543 00:34:12,340 --> 00:34:14,830 know how to manage my life. I can't manage my life. 544 00:34:14,880 --> 00:34:20,650 I need help from above and that continues to filter through in 545 00:34:20,659 --> 00:34:23,989 our lives. We we need to acknowledge that 546 00:34:24,080 --> 00:34:30,380 and our failure to acknowledge that God knows better and that I 547 00:34:30,389 --> 00:34:33,850 need course corrections is going to do me in in the end. 548 00:34:34,120 --> 00:34:40,320 And so we need a daily break in of the Word of God. 549 00:34:40,670 --> 00:34:42,420 Literally. We need to open up and let the 550 00:34:42,429 --> 00:34:45,520 Word of God break in and speak to me. 551 00:34:45,630 --> 00:34:49,350 What I need to hear. Most of it is just going to warm 552 00:34:49,360 --> 00:34:51,469 my heart. Some of it is going to confront 553 00:34:51,480 --> 00:34:54,070 those places in my heart that need to be confronted. 554 00:34:54,080 --> 00:34:57,110 Why? So that I will burst out into 555 00:34:57,120 --> 00:35:00,850 joy and the and the trees will clap their hands. 556 00:35:01,040 --> 00:35:03,710 It's all for our good. It is all for our good. 557 00:35:06,070 --> 00:35:10,500 The Word of God living and active, sharper than any double 558 00:35:10,510 --> 00:35:15,560 edged sword going to penetrate even dividing soul and spirit 559 00:35:15,570 --> 00:35:18,620 joints and marrow, judging the thoughts and attitudes of the 560 00:35:18,630 --> 00:35:20,410 heart. That's what it does and we need 561 00:35:20,420 --> 00:35:23,360 to continue to open ourselves up on a daily basis. 562 00:35:23,370 --> 00:35:27,440 So I encourage us all continue to read and, and, and Samuel 563 00:35:27,450 --> 00:35:31,370 reflect on those words and let God speak to us and make us come 564 00:35:31,380 --> 00:35:32,980 alive. Let's pray. 565 00:35:35,600 --> 00:35:42,540 Gracious Father in Heaven, thank you for words like this, harsh 566 00:35:42,550 --> 00:35:46,180 as they may sound, yet merciful in the end. 567 00:35:46,650 --> 00:35:52,210 Lord, thank You that you care enough about us that you would 568 00:35:52,220 --> 00:35:58,910 speak and that you would move, and that you would act on our 569 00:35:58,920 --> 00:36:03,360 behalf in this way. Will continue to teach us and 570 00:36:03,370 --> 00:36:07,340 walk us through this life that we may honor you and experience 571 00:36:07,350 --> 00:36:10,520 the joy that you have intended, trusting you in it all. 572 00:36:11,230 --> 00:36:13,920 Burts in Jesus name we pray. Hey, man.