Samuel: A Hearing Test

Sermon Series: "In Search of Humble Leadership: Looking at Samuel, Saul, and David, and Longing for the Messiah, Sermon 1"

3 purposes for this 7-week study:

1. To discover something about the author’s intent for writing this narrative: It’s not just to help us understand the facts. The author was a storyteller telling us this narrative for a purpose. One purpose is to put these three very different leaders of Israel on display as character studies.
2. To discover the role of this narrative history in the larger picture of the story of the gospel. Jesus said the whole of the OT narrative was fulfilled in the life and ministry of Jesus. How then does the narrative of 1 & 2 Samuel point us to Jesus? Samuel, Saul, and David are human leaders who have positive and negative traits, and they all leave us longing for a better leader who will fulfill the purposes of God on the earth completely. Unlike these three, Jesus consistently and fully obeyed the will of his Father with complete humility (see Philippians 2).
3. To enter briefly into the lives of the three main characters, seeking to learn from their successes and failures.

Two desired takeaways from these messages:

1. Like the two on the road to Emmaus, may our hearts burn within us as we understand these stories in their greater context of redemption.
2. May we be deeply challenged to examine our own hearts, especially when it’s so easy to point fingers at bad leaders around us.

Two observations from 1 Samuel 3

1. Samuel’s listening was a gift of grace that came through the prayers of faith of Samuel’s mother Hannah.
2. As Samuel listened to God, his words to the people became God’s words to the people (1 Samuel 3:19-4:1).

Takeaway from this story:
Where there seems to be a vacuum of healthy leadership around us, instead of criticizing others, let’s ask ourselves if our attitude is like Samuel’s attitude, an attitude of willingness to listen to the voice of God.

Ask yourselves:

1. Can your heart honestly say right now, “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening”?
2. What daily practices do you need to change in order to settle your heart enough to hear what God might be saying to you?
3. Is there another follower of Jesus with whom you can sit and listen to the voice of God and read his word together?