Will We Listen?

1 Samuel 3:1-21 September 28, 2025 Pastor Daniel Everhart

Thesis God is speaking through His Word today, and the urgent question confronting every believer is whether we will listen and obey.

Series

You Need a King

Type

Expository

Tone

pastoraldidacticprophetic

Method

grammatical-historicalredemptive-historicalcanonical

What's in this sermon

The shape of the argument

68 units across exposition, application, illustration, theological claim, and conclusion. The pastor's argument is built from these moving parts.

Pastoral correction · unit #21

"The preacher gives concrete instruction to those struggling with Bible reading: come to God's Word today without shame. Start with five minutes in the Gospel of Mark."

Doctrinal loci· 4 surfaced

Christology · 8 Providence / Sovereignty · 8 Sanctification · 7 Pastoral Theology · 4

Bible citations· 28

Illustrations· 2

personal story · unit #1 — The preacher shares his personal experience of moving from Alabama to El Paso and discovering cultural richness he had been missing his whole life—setting up an analogy about people who live without God's Word and don't realize what they're missing.
hypothetical · unit #20 — The preacher paints a hypothetical scenario of someone struggling to maintain Bible reading amid busyness, ending the day in guilt and shame over failure.

Theological claims· 20

People can either live their whole lives without God's Word and not realize what they're missing, or grow up around it and forget how precious it is. unit #2
Without the Word of the Lord, people wander aimlessly, lost and vulnerable, with no source of truth or moral compass to guide them through life. unit #7
Eli's physical blindness in verse 2 functions symbolically to reveal his spiritual blindness—he could not see the Word of the Lord. unit #9
Eli's sin made it difficult for him to hear the Word of the Lord, even though he was the high priest responsible for teaching God's people. unit #11
The lamp's continued burning symbolizes a glimmer of hope in the midst of Israel's spiritual darkness. unit #15
The lamp not going out means God had not yet abandoned His people. unit #16
The preacher responds with doxology and reiterates the claim with pastoral emphasis: despite the darkness, there is hope—God has not abandoned His people. unit #17
The passage contrasts Eli, the high priest who cannot recognize God's voice, with Samuel, the boy who is sensitive and ready to respond. unit #29
God's Word interrupted Samuel, and Samuel responded by listening. unit #38
The preacher sets up the expectation (rhetorically) that Samuel's first prophetic message would be easy and encouraging—preparing for the shock that it's actually a word of severe judgment. unit #41
God gave Samuel an extraordinarily difficult first assignment—delivering a word of judgment to the high priest who was also his father figure. unit #43
Eli and his sons rejected God's sacrifice and made a mockery of it, so God rejected them. unit #47
To despise the cross of Christ is to reject the only means of salvation—not because some sins are beyond the cross, but because the cross is the only means of atonement. unit #48
Where Eli failed as Israel's high priest, Jesus is the great high priest who perfectly mediates between God and man by offering Himself as the sinless sacrifice for our sins. unit #50
The preacher briefly empathizes with Samuel's fear of delivering such a difficult message. unit #53
Samuel heard the Word of the Lord and obeyed despite fear—we must be hearers and doers of God's Word, not just hearers. unit #56
Eli's humble submission to God's judgment ('It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good') is his greatest moment despite his many failures. unit #59
God raised up Samuel as the first in a line of prophets Moses spoke of in Deuteronomy 18, restoring His Word to Israel after a time of silence. unit #62
Samuel served faithfully as a prophet but fell short of being the ultimate prophet Moses spoke of—that prophet is Jesus (Acts 3). unit #63
Jesus is the eternal Word of God who perfectly reveals the Father, the great high priest who cleanses us from sin, and the King ruling all things for our good and His glory. unit #64

Quotations· 4

"Eli's physical condition was a reflection of the spiritual reality. He could not see the light of day, nor could he see the Word of the Lord. His darkness was deep." — John Woodhouse (unit #9)

"In the darkness represented by God's silence and Eli's blindness, the news that God's lamp had not yet gone out suggests that God had not yet abandoned his people." — John Woodhouse (unit #16)

"To reject God's sacrifice is to reject any hope of your guilt being atoned for. The sacrifices of the Old Testament point to the sacrifice of Jesus at the cross. So in the same way to treat the cross with contempt is to reject any hope of being atoned for. It is not that there are sins which are beyond the scope of the cross. There are no sins which are too big for the grace of God in the blood of Christ to cover. The point is this. If you despise the cross of Christ, then you reject the only means of your salvation." — Tim Chester (unit #48)

"The Word of the Lord came to the Old Testament prophets. But Jesus spoke on his own authority as the eternal Word of God, who perfectly revealed the Father to us." — Wayne Grudem (unit #64)

Read it

Full transcript

32,819 characters 68 units ~36 min reading time

0 · The preacher introduces himself to the congregation, expresses gratitude for their welcome, and orients the listeners to the biblical text and sermon series

missed phrases. Last year and one week today, we visited this church for the first time. And it's been such a joy to join this church to be a part of the saints of Cross of Grace. And so I'm grateful for you as a body welcoming us in with open arms. And I'm excited and honored and humbled to preach God's word today. So if you will turn with me in your bibles to First Samuel, chapter three. First Samuel, chapter three is where we're going to be today. We're continuing our series through the book of 1st Samuel titled you need a king. We do. We need king. First Samuel, chapter three.

1 · The preacher shares his personal experience of moving from Alabama to El Paso and discovering cultural richness he had been missing his whole life—setting up an analogy about people who live without God's Word and don't realize what they're missing

Chuck mentioned that I am not originally from El Paso. Now, I know for many of you that may be hard to believe. You know, I feel like I look very chuco myself. You know, you're not from a place when people. You meet people and they often go, oh, are you military? That's, like, how you know that you're not from El Paso. So it is true. I'm not from El Paso. I come to you from the strange country, as Chuck said, of Alabama, and born and raised there in Alabama. And thankfully, five years ago, the Lord called my family to come to this city. Our daughter was five weeks old, and we packed up our things and we moved 19 hours away from family to the desert. And. And it has been such a blessing just to make this city our home. Now, you could imagine coming from Alabama, there were a lot of things that are normal or common if you're from El Paso that I had never experienced before. I had never experienced a mariachi band interrupting your dinner conversations. Never. I had never been to a quinceanera, never been to one of those. I had never had tacos at a high school football game. That one was really like, whoa, this is different. I never experienced tamales at Christmas time. What a tragedy that I had not grown up with that. And time and time again, I had these experiences. I mean, you should have seen me the first time that I tried sopapillas here. Okay, I was at. Just at dinner, and they ordered some. And these guys who I had only known for a few days were like, oh, you just like. You know, I'm looking around like, how do I eat this thing? What do I do with this? And they're like, well, just bite the corner off and you pour honey into it. And so I did. And I don't know what I did wrong. I may have, like, just. I don't know what I did with the pastry, but honey began to drizzle and everywhere, all over the place. It's all in my hands. And, like, my hands are, like, you know, sticking together. I have to, like, pull them apart. It's terrible. Everybody's staring at me. Nobody's helping me. Finally, we were at dinner with a missionary friend, and he was like, hey, this is, you know, like, this is how you're supposed to eat it. And I was like, okay. But it was too late. The damage was done. Honey was everywhere. It was a mess, but I didn't care. I was just so in awe of these things that I had experienced in El Paso for the first time, year or two, that I lived here. Just one thing after another, Just in awe of some of the unique and rich cultural experiences of our city. I was amazed by it because I had spent my whole life missing out on how amazing these things were.

2 · The preacher draws the analogy explicit: just as people can either miss cultural richness or take it for granted, so people can either live without God's Word or grow numb to its preciousness—which is the condition of the generation in 1 Samuel 3

And at the same time, I met a lot of people who have grown up here, and many of you who have spent your whole lives here and have grown up with all of that cultural richness. And because it's always been there, you don't really think much about it. It's just. Just normal to you. And that's. That's how it can be with the word of God. Some people live their whole lives without it and don't realize what they're missing out on. And others grow up around it and forget how precious it really is. And in First Samuel, chapter three, we meet a generation like that. Some who had never heard God's voice and others who had long stopped listening.

3 · The preacher states the sermon's controlling question and thesis: God is speaking—the question is whether we will listen

And as we begin today, I want to give you a truth and a question. The truth is this. God is speaking. Will we listen? God is speaking. Will we listen?

4 · The preacher reads the primary text aloud (1 Samuel 3:1-10 selectively), establishing the biblical foundation for the sermon

First Samuel, chapter three, beginning in verse one, as we read, let's remember this is God's word now. The boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord in the presence of Eli. And the word of the Lord was rare in those days. There was no frequent vision at that time. Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place. 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. Then the Lord called Samuel and he said, here I am, and ran to Eli and said, here I am, for you called me. But he said, I did not call lie down again. So he went and Lay down and then jump down to verse 10 with me. And the Lord came and stood calling, as at other times, Samuel, Samuel and Samuel said, speak for your servant hears.

5 · The preacher prays for the congregation to hear and respond to God's Word, echoing Samuel's posture of readiness

Lord, we thank you for your word that you have given to us that we might hear it today and hear the truth in it and hear how good and how rich and how life changing and transforming it is. I pray God that you would give us eyes to see and ears to hear your word today. That it would change our lives and affect the way that we would live our lives around others, Lord, that it would change our hearts and it would renew our minds. Lord, you are speaking to us today. And we, like Samuel, respond. Speak for your servant hears. Thank you in Jesus name. Amen. Amen.

6 · The preacher highlights the gravity of verse 1's opening statement—'the word of the Lord was rare'—and warns against skimming past its significance

Our passage today begins with a harrowing statement. Did you catch it? The word of the Lord is rare. What a dreadful reality like this is. Horrible. What a tragedy it is for God's word to be rare. And if we're not careful, we can read a verse like verse one and just sort of pass over this statement like, the word of the Lord was rare. Okay, got it. Keep moving on, but let's not do that this morning. Let's not skim over the text this morning and fail to acknowledge how dire this statement is. It's horrible, friends.

7 · The preacher argues that without God's Word, people are lost, wandering aimlessly like sheep without a shepherd—illustrated by Amos 8:12 and connected to the book of Judges' closing statement that everyone did what was right in their own eyes

It should shake us to our core when we read this. Without the word of the Lord, where is our source of truth? What will guide us through the chaos of life? It's a terrible thing. And later, in the 8th century BC, Amos would prophesy of a time when again God would be silent and his people would experience the silence of the Lord. And he kind of describes it like this in Amos, chapter 8, verse 12. He says that people without the word of the Lord would wander from sea to sea, and from north to east they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the Lord, but they shall not find it just as it was in those days. So it is here in first Samuel, chapter three. The word of the Lord is rare. And without the word of the Lord, people would wander aimlessly, looking for something to guide their lives. But they would not find it. They would be lost with no, no moral compass, no no source of truth to guide them through the chaos of life. They would be like sheep without a shepherd. They would have no one to lead them to green pastures and still waters. Instead, they would be left to wander in the desert only to be devoured by ravenous wolves. This is terrible. The silence of the Lord is an awful place to be. And that's exactly the place we find the people of of Israel in First Samuel, chapter one. Now, how did they get there? Good question. Remember, Ricky highlighted at the beginning of our series that one Samuel picks up at the end of the Book of Judges, which ends like this. Everyone did what was right in his own eyes. That's the setting. That's the context we find the people of Israel in. Everyone did doing what seems good to them. They did not listen to the Word of the Lord. They did not obey his word. Everyone just decided to do what was good to them. So the Word of the Lord was rare.

8 · The preacher reads verse 2 to introduce another layer of explanation for why God's Word was rare—focusing on Eli's physical blindness

But let's look at verse two to see another layer of this why the Lord of the Lord is rare. Verse 2. At that time, Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place. 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.

9 · The preacher argues that Eli's physical blindness is intentionally juxtaposed with the rarity of visions to symbolize his spiritual blindness—he cannot see God's Word

So we know from chapter two that Eli is getting old, and certainly his fading eyesight has to do with the natural deterioration of the body as we grow old. However, the author is trying to highlight something here. This is intentional to. To describe Eli's fading eyesight. Right after mentioning that the Word of the Lord was rare and that there was no frequent vision. John Woodhouse comments on this verse, and he says that Eli's physical condition was a reflection of the spiritual reality. He could not see the light of day, nor could he see the Word of the Lord. His darkness was deep. So Eli, the high priest, was blind, not only in a physical sense, but in a spiritual sense. He could not see the Word of the Lord.

10 · The preacher demonstrates Eli's spiritual blindness through examples from chapters 1 and 2: his failure to perceive Hannah's grief, his failure to discipline his corrupt sons, and his own participation in their sin

And this is evident all through all throughout the first two chapters of this book. In chapter one, Eli fails to see that Hannah is pouring out her soul to the Lord just with. With deep anxiety over her situation. How she. She is barren and can't have children. And. And he looks at her and goes, woman, put down the wine. And she says, well, I'm not drunk. I'm heartbroken here. And Eli's like, well, bless you, woman, in the name of the Lord. Just sort of like, oh, man, like, I messed that one up. And then in chapter two, he fails to reign in his rebellious sons who are sleeping with the female servants at the Tent of Meeting and stealing meat offered as a sacrifice to the Lord in order to fatten themselves. And he just kind of gives us this like, like, casual, like, generic sort of warrant. Like, like, boys don't do this. You know, people are Talking about us and, and this is. This doesn't look good. Let's stop doing like he. He just. He's not the. The father and the priest that he ought to be in this moment. But then later in chapter two, Eli himself is joining in with his sons, getting fat off the food that was supposed to be offered to the Lord and as a sacrifice.

11 · The preacher makes the theological claim that Eli's sin has dulled his ability to hear God's Word—ironic given his role as priest and teacher of God's people

So blind old Eli, the priest who is supposed to enlighten God's people through the instruction of God's word, can't see. His sin has made it difficult to hear the Word of the Lord.

12 · The preacher applies Eli's condition to the congregation with diagnostic questions: Is your sin dulling your senses to God? What patterns might be making God's Word rare in your life? Calls for self-examination and repentance

And I wonder, are you in the same position as Eli today? Is your pursuit of sin making it hard to hear God's voice? Like too often, we. We ask the Lord to speak to us, but we have dulled our senses to the things of God through our pursuit of sin. That's what Eli has done here. And it's possible for us to not even be aware that our sinful patterns may be making it difficult for us to hear God's voice. So where in your life, friend, might sin be dulling your senses to the things of God? Think on that. What sinful patterns may be causing the Word of the Lord to be rare in your life today. And help us, Lord. Help us, Lord, to see, to repent, to obey your word.

13 · The preacher synthesizes the grim situation (word is rare, visions ceased, priest is blind) but notes the hopeful detail that the lamp of God had not yet gone out

These are dark days for the people of God. The Word of the Lord is rare. There is no frequent vision. Their high priest is blind to the things of God. But the lamp of God had not yet gone out.

14 · The preacher explains the literal detail: the lamp burning from evening to morning indicates it's still night

The lamp of God would burn in the tabernacle from evening to morning. And so the fact that it had not gone out yet, it tells us that it's still nighttime, middle of the night here.

15 · The preacher asserts the lamp's theological significance: it symbolizes hope in the midst of darkness

But it also gives us a glimmer of hope in the midst of Israel's darkness.

16 · The preacher cites Woodhouse to support the theological reading: the lamp not going out means God has not abandoned His people

Woodhouse writes, in the darkness represented by God's silence and Eli's blindness, the news that God's lamp had not yet gone out suggests that God had not yet abandoned his people.

17 · The preacher responds with doxology and reiterates the claim with pastoral emphasis: despite the darkness, there is hope—God has not abandoned His people

Praise God for that. These are dark days for the people of God. But the lamp of God had not gone out yet. It may be dim in Israel, but there's still hope. God hasn't abandoned his people yet.

18 · The preacher applies the lamp's hope to individuals struggling with sin: even if you're in darkness, God has not abandoned you—there is still hope

And if you, like Eli, are. Are living in sin or chasing sinful patterns or whatever sin in your life is making it difficult to hear God's voice. If you find yourself in darkness today, friend, there's still hope for you in your darkness. God hasn't abandoned you.

19 · The preacher pivots from addressing those caught in active sin to those whose busyness has crowded out time in God's Word—a different diagnostic path

Perhaps, though, it's not the pursuit of your sin. That is causing the word of the Lord to be rare in your life. Perhaps it's that your priorities have drifted ever so slightly. Perhaps you've allowed the busyness of life to get in the way of spending time in God's Word.

20 · The preacher paints a hypothetical scenario of someone struggling to maintain Bible reading amid busyness, ending the day in guilt and shame over failure

You find it difficult to squeeze in a quiet time with your schedule. And maybe you even make plans like, that's it. I've got to get back on track with my quiet time today. I know that this book has the words of life in it. And you pick out a Bible reading plan and the day goes by and it's nighttime and you're tired and here you are again and it didn't happen and you go to bed feeling guilty. Shame. I failed again.

21 · The preacher gives concrete instruction to those struggling with Bible reading: come to God's Word today without shame

Hear me, friend. My encouragement to you today would be this. If you find yourself in that place, busy with life, not having spent time in God's word, come to the Lord today. Come to the Lord. Don't carry around a burden of shame about however long it's been since you've spent time in God's word. Just come to his word today. Like this day, Sunday. Find five minutes in your afternoon today or sometime in the evening and start with a handful of verses like, I recommend Mark because as Ricky has said, if. If First Samuel gives us and shows us our need for a king, Mark gives us the king. So begin there today, open Mark, begin chapter one, verse one, and just spend a moment in God's Word today.

22 · The preacher provides more structured guidance for those needing help: the SOAP method (Scripture, Observation, Application, Prayer) used in the church's home groups

And if that's not like, if you're like, yeah, but I just, I need some more guidance. I need something more structured than that. Then start with Mark. And maybe this would be a helpful practice for you. Something that we're doing in our home groups called the SOAP method. SOAP is an acronym standing for Scripture Observation, Application and Prayer. And so read the passage going through that acronym. Read the scripture three times. I recommend just a handful of verses, six, maybe ten. Read the passage three times slowly and then make observations. What stands out to you in the passage? What confronts your life? You know, go through that. And then how does the Scripture apply to my life? Go through that practice and then write a prayer. Spend some time praying through the passage. Use that as a helpful tool.

23 · The preacher issues a direct exhortation: come to God's Word today with fresh eyes because He is speaking

But today, come to the Lord. Come to His Word with fresh eyes. Because God is speaking. Let's make time to hear from him.

24 · The preacher contrasts Eli and Samuel: Eli blind and distant; Samuel near God, with open ears and willing heart, even in a time when God's Word was rare

Eli is lying in his own place, blind to the things of God. But the young boy, Samuel, was lying down in the temple of the Lord where the ark of God was. So while everyone around Samuel is doing what is right in their Own eyes distant from the Lord, we see Samuel lying down in the temple, close to the Lord, with open ears and a willing heart. Even, yes, God's word was rare.

25 · The preacher highlights Samuel's immediate, eager response when God calls—he runs to obey, demonstrating readiness and willingness even before knowing it was God

But then he speaks and Samuel hears, bursting through the silence. God's word calls, look with me. In verse 4. Then the Lord called Samuel and he said, here I am, and ran to Eli. Did you catch that? Samuel ran to Eli. This young boy was eager to obey the young call of the Lord. He was a willing vessel, ready to listen. He hears someone call and he runs to obey, thinking it was Eli who had called him.

26 · The preacher reads verses 5-6, narrating the first two cycles of God calling Samuel and Samuel going to Eli, who sends him back

And he said, here I am, for you called me. But he said, I did not call. Lie down again. So he went and lay down again. And the Lord called again Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to Eli and said, here I am, for you called me. But he said, I did not call my son, who lie down again.

27 · The preacher explains the significant difference between 'Samuel did not yet know the Lord' and the same phrase about Eli's sons: theirs was willful rebellion; Samuel's was simply lack of revelation

Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord. Now this is an interesting line right here, because this statement is identical to the one that we see about Eli's sons Hophni and phinehas. In chapter 2, verse 12 it says they did not know the Lord. The difference, however, is that Samuel did not know the Lord, yet Hophni and Phinehas did not know the Lord because their hearts were turned against God. They had done what was right in their own eyes. They did not listen to the word of the Lord, therefore they did not know the Lord. Samuel, on the other hand, did not know the Lord because as it says, the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.

28 · The preacher reads verse 8—the third call, after which Eli finally perceives that the Lord is calling Samuel

Verse 8. The Lord called Samuel again, the third time. And he arose and went to Eli and said, here I am, for you called me. Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy.

29 · The preacher highlights the ironic contrast: the high priest Eli cannot recognize God's voice while the boy Samuel is sensitive and responsive to it

Do you see the contrast here in this passage? Twice now the Lord calls to Samuel and Samuel comes to Eli, perceiving someone had called him. He comes, Eli, I'm here. What do you need? But Eli, unable to identify that the Lord was calling the boy, sends him away. So we have the high priest, Eli, who can't seem to hear or recognize God's voice, and Samuel, the young boy, who is sensitive and ready to respond to the Lord's call.

30 · The preacher applies the Eli-Samuel contrast to the congregation with diagnostic questions: Which one are you—spiritually deaf like Eli, or ready to listen like Samuel?

If we could look in the mirror for a moment. Which one are we? Are you, like Eli, unable to hear and recognize God's voice? Have you allowed your sin to numb your your senses to the things of God? Or are you, like Samuel, willing, open handed, ready to hear and respond to the voice of the Lord?

31 · The preacher narrates Eli's eventual recognition and his instruction to Samuel on how to respond to God's call

Eli had twice failed to identify the Voice of the Lord. But finally Eli sees, aha. The Lord is calling to Samuel. What was rare in those days is finally happening. Samuel wasn't able to identify the Lord's voice yet because the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him. So Eli gives the boy Samuel some instructions. Look with me in verse nine, he says, go lie down. And if he calls you, you shall say, speak, Lord, for your servant hears.

32 · The preacher signals a pause to extract application from Eli's instruction to Samuel before continuing the narrative

Now, I want to pause here for a second. I don't want to rush past this too quickly because. Because I think there's some application here.

33 · The preacher applies Eli's instruction to the congregation's responsibility to train children to know God's Word—if we fail, we risk a future like Eli's generation where God's Word is rare

Parents, grandparents, kids, ministry, volunteers, youth leaders, saints of cross of grace. There's something here that we should take away from this moment because we have the unique responsibility of raising our children to hear, understand and obey the voice of the Lord. How will our children know the Word of the Lord if it's not revealed to them? And how will it be revealed to them if we fail to reveal it to them? If we don't train our children to know God's word, then we are heading toward a future similar to the days of Eli, where the Word of the Lord will be rare. It's our job, it's our duty, to train our children to hear God's voice.

34 · The preacher gives concrete, age-appropriate instruction to parents: teach Bible stories when children are young, model Bible reading, and show them how to observe, apply, and pray through Scripture as they age

And so parents, grandparents, when your children are younger, teach them to hear the Word of the Lord. Teach them Bible stories. Make them familiar with the stories of Scripture. Let them see you spending time in God's Word. Let's model this for them. Let's sit at our kitchen tables or in our studies, and let's read the Word of God while their eyes are on us. Let's model it for them. And as they begin to age, show them how to read a passage. Show them how to make observations as they read that passage. Like, do this together with them and then help them. Like, how do we take Scripture and properly apply it to our lives, reading it in its proper context, and then teach them how to pray through that passage of Scripture. This is our job. It's our duty, it's our call, and it is a joy to do. So let's do it well. Let's teach our children to hear the Word, Word of the Lord.

35 · The preacher addresses kids ministry volunteers and youth leaders directly, affirming the importance of their work and calling them to diligent preparation

And kids, ministry, volunteers, youth leaders, listen. What you do matters, friends, like it does. It does not go unnoticed. Your faithful service to the children and young people of our church. It matters as we partner with parents, to teach our children and young people to know God's Word. So prepare diligently for your classes. What you do matters, friends. It's important be encouraged today and study diligently.

36 · The preacher calls the whole congregation to continue valuing God's Word in corporate gatherings and home groups, modeling for the next generation a church that treasures Scripture

And saints of this body continue to take seriously the preached word of God in our gatherings and the shared word in our home, in our home groups. Now, I'm grateful that this church, for years, for decades now, has been doing this well. Let's continue to do this well. Let's, as a body, as saints, model for the young people who sit in our services. How to be a church that values the word of God in our gatherings. Let's continue in that work. Friends, it's our job to teach our children how to hear, to recognize, to understand God's voice.

37 · The preacher expounds verse 10, noting the Lord's physical presence ('came and stood') and double calling of Samuel's name—a pattern seen with Abraham, Jacob, and Moses marking pivotal moments

Continuing in verse nine. So Samuel went and lay down in his place, and the Lord came and stood calling, as at other times. Samuel, Samuel. Samuel said, speak for your servant hears. Previously, Samuel heard the Lord calling to him. But something was different this time. It says, the Lord came and stood. Though Samuel could not perceive the Lord's call before, there was no mistaking it this time. The Lord was clearly, objectively present with Samuel in the room as he called to the boy by name. Not one time, as he had done before, but this time he calls his name twice. Samuel. Samuel. This is significant here because it's a reflection of other times when the Lord called out to people at pivotal moments in their lives. God called to Abraham In Genesis chapter 22, Abraham, Abraham, as he was about to sacrifice his only son Isaac, in obedience to the Lord. We see it again, Genesis chapter 46 with Jacob. He calls Jacob, Jacob, instructing him to bring his family to Egypt, where the Lord will make them a great nation. God called to Moses from the burning bush in Exodus 3, Moses, Moses to go and deliver his people from Egypt. So something significant is happening here. By this double call. The Lord is calling the boy Samuel to be a prophet who will speak the word of the Lord to God's people once again. And not only that, the Lord is calling Samuel to a more personal faith and knowledge of God.

38 · The preacher summarizes the moment: God's Word interrupted Samuel's rest, and Samuel listened

God's word called to Samuel, interrupting him as he lay in the middle of the night. And Samuel listened.

39 · The preacher applies Samuel's response to the congregation: When God's Word interrupts your life, do you listen like Samuel or push it off due to busyness? God is calling today—will we listen?

And I wonder, what's your response when God's word interrupts your life? Are you, like Samuel, open and willing to respond to the call of God, or do you tend to just sort of push it off? Do you allow the busyness of your schedule to get in the way of listening to God's voice? Do you. Do you not take that moment to pause and say, speak, Lord, for your servant hears? Because, well, I've just got other things to get to throughout the day. What's your Response, Friends, God's word is calling to us today. He's calling us to come, to obey, to trust him, to surrender. He's calling. He's speaking. Will we listen?

40 · The preacher signals a structural shift from 'God's Word calls' to 'God's Word judges,' preparing the listener for the difficult content of Samuel's first prophetic message

God's word calls, and God's word judges.

41 · The preacher sets up the expectation (rhetorically) that Samuel's first prophetic message would be easy and encouraging—preparing for the shock that it's actually a word of severe judgment

So God calls Samuel to be a prophet, one who will speak God's word to the people. And I wonder what this first word will be that he will give. Right? Like, I'm sure it's going to be something light and easy, you know, something encouraging and flowery, something to get the young boy accustomed to his role. Right?

42 · The preacher reads God's word to Samuel (verses 11-14)—a message of severe, irrevocable judgment against Eli and his house

Verse 11. Behold, I am about to do a thing in Israel at which the two ears of everyone who hears it will tingle. On that day, I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house from beginning to end. And I declare to him that I am about to punish his house forever for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God and he did not restrain them. Therefore, I swear to the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be atoned for by sacrifice or offering forever.

43 · The preacher reflects on the weight and difficulty of Samuel's task: delivering a word of severe judgment to the high priest who has also been a father figure—not an easy 'starter assignment' for a young prophet

Wow, that's not quite the softball of a prophecy that I would expect the Lord to give this young new prophet for his first message. You're not going to find that in any leadership books or, like, you know, books on how to train up new ministry volunteers in your church and get them into it, just right out the gate with it. God gives word, gives Samuel a word of judgment to share with the high priest. And that would be difficult enough. Imagine with me, this is the high priest. Like. Like, think about how heavy that must be. Not only from, like, a political, governmental sense, but from a spiritual sense. You've got to give a word of judgment to the high priest. And. But not only that. What might be more difficult than that is that he's going to have to give this word of judgment to the man who has served as a father figure in his life, as he served under Eli in the priesthood. Like, this is. This is difficult to do here. There's like a familial bond between these two. And Samuel is going to have to give a word of judgment to this father figure.

44 · The preacher notes that this judgment is not new—God had already spoken it through a man of God in chapter 2

And this is not a new word from the Lord. This is not like God just coming out of left field like, whoa, that came out of nowhere. No, the Lord had already spoken to Eli through a man of God in chapter two, Judgment was coming. He said judgment was coming to Eli and his sons for their faithlessness and rebellion. This is simply God preparing to do what he had already said he was going to do.

45 · The preacher explains the reason for judgment: Eli's sons blasphemed God, Eli failed to restrain them, and they showed contempt for the Lord's sacrifice—so now their sins would not be atoned for

Eli and his sons would be punished for for their failure as priests. His sons were blaspheming God and Eli failed to restrain them. They did what was right in their own eyes, rejecting God in the process. They showed contempt for the Lord's offering his means of grace to atone for the sins of the people. And now their sins would not be atoned for. There would be no forgiveness for Eli and his sons this time.

46 · The preacher steps outside the exposition to shepherd the congregation through the difficulty of this passage—acknowledging it's hard but calling them to trust God's justice and mercy

Time this might seem harsh or hard to handle, and it is. It's hard for us to grab hold of this, but we need to trust God. In the midst of words that are difficult like this, we need to trust the sovereign God who is perfectly just, who weighs our deeds and actions. He's the only one who can truly judge the heart of man. And he has been extremely patient with Eli and his sons. It's only by the mercy and grace of God that they had not been punished sooner for their wickedness and spiritual blindness.

47 · The preacher states the theological principle: to reject God's sacrifice is to be rejected by God

They rejected God's sacrifice. They made a mockery of it, and now God would reject them.

48 · The preacher cites Tim Chester to make a biblical-theological move: OT sacrifices point to Christ's cross, so to despise the cross is to reject the only means of salvation

Tim Chester says, to reject God's sacrifice is to reject any hope of your guilt being atoned for. The sacrifices of the Old Testament point to the sacrifice of Jesus at the cross. So in the same way to treat the cross with contempt is to reject any hope of being atoned for. It is not that there are sins which are beyond the scope of the cross. There are no sins which are too big for the grace of God in the blood of Christ to cover. Praise God for that. The point is this. If you despise the cross of Christ, then you reject the only means of your salvation.

49 · The preacher applies the warning universally: we all stand guilty before God like Eli and Israel—we have all sinned, disobeyed, and done what was right in our own eyes

Hear me today, friends. Don't despise the cross like we. We all stand judged by God's word. We all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We all have failed to obey God's word. And we all, like the people of Israel, have done what is right in our own eyes. We have not listened to the word of the Lord. And. And we stand guilty before a holy God.

50 · The preacher makes the Christological turn: where Eli failed as high priest, Jesus is the great high priest who offered Himself as the perfect sacrifice for our sins

But praise the Lord. Where Eli failed as Israel's high priest, there would be a great high priest who would perfectly mediate between God and man. And as priest, he would not offer some other animal, some ordinary animal, as a sacrifice for our sins. No. He would instead offer himself as the sinless and spotless lamb who was slain upon a cross to pay the debt we owed so that we might receive forgiveness from God. Praise the Lord for that.

51 · The preacher issues a doxological exhortation: lift your eyes to the cross and see Christ's love

So Today, friends, lift your eyes to the cross and see the love of our great High Priest who gave himself for you and for me.

52 · The preacher reads verse 15—Samuel waits until morning, opens the temple doors, but is afraid to tell Eli the vision

Verse 15. Samuel lay until morning. Then he opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And. And Samuel was afraid to tell the vision to Eli.

53 · The preacher briefly empathizes with Samuel's fear of delivering such a difficult message

I would be too.

54 · The preacher reads verses 16-18—Eli demands the full message from Samuel under oath, and Samuel tells him everything

But Eli called Samuel and said, samuel, my son. And he said, here I am. And Eli said, what was it that he told you? Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you. And more also if you hide anything from me of all that he told you. So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him.

55 · The preacher reads Eli's response and signals its significance: 'It is the Lord

And he said, catch this. This is Eli. It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.

56 · The preacher makes the theological claim that Samuel obeyed God's Word despite fear, modeling that we must be hearers and doers of God's Word, not just hearers

Samuel, though afraid to share the vision with Eli, obeys the word of the Lord. He shares this word of judgment to the High priest, to his father figure in his life. Samuel heard the word of the Lord and responded with obedience. It's not simply enough to hear the word of the Lord and not allow it to affect our lives. We must be hearers and doers of God's word. We must listen and obey. Let us be like Samuel, who heard the word of the Lord and was obedient.

57 · The preacher applies Samuel's obedience to the congregation with direct questions: What is God saying to you? Can you hear Him? Will you listen and obey?

I wonder, what is the Lord saying to you today? Because he's speaking. Can you hear him? Will you listen? Will you, like Samuel, obey?

58 · The preacher summarizes the exchange and highlights Eli's remarkable response of submission to God's judgment

Samuel heard the word of the Lord and obeyed. He spoke the word of God and hid nothing from Eli. And Eli's response? Eli's response. It is the Lord. Let him do what seems good to him.

59 · The preacher identifies Eli's response as his greatest moment—despite his many failures, he humbles himself and submits to God's judgment

Eli had failed in a lot of ways. As Israel's great high priest, he had really dropped the ball. But this might be his greatest moment, because Eli acknowledges the word of the Lord and humbles himself before the sovereign God in the face of judgment.

60 · The preacher applies Eli's response as a model for believers: in difficult circumstances, trust God's loving sovereignty demonstrated at the cross and say 'It is the Lord

May that be our response today, friends, both in submitting our lives to God's word and in the midst of life's difficult circumstances. Why? How can we do that when things are hard? Because he is a loving God whom we can trust. How do we know his love for us? Because of his work on the cross. By looking at the cross, we see a God who loves us, a priest who stepped in to redeem us, and a king who is sitting on the throne, governing it all. So when things don't go our way, when our plans fail, or when God's word redirects our lives from our sinful desires, when faced with trials and sickness and suffering, may we look at the course of our lives and say, it is the Lord. Let him do what seems good. To him.

61 · The preacher reads verses 19-21, showing that Samuel grew as a prophet, the Lord was with him, and God appeared again at Shiloh—the Word of the Lord had returned

Finally, friends, God's word has come to us. Praise God. Verse 19. And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him. And let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel, from Dan to Beersheba, knew that Samuel was established as a prophet of the Lord. And the Lord appeared again at Shiloh. For the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the word of the Lord.

62 · The preacher traces the movement from silence to speech: God raised up Samuel as a prophet in the line Moses spoke of in Deuteronomy 18, restoring His Word to Israel

So this chapter begins with the Word of the Lord being rare in Shiloh, and it ends with the Lord appearing again. God revealed himself through His Word and raised up a prophet who would speak his word to the people. God's word was rare, but it had come again. It was back. Samuel would become the first in a line of prophets that Moses spoke about In Deuteronomy, chapter 18, who would proclaim the Word of God to the people.

63 · The preacher makes a biblical-theological move: Samuel fulfilled Moses' prophecy partially, but the ultimate prophet Moses spoke of is Jesus (citing Acts 3)

But like Ricky mentioned last week, Old Testament prophecy can tend to have two trajectories to it. While Samuel would serve faithfully as a prophet, he would still fall short of being the prophet who would come proclaiming God's word. That prophet was still to come, and he would come. And as Peter tells us in Acts chapter three, that prophet is is Jesus.

64 · The preacher climaxes with a threefold Christological declaration: Jesus is the eternal Word (citing John 1 and Wayne Grudem), the great high priest, the prophet revealing the Father, and the King ruling for our good and His glory

Jesus, whom John refers to in the opening of his Gospel as the Word, would come as the prophesied prophet and bring God's Word to us. Wayne Grudem says of Jesus the Prophet that the Word of the Lord came to the Old Testament prophets. But Jesus spoke on his own authority as the eternal Word of God, who perfectly revealed the Father to us, the Word of God. Friends, Jesus Christ has come to us today. He is the great high priest who would offer himself as the sinless, spotless Lamb to be totally and completely cleanse us from all our sin and unrighteousness forever. He is the prophet who would proclaim the Word of God on his own authority as the eternal Word of God to perfectly reveal the Father's love for us. us. And he is the King we can trust as he rules and reigns above it all, working all things for our good and his glory. This Jesus has come to us today.

65 · The preacher issues an evangelistic appeal: if you are far from Christ, hear His Word calling you today—come to Him, believe, receive salvation, and become a child of God

The Word of the Lord has come today. And His Word is calling to you today. Friend, are you far from the Lord? He's calling. He's speaking. He's calling you to turn from your life of sin and to come to Him. He's calling you to believe in him and receive his gift of salvation. He's calling you to come and be made sons and daughters of God. He's calling you to come and receive the abundant life. He promises to give all his children hear the word of the Lord today. Friend, if you are far from Christ, he's calling to you. Come to Him. Come to Him. Hear the word of the Lord and come, friend.

66 · The preacher concludes by returning to the sermon's governing question, reiterating that God is speaking and calling the congregation to listen, obey, and share His Word

So we began today with a truth and a question. And the question was not, is God speaking? He is God is speaking. The question is, will we listen? Without God's Word, we will live our lives wandering, aimless, purposeless. We need God's Word to guide us into all truth. We need God's word to be the wind in our sails, guiding us through life. We need God's word to be the anchor holding us steady through the storms and trials that we face. So cross of grace. Let us be a people who listen to the word of the Lord and, like Samuel, obey it. Let us be a people who seek to allow the word of God to transform our hearts and our minds. Let us be a people who cling to the word of God through life's difficulties and trials. Let us be a people who trust God's word even when we can't see how he's working for good in our lives. And let us. Let us be a people who take God's word that is the message and the hope of the Gospel, and share it with those around us. God is speaking today. He speaks to us through His Son, Jesus Christ. And he speaks to us through his revealed word. He's speaking today. Friends, let's listen.

67 · The preacher invites the congregation to stand for closing prayer

Would you stand and let's pray together.

Where this fits

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The three sermons immediately preceding this one in the preaching schedule.

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Discuss · apply · pray

Small groups

6 discussion questions

In 1 Samuel 3:1, we're told that 'the word of the Lord was rare in those days' and 'visions were not widespread.' What does the sermon sugge…

Daily readings

5-day reading plan

This week we trace God's persistent call to listen and obey—from the famine of His Word in Israel, through Samuel's awakening to His voice, to Jesus as the eternal Word who perfectly reveals the Father and calls us to hear and respond.

Prayer

A Prayer to Listen and Obey

Father, we come before You in awe of Your faithfulness. You have never abandoned Your people, even when spiritual darkness falls thick upon…

Family table

When God Calls Your Name

This prompt invites kids to reflect on Samuel's experience of hearing God speak directly to him, and to consider what it means when God spea…

Couples

Listening Together to God's Voice

What part of the sermon made you most aware of how sin can dull our sensitivity to God's Word, and where do you sense that happening in your…

Memorize

1 Samuel 3:10

This verse crystallizes the sermon's central question: 'Will we listen?' Samuel's responsive obedience—'Speak, for your servant hears'—models what it means to be a hearer and doer of God's Word, and it stands as the counterpoint to Eli's spiritual blindness and Israel's famine of hearing God's voice. To memorize this verse is to commit ourselves to Samuel's posture of humble attentiveness whenever God speaks through His Word.

Small-group discussion

6 questions for your group this week

In 1 Samuel 3:1, we're told that 'the word of the Lord was rare in those days' and 'visions were not widespread.' What does the sermon suggest was happening in Israel during this period, and what made this spiritual condition dangerous for God's people?

1 Samuel 3:1; Amos 8:12

→ The sermon mentions that people can live their whole lives without God's Word and not realize what they're missing. What does that blindness look like in our own day—how might someone drift spiritually without noticing?
Eli was the high priest of Israel, yet the passage describes him as physically blind. What does the sermon mean when it says his physical blindness was a picture of his spiritual blindness, and how did his own sin contribute to his inability to hear God's voice?

1 Samuel 3:2; 1 Samuel 2
Despite Israel's spiritual famine, the lamp in the tabernacle had 'not yet gone out' (1 Samuel 3:3). What does this detail symbolize about God's character, and what hope does it offer to those living in spiritual darkness?

1 Samuel 3:3

→ How does this image of the lamp still burning connect to the sermon's answer about whether God has abandoned His people?
Samuel was just a boy, unfamiliar with the Lord's voice, yet when God called him, he became responsive and ready to obey. What contrast does the sermon draw between Samuel and Eli, and what does this tell us about the conditions God looks for in those who will hear and obey His Word?

1 Samuel 3:7-10
God's first word to Samuel was to announce judgment against Eli's household (1 Samuel 3:11-14). The sermon notes this was an 'extraordinarily difficult' assignment. What does this tell us about obedience to God's Word—is obedience conditional on whether we find the message comfortable or encouraging?

1 Samuel 3:11-14; 1 Samuel 3:15

→ When you encounter a passage or conviction in Scripture that's hard to accept or apply, how do you typically respond? What would it look like to follow Samuel's example?
The sermon traces a line from Samuel as the first in a succession of prophets (Deuteronomy 18) all the way to Jesus as the ultimate Word of God who perfectly reveals the Father and perfectly mediates between God and man. Given that Jesus is God's final and fullest Word to us, what does it mean for us as believers to 'listen and obey' that Word today?

Deuteronomy 18; Acts 3; John 1

→ What would change in your life this week if you treated the Scriptures—which testify to Christ—with the same reverence and responsiveness Samuel showed when he heard God calling his name?

Draft · pending review

Daily readings · Monday–Friday

5-day reading plan

Monday Amos 8:12

Amos paints a haunting picture of spiritual famine—people searching desperately for God's Word and finding none, wandering from sea to sea in darkness and despair. This is not physical hunger but spiritual destitution, the condition Israel faced in Samuel's day and the condition many face today who have never encountered God's authoritative voice. We must ask ourselves: how much do we treasure access to Scripture, and how urgently do we seek God's Word as our compass?

Tuesday 1 Samuel 2 (man of God's prophecy to Eli)

The unnamed man of God confronts Eli with a word of judgment—yet Eli's own compromises, his failure to restrain his sons' wickedness, had already silenced his ear to God's voice. Sin does not merely distance us from God; it dulls our spiritual senses and makes recognition of His voice increasingly difficult. We see in Eli's tragedy the urgent need for confession, repentance, and the humility to hear correction, lest we too grow deaf to what God is speaking.

Wednesday Deuteronomy 18

Moses promised that God would raise up a prophet like himself—a voice through whom God's people would hear His Word directly and authoritatively. In Samuel, that promise begins to be fulfilled; God breaks the silence and speaks again through a faithful servant willing to listen and obey. Yet even Samuel, faithful as he was, pointed beyond himself to One greater—the Prophet who would perfectly mediate between God and His people.

Thursday Acts 3 (Peter on Jesus as the prophet)

Peter declares to Israel that Jesus is the fulfillment of Moses' promise, the Prophet who surpasses all others and to whom all must listen (Acts 3:22-23). While Samuel faithfully delivered God's Word, Jesus *is* the Word—the complete, final, and perfect revelation of the Father's character and will. In Jesus, God speaks not through a servant but through His own eternal Son, and to reject His voice is to cut ourselves off from salvation itself.

Friday John 1

John opens his gospel by identifying Jesus as the Word—the logos through whom all things were created and in whom God's full revelation dwells. Every word Jesus spoke, every action He took, every moment of His life communicates the Father's character and purpose. The question that confronted Samuel, that confronts Israel, that confronts us is simple and urgent: Will we listen to this Word? Will we respond with obedience, or will we turn away and remain in darkness?

Draft · pending review

Pray together this week

A Prayer to Listen and Obey

Father, we come before You in awe of Your faithfulness. You have never abandoned Your people, even when spiritual darkness falls thick upon us and Your voice seems distant. The lamp has never gone out; Your Word continues to burn as a light to our path. We confess that sin has dulled our senses to the things of God, just as it silenced Eli's ears though he stood as Your high priest. We have grown careless with the treasures of Scripture, taking for granted the privilege of hearing Your voice, or we have neglected Your Word altogether without realizing what we have lost. We wander without a moral compass, vulnerable and aimless, when the source of all truth stands open before us.

Yet we rejoice that You have not left us orphaned or without a Shepherd. Jesus Christ is the Word made flesh—the eternal Word who perfectly reveals the Father, the great High Priest who offered Himself as the sinless sacrifice for our sins, and the King who rules all things for our good and His glory (John 1; Hebrews 4:14-16). In the gospel, we are cleansed from the shame of our neglect and given ears to hear. By His work, the barrier between us and God's voice is broken.

We ask You now to awaken us as You awakened Samuel—to make us sensitive and ready to respond when You speak through Your Word. Grant us the grace to be not merely hearers but doers, to listen and obey despite our fear, our doubts, our resistance. Give us courage to carry difficult truths from Scripture into our lives and to our neighbors, trusting that Your Word will not return to You empty (Isaiah 55:11). Help us begin again, starting small if we must, taking up Mark or another Gospel and letting Your voice interrupt our hurried days. We commit ourselves together, as Your people, to the glad pursuit of listening well and obeying fully, that through our obedience the world might see that our God still speaks, still saves, and still reigns.

Draft · pending review

Sunday-evening family table

When God Calls Your Name

For the parent

This prompt invites kids to reflect on Samuel's experience of hearing God speak directly to him, and to consider what it means when God speaks to us today through His Word. Listen for whether they understand that God still speaks—not in an audible voice like Samuel heard, but through Scripture—and what it takes to actually listen.

In the story, Samuel kept hearing his name called in the night, and at first he thought it was Eli. But it was God. Have you ever heard someone calling your name and realized it was someone different than you expected? When you open your Bible to read it, how is that like God calling your name? What do you think it means to really listen when God is speaking?

works for ages 7+ — younger kids may need help connecting the metaphor; older kids and teens will engage with the deeper question about listening

Draft · pending review

Couples · three questions over coffee

Listening Together to God's Voice

What part of the sermon made you most aware of how sin can dull our sensitivity to God's Word, and where do you sense that happening in your own heart right now?
As a couple, are there patterns where we've drifted from Scripture together, or times when one of us has gently called the other back to listen—and how can we help each other hear God's voice more clearly this week?
What is one specific way God's Word is speaking to you that you'd like me to pray for you about, and how can I support you in obeying what He's saying?

Draft · pending review

Memory verse this week

1 Samuel 3:10

And the LORD came and stood forth, calling as at other times, 'Samuel! Samuel!' And Samuel said, 'Speak, for your servant hears.'

Why this verse: This verse crystallizes the sermon's central question: 'Will we listen?' Samuel's responsive obedience—'Speak, for your servant hears'—models what it means to be a hearer and doer of God's Word, and it stands as the counterpoint to Eli's spiritual blindness and Israel's famine of hearing God's voice. To memorize this verse is to commit ourselves to Samuel's posture of humble attentiveness whenever God speaks through His Word.

Draft · pending review

Where this was preached

About the church

Cross of Grace Church

About us · What we believe

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# Cross of Grace Church

A church preaching expository sermons through the books of the Bible.

## Sermons
- [Will We Listen? (1 Samuel 3:1-21, 2025-09-28)](/CoGElPaso/sermons/2025/09/will-we-listen)

## About
- [About the church](/about)
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