HIS WORD REVEALS WHO HE IS!

Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained. —I Samuel 2:30

Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord: The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him… “Go and lie down, and if he calls you, say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’” —II Samuel 3:7

The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground… The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word. —II Samuel 3:19

             How do we come to know the Lord?  Here we are told that “Samuel did not yet know the Lord: The word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.”  So, our Lord reveals Himself through His Word.  Sure, He can get our attention through other means, but we are told in His Word that “these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name (John 20:31)” and that “faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word about Christ” (Romans 10:17).

             I remember how the Lord used His Word in my own life—

“The military did help me in the area of discipline and to acquire some valuable skills, but my life-style did not change.  My four-year enlistment passed with much more partying and there were situations that could have led to my death or the death of others.  Then my roommate, Andy, made a decision to follow the Lord.  Well, that was good for him, but I didn’t need that stuff.  Although, when he wasn’t in the room, I would pick up his New Testament that he left on our desk and read it. 

Andy had invited me to a church picnic on a Saturday at 7pm and I accepted the invitation.  When that Saturday came around, I went to the beach in the morning and partied with some friends, but I planned to keep my word and attend the picnic.  I went back to the barracks, took a nap and got up in time to shower and get ready.  I was at my metal door locker and reached in for a shirt.  I hung it back up saying to myself, “No, I really don’t want to go to this thing.”  A second time I reached for the shirt only to hang it up again and say the same thing.  Then I reached for it a third time, hung it up and sighed.  At that very moment I remembered what I had said before I enlisted, “When I get out, I will know what I will want to do with my life.”  I would be getting out in less than a month and I did not have a clue what I wanted to do with my life.  Immediately after that thought came this impression which I would have told you at the time it was an audible voice which said, “Turn from your evil ways or be condemned forever… and become a priest.” 

This shook me to the core.  I went over, sat on my bed and was literally shaking…  Andy came into the room at that very moment and said he had forgotten something.  From his locker twenty feet away he said, “Ted, what is wrong with you!  You’re white as a ghost!”  (We had been in the Bahamas for 8 months and I spent most of the time operating an asphalt paver and was black from the sun.)  He sat next to my bed and I told him what happened and that I was not going anywhere.  This really shook me up. 

Two days later I talked with a pastor that led services on the base.  He shared the gospel with me and revealed a piece to me that I never understood before.  It was about what was really happening at the cross and how it affected me today.  When Jesus died on the cross, He was taking the penalty for my sin as well as the sin of the whole world.  He was dying in my place so I could be forgiven of my sin, come into a relationship with God through Him and become the person the Lord desires me to be.  I trusted the Lord in a back side room of the church while it was getting dark.  The shadows may have hid the tears that streamed down my face, but they were tears of gratitude and relief.”

             “Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained.”  It is my desire now to live for my Lord and honor Him with my life.  I would like to be able to do that perfectly, but I am not there yet and will not be until glory.  Until then, Dear Father, may I seek to live a life that is pleasing in Your sight by the power of Your Holy Spirit and in the authority of Your Son Jesus. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vvOuEVA2h2Q&list=RDvvOuEVA2h2Q&start_radio=1