follows. Pastor will preach here
next Lord's Day at 10.30 and 2 o'clock, also on Thursday evening
at 7 o'clock and there will be a prayer meeting here on Tuesday
evening at 7 o'clock. The online giving and the donations
to the cause during May amounted to £2,415 and donations to the book fund
were £40. We sincerely thank you for your
continued support of this cause of truth. Let us commence our services
today by singing together hymn number six, the tune is Holly,
348. God's ways are just, his counsels
wise, No darkness can prevent his eyes,
No thought can fly nor thing can move, Unknown to him that
sits above. ♪ God's grace, such as this ♪ ♪
And heaven's grace above ♪ Out of this camp we've been designed. No thought can fly nor remember. ♪ One hope to give ♪ ♪ One teacher
love ♪ ♪ In the deepest ♪ ♪ Darkest night
♪ There comes his hand, there falls God's seal. There, how
His head hangs, there on high. ♪ The gentle moon shall wash it
down ♪ ♪ In heaven and earth and heaven
and sea ♪ He executes spiritual decrees, And by His saints in
stands confess, The Holy Ghost is ever blest. Faith and my soul shall praise
Him praise. Prostrate before it all, all
three. God is the terrorist of his world. Trust in the right and gracious. Let us read together from the
Holy Word of God in the first book of Samuel, chapter 3. The first book of Samuel, chapter
3. And the child Samuel ministered
unto the Lord before Eli. And the word of the Lord was
precious in those days. There was no open vision. And
it came to pass at that time when Eli was laid down in his
place and his eyes began to wax dim that he could not see. And ere the lamp of God went
out in the temple of the Lord, where the Ark of God was, and
Samuel was laid down to sleep. Then the Lord called Samuel, and he answered, Here am I. And
he ran unto Eli and said, Here am I, for thou callest me. And he said, I called not. Lie down again. And he went and
lay down. And the Lord called yet again,
Samuel. And Samuel arose and went to
Eli, and said, Here am I, for thou didst call me. And he answered,
I called not, my son. Lie down again. Now Samuel did not yet know the
Lord, nor was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him. And the Lord called Samuel again
the third time. And he arose and went to Eli
and said, Here am I, for thou didst call me. And Eli perceived
that the Lord had called the child. Therefore Eli said unto
Samuel, Go, lie down, and it shall be, if he call thee, that
thou shalt say, Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth. So Samuel
went and lay down in his place. And the LORD came, and stood,
and called, as at the other times, Samuel, Samuel. Then Samuel answered, Speak,
for thy servant heareth. And the LORD said to Samuel,
Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears
of every one that heareth it shall tingle. In that day I will
perform against Eli all things which I have spoken concerning
his house and when I begin I will also make an end for I have told
him that I will judge his house forever for the iniquity which
he knoweth because his sons made themselves vile and he restrained
them not. And therefore I have sworn unto
the house of Eli that the iniquity of Eli's house shall not be purged
with sacrifice not offering forever. And Samuel lay until the morning
and opened the doors of the house of the Lord. And Samuel feared
to show Eli the vision Then Eli called Samuel and said, Samuel,
my son. And he answered, here am I. And
he said, what is the thing that the Lord has said unto thee?
I pray thee, hide it not from me. God, do so to me, and more
also, if thou hide anything from me of all the things that he
said unto thee. And Samuel told him every wit,
and hid nothing from him. And he said, It is the Lord,
let him do what seemeth him good. And Samuel grew, and the Lord
was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground.
And all Israel from Dan, even to Beersheba knew, that Samuel
was established to be a prophet of the Lord. And the Lord appeared
again in Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel in
Shiloh by the word of the Lord. May the Lord bless the reading
of his own precious word and grant to us a spirit of real
prayer. O Lord our God, as we unitedly bow before thy
glorious majesty, we pray that thou would grant
us collectively as a body of people a spirit of real prayer
and the grace of supplications with thanksgiving. We pray to
be led of the spirit of God And that we pray, most gracious
Lord, that thou wouldst guide us into thy truth, and that thy
word may be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our path. We pray, yea, Lord, we beseech
thee, that thou wouldst grant that the grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ, and the love of God our Father, and the sacred fellowship
of the Holy Spirit may rest and abide upon us. For thou hast
declared in thy word that as many as are led by the Spirit
of God, they are the sons of God. We pray, most blessed Spirit
of truth, that thou wouldst open the eyes of our understanding
and that we may receive the word of the Lord under thy divine
power and heavenly unction, that we may be enlightened and revived
and renewed and replenished spiritually here today. Unstop the deaf ears,
open the blind eyes, and cause the tongue of the dumb to speak,
and may the lame walk. Oh, do hear us, Lord, we pray
thee, And may the poor have the gospel preached unto them. O Lord, do hear us, we pray,
for thy great namesake. We come, Lord, as poor sinners.
Each one of us are the fallen sons and daughters of Adam. We
come like thy servant of old. Shame and confusion of faith
belongeth unto us, as at this day. for we have sinned. O Lord God, we do pray that thou
wouldst forgive us of our sins, that thou wouldst wash us in
the precious blood of Jesus Christ, thine only begotten Son. For
the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, cleanseth us from all sin. Lord, we do pray that we may
feel the power, the application of that precious blood to our
hearts as we gather around thy word. And we pray that the glorious
everlasting robe of the righteousness of Jesus Christ, that we may
be clothed upon with it. Jesus, thy blood, and righteousness,
my beauty are my glorious dress. Oh, we pray that we may know
by sacred experience this day the realization that we are indeed
in that eternal covenant and that the blood of the everlasting
covenant has washed away all our sins and satisfied all the
demands of divine justice. We pray that we might be favoured
with the sacred, divine drawings of our Heavenly Father, for none
come except the Father draw. May we be drawn unto Jesus Christ. And that we do pray that Thou,
Lord Jesus, would come and stand in our midst, that we may behold
Thy glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,
full of grace and truth. We pray that thou would remember
us as a church and as a congregation and oh that thou would work mightily,
powerfully, effectually among us. We pray that thou wouldst
graciously pour thy spirit in the pulpit and in the pew until
the spirit be poured upon us from on high. Lord, nothing can
be done but without that divine power and heavenly unction of
the Holy Ghost. Lord, it is only the blessed
Spirit that can work faith in our hearts and repentance and
godly sorrow for sin and to reveal unto us the precious things of
Jesus Christ. O blessed Spirit of truth, convince
us of our sin and lead to Jesus' blood And to our wandering eyes
reveal the secret love of God. We pray, most gracious Lord,
that we remember this village. Remember the surrounding villages
and hamlets. And Lord, we look back and not
that many years ago, there used to be a chapel in each village
round here. Oh, we pray that there was the
rise that thou wouldst make bare thine holy arm in the gospel,
that thou wouldst pull down the strongholds of Satan, set up
the kingdom of the Lord Jesus in the hearts of sinners. Lord,
let thy work appear unto thy servants and thy glory unto their
children. We do humbly beseech thee. May precious souls be gathered
unto Christ, and lay hold of that hope that is set before
us in the gospel, which hope we have as an anchor for the
soul, both sure and steadfast. O Lord, we do pray that thou
wouldst remember us then. Remember us with the favour that
thou bearest unto thy people, visitors with thy great salvation. Remember our brethren, the deacons,
in their responsibilities and graciously help and undertake
for them. Be with those of our friends
here that expect to take rest and change and we pray that thou
would be with them in their journeys. Grant rest and change and bring
them home in peace and safety at the appointed time that they
may indeed be refreshed and strengthened. Remember those, O Lord, that
are in affliction's pathway. Put forth thy healing hand and
grant thy restoring mercies. Pray, most gracious Lord, for
the little ones and the children. Oh, do remember them. Put thy
holy fear into their hearts. and graciously guide and direct
them in their very young and tender years. We thank thee for
them, we love to see them in thy house and to hear them, and
we pray that thou wouldst richly bless them. May their ears be
bored to the doorposts of thy house, that they may be thy servants
forever. And O Lord, we do pray that thou
wouldst graciously remember our prodigals, Stretch out thy almighty
arm. None, none, Lord, are beyond
thy power. Indeed, O Lord, thou art able
to do abundantly more than we can even ask or think. O Lord,
do hear prayer, then, and graciously help them and guide them to return. We do humbly pray thee. For,
Lord, there is joy in heaven over one sinner that repented.
Grant us that joy here, Lord, we pray Thee. There are those,
O Lord, among us that are graciously exercised concerning Thy house
and concerning Thy ways, and we pray that Thou wouldst constrain
them to follow Thee and to serve Thee in their day and in their
generation. And, O Lord, we do pray that
thou, in thy precious mercy, would remember the young friends,
each one of them. Bring them to living, vital,
saving faith in Jesus Christ. Guide them by thy counsel and
afterward receive them unto glory. Graciously guide them, O Lord,
in all the paths of providence. And there are those, Lord, among
us that would seek a partner in life's journey. We lovingly
commend them to Thee, pray that Thou would bless them and grant
them their requests. We do humbly pray and grant,
O Lord, Thy rich blessing to rest upon parents that grace,
wisdom, and help may be given to them in all their responsibilities.
that they may bring up their children in the nurture and admonition
of the Lord, and that the word of God may be central in the
whole, the reading of it and the prayer. O Lord, we pray that
it may be so, for all things are sanctified by the word of
God and prayer. We pray, most gracious Lord,
that thou in thy precious mercy would remember those of us that
are in the evening time of life's journey and grant that we may
be graciously prepared for that great change which must come. Remember us with the favour that
thou bearest unto thy people and visit us with thy great salvation. Remember those, O Lord, that
are passing through the temptations of the enemy. And thou hast promised
in thy word that when the enemy comes in like a flood, the spirit
of the Lord will lift up a standard against him. Lord, deliver us
from temptation. Deliver us from the power and
dominion of sin. And though sin lives in us, may
we not live in sin, but may we live to him that died. Lord, we pray for grace to present
our bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto thee,
which is our reasonable service. We pray, most gracious Lord,
for all thy servants as they labour in word and doctrine upon
the walls of Zion, and that graciously set them free today, and send
out thy light and thy truth and return in thy power and thy glory
as thou usest to be in the sanctuary. Bring our sons from far and our
daughters from the ends of the earth, O Lord, we do beseech
thee for thy great namesake. Lord, we pray that thou in thy
precious mercy would remember our little group of churches graciously return and make bare
thine holy arm and grant a reviving, a renewing, a replenishing. We do humbly beseech of thee
for thy great name's sake. O Lord, we do pray for our nation. We pray that thou wouldst give
wisdom and guidance and direction to our leaders We truly live
in dark and solemn days. Many that rule over us, we have
very little confidence in them, O Lord. And we pray that there
was a rise again in our nation and raise up in our Parliament
men of God, men of wisdom, men of integrity and of uprightness.
We do beseech them. We pray for our King, that thou
wouldst bless him and the royal household with that rich grace
that is in Christ Jesus. We pray for those that labour
in word and doctrine upon the walls of Zion and throughout
the nations of the earth. We think of those that go forth
from among us. We think of that great work that
is being done in Ghana in the Christian schools and we pray
that thou wouldst there grant a gracious reviving and renewing
by thy blessed spirit. And remember, Lord, the Mombasa
mission and thy servant there. Send them help from the sanctuary
and strengthen them out of Zion. Remember, O Lord, Ian Sadler
and the great work that he does in so many different places.
Supply all their returning needs. and grant that these things may
be down to the honor, glory, and praise of thy great and thy
holy name. We thank thee, O Lord, for our
little house of prayer. We thank thee for the liberties
that we enjoy in being able to meet together around the word.
We thank thee for the word of God. This is the word by which
the gospel is preached unto you. Oh, we thank thee for the incarnate
word, our Lord Jesus Christ. We thank thee for the glory of
his name and the fullness of his grace and the wonders of
redeeming love. We thank thee that he was made
a woman, made under the law, that he might redeem them that
are under the law. We thank thee for that perfect
life of Jesus Christ and the law fulfilled and honoured and
magnified. and everlasting righteousness
brought in for thy people. We thank thee for Calvary where
the Lamb was slain, that glorious Sinatolian sacrifice of Jesus
Christ. We thank thee that sin has been
put away and divine justice has been satisfied and God and sinners
are reconciled and peace is made between God and man. We thank
thee that he died for our sins and rose again for our justification,
and has now bodily ascended into heaven and opened those pearly
gates of heaven and entered in, and that we have indeed a great
high priest who is passed into the heavens, Jesus, the Son of
God. Come, Lord, and touch one's lips
with a live coal from off the heavenly altar. and make up in
giving where we do so fail in asking. As we ask for Jesus Christ's
sake. Amen. Let us now sing together hymn
number 320. The tune is Walden. 259. God moves in a mysterious way,
his wonders to perform. He plants his footsteps in the
sea and rides upon the storm. Hymn 320, tune Walden, 259. The beauty of graciousness is
found within the Lord. He counts His troops in the sea,
and guides ♪ And rise again from the slope
♪ ♪ It may be long and wearying day
♪ O'er the land of the free and
the home of the brave? He came to save us all. O say does that star-spangled
banner yet wave O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave? ♪ In excelsis Deo ♪ ♪ In excelsis
Deo ♪ ♪ And shall overflow ♪ ♪ Thy people's
strength ♪ ♪ And trust in God ♪ ♪ His grace ♪ ♪ In our lives ♪ Be kind and serve the King. His heaven-sent triumph over
us, the Holy Grail. The God of Abraham's prophecies And she will be the first And
she will be And the Holy Spirit showed him
well, and shattered his world ♪ God is gentle in comparison ♪
♪ And He will reign with them forevermore ♪ Greatly failing to need the Lord's
gracious help, I would direct your attention to the third chapter
of the first book of Samuel, And we'll read the second part
of verse 18. First book of Samuel, chapter
3, reading the second part of verse 18. And he said, It is
the Lord. Let him do what seemeth him good. The whole verse reads, and Samuel
told him every wit, and he hid nothing from him. And he said,
it is the Lord. Let him do what seemeth him good. The Lord's servant, Eli, there's
no doubt from the whole of the context that he was a godly man. He was a man of God and of course of the house of Aaron. But now that was going to change. And the reason being was the
sin of Eli's sons, Hophni and Phinehas. It says they were the
sons of Belial. In other words, they were very
wicked men. And they did all manner of wicked
things at the house of God. They were greedy and took things
that they should not take. And the controversy that the
Lord had with Eli was that he never restrained them. It was within his power to stop
them doing it. It was within his power to remove
them from the office of the priesthood. But he didn't do that. He allowed the wickedness and
the evil to continue. He used to lay with the women
that came up to the temple They were wicked men. And what is shown to us here
in this context, friends, is the Lord. He notices. We've often
said to you about the day of judgment and how minute that
judgment will be. And I often think of that word,
every idle word shall be brought into judgment in that day. every
idle word and yet here we have very wicked things that were
taking place at Shiloh at the house of God. In the days of Jeremiah in Lamentations
he mourns over the state and condition of the church of God
as it was then. And he says, how has the gold
become dead? And you know friends, you may
say, what application does this have to us today in every possible
way? Surely when we look around the
churches of God, I mean, I'm speaking of mainly those in our
own connection. Of course there are other churches
of God where the Lord is working. But look at the great falling
away there has been. But what seemed to stand out
to me in reading this narrative and looking into the context
here is the wonder work in hand of God. Eli was brought submission in contrition and we see something here of
how the Lord works and how that before all this
happened that the Lord raised up one of his prophets to come
down to Shiloh and to speak unto Eli and to warn Eli just what
would happen if he continued or allowed his sons to continue
in the way of sin. You know the other thing here
friends is it shows us also that Lord holds us to account for
how we parent our children. It's a great responsibility to
have children And we have a, the Lord here is showing us very
clearly that he will hold us to account as to the way that
we parent our children, the way that we guide them, the way that
we direct them, the way that we restrain them. And it's very clear here how the Lord, it says in the
chapter 2 verse 27, And there came a man of God unto Eli, and
said unto him, thus saith the Lord, did I plainly appear unto
the house of thy father when they were in Egypt in Pharaoh's
house? And did I choose him out of all the tribes of Israel to
be my priest, to offer mine altar, to burn incense, to wear an ephod
before me? And did I give unto the house
of thy father all the offerings made by fire of the children
of Israel? Wherefore, kick ye at my sacrifice
and at mine offering, which I have commanded in my habitation, and
honourest thou thy sons above me, to make yourselves fat with
the chiefest of all the offerings of Israel my people. Wherefore,
the Lord God of Israel said, I said indeed that thy house
and the house of thy father should walk before me forever, but now
the Lord said, be it far from me, for them that honour me,
I will honour, and they that despise me shall be lightly esteemed. Behold, the days come that I
will cut off thine arm and the arm of thy father's house, and
there shall not be an old man in thine house and thou shalt
see an enemy in my habitation." Solemn, awful judgments were
to come upon the house of God at Shiloh. You know, we see a great change
happens then in Israel and it was because of their sin. And in this sense, when the Lord,
uses Samuel here, what a great burden it was for Samuel. A young
man looked up to Eli and yet we read the Lord Jesus
says in one place or it said of he knew what he would do. There was coming this great change and but the Lord knew what he
would do and before all these things happened he brought Samuel's
mother Hannah she was barren and it greatly troubled her and
she came up unto the house of the Lord as the family did in
great heaviness of soul and she prayed that the Lord would grant
her a child. She did it year by year, so it
was a long season that she was seeking this child. And she made a vow that if the Lord would grant her a
child, then she would consecrate him unto the Lord, to the house
of the Lord. We read in the first chapter
how that the Lord heard the prayer of Hannah and she consecrated
him unto the Lord. She weaned him. It was a tremendous
sacrifice, wasn't it? It was this child that she'd
waited for. She'd been waiting on the Lord
for a long season. Even Eli the priest misjudged
her. It says in chapter one, now Hannah,
and it came to pass as she continued praying before the Lord, that
Eli marked her mouth. Now Hannah, she spake in her
heart, only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard. Therefore
Eli thought she had been drunken, And Eli said unto her, How long
wilt thou be drunk, and put away thy wine from thee? And Hannah
answered and said, No, my lord, I am a woman of a sorrowful spirit.
I have drunk neither wine nor strong drink, but I have poured
out my soul before the Lord. Count not thine handmaid for
a daughter of Belial, for out of the abundance of my complaint
and grief have I spoken hitherto. Then Eli answered and said, go
in peace. The Lord God of Israel grant
thee thy petition, and that thou hast asked of him. And she said,
let thine handmaid find grace in thy sight. So the woman went
her way and did eat, and her countenance was no more sad. she'd be given a promise from
the Lord. She was a woman of a very sorrowful
spirit but when the Lord gave her this promise that it would
be fulfilled her countenance was no more sad.
She received that child by faith before she had him. You see It says in the chapter 1 verse
20, it says in verse 19, and they rose up early in the morning
and worshipped before the Lord and returned and came to their
house to Ramah and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife and the Lord
remembered her. Wherefore it came to pass when
the time was come about that Hannah had conceived that she
bear a son and called his name Samuel because I have asked him
of the Lord." You see, it was a wonderful thing that the Lord
had done. Hannah went not up for she said
unto her husband, I will not go up until the child be weaned
and then I shall bring him and he shall appear before the Lord
and there abide forever. will appear before the Lord and
there abide forever. She consecrated him unto the
Lord. Now just look, we've just sung
that lovely well-known hymn of William Cowper's. God moves in
a mysterious way, his wonders to perform. He plants his footsteps
in the sea and rides upon the shore. Hannah nor Elkanah nor
Eli at that time knew what the Lord was doing. There may be
things in your life and in my life and we can't see clearly
what the Lord is doing. But you see the Lord was in all
the minute circumstances of their life and is in all the minute
circumstances of your life. He is. He works his sovereign will. You see, the Lord was raising
up another priest. The Lord knew that he was going
to finish the house of Eli and his sons. There were none of
them left because of their wickedness. And so here he is preparing.
There may be things you have in your life at this time, But
do not fear. The Lord is working. He is. The just shall live by
his faith. Faith in the Lord. He makes no
mistakes. However, there would have been
great consternation in Israel as they perceived what was happening
at Shiloh, the house of God. and that there would have been
those that were praying in Israel at that time when they saw what
was happening in the house of God, when they went up to the
feast and they saw how Hophno and Phinehas and Eli was permitting
them to act as they did act in a very corrupt and wicked way. Never forget that word, my beloved
friends, in Romans chapter 8. All things work together for
good, to them that love God, to them the other called according
to his purposes. Not some things, all things. All things. And it may be mysterious, it
may trouble you, it may perplex you, But don't forget, there's a God
in heaven. A God that sits upon a throne. Don't forget, Jesus is the King
of kings and the Lord of lords. With heaven and earth at his
command, he waits to answer prayer. He does. Nothing takes him by
surprise. He knows all things. He sees
all things. It is the Lord. May that word
resonate in your very souls. I don't know what it is that
you're walking in at this time. It is the Lord. Nothing's out of control. Not
in the eyes of the Lord. As you looked on these circumstances
that were going on in Israel at this time, there must have
been many of the Lord's people that were greatly perplexed but
the Lord was working I will work and who shall let it that word
let it it is an old English word which who shall hinder it who
shall stop it it is the Lord he's God over all he's blessed
forevermore it is the Lord My life's minutest circumstance
are subject to his eye. It is the Lord, sovereign ruler
of the skies, ever gracious, ever wise. All my times, all
my times are in thy hand. All events at thy command. Listen to the words of Jesus
in Proverbs 8. You might say, Jesus speaking
in the Old Testament? Yes! They are the words of Christ. What does he say? By me kings
reign and princes decree justice. All things are in his hand. All
events at his command. They are. I often, I guess it's
probably one of my favourite the first chapter of Paul's epistle
to the Colossians. And how beautifully does he speak
there of the divine sovereignty of our Lord Jesus Christ and
the wonderful power of his grace. Look at verse 12 in Colossians
1, giving thanks unto the Father which hath made us meet to be
partakers of the inheritance of the saints in life, who hath
delivered us from the power of darkness and hath translated
us into the kingdom of his dear Son, in whom we have redemption
through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins. who is the image of
the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature, for by him
were all things created that are in heaven and that are in
earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones or domains
or principalities or powers, all things were created by him
and for him. And he is before all things,
and by him all things consist. he is the head of the body the
church who is the beginning the firstborn from the dead that
in all things he might have the preeminence for it pleased the
father that in him should all fullness well in our lord jesus
christ i love the hymn writer a fullness resides in jesus our
head and ever abides to answer our need a fullness There's always
a fullness. There always will be a fullness
and it will never be diminished. No, he is full of grace and truth. And there in Colossians in chapter
two, it says in him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead
bodily in our Lord Jesus Christ. And my beloved friends, he doesn't
make any mistakes. No, I don't know where you are. I don't know what you're tempted
about. I don't know what it is that troubles you and tries you. But may you, by the grace of
God, be enabled to trust Him. You can trust Him. You can trust
Him completely. His wisdom is perfect. It is. His wisdom is perfect. You know, friends, these things
are, and these narratives are written in Holy Scripture for
our instruction. Hannah, she went on to bear sons
and daughters after this. She consecrated Samuel unto the
Lord and she went on. She continued, it says here,
in chapter 2 verse 18 but Samuel ministered before the Lord being
a child and girded with a linen ephod as one of the children
of the priests. The Lord was preparing and Eli
blessed Elkanah and his wife and said the Lord give thee seed
of this woman for the loan which is lent to the Lord and they
went on to their own home and the Lord visited Anna. You see,
so we have what appear to be completely separate situations,
but they're all connected together. All things work together for good. Even those things which
are very perplexing, they work together for good. And even in
the church of God, they work together for good. Maybe things
that trouble you, maybe things that perplex you, maybe things
you just cannot understand, but they work together for good. They are. They're all in the
Lord's hand. And Samuel told him every wit,
and hid nothing from him, and he said, it is the Lord. Let him do what seemeth him good. I thought when reading of Eli's
response here, as I say he was a godly man, I thought of our
Lord Jesus Christ. You think of the spirit of contrition
that was granted here to Eli, it is the Lord. let him do what
seemeth him good. Solemn things were happening.
Solemn things were going to happen. But he saw it was the Lord. It
is the Lord. There's no doubt that he would
have seen in Samuel the Lord's provision. Now we also see here the effect
of the sin of Eli's house. In the beginning of this chapter
3 in the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord before Eli and
the word of the Lord was precious in those days there was no open
vision. Why was there no open vision?
Because they had sinned so grievously And because Eli allowed his sons,
the priests of the Lord, to continue in that office even though they
were violating all of the Lord's commandments. He allowed them
to continue. You know, will you ever remember,
my beloved friends, that sin has consequences? It does. May each one of us remember that.
Sin has consequences. One of those consequences of
course is death. The wages of sin is death. The
gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord but the
wages of sin is death. And the word of the Lord was
precious in those days. There was no open vision. Then we we have here the call
of Samuel. He said the lamp of God went
out in the temple of the Lord where the ark of God was and
Samuel was laid down to sleep and the Lord called Samuel. Now
that must come to every one of us. Far as I can perceive in the
word of God The only way that you and I can ever know that
we're a child of God is to be called. Sometimes young people have asked
me a question, how do I know that I'm a child of God? How
do I know that I'm elect? How do I know that I'm chosen?
Called. It's the only way you'll know
that you're a child of God is to be divinely called. The call of God reaches into
the heart of every one of his children. The Holy Ghost enters
the soul, quickens the soul, convinces of sin, makes them
feel their need, brings them to seek salvation. How many of us As you come here
to the chapel this morning, young and old, how many of us have come seeking? I seek and
hope to find a portion for my soul. I seek and hope to find
a portion for my soul. Now if you really are a true
seeker, it's the evidence of a divine call It is. And that call, I often direct
you to Romans chapter 8, and there it gives us the, what you might say, how the Lord
works. And the order. There's an order,
my beloved friends, in everything that the Lord does. A divine
order. And there in Romans chapter 8,
that the Holy Spirit has left on record for us that divine
order. We come to that verse 28, and
we know that all things work together for good to them that
love God, to them who are the called. You see, this is so vital,
to them that are the called, according to his purpose. Have
you been called? For whom he did foreknow, he
also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his son, that
he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover, whom
he did predestinate, them he also called. See, it's so vital. And whom he called, them he also
justified. And whom he justified, them he
also glorified. See, this divine, Order. He that spared not his own son,
but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also
freely give us all things? All things. Seek ye first the
kingdom of heaven and my righteousness. Jesus that is speaking. Seek
ye first the kingdom of heaven and my righteousness and all
these things what does it mean when it says and all these things
it means all providential things everything to do with your life
here upon earth but the exhortation is to get our priorities right
seek ye first the kingdom of heaven and my righteousness and
all these things, all these providential things
shall be added unto you. Shall be added unto you. It is
the Lord. Let him do what seemeth him good. Maybe there's something perplexing
you. and you look back and particular
thing you may be passing through at this time and it mystifies
you, you thought well I've prayed about it I've asked the Lord and it just doesn't happen there's
a reason Eli though it was such a solemn
word an awful word Not one of his children would
be left. It's quite striking here too.
We read that the Philistines attacked them and they went out
to battle. That's in the subsequent chapters. And it was the Lord's
solemn judgments allowing the Philistines to come and to overcome
them. And Hophni and Phinehas, the
sons of Belial, the sons of Eli, they thought in some superstitious
way that if they brought the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord
of the whole Earth into the camp of Israel, the armies of Israel
that the Philistines were attacking, that in some superstitious way
they thought that that would preserve them. and they were put to flight. 7,000 of the men of Israel were
slain. And one came back from the battle to speak to Eli. Eli was an old man, 99 years
old then. He was sitting by the gate of
the city at Shiloh and they told him that both his sons, Hophni
and Phinehas, been slain and then it records and says and
when they said and the Ark of God has been taken when he heard that he fell backwards
and he break his neck and he died. So his two sons and himself were
slain. I think it was the wife of Phineas
she was with child and she was having that child. And then the Ark of God was taken
and the name she called him was Ichabod. His name shall be Ichabod. What does Ichabod mean? The glory
of the Lord is departed. The Ark of the Covenant of the
Lord of the whole Earth had been taken into the land of the Philistine. But we see how the Lord watched
over that Ark. How that Dagon, the God, he fell
down twice before the Ark of the Covenant, and it break off
his head. And then he smoked the Philistines,
wherever that Ark went, he smoked them with emeralds, it says in
the Bible, which is piles. They had great pain, great disease,
great distress. And wherever that Ark went, The
Lord plagued them until they put the ark onto a
new cart and put two milk kind that was two cows that were feeding
calves and that sent the cart back into Israel and they went
low and as they went into the land of Israel. You see my beloved
friends how the Lord was watching over everything. and it still
is today. We sometimes can forget that
the Lord is on his throne. We sometimes forget those words
of our Lord Jesus Christ. All power is given unto me in
heaven and in earth. All power, not some power, all
power. There's no power can stand against
his power. Jehovah has all power We read
in and in fact, I think it's what I would say was the is the
watchword of the book of the Revelation Hallelujah for the
Lord God omnipotent reigning He does He reigns he rules We
looked at it just recently didn't we And he took his disciples
over the sea and there was a great storm. And it was such a great
storm they thought that the ship was going to sink. And Jesus was asleep in the hindermost
part of the ship. And the disciples, they came
and said, Master save us or we perish. The water was coming
into the ship. And he arose. And He rebuked
the winds and the sea. And there was a great calm. There
was a great calm. And the disciples said, what
manner of man is this that even the winds and the sea obey Him? They do. Even the winds and the
sea obey Him. It is the Lord. Let Him do what seemeth Him Good,
deep, in unfathomable minds. He works his sovereign will.
He treasures up his bright designs. He does. He works his sovereign
will. They're unfathomable minds, which
are never working out. There are things in your life
which you can't work out. You know, David when he numbered
the children of Israel which greatly displeased the
Lord. He only did it for his own pride and it greatly displeased
the Lord and the Lord brought a plague upon the children of
Israel because David numbered the people and The Lord gave him a choice
of three different things. And you know, David, he was in
a great strain. What shall I do? The enemy come
into the land, that Israel to be put to the sword of their
enemies. But he made a very wise choice.
He said, let me fall into the hands of the Lord for his mercies
are great. let me fall into the hands of
the lord for his mercies are great he proved that he knew
that that the mercy of the lord was great david writes in psalm
103 that the mercy of the lord is from everlasting to everlasting
upon them that fear him is unfailing mercy It's almighty mercy because
it's the Lord Jehovah. It's a divine attribute of the
Lord Jehovah, that wonderful mercy of God. You know, as we
look into the deep mystery of iniquity and sin entering into
the world. But what we do know, even though
we... the reason, etc., but what we
do know is that the Lord might show forth that divine attribute
of his mercy. In his Son, Jesus Christ, man was permitted to fall. God made man upright, but within
a very short time, he fell into sin. He fell into sin. Great is the mystery of iniquity.
People say, why did God let it happen? It's a great mystery. But one of the reasons He let
it happen was that He might show forth the wonderful power of
free grace, the everlasting love of God. God so loved the world,
He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him
shall be saved. That's one of the reasons why
it was permitted to happen, that there might be the showing forth
of the wonderful mercy, grace, and love of God, the love of
the Father, the love of the Son, the love of the Holy Ghost. It
is the Lord. Let him do what seemeth him good. You see, my beloved friends,
may we be brought like the Lord Jesus was not my will because
that is often the problem you know the great problem we have
because of the things that we come into is because we want
our own way want to do our own thing we've
got it all planned out what we were going to do and the Lord
turns it upside down and uh it's very disturbing Why? Why this? Or, maybe you'll have
a great loss, a bereavement. And you say, why? Maybe you'll
have some great affliction, perhaps in one of your children or etc. And you say, why? Oh, that the
Lord would bring us to this place. It is the Lord. Let Him do what
seemeth Him good. I have much reason to be thankful
for this portion in the Word of God. You know, when I was
exercised about the ministry, and when that exercise was, what
you might say, coming to fruition, it was Christmas Eve, 1984, and
I was so burdened about the ministry. And it was a weight that was
so heavy, I cannot describe to you, I knew I'd got to go, but
how to go, I did not know how to go. And we came home from chapel
that Sunday evening, and we'd got the gospel standard for January
85. And in there was the obituary
of Vernon Farley. And I read that obituary after
we'd got back from chapel that evening. And there came a time,
he records it in that obituary, He said when he had to visit
his pastor, because he was so burdened about the ministry,
and he said, I had to go see my pastor. Well, you know, friends,
I'd always said, I would never put my hand to it. And I was
determined, I wasn't, as that came into my mind, no, you wait
and watch the Lord's hand, he will do it. you know friends
it wouldn't leave me and my wife and family went to bed and I
stayed up and I opened here in Samuel chapter 1 and I read through
and it was when I came to this third chapter and I was reading
about Samuel here when the lamp of God went out in the temple
of the Lord where the ark of God was and the Lord called Samuel
And it was as clear as this, go to Eli. Every time I read
it, three times, go to Eli. And that was so real to me. I've
got to go and see my pastor. Eventually, on my knees in prayer,
I said to the Lord, I would go. I said, Lord, I would go in the
morning. I would go in the morning. But
you know, friends, I went to bed. And when I got up in the
morning, I wasn't seeking. There was this reason, that reason,
other reasons why I shouldn't go. And it's something I wasn't
in the habit of doing, but at breakfast time for our reading,
I just opened the Bible and I read. And it happened to be Psalm 76.
And right at the close, towards the close of that Psalm, vow
and pay that thou hast vowed, and it went right into my very
soul. I had to go. I knew I had to
go. Thy people shall be willing in
the day of thy power. And one other thing that happened
to me, this was in the very early stages when I transferred my
membership from Westing to Black Boys. Mr Jupp and as usual practice
was and he gave me the right hand of fellowship on the first
Lord's day after I transferred and he said to me I had a word
on my spirit but he said the Lord has taken it away and he
said I have this word for you and no weapon that is formed
against you shall prosper and every tongue that shall rise
against thee in judgment, thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage
of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of
me, saith the Lord." And that word came with such power into
my heart. That was the first time the Lord
spoke to him concerning the ministry of the Word. But as is the practice
in Kent and Sussex, the whole congregation stands in for the
ordinance. And here I was standing before
the whole congregation that promise I wanted to crawl under the sea
I thought everybody knows but what happened was is nobody ever
came and spoke to me but often they went and spoke to my wife
they said of course Jay will be a minister he's going into
the ministry and it was a general conversation among the friends
of black boys I hadn't breathed the word to anybody and I was
so troubled and so perplexed And I was about my work one day
and all this crowding in my mind and these words dropped into
my heart with such savour and sweetness, verse 20, and all
Israel from Dan in to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established
to be a prophet of the Lord. And the Lord appeared again in
Shiloh for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by
the word of the Lord. May the Lord add his blessing. Let us now sing together hymn
number 261. The tune is Farningham 141. It is the Lord, enthroned
in life, whose claims are all divine. who has an undisputed right to
govern me and mine. Hymn number 261, tune Farningham
141. Oh, say does that star-spangled
banner yet ♪ It is the Lord ♪ ♪ Our God and
Master ♪ ♪ Somehow or other ♪ ♪ Gave his will ♪ ♪ The power of faith
♪ ♪ And thus be righteous still ♪
♪ It is the law of the Lord ♪ ♪ Your country's pride ♪ ♪ And faith
of heaven's love ♪ ♪ From her the saints of joy proclaim ♪
♪ To death a lonely road ♪ ♪ It is a road ♪ ♪ Whose path is
still ♪ ♪ Perfection's grace ♪ ♪ That taught
me to fear ♪ ♪ And yet to love ♪ ♪ With ever growing faith ♪ It is a note my father taught,
I still see it in his name, which makes ♪ Has ever been the same. ♪ ♪ It's yet to do my story then,
♪ to make the Southland strong,
and our great country no more be slain. in all the flames of fire. And can my soul without thy peace
Peace, love, and hope revive. My gracious Lord, take heart,
Thou wilt. and teach me to resign. Now may the grace of our Lord
Jesus Christ, the love of God the Father, the sacred fellowship
of the Holy Spirit, rest and abide with us each. Amen.