As I waited before the Lord for this time, I felt that probably it is of the Lord that we should consider the life of Samuel. We will not be able to cover his whole life, but we would like to consider the early days of his life.
Samuel occupies a very important place in the Bible because he was an epoch-making vessel of God. God used him to change the time, changing it from the time of the judges to the time of the kings.
When the children of Israel came out of Egypt, God led them into Canaan, the promised land. But because of their unfaithfulness, they were not able to occupy the whole promised land.
Instead, we find that enemies within them and around them oppressed them from time to time. God had mercy upon them. When they cried to the Lord, the Lord heard them, and He sent judges to deliver them from their enemies.
But even while the judges were there, the children of Israel did not really return to the Lord. The whole book of Judges is a book of oppression and revival. Because of their unfaithfulness, God allowed their enemies to oppress them. When they were under oppression, they cried to the Lord, and God showed mercy to them and raised up a judge to deliver them.
But even when the judge was still alive, they already disobeyed God. God raised up judges, yet their condition was not improved.
According to Acts 13:20, from the days of the judges up to the time of Samuel was about four hundred and fifty years. During those four hundred and fifty years, they were under oppression for over one hundred years.
The time of the judges was God’s emergency measure for His people; it was not God’s permanent purpose for His people. Out of the emergency, God raised up judges to deliver them for a time.
As a whole, during the time of the judges, no one judge controlled the whole nation of Israel. The children of Israel were not united as one nation. As a matter of fact, they even fought against each other. At one time, the tribe of Benjamin was almost annihilated.
Not only that, but we find that their spiritual condition was not improved. Their deliverances were temporary.
God’s thought for His people was that they might be a nation united as one, and that they might be a people who would be a testimony to God. But under the judges, this was never reached.
God wanted to give them a king. When you read the book of Judges, you find a number of times that the Holy Spirit gives this comment:
In those days there was no king in Israel: every man did that which was right in his own eyes.
Because there was no king, there was no one to unify them into one, no one to bring them to God, and no one representing God to help His people. Everybody did what was right in his own eyes. That was the condition during those four hundred and fifty years.
God wanted to change that time. He wanted to change from the time of the judges to the time of the kings, that His permanent will for His people might be achieved.
It was God’s will to bless His people and bring them to Himself. It could only be done under the system of kings. But in order to make that change, God was looking for a vessel.
God could do anything He wants to do. He can do it all by Himself. But it pleases Him that He would rather find someone on earth who will agree with Him, who is willing to cooperate with Him, and whom He can use to make that change.
Finally, after four hundred and fifty years, God found that vessel in Samuel. That is the reason why Samuel is very important in the Word of God.
Now, brothers and sisters, why do we want to consider the story of Samuel? It is not because we want to review past history. We remember that whatever is recorded is for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.
Brothers and sisters, we are the people who live at the end time. We are living on the verge of another change.
We have been living under the age of grace for almost two thousand years. God so loved the world that He showed His pity and mercy toward us, and He sent His only begotten Son, our Lord Jesus, into this world.
About two thousand years ago, God sent His only begotten Son into this world. While He was on this earth, He declared to us the God whom we should know.
In order to save us, He went to the cross in our stead. He became the Lamb of God. He took upon Himself the sins of this world, and there on the cross He died for us, in order that God’s grace might come upon us.
Whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life. This gospel has been spreading through the centuries. Anyone who believes in Jesus Christ as the Son of God, as the Christ whom God has sent into the world, shall be saved.
We have been living under this age of grace for about two thousand years. But God is going to change the time.
The Bible tells us that one day our Lord Jesus will return again. When He returns, He will judge the world. At the same time, He will receive to Himself His own bride—that is, those who believe in Him.
Every sign on this earth shows us that this day is drawing nearer and nearer. Dear brothers and sisters, we know that we live at the very end of the end time.
The day of grace shall soon pass, and the day of righteousness shall come upon this earth. Our Lord Jesus will come back to this world, and He will set up His kingdom upon this earth. Righteousness shall be the rule of the age.
For the changing of this time, the same principle applies. God is looking for epoch-making vessels—people who will sympathize with God, who are willing to give themselves to God, who will bring God’s will upon this earth, and whom God can use to change the time.
But there is one difference. Instead of using one individual, like Samuel, today God is going to use a corporate vessel: a group of people whom God has chosen and elected, whom God can use to make the transfer.
You remember the first coming of our Lord Jesus. When God was going to bring His Son into this world two thousand years ago, He was also looking for such epoch-making vessels.
When you read the Gospel books, you find that He found such people as Zacharias and Elizabeth. This elderly couple loved God and feared God. God was able to use them to bring forth John the Baptist, the forerunner of our Lord Jesus, to prepare the way of the Lord.
At the same time, there was a virgin called Mary, and God was able to use her to bring forth His beloved Son.
In the temple there was Simeon, and there was Anna. During that time there were some people who were really looking for the coming of the Messiah, and they were preparing His way. Through these people, the Son of God was brought into this world.
Now, at the second coming of our Lord Jesus, the Lord is coming soon. He has been looking for such vessels—people who are bringing in the King, epoch-making vessels.
Dear brothers and sisters, we find that the life of Samuel is very important to us, because in his life we can learn the principles by which God raises up epoch-making vessels.
By the grace of God, may we be such vessels whom God can use.
This evening, we will consider the birth of Samuel—how this epoch-making vessel came into the world. Please turn to 1 Samuel 1.
We are not able to read the whole chapter, so we will read only some portions. But I hope that you will read the chapter afterward for yourself. We begin with 1 Samuel 1:9.
And Hannah rose up after they had eaten in Shiloh, and after they had drunk. Now Eli the priest sat upon his seat by the doorpost of the temple of the Lord.
And she was in bitterness of soul, and prayed unto the Lord, and wept sore.
And she vowed a vow, and said, O Lord of hosts, if Thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of Thy handmaid, and remember me, and not forget Thy handmaid, but wilt give unto Thy handmaid a man child, then I will give him unto the Lord all the days of his life, and there shall no razor come upon his head.
Now, the story begins with Hannah. Hannah means grace. With Hebrew people, their names carry meaning, just as among the Chinese, when parents give a name, usually it carries some meaning.
This woman, whose name was Hannah, was a gracious woman. She was a woman who feared God, a good and godly woman.
But unfortunately, she was barren. In the old days, especially under the law, God promised those who feared Him many children.
In Old Testament times, God’s blessings were physical and material, because the children of Israel were God’s earthly people. If anyone feared God, God would bless her with many children. But if a woman could not bear children, she was considered to be cursed by God.
But here you find a very strange case. Hannah was a godly woman, and yet she could not bear a child. On the contrary, there was another woman who was not godly. Actually, she was a jealous and mocking woman, yet she was blessed with many children.
Every time the family went to Shiloh to worship the Lord and ate and drank before the Lord, Hannah could not eat because she was always provoked by that evil woman.
Probably that wicked woman said, “Well, you appear to be very godly, but look—you have no child. It shows that you are cursed by God.”
Every year when they went to the feast, Hannah could not eat. There seemed to be no solution.
No doubt Hannah prayed to God. When a godly woman is faced with a problem, surely she will pray to God. Hannah must have prayed and prayed and prayed.
She could not understand why it seemed that God did not do according to His Word. But she was not offended by God.
Many people, when they think that this is what God should do and God does not do it, become offended at God. But not Hannah. Year after year she was provoked, but year after year she prayed. She prayed that God would give her an answer.
As she prayed year after year for God to answer her and give her a son, she began to wonder why God did not answer her. Why had God brought her into such a difficult situation, a situation that would bring shame to God as well as to her?
But as she travailed in prayer, finally she realized the reason why God had shut up her womb. God had a higher purpose for her life.
Brothers and sisters, sometimes you may be in a situation that cannot be explained. It may appear that those who do not fear God are blessed, while those who fear God are cursed. It may seem as if God does not do according to His promise.
Are you offended, or do you continue to wait upon Him? If you continue to wait upon Him, you will find that He has a higher purpose in your life because He considers you able to be His chosen vessel.
Finally, one year, when they again went to the temple to worship God, Hannah was once again provoked by that wicked woman. She could not eat, so she knelt before God and prayed.
Her lips were moving, but there was no sound. She prayed, “Lord, if You will give me a son, I will give him back to You. I will lend him to You, and throughout his life there will be no razor coming upon his head.”
While she was praying, the priest Eli was sitting nearby. He noticed that her lips were moving, but there was no sound, so he mistook her for a drunken woman. He said, “How long will you be drunken?”
Hannah said, “No, I am a woman of sorrowful spirit, and I am praying to God.” Eli said, “God answer your prayers.”
Immediately Hannah stood up, and the grief was over. She believed God—that God would give her a son.
Brothers and sisters, God’s ways are higher than man’s ways, and God’s thoughts are higher than man’s thoughts. God moves in a mysterious way His wonders to perform. For those who are near to Him, He will disclose His mind to them.
Somehow, when Hannah was praying and prevailed in prayer, the Lord began to show His mind to her: “You are asking for a son, but do you know that I have a need too? I am looking for an epoch-making vessel, but where could I find him? Are you willing to be the one to bring forth that vessel?”
“I shut up your womb so that you can bring forth a vessel who is born miraculously—a son who is really given by God. That son will be the vessel who will change the time.”
Thank God, Hannah began to understand. Later, when you read her prayer, you find that she understood. She was willing to be that vessel to bring forth a son, not for herself, but for God’s purpose.
Dear brothers and sisters, this is the way Samuel was brought into this world. He was not born in the ordinary way; he was born through a miracle. He was born by the direct intervention of God.
Let us apply this to ourselves. We have already said that God is looking for epoch-making vessels. He cannot find them in the Adamic race. Why? Because that which is of the flesh is flesh, and the natural man cannot receive the things of the Spirit, because they are foolishness to him.
In order to raise up such epoch-making vessels, there has to be a supernatural birth. How will He bring it about?
Thank God, He first sent His Son into this world to bear our sins in His own body on the cross. Then, out of His side came blood and water: blood to redeem us from sin, and water and life to give us life.
The Bible says, “That which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” When Nicodemus came to the Lord Jesus, he was an old man, a rabbi, and a person looked up to by others.
Yet he was humble enough to come to the Lord. He came at night because he was afraid of the other Pharisees, but he really had a seeking heart. He came to the Lord Jesus wanting to be taught.
Our Lord Jesus knew his heart, and the Lord said:
Except one be born anew, he cannot see the kingdom of God.
Except one be born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
God cannot use the natural man. God has to do something supernatural. Thank God, if anyone believes in the Lord Jesus, he is born again. He is born from above; he is born of the Spirit of God.
Dear brothers and sisters, all who believe in the Lord Jesus have a supernatural birth. We have two births: one is a natural birth, and one is a supernatural birth.
Because we have been brought into this world supernaturally through the new birth, in a general sense all of us are called to be epoch-making vessels.
Even before the foundation of the world, God has already chosen you in Christ. He has already ordained that you should be His. Because of that, He has brought you into the new birth.
The new birth is not merely something given to you to enjoy. Of course, we enjoy that new life. But remember: God has brought us into the new birth so that He may one day use us as epoch-making vessels.
Hannah prayed, “If You will give me a son, I will give him back to You, and there will be no razor upon his head.” Do you understand what it means that there would be no razor upon his head?
In Numbers 6, the whole chapter is devoted to the matter of the vow of the Nazarite.
When God called the children of Israel to Himself, at the foot of Mount Sinai, recorded in Exodus 19, God revealed His mind to His redeemed people. Why did God deliver the children of Israel out of Egypt? Why did He bring them to Himself?
God said:
If ye will indeed obey My voice, and keep My covenant, then ye shall be Mine own possession from among all peoples: for all the earth is Mine:
And ye shall be unto Me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation.
That is to say, the whole nation had the privilege of serving God. The whole nation was to be a testimony to God.
But unfortunately, when Moses went up the mountain to receive the law, at the foot of the mountain the people broke God’s commandment. They worshipped a golden calf. Because of this, the nation of Israel was disqualified to serve God.
Finally, Moses stood at the door of the camp, because the camp was defiled. He said, “Who is on the Lord’s side?” Out of the twelve tribes of Israel, only the tribe of Levi stood with Moses.
Moses commanded them to take the sword and go through the camp from one gate to another. Three thousand were killed, and the tribe of Levi was sanctified.
So God chose the tribe of Levi to serve Him, and out of that tribe, one family—the family of Aaron—to be priests. All the other children of Israel were not qualified to serve God.
Yet God gave the vow of the Nazarite. Anyone in the tribes of Israel, even if not from the tribe of Levi, could take this vow for a period of time—perhaps thirty days, sixty days, or a year.
During the days of the vow, he was a Nazarite. As a Nazarite, there were three things he could not do:
If someone suddenly died by his side, the head of the Nazarite was defiled. He had to shave his head and then later start all over again.
That was the vow of the Nazarite. God opened a door for those who really wanted to devote their lives to God. Out of any tribe, men or women, they all had that privilege. But when taking that vow, these three things were strictly forbidden.
In the Bible, there are a few who were Nazarites for life. Samuel was one of them. John the Baptist was another. Their whole life was devoted to God.
Now let us bring this into the New Testament. Brothers and sisters, do you know that you are born again? Your second birth is supernatural because God has chosen you even before the foundation of the world.
Your new birth is for God, not only for yourself. At the same time, do you know that you are bought with a price? The blood of God’s beloved Son paid the highest price to buy you and purchase you for Himself.
By the right of redemption, you are a Nazarite for life. You have no right to live for yourself. When you are saved, having been bought with the price of the blood of our Lord Jesus, you do not belong to yourself anymore. You belong to Christ.
By the right of redemption, all of us who are born again are Nazarites for life. Our whole life is devoted to God. We have no right to live for ourselves.
There is a difference between the Old Testament and the New Testament. When Samuel was born, he was a Nazarite for life, and thank God, he was faithful to the vow of his mother.
There was another man in the Old Testament whose name was Samson. He was also born to be a Nazarite, but he was unfaithful to his vow. You remember how he lost his hair and lost his power. He was unfaithful.
In New Testament times, by the right of redemption, we are all Nazarites for life. God has every right to claim us and say, “You are Mine. You have no right to live for yourself. You have to serve Me. You have to live for Me.”
God can do that, but God will not do it. He will persuade us with compassion, with mercies, and with love.
God says, “I have bought you, but I let you go free. Nevertheless, are you constrained by My love, and do you want to do what I want?”
There is a story from the old days in America, when there were slave markets. One day, a little girl was for sale, and people began to bid for her. The girl was weeping.
Through her tears, she tried to look at those who were bidding. All the faces were terrible, and she felt she was truly hopeless. But suddenly a man came in and bid the highest price. He bought the girl.
The girl did not dare to look at him. But after the man bought her, he called for a blacksmith and asked the blacksmith to take off her fetters.
Then he told the girl, “I bought you to set you free. You are now free to go.” The man began to walk away.
The girl waited for a while. When she saw that the man was walking away, suddenly she ran after him and said, “I want to be your slave.”
Brothers and sisters, this is what God is doing with you and with me. He has every right to claim you, but He tells you that you are free.
That is the reason why many who are born again are still living for themselves. God will not force your will. He honors your will.
He wants us voluntarily to present our bodies a living sacrifice. You remember Romans 12:
I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service.
Dear brothers and sisters, does the love of Christ constrain you? When you think that He who died for you, you cannot live for yourself. You have to live for the One who died and lives for you.
We are Nazarites, but are we living as Nazarites? Let us consider the three things prohibited under the Nazarite vow.
First, nothing from the vine. Do you remember when our Lord Jesus said, “I am the true vine”? If He is the true vine, all other vines are false.
Why was a Nazarite forbidden to take anything from the vine? These things represent the pleasures of the world. They represent the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh, and the pride of life.
In other words, one who is a Nazarite is separated from the world. He will not allow the world to defile him.
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man loveth the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
Brothers and sisters, do you know that you are a Nazarite? Why are you conformed to the world?
Be not fashioned according to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is the good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Second, no razor upon your head. In other words, do not try to beautify yourself. Do not think of yourself.
Long hair in Scripture represents submission and obedience. Do not try to beautify your own self, because there is nothing good in you—that is, in your flesh. Learn to be obedient to God.
Third, never get close to a dead body, even the closest one to you. That is to say, in the sight of God, the flesh is like death, because he who minds the flesh is dead.
Brothers and sisters, as Nazarites, we are separated from the world. We do not try to beautify ourselves; instead, our Lord is our Head. We are separated from anything that comes out of the flesh, so that we may live a life devoted to our God.
Samuel was born a Nazarite, and he was faithful in his Nazarite life. That is the reason why God could use him as an epoch-making vessel.
Dear brothers and sisters, those whom God can use to bring in our King are those who are faithful as Nazarites: those who are separated from the world, those who allow the Lord to be their Head, and those who put their flesh to the cross.
These are the people whom God can use as epoch-making vessels. May the Lord have mercy upon us.
Do not think that God chooses only a few to be epoch-making vessels. Actually, it depends on how we respond to God’s election and calling.
May the grace of God come upon all of us, that we will offer ourselves to Him, that He may use us to bring in the King. There is no greater honor.
Dear Lord, we want to thank You for saving us. Thank You that You have saved us for Yourself, that You may use us to change the time.
Lord, we want to join with You. You are our Head, Redeemer, and Master. May we give ourselves over to You and learn to live a life of a Nazarite, that Your will may be done on earth as it is in heaven.
We ask in the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.