Samuel also was among those who called upon his name.
They called to the Lord, and he answered them.
—Psalm 99:5-6
Then the Lord called Samuel, and he said, “Here I am!”
—1 Samuel 3:4
And Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me.” And the Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’”
—1 Samuel 16:2
“Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.”
—Isaiah 52:6
Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you take away the yoke from your midst,
the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
if you pour yourself out for the hungry
and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
then shall your light rise in the darkness
and your gloom be as the noonday.
—Isaiah 58:9-10
Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” ... But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.”
—Acts 9:10, 13-15
Someone might describe a moment of stress by saying, "My whole life flashed before me." Ananias seems to have had a moment in which Samuel's whole life flashed before him.
"Hear" means more than awareness of a sound—it means to pay attention, to act on what is heard. After years of taunts by Peninnah, Hannah's anxious prayers were heard, and she bore a son. She named him Samuel, because the Lord heard her. She gave her son to the service of the Lord, where he “continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the Lord and also with man.”
Samuel's first recorded words occur in the dark of night, when the Lord calls and Samuel responds, “Here I am!” Young Samuel gave a response of readiness and attention even though he was at first confused about the caller. But as the calls repeated, he responded as Eli had instructed, with even more emphasis, “Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.”
Despite a life of service to the Lord that included disappointment with Israel and then with Saul, Samuel had been faithful to the Lord. But when the Lord gave Samuel the job of anointing Saul's replacement, Samuel was afraid.
I used to struggle with the idea of the Lord giving Samuel what one commentator called "a cover story" that seemed to hedge the truth. I see it a little differently now. Yes, Samuel was being called to represent the Lord in what amounted to opposition to Saul. But the Lord gave him a way. And, on his part, Samuel made two sacrifices: in addition to the heifer, he sacrificed his fears to the Lord.
One more time, Samuel heard, and obeyed. Samuel became an instrument of the Lord in replacing Saul, a rebellious king, with David, a man after His own heart,.
The name "Ananias" appears to be a Greek version of a Hebrew name meaning "the Lord has favored" or "the Lord has been gracious", an appropriate name for one called to deliver a message of amazing grace. And when the Lord spoke, Ananias responded just like the young Samuel, “Here I am, Lord.” But when the Lord gave him his task, Ananias responded just like the aged Samuel, "That's dangerous!" (Obviously, I'm paraphrasing.) And the Lord reassured him.
So Ananias heard, and obeyed. Ananias became an instrument of the Lord in transforming Saul, a persecutor of the faith, into Paul, an apostle and missionary.
We know a number of events in Samuel's life; we know hardly any of Ananias. But, by being available, and hearing, and obeying, both of them had a part in changing the world.
And the Lord calls us to listen as well as they did, to listen to Him as intently as we pray for Him to listen to us.
Here/Hear
Exalt the Lord our God;
worship at his footstool!
Holy is he!
Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
Samuel also was among those who called upon his name.
They called to the Lord, and he answered them.
—Psalm 99:5-6
Then the Lord called Samuel, and he said, “Here I am!”
—1 Samuel 3:4
And Samuel said, “How can I go? If Saul hears it, he will kill me.” And the Lord said, “Take a heifer with you and say, ‘I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.’”
—1 Samuel 16:2
“Therefore my people shall know my name. Therefore in that day they shall know that it is I who speak; here I am.”
—Isaiah 52:6
Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer;
you shall cry, and he will say, ‘Here I am.’
If you take away the yoke from your midst,
the pointing of the finger, and speaking wickedness,
if you pour yourself out for the hungry
and satisfy the desire of the afflicted,
then shall your light rise in the darkness
and your gloom be as the noonday.
—Isaiah 58:9-10
Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. The Lord said to him in a vision, “Ananias.” And he said, “Here I am, Lord.” ... But Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he has done to your saints at Jerusalem. And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name.” But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen instrument of mine to carry my name before the Gentiles and kings and the children of Israel.”
—Acts 9:10, 13-15
Someone might describe a moment of stress by saying, "My whole life flashed before me." Ananias seems to have had a moment in which Samuel's whole life flashed before him.
"Hear" means more than awareness of a sound—it means to pay attention, to act on what is heard. After years of taunts by Peninnah, Hannah's anxious prayers were heard, and she bore a son. She named him Samuel, because the Lord heard her. She gave her son to the service of the Lord, where he “continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the Lord and also with man.”
Samuel's first recorded words occur in the dark of night, when the Lord calls and Samuel responds, “Here I am!” Young Samuel gave a response of readiness and attention even though he was at first confused about the caller. But as the calls repeated, he responded as Eli had instructed, with even more emphasis, “Speak, Lord, for your servant hears.”
Despite a life of service to the Lord that included disappointment with Israel and then with Saul, Samuel had been faithful to the Lord. But when the Lord gave Samuel the job of anointing Saul's replacement, Samuel was afraid.
I used to struggle with the idea of the Lord giving Samuel what one commentator called "a cover story" that seemed to hedge the truth. I see it a little differently now. Yes, Samuel was being called to represent the Lord in what amounted to opposition to Saul. But the Lord gave him a way. And, on his part, Samuel made two sacrifices: in addition to the heifer, he sacrificed his fears to the Lord.
One more time, Samuel heard, and obeyed. Samuel became an instrument of the Lord in replacing Saul, a rebellious king, with David, a man after His own heart,.
The name "Ananias" appears to be a Greek version of a Hebrew name meaning "the Lord has favored" or "the Lord has been gracious", an appropriate name for one called to deliver a message of amazing grace. And when the Lord spoke, Ananias responded just like the young Samuel, “Here I am, Lord.” But when the Lord gave him his task, Ananias responded just like the aged Samuel, "That's dangerous!" (Obviously, I'm paraphrasing.) And the Lord reassured him.
So Ananias heard, and obeyed. Ananias became an instrument of the Lord in transforming Saul, a persecutor of the faith, into Paul, an apostle and missionary.
We know a number of events in Samuel's life; we know hardly any of Ananias. But, by being available, and hearing, and obeying, both of them had a part in changing the world.
And the Lord calls us to listen as well as they did, to listen to Him as intently as we pray for Him to listen to us.