The weekly Union times. [volume] (Union C.H., South Carolina) 1871-1894, 1889-07-05
...,Ne:D! .o.u.NDAY e:!L,;l SCHOOL,
INTERNATIONAL n
JULY z.
Lesson. Text samuel Called of God, =
Sam. lii, 114-GOlden Text:
sam. iii, 1O-Commcntary Oh
Lesson.

our Lord Jesus as recorded i'm the Gospel by
Mark wo now return to tho study OF tho
book which Jesus loved and from which Ho
always preached, .'oxpounding unto them In
all tho Scriptures the things coacorning Him
1. "And the child Samuel ministerod unto
tho Lord before Eli" Our last Old Tosta-
ment studies were In the book OF Judges and
Ruth. We aro now about to study tho life
of the last of tho judges, who was also q
prophet, rs it is written I'm Acts xiii, 20:
'He gave unto them judges about the space,
of four hundred and fifty years. until Samuel
the prophet"
3, 3. 'The temple Of tho Lord, whcre tho
Ark Of God was" The tcmplo hero mentioned
is tho tabernacle which Moses had built in tho
Wilderness, and which had now boen for SO
long q timo ut Shiloh, in the inner room of
which, or Holy of Holes was tho Ark of tho
Covenant of tho Lord Of oil the oarth Josh.
Iii, 1I, and in tho outer room or Holy Place
was the table Of shcwbrcad, tho golden altar
OF incense, and the golden sevcn brnnched
candlestick or lamp stand, tho lamps of which
were lighted every cvcning and dressed cvery
morning (Ex. xvii, 81; XXX, z, y.
swered, Here am l." Samuel is supposed by
Josephus to have been at this timo about
twelve years of age; on this particular morn-
Ing no Is awakened by hearing his namo
l." That God should be so near us and yct sd
seldom speak to us in an audible voice may
sceNa strange; but Is 10 not more strange that
He should speak to us rs He docs in His word
and in the evonts Of every day, and wo bc SO
slow to hear or heed His voicc2
5. And ho ran unto Ell, and said, Hero
nm i, for thou cnllcdst mo-" Thinking TINT
Eli had called him, ho roso up quickly and
ran to him with these words, hut Eli not
having called him ami not sccing that it, was
the voice of tho Lord bids him 90 lie down
again, AMI Samuel obcys. How quickly tho
boy responded to what he supposed was tho
call of Eli; what promptncSs, what dcnial to
self of the qualification of little moro slum-
ber; n great lesson for all
g. And the Lord called yet again Sam
uel." How patiently and pcrscvcrinSly tho
Lord continues to call those whom the Father
has given to Him out of this sinful world;
Tor God speakcth once, yea, twice, yot man
perccivcth it not.
z "Now Samuel did not yet know tho
Lord neither was the word OF tho Lord yet
revealed unto him." lIe knew tho Lord
through the words of Moses and Joshua and
ministcred unto Him as thus revealed, but up
to this time tho Lord had not spoken directly
to Samuel. This was the first of many com
munications directly from tho Lord to tho
people through Samuel
3. "And the Lord called Samuel again tho
third time" And again he arose and went to
Ell with the Samc words: "lIcrc am |; for
thou di,lst call mo" What parents heart
would not bc made glad by such son; what
unwcaried though apparently fruitless o!r-
dience; but it shall bc rewarded. Eli a last
perccivos that it is the voice of God an hat
the Lord has actually called the chi' tho
only recorded instance in which LAO Lord
spoke in u vision i'm al audible voico to Il Iittlu
boy; but let all the children know and bolievo
that when they read the Bible or hear it read
God is as really speaking to them in His word
rs when He spoke to Samuel.
.. Speak, Lord, for Thy servant holroth." :"
Eli now nstructs tho child that ho Is to lilo
down again, and if again ho is called, no is to
make this reply, for it is God and not man
that is calling him. With such prayer ns
this in our hearts lot us go about our work
overy day and We shall often hear His voice
in the ordinary events of every day lifo; but
lets us also never open tho Biblo without Of
fering up from the heart cithor this prayer or
the one in Ps cxix., 1S: "Open Thou mine
eyes that may behold wondrous things out
OF Thy law"
10. "And the Lord camc, and stood, and
called us at other times Samuel, Samuel.
Then Samuel answered, Speak, FOR Thy ser
want hearoth." The Lord know that Samuel
did not know His voice, and SO lIo camC
again and again SO lovingly and patiently
until Samuel. through Eli, Ind hccn- taught
that it was the voice of God, and then with
entire surrender of soul the boy yields him.
self to the word and will of God.
IL. "And tho Lord said to Samuel, Behold,
/ will do a thing i'm Israel at which, both the
oars of every one that horreth it shall tinglo."
He announces that II Judgment is about tn
como in Israel, and that people shall bo
tingling' only found twice elsewhere in tho
Biblc UI XII xxi, II; Jcr. xix, - aud is in
each case in connection with coming judg
ments.
12. "In that day 1 will perform against
Eli, oil things which have spoken concerning
his house; when begin | will also make M
ond.n Having made tho general statement
that Ho would do a mighty work of Judgment
in Israel, it might be asked, whcro Lord? II
what tribe or Shall il reach the whole nation
~ Shn N
strike even upon tho very head of the nation
Eli and his house, and He indicates that il
shall bc short and complete. Eli being Gods
representative as judge of the people, should
have boon in all respects a faithful rcprcScn
ativc, and the guilt of any acts Of omission oi
rnpncn m Amos ILL.,, ), gives some
light upon it: You only have known of all
the families of the Garth; therefore l will
punish you for all your inioiuitics"
l3. "FOr EaVc told him that will iuIyo
his house forever for the iuiquity which ho
inowcth; because his sons made themselves
vic. and he restrained them not" God never
exercises Judgment withou: mercy He is
long suffering and ALWAYS gives abundant
warning, ii perchancc there may be repent
Ince, and thus the Judgment hc avcrtcd IIc
bad warned Eli CHAP. H., 27-;}A years before
this but the warning had been ,lnhecded. and
now the limo of mercy had passed and tho
lnquity of his sons, and although he rrbukc,l
them and warned them, lie did not restrain
them.
II. And therefore have sworn unto tho
house of Eli, that the inIuity of Ellis hous,
snail not be pir.,cd with sacrifice nor Offering
forever" not because there is not atoncmeut
SUFFICIENT to reach and remove the sin of Ellis
house. but because of the lack of repentance
on Their part: Jesus Himself said that all
manner OF SIN and blasphcmy shall DO for
given unto men; but lie also said that tho
blasphcmy against the Holy Spirit shall not
DeLorgiven unto men Matt. xii, BY: which
II understand it signifies the persistent and
continued resistance of the Spirit until death
or until lie withdraws and leaves to himself
the person thus resisting Him; and when a
person is thus loft by the Spirit it will bo
found impossible to approach them upon tho
matter Of their souls welfare. Lesson
BciDcr. '''
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