Psalm 88; 1 Samuel 3:1-21; Acts 2:37-47; Luke 21:5-19
What a test for Samuel! The word of the Lord was rare in those days due to the unfaithfulness of the priests, they weren’t listening to the Lord at all. Samuel has had neither experience with hearing the Lord nor instruction in how to hear so he has no idea that it is the Lord speaking to him. Do we train people to listen to the Lord and to expect Him to speak? The word comes of judgment against Eli and his house, just as had been spoken to Eli by the Lord. Samuel, not surprisingly, is reticent to share this word with the priest and yet it is important to his future that he be willing to share a difficult word from the Lord. Samuel speaks as the Lord has spoken to him, we must always be willing to speak exactly as we hear, without fear or favor, obedience is the only option.
Jesus tells his disciples that all that they know will be undone and speaks of the end of time. Surely the disciples questioned His prophetic words here that family members would deliver them up and they would be brought before worldly and religious leaders but indeed they experienced these very things in the nearer future than anyone could have imagined. His final words, “But not a hair of your head will perish. By your endurance you will gain your lives” must be confusing in that many of them indeed lost their lives for their testimony concerning Him. Their lives are more than their physical beings, life is something more than this. Jesus didn’t want his disciples unaware of the dangers ahead of them and hidden in His words is the promise of the Holy Spirit to be with them and lead them in their response to their accusers.
The response of the crowd to Peter’s sermon is to ask “What shall we do?” In that do we hear an acknowledgment that they believe what he has said to be true concerning Jesus as Messiah? Peter’s response surely sounded strange to them, that God could be so gracious as to forgive through baptism in Jesus’ Name. Such an idea was a game-changer if it is true. No sacrifice would have been possible to atone for this sin and the idea that baptism would fix things had to have seemed a strange idea. Who was Peter to proclaim such things? The conversations that would have accompanied this proclamation would be fascinating and yet their response to grace seems to have been extraordinary gratitude and a desire to know more and for fellowship with one another. They immediately chose to devote themselves to the one who had devoted Himself to them.
Come, Almighty to deliver,
Let us all Thy life receive;
Suddenly return and never,
Never more Thy temples leave.
Thee we would be always blessing,
Serve Thee as Thy hosts above,
Pray and praise Thee without ceasing,
Glory in Thy perfect love.
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