God raised Samuel up to replace the corrupt priesthood of Eli’s sons. It is said of them that they had “no regard for the LORD”. Of Samuel, however, it is said that “he grew up before the LORD”. God was confident that Samuel would “do according to what is in my heart and mind”. Contrasts like this are designed to help us make a clear decision about how we will live. As you read this, notice the way the difference between Samuel and Eli’s sons is drawn. It is not primarily about what Eli’s sons and Samuel did but the state of their hearts. Eli’s sons disregarded God. That is a heart thing. Samuel, on the other hand, was devoted to God. What Samuel was is really what we are called to be: dedicated to God and his service full time, not as a vocation (though this obviously applies to some) but as the primary concern of our lives wherever we are and in all we do. However, the opposite of this, that which was characteristic of Eli’s sons, is all too often true of us. We may not do what Eli’s sons did, but it is easy to rush through life setting our own goals and agendas without giving God much thought along the way, except perhaps at church meetings and when we have our occasional devotional times alone. God does not just want token gestures. He has an absolute claim on your life, and he calls you to yield yourself to him completely.
Offer yourself to God as Paul directs us to do in Romans 12:1.
Read 1 Samuel 2
