Bible In One Year-Day 104 (Monday, April 14, 2014)

Commentary: 1Sam1-3. The birth of Samuel was God’s way of transiting from the era of the Judges to Prophets and kingdoms. The parents of Samuel were religious people, but the mother was more spiritual. Religious in the sense that they obeyed and followed the principles of the law on yearly basis, and spiritual in the sense that the mother contacted God through an usual manner of prayer, a prayer that was not from priestly prescription, rather it was an out pour from the bitterness of the soul and grieved spirit,

Psalms 51:17 “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.”

Eli the priest had never seen such prayers before and that was why he regarded it as drunkenness; 1 Samuel 1:13 “Now Hannah, she spake in her heart; only her lips moved, but her voice was not heard: therefore Eli thought she had been drunken.”

Yearly sacrifice did not change things but her prayer changed it, her prayer provoked a prophecy that moved the hand of God. Many prophecies are given just to make the hearer comfortable, feel good or because the giver of prophecy loves you and wants to be respected. The one Eli released came from an involuntary action, not within the human elements or figment of imagination but from the spirit. This is what is called “deep calleth unto the deep” This is where we need to understand the efficacy of prayer. God has a sure plan which no ‘one’ man could complete but just have a role to play if such is humble enough to listen to instructions for the role. In essence, there are a lot of vacancies as far as God’s work is concerned and He is the only one who recruits for such jobs. Many of us are actually doing the jobs on hand under another hire (or under a chosen laborer), not God Himself, yet unfaithful. He searches for Himself His own hire or laborer; Matthew 20:1 “For the kingdom of heaven is like to a man that is a householder, who went out early in the morning to hire laborers into his vineyard.”

In our reading, the vacancy on ground was somebody to be the last Judge of Israel and also the first prophet in the Promised Land. Whilst performing the duty of a priest in addition. But the person must pant after His heart;

1 Samuel 2:35 “And I will raise me up a faithful priest, that shall do according to that which is in mine heart and in my mind: and I will build him a sure house; and he shall walk before mine anointed for ever.”

Meanwhile, while God was going about searching for a medium to send forth the right candidate, Hannah was busy applying for the vacancy in prayer;

1 Samuel 1:11 “And she vowed a vow, and said, O LORD of hosts, if thou wilt indeed look on the affliction of thine handmaid, and remember me, and not forget thine handmaid, but wilt give unto thine 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.”

When God saw Hannah’s objective in her prayer resume or CV “I will give him unto the Lord” He pulled out her application for consideration. Hannah was somebody we need to learn from in the face of discouragement, ridicules and mockery. She never gave up on praying all manner of prayers;

Ephesians 6:18 “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;”

A persevering prayer never give up nor faints. The prayer she prayed before Samuel was born still worked for Samuel all the days of his life. Hannah was a good prayer warrior worthy of emulation, and also a very good praise lifter according to chapter2. Are you at the point of giving up, learn from Hannah. The resurrection and ascension of the Lord Jesus was His application to God requesting for the Holy Spirit on our behalf;

John 14:16 “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;”

This was His word before His death, it had been fulfilled. The Holy Spirit is here and He is the only one that could help us to pray and walk according to God’s will and mind, He gives strength to prevail as Hannah said in her song “For by strength no man shall prevail …” To receive this Spirit that prevails, JESUS must be alive in you through His words in your heart.

John 6:63 “It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak to you, they are spirit, and they are life.”

God is still searching for laborers for His vineyard, and to be relevant in life and be established like Samuel, you must apply earnestly and faithfully;

Ezekiel 22:30 “And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land, that I should not destroy it: but I found none.”

Though Hannah’s womb brought forth late, it still brought forth the best which was quite outstanding;

1 Samuel 3:19 “And Samuel grew, and the LORD was with him, and did let none of his words fall to the ground. And all Israel from Dan even to Beersheba knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet of the LORD.”

It is what God puts on ground that He increases. I pray that the word that will change the status of your destiny will come to you from the Lord in the name of Jesus. The reading for today is 1Sam4-6. Keep the fire burning and alive. ALL OTHER PROPHETS ARE DEAD WITHOUT KNOWING THEIR FATE ON THE DAY OF JUDGMENT, but JESUS is alive and will be the JUDGE at the judgment seat; 2 Corinthians 5:10 “For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad.”

Matthew 25:32 “And before him shall be gathered all nations: and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divideth his sheep from the goats:”