Sermon 01-15-2012

Psalm 139:1-7 1 Samuel 3:1-11

“God Is Calling Each One of Us!"

In today’s world, “the word of the God is rare… and visions are not that common.” (1 Sam. 3:1, paraphrazed), as in Samuel’s time, so we have passed the age of miracles… no pillars of fire, no columns of smoke, no parting of seas or rivers; most of what follows is a worldly history of successes, defeats, and palace intrigue. In fact, Samuel’s role in anointing human kings will be to further human independence from God. A shiver may come upon us at realizing that we are on our own.” (Lawrence Wood, Feasting on the Word, Year B, Vol. 1, p. 243)

PRAYER

Does it feel today like we are on our own?

But… “The lamp of God had not yet gone out.” (3:3)

(What does that mean?)

Although visions may be rare in the modern world, they can still happen; God only seems to be sleeping. Indeed, while Samuel sleeps, God turns out to be delightfully awake.” (Ibid)

Like Samuel, perhaps today is the day that we will hear God’s calling, God is calling each one of us! Can you hear him?

Are we like Samuel, one who grow up in the temple and could not identify the calling of God, and like him are we sleeping? We do not fully sense the divinity around us. Exhaustion has so dulled our hearts, minds, and souls that we can work all day in the temple but never hear God? (or Is God disturbing our sleep?)

The voice of God troubles us, even when we cannot identify it, and we cannot rest until we know who is calling us and why. (Lawrence Wood)

The irony of the story is that, in the temple the voice of God was unexpected! We may understand how the place could have become more like a museum instead of a home for the living God.

The Lord calls, “Sam-u-el, Sam-u-el,” meaning “God has heard.” The boy says, “Here I am! And runs to the priest Eli (who’s name means “my God”), who has not called for him. Sam-u-el, Sam-u-el! God calls again and again, the boy goes to Eli, “my God” rather than his true God.

A third time the Lord says, Sam-u-el, “God has heard,” and at last Eli (truly awake for the first time in many years) instructs the boy to answer, “Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.”

“See,” the Lord tells Samuel, “I am about to do something in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears of it tingle.” (3:11)

Are you listening? Do you hear what I am saying now?

The news will not be good for Eli, whose sons have disgraced the priestly line… God must anoint a conventional king; and Samuel is to be kingmaker…

Eli helped Samuel to make sense of the voice calling in the night.

Eli – the one with the ironic name, the blind man, the disgraced priest who failed to discipline his sons – is the man who introduces Samuel to God. Eli may be blind in more ways than one, but he has seen enough to be of help… he is a priest for life… and he does God’s work in spite of himself.” (Ibid, 245)

Are we Samuel? Are we Eli? Can we pick one or the other? And what shall we do if the living God comes into our troubled temple? It is Eli, ironically enough, who tells us what to say: “Speak Lord for your servant is listening.” (Ibid, 247)

Did Mary Louise help us last week to make sense of where we are and where we can be? What did you hear? (get the answers from the congregation!)

______________

Right from the start, Dr. Gifford sensed a lot of energy here.

This is what I heard, Esther keep doing what you’re doing. I believe she was telling me to continue stirring the pot!” I also heard that Wollaston had 25 people and three years of economic life left and they needed to do something about it! We have a year of economic life, if we don’t do something now, we will very likely regret it! One difference with Wollaston is that we are 143 people in this church. It may be wise for us to do more hands on mission. We need to reach out to our neighbors in the surrounding community and the college students at Bridgewater State University. Do we use banners, colors and change around Central Square Church? She asked.

Are we listening in order to respond to God’s call? Are we sleeping?

Is God calling us to wake up to our reality to change the way we always have done things, so that we do not decline and die as a church.

To take on any challenge we need to take it together, it needs to be a communal decision, and we each have to take a role in making it happen, be it the budget or a capital campaign. “…listening and hearing becomes a communal affair, dependent on both the hearing and the speaking of the community together,” (Richard Boyce, Ibid, 247) things will or will not happen!

“What this passage recommends to us is that we begin to make decisions based on the tingle of hope. Oddly, the passage assures us that what God is going to do will make both ears tingle… (here is a suggestion), let one ear tingle with fear. Fear is legitimate under most of the circumstances of most of our lives. Fear is spiritually legitimate. A Lot has gone wrong. A lot of risk lurks. But listen now with the other ear… God is going to do a new thing, which will make both ears tingle. Give the other ear a little exercise. Let it tingle too.

God has plans, already executed by Jesus, to do good things. The way to tingle is to open both of your eyes and look around… look back to the scriptures, look forward in hope. Open both ears. Soon they will tingle.” Amen!

(Donna Schaper, Ibid, 246)

BENEDICTION

In the words of Mary Louise Gifford:

“These are urgent times for pastors and congregations to understand that the world has changed, and the ways in which we think and do church must also change.”

May we take the challenge to hear God’s calling to each one of us, individually

and as a community of faith. Amen!