Faith in Action: Samuel

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We continue our series this week on the theme of Faith in Action with the story of the calling of young Samuel. Many of you will probably recognize the story from your youth, as it is a wonderful story for us to share with young people. In the story, Samuel is young, probably 11 or 12 years old, and it is a great story to tell how a young person is capable of doing phenomenal things!

But we tend to read only part of the story in Sunday school. Have you ever seen the extended version of a movie, where a few added scenes can change the tenor of the whole film? The “extended release” of the calling of Samuel has a lot of other people doing a lot of not great things. So, this morning, I want to read more of the story, because I think it more fully shows how significant Samuel’s part to the whole thing is. I want to translate it through our language of Faith in Action, as each of the characters demonstrate Faith in Action in different ways, and to varying levels of success. Let’s explore the “director’s cut” of Samuel this morning.

The first characters to examine are the Sons of Eli. Eli is the main priest in this holy place named Shiloh. But in addition to his leadership, his sons are also given the authority to practice alongside of him. Let’s see how that goes….

1 Samuel 2.12–17

¹² Now the sons of Eli were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord ¹³ or for the duties of the priests to the people. When anyone offered sacrifice, the priest’s servant would come, while the meat was boiling, with a three-pronged fork in his hand, ¹⁴ and he would thrust it into the pan, kettle, caldron, or pot; all that the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. This is what they did at Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there. ¹⁵ Moreover, before the fat was burned, the priest’s servant would come and say to the one who was sacrificing, “Give meat for the priest to roast, for he will not accept boiled meat from you but only raw.” ¹⁶ And if the man said to him, “Let them burn the fat first and then take whatever you wish,” he would say, “No, you must give it now; if not, I will take it by force.” ¹⁷ Thus the sin of the young men was very great in the sight of the Lord, for they treated the offerings of the Lord with contempt.

Needless to say, the leadership of the sons of Eli is…not great. The long-standing practice of the priesthood was that in order to feed themselves and their families, priests could take a portion of the meat that was given to God as an offering. But they were limited in how much they could take. The Sons of Eli don’t care about those limitations, and take more than their share. If that weren’t enough, later in the text, it suggests that they are sexually assaulting the women who helped to manage the temple. They are not the first, nor the last, priests who abuse their authority to take what they want from the people. They totally miss the point of the office of the priesthood; the text assesses them as “scoundrels.”

In the language of Faith in Action, they acted, but not out of faith. They think that they know better than the regulations that keep them ethical. They don’t need their father and his rules. And they definitely don’t need God.

I attended a conference a few weeks ago with scholar Norman Wirzba who writes about how this kind of ideology still impacts us today. He suggests that much of our current cultural ideology is based on a kind of dualistic Gnosticism, where spiritual humans are granted the ability to do whatever they want with the physical earth. The result, he suggests, is a what he calls a pornographic relationship with the world. He isn’t talking about a certain kind of movie or centerfold picture…or at least not only that. In broader ideological terms, he is describing how we think that if we can see something, then we can possess it. We can dominate it. We can take it. Our consumeristic culture is based on the rule of “take what you can see.” Our leaders brag about what they grab from others…politically and personally. Our climate crisis is the result of several generations believing that if we can see the landscape, food sources, water sources, what we call natural “resources,” then they must be ours for the taking. If we can see them, then they are ours to possess on our own terms. This way of thinking has relevance for our relationships with our neighbors, with our spouses, with our children. Look at the way that the Sons of Eli choose to lead, choose to act as “grabbers-in-chief.” It is not unlike how many in our world act today.

So, attempt number one at Faith in Action…not good. Basically, Action without Faith. OK, Let’s look at the next character in the story. Their father, the priest Eli.

1 Samuel 2.27–32

²⁷ A man of God came to Eli and said to him, “Thus the Lord has said: I revealed myself to the family of your ancestor in Egypt when they were slaves to the house of Pharaoh. ²⁸ I chose him out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to offer incense, to wear an ephod before me, and I gave to the family of your ancestor all my offerings by fire from the Israelites. ²⁹ Why then look with greedy eye at my sacrifices and my offerings and honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choicest parts of every offering of my people Israel? ³⁰ Therefore the Lord the God of Israel declares: I promised that your family and the family of your ancestor should go in and out before me forever, but now the Lord declares: Far be it from me, for those who honor me I will honor, and those who despise me shall be treated with contempt. ³¹ See, a time is coming when I will cut off your strength and the strength of your ancestor’s family. ³² No one in your family shall ever live to old age.

Eli is a complicated figure in this story. He knows that what his sons are doing is wrong. He knows that God is mad. Even before the prophet showed up in the text that I read, he had told his sons in no uncertain terms to knock it off. But that is where it ended. He doesn’t enforce it. He doesn’t do enough.

In our Faith in Action language, Eli has faith, and God-given wisdom and knowledge that what his sons are doing is wrong. But he doesn’t act on that faith. In the end, the text announces that he is complicit in their wrongdoing because he has the power to stop it and fails to do so. His is a different failure of Faith in Action, but according to the Scriptural assessment, it is failure, nonetheless.

The text seems to suggest that knowing what we need to do is not always enough. There is a phrase that I appreciate from the world of social media: slacktivism. It is the practice of supporting some level of social or activist cause, by liking or sharing a post on social media, but then not actually participating in work associated with that cause. Hence the “slack” in “slacktivism.” What is missing is the commitment. The sacrifice. The risk, or even simple engagement. Instead of engaging in the complicated work of justice, of going out of our way to serve our neighbors, of building sustainable and structural change, we hit “share” on a social media post and think that we have done enough. Eli knew that injustice was happening around him, but when he had a chance to do something about it…he didn’t do enough.

 

So, neither of the first two models worked out very well. A third model of Faith in Action is Samuel himself. I am about to read the passage that we usually focus on in Sunday school lessons, but now that we understand the wider context, let’s read that story again.

1 Samuel 3.1–7

¹ Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli. The word of the Lord was rare in those days; visions were not widespread. ² At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his room; ³ the lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was. ⁴ Then the Lord called, “Samuel! Samuel!” and he said, “Here I am!” ⁵ and ran to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call; lie down again.” So he went and lay down. ⁶ The Lord called again, “Samuel!” Samuel got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” But he said, “I did not call, my son; lie down again.” ⁷ Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, and the word of the Lord had not yet been revealed to him.

Now, it is hard to be too judgmental of an 11-year-old. To call his response a “failed” Faith in Action is a bit harsh. But maybe we can call it “incomplete.” The text even says, “Samuel did not yet know the Lord.” What is at stake here is the naivete of a young man who still has a lot to learn. In the story, that naivete is frustrating: to Samuel…and to Eli…and maybe even a little bit to God!

In this third imperfect, incomplete Faith in Action, we see a young man who seems to have faith, but doesn’t know how to act. Did you notice how many times in the text we read the phrase “Here I am?” Throughout Scripture this phrase, “Here I am,” is repeated over and over again. Abraham and Moses both say it to God, near the beginning of their call narratives. It demonstrates the willingness and the openness to be present with God, to hear God. It is a crucial first step in Faith in Action, and that phrase shows us Samuel’s faith, his openness, his willingness. Yet did you notice how many times Samuel declared “here I am,” but still had no idea what to do next? He had faith but didn’t know how to act.

So, note the comparison here. Eli has the knowledge but doesn’t act, Samuel is ready to act but doesn’t have the knowledge. Separately, their imperfect examples of Faith in Action lead to frustrating results. But look at what happens next….

1 Samuel 3.8–13 and 18–20

⁸ The Lord called Samuel again, a third time. And he got up and went to Eli and said, “Here I am, for you called me.” Then Eli perceived that the Lord was calling the boy. ⁹ Therefore Eli said to Samuel, “Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, ‘Speak, Lord, for your servant is listening.’ ” So Samuel went and lay down in his place.

¹⁰ Now the Lord came and stood there, calling as before, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for your servant is listening.” ¹¹ Then the Lord said to Samuel, “See, I am about to do something in Israel that will make both ears of anyone who hears of it tingle. ¹² On that day I will fulfill against Eli all that I have spoken concerning his house, from beginning to end. ¹³ For I have told him that I am about to punish his house forever for the iniquity that he knew, because his sons were blaspheming God, and he did not restrain them.

¹⁸ So Samuel told him everything and hid nothing from him. Then he said, “It is the Lord; let him do what seems good to him.”

¹⁹ As Samuel grew up, the Lord was with him and let none of his words fall to the ground. ²⁰ And all Israel from Dan to Beer-sheba knew that Samuel was a trustworthy prophet of the Lord.

Finally, Eli understands what is going on. He sends Samuel back one last time, with a new set of directions: “If you hear the voice again, respond that you are ready to listen.” So Samuel goes back with a new understanding, and it makes all the difference. Separately, neither of them are ready for a successful Faith in Action enterprise. Because they need what the other has. Eli needs Samuel, because his own sons are not the priestly legacy that he and the community requires. Samuel needs Eli, because even though he is open to understanding, he needs a teacher. Separately, they are frustrated. Together, they succeed. And they become a Faith in Action team that changes the model of the way that God’s people live for the next several hundred years. Both need each other to truly engage in faith in action.

Two imperfect models…that God puts together for incredible results. Sometimes—probably most of the time—Faith in Action means that we need to be open and willing to learn from one another, and then be ready to respond in community. We need each other. Eli’s sons act as a foil in the story because they demonstrate the opposite: they think they don’t need anyone else, and so they fail most spectacularly. Eli and Samuel are on the edge of figuring it out, but need each other to make it happen. How often in our own Faith in Action stories do we realize that we couldn’t have done it without help?

Dr. Wirzba makes this point, as well. In his rejection of Gnostic consumerism, where we feel like the world is ours for the taking and we don’t need anyone else, he tells us, “remember your belly button.” You did not get here on your own. You have not achieved anything completely on your own. If you ever forget that fact, take a look at your belly button, a symbol that you began your life totally and utterly dependent on others. We need each other. We always have. We always will. Whenever we get a little too arrogant, or grabby, or think we are in charge, Wirzba reminds us to take a peek right above our belt buckle and remember that we need each other. Samuel needed Eli. Eli needed Samuel. We need each other.

And they both needed God. There is actually a fourth Faith in Action story in the text: God’s Active Faith in both Samuel and Eli. God seems to know that they both need what the other has, and so God doesn’t give up even when they aren’t figuring it out. God’s faith in them is perhaps the most important part of the story. Look again at the way that scholar Amy Oden says it:

“…divine revelation does not depend on our spiritual quickness or skill but rather on God’s faithfulness. If we don’t get it (as indeed the gospels portray Jesus’ disciples not getting it most of the time), God will not give up. God will try again, perhaps at another time or in another place or even through a different method. God persists. Remember a time when you sensed God speaking into your life. Did you get it the first time, or did God have to persist? What were some of the attempts God made through others or through life experiences? How has your church experienced the persistence of God?”

The story is a story of God’s faithfulness. I know we just sang this song a couple of weeks ago, but its words ring true to today’s story:

Great is thy faithfulness, O God, my Father;
There is no shadow of turning with thee.
Thou changest not, thy compassions, they fail not;
As thou hast been, thou forever wilt be.

Summer and winter and springtime and harvest,
Sun, moon, and stars in their courses above
Join with all nature in manifold witness
To thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love.

Pardon for sin and a peace that endureth,
Thine own dear presence to cheer and to guide;
Strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow,
Blessings all mine and ten thousand beside.

Great is thy faithfulness,
Great is thy faithfulness,
Morning by morning new mercies I see.
All I have needed thy hand hast provided;
Great is thy faithfulness,
Lord unto me.