Participants: Pr. Doug Batchelor
Series Code: EG
Program Code: EG002719
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00:09 It's been 2000 years since the glorious light of the cross
00:12 illuminated a world veiled in darkness and confusion about the 00:15 character of God. And still today the greatest need of 00:18 mankind is a revelation of God's love as revealed in the life of 00:23 Christ. Amazing Facts presents the Everlasting Gospel with 00:26 Pastor Doug Batchelor coming to you each week from Sacramento 00:30 Central Church in sunny California. Discover hidden 00:33 treasures in God's word today. 00:38 Our message is coming from the book of Samuel chapter 1 and 00:44 it's the story of Hannah and the gift that God gave her in 00:49 Samuel and the gift she gave back in Samuel. So please turn 00:54 to the first book of Samuel. The book of Samuel represents a 00:58 change in the epochs of the Bible and it begins with this 01:03 very interesting story of a miracle regarding the birth of a 01:08 baby boy. Turn please, I Samuel chapter 1 and we're going to 01:14 begin with verse 1: Now there was a certain man of 01:19 Ramathaim Zophim, that means the place of two watch towers, 01:24 of the mountains of Ephraim and his name was Elkanah the son of 01:29 Jeroham, the son of Elihu, the son of Tohu, the son of Zuph, 01:34 an Ephraimite. And he had two wives. Keep in mind this is back 01:38 in the days where polygamy was winked at and many of the men 01:42 died in battle and sometimes well there were several women 01:47 for every man and you perhaps remember that verse in Isaiah 1 01:52 In that day seven women will take hold of one man because so 01:56 many men had died in battle. So polygamy was winked at. 02:01 He had two wives. The name of the one was Hannah. Hannah the 02:05 name means graceful. And the name of the other was Peninnah. 02:10 Peninnah means fruitful or pearl Peninnah had children but Hannah 02:18 had no children. This man went up from his city yearly to 02:24 worship and to sacrifice to the Lord of hosts in Shiloh. This is 02:28 before the days when the temple was built it was still the 02:31 tabernacle that had been built by Moses. It may have been a 02:34 little tattered at this point but as they carried it through 02:36 the wilderness eventually when they settled in the Promised 02:40 Land they found that Shiloh was a good central place for people 02:44 to come from all around the land of Israel and worship. This is 02:49 before it was moved to Jerusalem You know that it was required 02:53 among the Hebrew men that at least once a year you would go 02:58 and if possible bring your family to one of the three 03:01 annual feasts. We don't know whether this was the day of 03:04 Atonement or the feast of tabernacles, but Elkanah was a 03:08 godly man and so he went up from his city yearly to 03:12 worship. Also the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, the 03:17 priests of the Lord were there. We later go on to find out that 03:21 Eli's sons were not like their father. They were wicked men. 03:26 Calls the sons of Belial, sons of the devil, sons of the fools. 03:31 They were there. Verse 4: And whenever the time came for 03:39 Elkanah to make an offering, he would give portions to Peninnah 03:43 his wife and to all of her sons and daughters. But to Hannah he 03:48 would give a double portion for he loved Hannah although the 03:52 Lord had closed her womb. And her rival... the word there is 03:57 adversary, and by the way that word adversary is the same as 04:01 the word devil, the devil, Satan rather is called the adversary. 04:07 Her adversary, meaning Peninnah, would provoke her severely to 04:12 make her miserable because the Lord had closed her womb. So it 04:17 was year by year when she went up to the house of the Lord that 04:22 Peninnah provoked her. Therefore she wept and did not eat. Now 04:26 just to back up and try and give you the big picture again of 04:30 what's happening here. Elkanah is a man from the tribe of 04:33 Ephraim. He's evidently somewhat prosperous. A man could not 04:38 sustain two families otherwise back in Bible times. Probably in 04:42 his home they had separate dwellings for Peninnah, they 04:46 were partitioned by themselves, Peninnah and her children. 04:50 Hannah had no child and as it happens every other time in the 04:54 Bible when one man had more than one wife there was conflict 04:58 among the wives. There was with Sarah and Hagar, there was with 05:03 Rachel and Leah and their hand maids and the list goes on. That 05:07 was never God's plan. But when they went up to the feasts 05:13 together the partition was removed and when portions were 05:17 given and Peninnah saw that Elkanah was trying to compensate 05:21 by showing his love for Hannah by giving her more because she 05:26 had no children jealousy rose up and so there was a lot of strife 05:30 and especially as they went to visit with other people. 05:35 Elkanah would say yes this is my wife Peninnah and her 05:40 children one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 05:44 ten and here's my wife Hannah. And it was extremely severe at 05:48 those points. Peninnah just seemed to take advantage of that 05:52 time to provoke her especially. Well the Lord's shut your womb. 05:57 I mean, you're going to worship the Lord. I don't know why 05:59 you're worshipping him because he's closed your womb. You must 06:02 have done something wrong and that's why you're cursed. But 06:05 something about this time of going to worship God, Peninnah 06:09 used it as an opportunity to persecute. Now what does the 06:14 word adversary mean? Satan is the adversary. When does the 06:18 devil persecute us the most? Isn't it times when we're going 06:22 towards God to worship God. All that live godly will suffer 06:26 persecution and if you draw near to God that's when he does 06:30 does everything to discourage, to make you miserable, to 06:33 persecute you. So there is a spiritual lesson in this. Also 06:37 keep in mind, it seems like the great periods in the Bible are 06:42 divided by a story of two women in conflict over their offspring 06:47 You've got the beginning of the Jewish nation with Abraham. Do 06:52 you see the conflict between Sarah and Hagar over their sons? 06:56 You see this again at the end of the time of Judges, 07:00 the beginning of the time of kings 07:01 in the story of Samuel. And even in the New 07:05 Testament you've got the example where there are two women in 07:09 Revelation. One has many daughters and the other has one 07:13 Son that the dragon wants to devour. Two separate women; 07:18 there's a conflict. Two women came to Solomon with a conflict 07:21 over what? Which woman is the real mother. Two women come to 07:25 the king of Israel over... There's a famine and there's a 07:29 conflict over their sons. They actually cannibalized one and 07:33 the other one was hidden. Not very pleasant, but you'll see 07:36 this pattern all through the Bible of these two women who 07:40 are having this conflict. What does a woman represent 07:43 Biblically? You've heard me ask that a hundred times but I'd 07:45 like you to also realize that these stories are often 07:49 allegories for salvation. There are two women in Revelation. 07:52 There are two truths or there are two religions, I should say, 07:56 in the world, one true, one false. Two roads. You've got 08:01 God's bride and you've got Babylon and all her daughters 08:05 which represent all the other false religions of the world. 08:09 And they all have children. There's a conflict that takes 08:14 place here. So keep that in mind as you consider the story here. 08:19 So you've got this battle between the two women. 08:22 They're going to the house of God to worship. Now we're going 08:26 to find out how God works miracles for Hannah. Notice that 08:30 she first comes to the house of God. Elkanah comes to the house 08:35 of God. And I don't think anybody here is going to be 08:38 surprised when I tell you the result of chapter 1 is somebody 08:42 named Samuel who becomes one of the greatest leaders of ancient 08:47 Israel. Samuel is not only a prophet, is not only a priest, 08:51 but he is a judge of Israel. He's the last of, what is there, 08:56 approximately 12 judges and he's the last of them. Elkanah's a 09:00 Godly man. He goes up to worship according to the law and brings 09:03 his offerings according to the law. And in the context of 09:08 coming before the Lord God can entrust this family with a very 09:13 sacred child. So coming to the house of God and bringing your 09:17 petitions to the house of God is something that is very 09:21 important. So we find that we should not miss these 09:25 opportunities to come to the house of the Lord where these 09:28 places of worship are. You find that in I Samuel chapter 1 verse 09:33 She went up to the house of the Lord. Verse 8: Elkanah her 09:37 husband said, Hannah, why do you weep and why do you not eat? 09:41 And why is your heart grieved? Am I not better to you than 10 09:45 sons? Now it could be, some scholars think that Peninnah may 09:50 have had 10 children and Elkanah is making a contrast. 09:52 I know that your rival wife has 10 children, but my love for you 09:57 is even greater than that and that's why he gave her a double 10:02 portion. She would not eat. I think there's a connection here 10:08 between her being sad and not eating. Go with me to I Samuel 10:13 chapter 1 verse 10: So she went up to the temple and she prayed. 10:18 She's offering a fervent prayer. God is going to do something for 10:23 her but it's in response to a fervent prayer. And she was in 10:27 bitterness of soul and she prayed to the Lord and she wept 10:31 in anguish. Now this had gone on for years and she realized 10:35 you know I can't take much more of this and she poured out her 10:39 heart. You might even say she's fasting and praying. Didn't her 10:42 husband say why do you not eat? She is fasting and she is 10:45 praying and she goes to the house of the Lord. God is 10:49 getting ready to answer her prayer. Now evidently during 10:52 the time of her prayer she is so intense. You'll read later 10:55 she says I am the woman who came and stood before you. I know 10:58 some of the pictures show her actually kneeling and praying 11:01 but it says she stood and prayed and there were times when they 11:04 would stand and pray and there were times when they would kneel 11:08 When they went before the temple they stood and they prayed. And 11:12 she's swaying back and forth and she's so overwhelmed with the 11:16 intensity and the earnestness of this prayer, her lips are moving 11:20 that Eli observes her and he thinks Ah, this must be one 11:24 of the girlfriends of Hophni and Phinehas. You read on in 11:28 I Samuel and it tells us that his sons used to have interludes 11:34 with certain women that were not the most virtuous of women 11:38 there at the temple of all things. And he thought that here 11:42 one of these women had come and she's inebriated and he 11:47 misjudged what was going on in Hannah's heart. Oh by the way, 11:50 in the New Testament when the Holy Spirit was poured out 11:52 weren't the apostles accused of being intoxicated when they were 11:56 really filled with the Spirit. So she's praying this Spirit 12:00 filled, heartfelt pray. By the way, what's the ingredient that 12:05 makes any prayer the most eloquent to God? Well first of 12:12 all praying in Jesus' name, but sincerity. Your desperation, 12:18 your sincerity when you pray is what makes our prayers 12:21 eloquent. Let's face it. Sometimes our prayers are 12:24 memorized and we keep saying the same thing it's almost like 12:27 a habit. Is that really prayer? Does God find any pleasure in 12:31 having us recite something that we have by memory. Now I've got 12:35 to be careful how I say this. Some people do not have 12:37 children because they choose not to and I think, especially 12:41 living in this generation, where Jesus said go and be 12:47 fruitful and fill the earth, the earth's getting pretty full that 12:51 you know God honors and respects those who choose not to 12:54 procreate. I don't think that you should feel guilty about 12:56 that. Some do not have children because of circumstances, 13:00 financial. Some it may be a health issue. So I'm not here 13:04 to try and make anybody feel guilty if you have not had 13:07 children. But in the Bible times when the world still was not 13:11 full and having children was an important part of being taken 13:15 care of, it was an important part of having the name go on, 13:20 and if I can say this in a delicate way, if a woman is good 13:26 in anything they are designed to be mothers, physiologically they 13:34 are designed that way. Emotionally they are the 13:40 givers and they are the nurturers and especially in 13:45 a culture like that where if you were in Hannah's position and 13:49 you had to share your husband with someone... Like Elizabeth 13:52 just had her one husband, it could have been maybe a little 13:56 more tolerable. But when you've got to share your husband with 13:59 someone who's multiplying like a bunny and you don't have any, 14:03 it just really makes it more... the vacuum is more obvious. 14:09 See what I'm saying. So she's wondering you know am I cursed? 14:14 What is the problem? I want to give my husband children. But 14:19 even more there's a deeper spiritual meaning to this. 14:23 Remember in Revelation woman is about to give birth. The dragon 14:28 wants to devour the child as soon as it's born. That child 14:34 that Hannah's going to have is a symbol of Christ being born in 14:38 us. It's through a miracle that Mary conceived, isn't that right 14:44 And this miracle birth that Hannah's going to have is a type 14:48 of Christ being born within and it's happening as a result of 14:52 prayer. Now how many want to have that miracle birth in us? 14:56 Every man and every woman should raise their hand for that 14:59 question. We all want that promised miracle birth within 15:03 us, right, of Christ. It happens in the house of God as a result 15:07 of prayer. Matter of fact, I want to go back to that point 15:12 one more time. Does God answer prayers offered in church more 15:18 than he answers prayers at home? Think about it. When Daniel 15:22 opened his windows and prayed three times a day, where did he 15:27 pray towards? When David had something special did he go to 15:32 the temple and pray? Hezekiah when he was threatened with an 15:35 enemy army, did he bring his letter to the temple and spread 15:38 it out before the Lord in the house of the Lord. Did Jesus go 15:42 to the synagogues and preach and teach? Hannah's prayer was 15:46 ultimately heard in the temple. Now follow me, stay with me. 15:50 Is there more value to our prayers when there are more 15:55 people involved in the prayer? If there are multiple people 15:59 praying together over an issue is it possible those prayers 16:03 carry more weight with God? How many believe that? Oh, 16:07 there's a pretty good majority. Where two or three are gathered 16:10 together in my name. If two or three of you will agree together 16:12 on anything. So is there added value in corporate prayer? 16:17 Maybe, seems like it biblically. When they're all in one place of 16:20 one accord. So when you come to the temple and pray isn't this 16:25 the gathering? By the way, the word synagogue, church, Hebrew 16:30 and Greek, they both mean the gathering, the assembly. There 16:36 may be some added value when we pray together in church. That's 16:40 Solomon when he dedicated the temple he said if your people 16:43 pray in this place or toward this place, hear thou in heaven 16:47 and answer their prayers. This is a place that represents God's 16:50 presence. You know one thing I admire about my Catholic friends 16:54 is you'll often see them... They keep the church doors open all 16:57 week long and I've visited many Catholic churches because they 17:00 had some artifact or history that was interesting to me and 17:03 you go in and all through the day people come in, you see them 17:06 kneel, you see them pray, you see them go out. Well they 17:08 could have done that at home. Why did they come? Well this is 17:13 place that represents the presence of God. Now when she's 17:17 praying this prayer at first Eli misunderstands what's going on. 17:21 He thinks that she's maybe inebriated. She arose after she 17:28 had finished eating and drinking in Shiloh. Eli the priest was 17:31 sitting in a seat, I'm in verse 9 chapter 1, by the door post 17:35 to the tabernacle and she was in bitterness of soul and she 17:39 prayed and she wept. Now we all have things sometimes that are 17:43 on our heart. There could be conflict in the home. It may 17:46 nothing to do with wanting to have children. It might be a 17:49 health issue. Sometimes there's bitterness of soul over 17:52 different stresses in our lives, but we can come before the Lord 17:56 and pour out our hearts before God. And there she is. And she 18:00 made a vow. And she said, Oh Lord of hosts, if you will 18:05 indeed look on the affliction of your maid servant and remember 18:10 me and do not forget your maid servant. By the way, these are 18:14 the words that Mary used when she said to the angel may it be 18:19 so unto your maid servant. She recognized herself as a servant. 18:23 But you will give your maid servant a male child... She 18:27 specifies mail child. Why not just a child? This child is 18:30 going to represent Christ. I'll explain that in a moment. 18:34 ...that I will give him to the Lord all the days of his life 18:38 and no razor shall come upon his head. Now we'll pause. One of 18:43 the best ingredients to praying and making a vow to God to give 18:48 you something special, only ask for this miracle if you plan on 18:53 giving it back. Listen. If you've got a health issue 18:57 and you're praying and you're saying Lord I need healing and 19:02 if you heal me I promise to use my remaining life for you. 19:07 I will give it back to you. Lord I've got this financial 19:11 challenge. If you help me I promise to dedicate my resources 19:15 to you. If you're going to come to the Lord and you're going to 19:19 pray fervently for some miracle, make sure you're not praying 19:23 selfishly. She's praying for a son that she might give that son 19:27 to God. She probably always wanted to raise and train a 19:31 child for God, but she didn't even have the opportunity. 19:34 She wants to do it for God. And so when you pray it's always 19:38 good to say am I praying amiss that I might consume it on my 19:42 own selfish lusts or am I really praying for God's glory. When 19:46 you ask, ask according to his will. Does God perform miracles 19:49 and answer prayer when we pray according to his will for his 19:54 glory? Whatever you ask for give it to him. As she continued in 19:58 prayer, verse 12, before the Lord, swaying back and forth 20:01 and rocking... Have any of you ever seen some of the Jews at 20:05 the wailing wall pray? Notice they stand and they pray at the 20:09 temple and they're going like this. Well she's going back and 20:12 forth and rocking and staggering under the weight. It's like 20:16 Jesus as he was going to the garden of Gethsemane, he 20:20 staggered under the burden of his anguish and that's how she 20:24 is and he thinks she's drunk. Hannah spoke in her heart only. 20:28 Her lips moved but her voice was not heard. Therefore Eli thought 20:31 she was drunk. There was such intensity and passion to her 20:35 prayer. And Eli said to her, How long will you drink? Put away 20:39 the wine from you. He should have said that to his sons. 20:43 And Hannah answered and said, No my lord. She was kind of 20:47 shocked that he was thinking this. I'm just a woman of 20:50 sorrowful spirit. I've drunk neither wine nor intoxicating 20:54 drink. Indeed you know what she's promising? She's saying 20:57 Lord if you give me a son I'll make him a Nazarite. Not only 21:00 will he never get a haircut but I'm never going to let him touch 21:03 anything from the vine. He's never going to drink; like John 21:07 the Baptist. So it really offends that he's thinking 21:10 that she would drink. She's going to consecrate her only son 21:14 to never drink. And she said, No my lord, I'm a woman of 21:18 sorrowful spirit. I've neither drunk wine nor intoxicating 21:22 drink but I poured out my soul before the Lord. Do not consider 21:26 your maid servant to be a wicked woman for out of the 21:29 abundance of my complaint and my grief I have spoken till now. 21:34 Eli, realizing okay I misjudged her, I feel bad. And I know 21:38 the feeling. I've often misjudged people before 21:43 in the past. You meet different folks that are coming into 21:46 church and sometimes you see folks and you think they're 21:49 goofing off and it's really something else. It's anguish 21:52 of heart. It's so embarrassing. So he realizes that and he just 21:59 tries to cover himself. And Eli answers and he says, Go in peace 22:05 and the God of Israel grant you your petition that you've asked. 22:11 That's all he said. I mean it's basically sort of a farewell 22:15 greeting but that's all she needed. She needed some word, 22:18 she needed some indicator, she needed some assurance, she 22:22 needed some signal that God had heard her prayer and the closest 22:26 thing she could seize upon was the high priest saying God is 22:29 going to hear your prayer. He had no idea what she asked for. 22:32 She was praying for a big miracle. Now she's a woman of 22:37 faith and she took that as the sign she wanted. And the Bible 22:42 says that when she heard that she said let your maid servant 22:46 find favor in your sight. So the woman went her way... Notice 22:51 verse 18. And she ate and her face was no longer sad. 22:55 She believed that God had heard her prayer. What kind of 23:00 evidence did she have that God was going to answer her prayer? 23:04 Just the promise of God, the assurance in her heart that God 23:09 had spoken through the high priest. Does God sometimes speak 23:13 through a high priest that may not even know what he's saying? 23:18 I couldn't stand before you if that wasn't true. No, I'm 23:21 serious. I believe that if I open the word that God will 23:25 speak sometimes in spite of where I might be. That's true. 23:29 Matter of fact. God spoke through Caiaphas one time a 23:33 prophecy. You remember in the Gospel of John where Caiaphas 23:36 the high priest was trying to get Jesus to be condemned by the 23:39 other leaders and he said don't you know anything at all that 23:42 it's expedient that one man should perish in order to save 23:46 the nation? And John goes on to say: He being high priest that 23:50 year God prophesied through him and he certainly was not a very 23:54 godly man. Now the reason I'm telling you this is you should 23:59 be coming to church, you should be listening and praying. 24:03 Don't do it based on where that church might be, where that 24:07 pastor or pastoral team might be. It's between you and the 24:11 Lord. I'm not saying this to try and condemn myself. I'm saying 24:15 this because it's a principle that's true. God can speak 24:18 through a donkey can't he? What was going on in the temple at 24:22 the time of Hannah when she prayed that day? You read on in 24:26 these chapters you'll find out not only was Eli spineless, his 24:30 sons were wicked. They were mismanaging the offerings. 24:33 All kinds of things were going on, but that did not affect 24:38 Hannah's relationship with God. So many people use scandal in 24:42 the church, the deacon did this and the elder did this and they 24:45 say I'm not going there. How can God bless? How can God hear? 24:48 It has nothing to do with that. It's between you and God. 24:50 You come to the place he's appointed, the time he's 24:53 appointed, you pray and he can answer your prayer. And that's 24:56 what I love about this story. She really is going directly to 25:01 God. So she goes home. Now she's eating. Now she feels better. 25:05 You notice the connection between before it says she was 25:10 sad and she did not eat. She was no longer sad and she did 25:15 eat. What is eating for the Christian? A man doesn't live by 25:20 bread alone but by every word. When she wasn't eating she was 25:26 sad. And when she was eating she was happy. And the blessings of 25:32 God come through the vehicle of the word of God. Now she had 25:37 not even spent the night with Elkanah and she feels better. 25:42 She's not pregnant but she's happy. She's now living on faith 25:47 Might I say to you that godly mothers need to have faith 25:55 because so often when your kids go up and down you wonder how 25:59 are they ever going to ever turn out. And you see the mistakes 26:02 that they make and you have your struggle and you wonder are they 26:06 ever going to be in the kingdom? You could just be wringing your 26:09 hands all the time. But I think in order to be sane and a 26:14 Christian mother you've got to live by faith. You do the best 26:18 you can, you pray, you give it to God and then you go home and 26:22 you eat and you smile. So often there are a lot of mothers that 26:25 their hearts are agonizing over their children and where they 26:28 are and some of them are grown and are out in the world and how 26:31 can you even function when you worry about their eternal 26:34 destiny. You've got to go to the temple of God, you've got to 26:37 pour out your heart to the Lord and then trust him when you 26:41 leave that he's heard your prayer. That's what Hannah did. 26:45 Whatever the circumstances might be she brought it to the Lord. 26:49 She left it at the temple. She left happy. Just cast your cares 26:53 upon the Lord because he cares for you, Amen? And she left with 26:56 faith. She didn't have her answer yet. But she knew God had 27:00 heard her and she got that through Eli giving her that 27:05 assurance. We are to be people of faith. He said go in peace. 27:13 So she was no longer sad. God can speak through his instrument 27:21 regardless of the individual. Sacred book, sacred place, 27:26 sacred office, faulty man. She came to a sacred place at a 27:31 sacred time. He held a sacred office. She prayed a sacred 27:35 prayer. But even though he held the office there was something 27:40 wrong with the man God still answered her prayer. Now does 27:46 something happen after she goes home. Verse 20: So it comes to 27:52 pass in the process of time, we don't know how long it was 27:55 but some time during that year Hannah 27:57 conceived and she bore a son and she called his name Samuel 28:04 saying because I asked him from God, from the Lord. Or more 28:10 accurately that name means asked before the Lord. Not only asked 28:14 from God but she went into the presence of God and she prayed 28:19 before the Lord. So I think that's very significant. He is a 28:25 child that is born as a result of prayer. He's a child that 28:30 finds life as a result of prayer. I don't believe 28:35 there's a believing mother in the world that does not want her 28:37 children to have life. We're talking about eternal life. 28:41 All of us are terminal in this life. It's the one that doesn't 28:46 end that we're especially interested in. She receives life 28:52 for the child as a result of prayer. She later come to the 28:58 temple and she says to Eli, for this child I prayed. Now did 29:03 Peninnah have children? She had many children. Those children 29:10 all came naturally. Sort of like a child of Hagar was a child 29:15 that came as a result of natural works. That was Abraham taking 29:20 things into his own hands. The natural course of things. 29:26 It is true that every life is a miracle, but I think we also 29:32 know that there are certain laws with cause and effect 29:37 and if certain things happen, if a young man and a young woman 29:41 are healthy and they get involved intimately there is a 29:44 strong possibility there is going to be an offspring. 29:47 It's just cause and effect. It's a natural function. 29:51 It works all the way through the animal kingdom. But her child 29:57 was born as a result of prayer. I received this child because I 30:02 prayed for him. Now the reason I'm emphasizing that point, 30:06 hyper emphasizing that point is because I know there are a 30:10 lot of parents out there and I hope you'll find courage and 30:13 comfort from the promise that you can go to the house of God 30:18 and pray for a child and that prayer can be heard. That is one 30:23 of the most important lessons is why I picked this subject is 30:28 because I want you to know Hannah went to the temple to 30:30 pray for a child and God heard her prayer. You can come to the 30:33 house of God and pray for your children and he hears your 30:36 prayers there that he will save them. Now can you imagine what 30:40 it must have been like after she conceives and she has this 30:44 child? She doesn't bring him right to the temple of the Lord. 30:47 Matter of fact, she tells Elkanah... Well let me read 30:50 it to you right here. Go with me back to I Samuel, I flip back 30:54 and forth between my notes. Verse 20: Came to pass in the 31:02 process of time she conceived, and the man, verse 21, Elkanah, 31:05 and all his house they go back up to the Lord every year as 31:09 they normally do to sacrifice. But Hannah says to him, she does 31:13 not go. She said to her husband, I will not go up until the child 31:17 is weaned. Then when I take him that he may appear before the 31:22 Lord and remain there forever. Now, this may be the first time 31:27 she's broken the news to Elkanah Can you imagine that? Hannah's 31:32 been wanting a child. He knew that. Prayed for a child. 31:35 He maybe didn't know about her vow. She's got to tell her 31:38 husband. You know why? The Bible says that if a man vows a 31:42 vow he's bound with his lips to fulfill a vow. If a woman is 31:47 married and she makes a vow, that vow must be cosigned by the 31:52 husband. Now that would seem reasonable especially if the vow 31:57 involves giving away the child. How many of you remember 32:00 reading that in the Bible? And I'm not going down the road of 32:05 why God had the law that the vow of the wife must get cosigned or 32:09 agreed upon by the husband. The husband biblically in the Old 32:13 Testament had the authority to nullify the vow of the wife. 32:17 I'm not going to go down the road of why that is. All I want 32:21 you to know is Elkanah subscribed to her vow. 32:26 That takes a lot of courage. She says I've been praying for this 32:30 son, I finally get the son I want but I promised him to live 32:36 under the Nazarite vow and I'm consecrating him to the Lord and 32:41 I'm going to take him to the temple and the first time he 32:44 goes to the temple he's never coming home. Can you imagine 32:47 being a father? You've got this loved wife. She finally has this 32:51 son and he's going to be the heir and she says I'm taking him 32:54 to the temple. This is taking faith not only on the part of 32:59 Hannah, but it takes faith on the part of Elkanah. And then 33:04 you also wonder about the years of preparation. She says I'm not 33:07 taking him till I know he's ready. She's got this child 33:09 that she's going to bring to the temple and that temple is not 33:12 perfect at that time. How carefully do you think she 33:16 prepared him during those years? She was training that child, she 33:23 was yearning over that child, she was trying to surround him 33:26 with every possible influence. Can you imagine how tenderly 33:30 she must have thought as the years went by and she's making 33:33 his little clothes and she's caring for him and she's 33:36 training him that someday she's going to have to take him to the 33:39 temple. Someday she's going to have to fulfill her vow. She's 33:42 going to bring him there and never bring him home. That must 33:45 have been a real trial for her. And then you wonder also about 33:49 the interchange that may have been going on between Hannah and 33:53 Peninnah. Here Peninnah has been provoking her, provoking her, 33:56 provoking her. God's cursed you you, you don't have any children 33:59 and she has this beautiful and you know if maybe Peninnah 34:03 thought hey this is a miracle and what was going on in their 34:08 relationship there as well. Maybe she had to protect 34:14 little Samuel from the other siblings because now they're 34:17 suddenly jealous. Remember what Abraham had to finally do? 34:20 He had to send away Hagar and Ishmael because Ishmael was 34:25 mocking Isaac after he was born. So you've got all that added 34:29 strife. And in this environment Hannah's trying to raise a child 34:32 who will go to the house of God and serve God in some capacity 34:37 for his entire life. So there's a lot of interesting dynamics 34:41 that are going on during that time in that family. She's not 34:45 going to bring him up before he's weaned. It says once again 34:49 in verse 22: She did not go to the temple the next year when 34:52 her husband went. I will not go up until the child is weaned. 34:56 Then I will take him that he might appear before the Lord 35:00 and remain there forever. Now how old was that? Elkanah her 35:04 husband said to her, verse 23, Do what seems right to you. 35:08 Wait until you have weaned him. Only let the Lord establish his 35:13 word. So the woman stayed and nursed her son until she had 35:17 weaned him. Now when she had weaned him, it makes it very 35:22 clear, nursed him, weaned him. What's the average age when 35:27 a woman stops, at least in primitive cultures, nursing the 35:32 child? Well you know sometimes the first one two. If you really 35:37 want to keep them on the apron strings as long as possible they 35:44 might stop for an occasional drink three but can you imagine 35:48 bringing a three or four-year- old. Let's stretch it. Let's 35:52 assume that weaning means he can take care of himself in 35:56 other ways. Three or four. Let's say four because that's even 36:02 hard to comprehend. Can you imagine taking your beautiful 36:06 little four-year-old boy that you've prayed for. I like to 36:10 think that was about the age. That's when they get where they 36:14 can communicate, they can follow orders a little better. I mean 36:19 you know if I were Eli and someone was dropping off a 36:21 three-year-old. What do they call it? Terrible twos and 36:24 what's the one for threes? They're running through the 36:27 Holy of Holies. Thank you very much. Bring him back in a couple 36:34 years. But let's say four years of age. Can you imagine how that 36:39 mother's heart must have been torn out of her bosom thinking 36:44 about leaving her child in this strange place and these strange 36:49 environments? And how carefully she must have trained him and 36:53 prepared him to live in that environment and try to fortify 36:58 his faith and talk about oh you're going to be with God. 37:01 You'll be surrounded by angels. God will be there with you. 37:04 He'll always be at your side. And she tried to impress his 37:08 mind with the awesomeness of God and he was going to be a special 37:11 servant to God and he knew that because he didn't eat like his 37:14 siblings. He's a Nazarite. They got haircuts. He did not get 37:17 haircuts. Matter of fact, I had to go through a lot of these 37:20 pictures, I think I missed one of them. All the pictures had 37:22 Samuel, he's got the Marine hair cut. And I tried to take Photo 37:25 Shop and put some hair on him. Because it said he was a 37:27 Nazarite. The artist missed that He didn't get a haircut. 37:31 He looked like Samson. Isn't that right? No razor would come 37:35 on his head. She going to bring this child and so he's being 37:40 teased by his siblings. He knew he was different. And she 37:44 trained him and finally the day comes where she realizes, look, 37:47 he's not nursing anymore, not even interested. I've got to 37:53 keep my vow. I've made a promise to God. Who did Hannah love more 37:59 her son or God? You know I think that's one of the very important 38:05 lessons. A godly mother loves God more that her children and 38:10 her family. I think the most important earmark on a godly 38:15 mother is God is first and her service to God is more important 38:19 than her service to her children to her family, to her community. 38:24 God is coming first. Hannah had love for God so much. How do we 38:28 know that. What did she love in the world more than Samuel? 38:32 I mean, aside from God there was nothing else. You all agree? 38:37 When she brought that child and committed him to the Lord she 38:42 was giving her greatest gift. Well finally she came to the day 38:47 where she must give what she has received. You see, she received 38:52 Samuel in order to give him just as every great promise of God. 38:56 And she brought him to the temple and the Bible tells us 38:59 she did not bring him empty- handed. It says in verse 24: 39:02 When she weaned him she took him up with her with three bulls and 39:07 an epha of flour and skin of wine. That's a big old goat skin 39:11 of wine and brings him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh and 39:16 the child was young. And there they slaughtered a bull, one as 39:20 a sacrifice the other two oxen. They were very expensive, the 39:24 most expensive sacrifice you could offer is a whole ox. 39:27 I mean, you know, you could feed everybody in this church a 39:31 little bit with a whole ox, right? Well she brings three 39:34 oxen. One is a sacrifice that the priest could eat from right 39:38 away. The others are kept alive and basically she's saying I'm 39:41 not asking you to just take care of my child because I need 39:45 welfare. She's saying to Eli, I'm going to subsidize his care. 39:49 Here is the first year's installment. I'm going to 39:54 provide for what he needs. You can sell the ox and use the 39:56 money or whatever. 39:57 But you see what she's doing. They're saying we're not 39:59 just expecting you to take this child and take care of him 40:02 because we don't want to feed him. 40:03 This is a very expensive offering that 40:05 they're bringing. They make an offering to the Lord and she 40:10 says to Eli, My lord as your soul lives, my lord, I am the 40:14 woman who stood by you here praying to the Lord. 40:17 You remember she said stand. For this child, right here, I 40:21 prayed and as the Lord has granted me my petition which I 40:26 asked of him, therefore, I have lent him to the Lord as long as 40:31 he lives he is lent to the Lord. So they worshiped the Lord 40:36 there. Now that must have been a real struggle. I can't imagine 40:41 what Eli was thinking. He probably sensed that this woman 40:45 this man, they're godly. They've been in church. This child 40:48 really is a miracle child and he hears the report and he's 40:51 thinking this is of the Lord. And you know what else I think 40:54 Eli is going through. He realizes he has been a failure 40:59 with his own sons and he sees this pure, godly, innocent 41:03 little child as a fresh opportunity to get it right. 41:07 And he thinks to himself, you know, my sons they're long gone. 41:12 He tried to chide them, he tried to encourage them and they just 41:17 ignored their father. They wouldn't listen to him. 41:19 He thinks that here is someone who's got a good start. By the 41:23 way, this should remind us how important those formative years 41:27 are. Between the ages of one and four psychologists tell us that 41:31 a child's character is formed. They can make changes after 41:35 that but the concrete is pretty hard by the time they're four. 41:38 Their character, the way they're going to respond to just about 41:41 everything in life, has pretty well been settled by the first 41:46 four years and that's why it is so important... Matter of fact, 41:49 I've got a quote here that I'd like to read you and I think 41:53 it's from the book Patriarchs and Prophets in context of this 41:59 chapter. Oh here it is. To a very great extent the mother 42:04 holds in her own hands the destiny of her children. She is 42:09 dealing with developing minds and characters working not alone 42:13 for time but for eternity. She is sowing seeds that will spring 42:16 up and bear fruit either for good or evil. Especially during 42:20 the early years the responsibility rests 42:23 upon her of forming the character of her children. 42:26 Impressions now made upon their developing minds will remain 42:31 with them all through life. Parents should direct the 42:34 instruction and the training of their children while very young 42:36 to the end that they may be Christians. They are placed in 42:40 our care to be trained not as heirs of the throne of an 42:44 earthly empire but as kings unto God to reign through unending 42:48 ages with him. Isn't that a great quote. That's Patriarchs 42:53 and Prophets 244. It's not easy being a parent though is it? 42:58 Sometimes it's a real struggle to know how to train your 43:04 children. It's difficult for single parents. I was raised, 43:08 my brother and I, by a single mom and I know how hard it was 43:12 for her to try to juggle taking care of two very rambunctious 43:16 boys, one of them with a terminal sickness and manage a 43:20 career. I wish that my mother had had the benefit of knowing 43:25 she could go to God for help. It's a real chore. The Lord is 43:30 especially near these parents that are trying to manage the 43:34 struggles of life and to teach their children. Don't be 43:39 discouraged. I heard one time about this young lady and she 43:44 said before I had children I had three theories about raising 43:49 children. Then I had three children and now I have three 43:52 children and no theories. It's very difficult. Someone else 43:56 said that if evolution was true then why does a mother only have 44:00 two hands? She should probably look like a Hindu god if 44:06 evolution is true. It's tough raising kids and especially is 44:11 it true in this generation when there are so many things to 44:15 distract. Well God works this miracle and he gives Hannah a 44:19 child and she brings her child and gives him back to God. 44:23 I think that every Christian wants to follow that pattern. 44:27 If you receive a child, it's a miracle. God made man in his own 44:31 image in that through an act of love men and women procreate. 44:35 But those children belong to God. They are lent to us. 44:39 That's why Jesus says in Matthew 10:14: Let the little 44:43 children come unto me. Remember when the mothers wanted to bring 44:47 their children to Jesus and the disciples are Ah he's too busy 44:50 for all those little rug rats. He's got important things to do. 44:53 Don't trouble him right now. And Jesus was very displeased with 44:57 the apostles. He said, No! Let the little children come to me. 45:00 From the time they're born we ought to be pointing them to 45:04 Jesus that he is the supreme focus of their lives. You know 45:08 Hannah must have done something right. Because of the influence 45:13 that she had on Samuel during those formative years the whole 45:17 nation of Israel was turned from the apostasy from the days of 45:23 Hophni and Phinehas back to God. Because of the influence of 45:27 Samuel they found victory over the Philistines. There was a 45:31 great revival in the land and the impressions that she made 45:35 on that child in spite of, this is what's really wonderful to 45:38 remember, in spite of the evil environment in which that child 45:42 had to grow up once he was left there in the center of religion 45:47 he maintained a purity because of the prayer... Do you think 45:50 Hannah continued praying for Samuel after she dropped him 45:54 off? Well Lord I kept my vow. Now I'm going to work on the 45:57 next batch of kids. He's yours. She was praying for him. Matter 46:01 of fact, the Bible tells us that every year she would make a 46:06 visit and she'd bring a little coat. You go to I Samuel chapter 46:10 2 now, verse 18: But Samuel ministered before the Lord even 46:15 as a child, little child, toddling around there 46:17 in his little linen ephod. He had to be 30, normally, 30 years 46:21 of age to serve as a Levite and here this little bitty priest 46:25 going around in his little priestly garment serving. 46:30 I don't know what he did there. You know he probably took care 46:32 of some of the little chores that he could do and he grew up 46:35 doing that. He grew up serving God in the house of God. 46:37 And every year Hannah thought about her son. All year long she 46:41 pined and prayed for her son but she felt good about keeping her 46:46 vow. It says every year when she'd come up before the Lord 46:50 she'd make him a little robe and she'd bring it to him. It was 46:53 woven with the fabric of love. You could think about the way 46:57 that Jacob made that robe of many colors for his son that he 47:01 loved, Joseph. In the same way, there on the loom, Hannah was 47:06 making this little robe for Samuel and weaving it with her 47:11 love. Now what does clothing represent biblically. It's a 47:16 symbol for character and this mother providing that robe for 47:22 her son in the temple of God is a symbol for how God's church 47:27 is to constantly be weaving in the loom this robe of 47:33 righteousness for those who are worshipping Jesus who is the 47:37 temple above, Amen? Isn't our Christ the Son of the woman, 47:41 Revelation chapter 12. He's caught up to God's throne. 47:45 Isn't our Jesus our Samuel up in the temple of God? And we as a 47:49 church, we're like that bride. We're going to be constantly 47:54 working on the loom making robes for the people that come that 47:59 they might have the robe of Samuel, the robe of Christ's 48:02 righteousness. You know I was tempted this week whether to 48:05 talk about Hannah or to talk about that perfect woman in 48:08 Proverbs 31. I think a lot of women are intimidated by 48:11 Proverbs 31 because it's got this perfect woman that I don't 48:14 know if she exists anywhere in the world. But she's a symbol 48:17 for the church. But it says there, notice some of the 48:21 characteristics, Proverbs 31 verses 13, 19, 21. She seeks 48:24 wool and flax and willingly works with her hands making 48:27 these garments. She stretches out her hands to the distaff and 48:31 her hand to the spindle making garments. She is not afraid of 48:34 the snow for her household for they are all clothed with 48:38 scarlet. She's preoccupied with what is my family wearing and as 48:43 a church we want to make sure that everybody is clothed with 48:47 these robes of righteousness. And every year when Hannah came 48:51 up Eli got to know them very well and it says, Eli would 48:54 bless Elkanah and his wife and say the Lord give you 48:57 descendants from this woman; this woman who gave her 49:00 greatest gift in giving her son. Boy and he's such a good boy too 49:05 I hope you have a whole crew of kids like Samuel. And he'd 49:08 bless them every year. And you know what, it seemed like every 49:11 year after they'd come up, they would see Eli, he'd bless them, 49:15 they'd go home she got pregnant again. At least five other times 49:20 because it says that she had six children all together. Let me 49:24 just read this here. I want to make sure I don't mess this up. 49:28 And the Lord she bore three sons and two daughters, yeah, five 49:31 other children including Samuel, that's six children. So every 49:35 she'd come up, he'd bless her, she'd go home and get pregnant. 49:36 She'd have more children. 49:39 Now some of you are thinking, I'm not going to 49:40 church anymore when you hear that. That's the problem. 49:48 Woven with a coat of love. And then of course later you know 49:51 the story if you read in chapter 3 as Samuel gets a little older, 49:55 we don't know how old he was. It might have been when he was 49:58 12. That would have been about the right age after Hannah has 50:03 five other kids and the story picks up. At 12 years of age 50:06 he's in the temple of God. How old was Jesus when he went 50:10 to the temple of the Lord? He was 12 years of age and that's 50:14 where he first really recognized what his calling was as the Lamb 50:18 of God. It was 12 years of age Samuel's in the temple and he's 50:22 living there in that place and God says Samuel, Samuel and he's 50:26 speaking to his heart. Because Eli doesn't hear it. No one 50:30 hears it but Samuel. Finally he realizes after the third time 50:33 that God is calling him and not only did he realize it but you 50:37 read in the Bible here and Samuel grew, this is chapter 3 50:42 I Samuel chapter 3 verse 19: Samuel grew and the Lord was 50:46 with him and did not let any of his words fall to the ground. 50:51 And all Israel from Dan to Beersheba, that means from 50:55 North to South knew that Samuel was established to be a prophet 51:00 of the Lord and the Lord appeared again in Shiloh 51:02 for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the word of 51:06 the Lord. Everyone that came to the temple were disgusted with 51:09 Hophni and Phinehas and finally they died and Samuel came into 51:12 power still a young man. And they knew this young prophet 51:16 priest, judge had been called by the Lord in a special way and 51:22 the whole nation spiritually the whole tide was turned back to 51:27 God because of Samuel. Who made the difference? Hannah. 51:33 It started with Hannah's prayer, Hannah's vow, Hannah's 51:38 dedication, changed everything. You know they say the hand that 51:43 rocks the cradle rules the world It's the influence of mothers on 51:47 their children little by little through the day. The time that 51:51 they spend reading with them and talking to them and encouraging 51:56 them and chastising them that is shaping them. 51:59 That's affecting the whole, well affects the family which affects 52:03 the society and the town and the country and the nation and 52:07 the world and it's happening through, to a great extent, 52:10 the influence of the mothers on their children. You know the 52:15 Bible tells us that... Ah you know I've got so much I wanted 52:19 to say to you. Tell you what, I'm going to just summarize this 52:23 quickly. In Hannah's prayer, she goes into the temple after she 52:28 has this promised child and she offers a prayer of gratitude 52:31 when she first drops off Samuel. She makes a very interesting 52:36 statement in chapter 2, verse 5: They that were full have hired 52:40 themselves out for bread and they that were hungry have 52:45 ceased so that the barren has born seven and she that has 52:50 many children is waxed feeble. Now Peninnah had many children. 52:54 Something happened, I don't know if Peninnah waxed feeble. Hannah 52:58 got stronger and stronger. What's going to happen to 53:01 Babylon and her daughters? Going to get weaker, going to 53:04 wax feeble. Christ and his church are going... Blessed are 53:07 the meek, they will inherit the earth. But it says the barren 53:11 has born seven. I spotted that one day and I did some math. 53:14 There are seven examples in the Bible. I wanted to hold up seven 53:18 fingers but, there you go, seven examples in the Bible of barren 53:23 women that had miracle baby boys and they're all types of Christ. 53:27 There are no miracle baby girls in the Bible because these baby 53:31 boys were types of Christ. You know: Sarah with Isaac, Rebekah 53:38 with Jacob, Rachel with Joseph, Manoah's wife with Samson, also 53:44 a Nazarite, Hannah with Samuel, Elizabeth with John the Baptist, 53:47 and Jesus with Mary. No, no, Mary was not barren, it was a 53:51 miracle birth, Mary was not barren. The Shunammite woman 53:56 and her son. Seven barren mothers all had sons and every 54:00 son is a type of Christ in the Bible. Isn't that interesting. 54:03 Hannah's the one who says the barren have borne seven. 54:05 Just, I think, one more example of the inspiration of God's 54:09 word that everything happens the way God promises. You know, 54:14 Jesus sometimes compares his love for us to the love of a 54:18 mother. You know when he wept over Jerusalem; how often I 54:22 would have gathered you under my wings as a hen, that's the 54:27 feminine, does her chicks. I have borne you on my wings 54:30 like an eagle, speaking of a mother eagle that does that. 54:33 And then there's that passage in the Bible that says can a woman 54:37 forget her nursing child that she should not have compassion 54:40 on the son of her womb. Do you think Hannah ever forgot Samuel 54:44 all those tender years that she left him at the temple? 54:47 Yea they may forget but I will not forget thee. Behold I have 54:52 graven thee upon the palms of mine hands. I read a story one 54:55 time, I should do this as an amazing fact someday. Years ago 55:00 in Wales a mother traveling between towns with her little 55:04 infant baby got caught in a snow storm and she finally was 55:08 overwhelmed by this blizzard and could not escape it. A day or so 55:15 afterward they were looking for her along the way and they 55:18 found a mound of snow in the road and they dug it away and 55:22 there was this mother who had wrapped her body around the 55:25 baby. But what was amazing. The mother had perished. She had 55:29 taken off all of her clothes and she had wrapped the baby up 55:32 in all of her clothes. And they unwrapped the bundle and the 55:36 baby was still alive in the bundle. Now what makes it really 55:40 amazing is that baby was David Lloyd George who grows up to be 55:44 the prime minister of Great Britain. He said he always knew 55:48 about a mother's love because his mother basically laid down 55:51 her life to save him. Well that's the kind of love that 55:55 Jesus has for each one of us and I think it's the Lord... 56:00 I mean where does a mother whether it's a mother bear or 56:05 mothers all through the animal kingdom, they've got this 56:10 sacrificial love for their love for their children. Where does 56:12 that idea come from? Where does that instinct come from? 56:17 It's God who has that love for us, that sacrificial love. 56:22 Hannah had that kind of love. She was willing to give her 56:26 child to God; she had that same spirit. Our God gave his Son for 56:33 us because he loves us that much. 56:36 Loving Father, we are so thankful that you are not only 56:40 loving us with a father's love; you love us with a mother's love 56:45 You love us even more that any earthly parent can comprehend. 56:49 We think Lord about the incredible love that Hannah 56:53 must have for you in that she gave her son and left her son in 56:58 your hands. Lord help us first except the great gift that you 57:03 made in giving your Son that we might live. And then Lord, also 57:08 we want to take that illustration to the next 57:09 step. Some of us have children, loved ones, grand children 57:15 and our hearts yearn to see them be saved. Here in your house 57:20 like Hannah we pray fervently that you will hear our prayer 57:24 and save our children. Lord I pray that you'll bless every 57:28 parent here. Be, in a special way, with our mothers this 57:32 weekend. Bless them with comfort Do for them what you did for 57:35 Hannah that they can leave this place today and leave their 57:38 burdens behind and find joy in their hearts through faith in 57:42 you. We thank you and we are also praying Lord in a special 57:45 way for those who brought their burdens and requests today, 57:48 whatever they might be especially requests to 57:52 accept Jesus. Seal those decisions. Be with those 57:55 who have joined our family today through baptism and pour out 57:59 your spirit on this congregation we ask for Christ's sake, Amen. |
Revised 2014-12-17