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One of my daughters is eating some tasty store-bought goodie, and another is reading the package whence that goodie came. The latter begins to read the ingredient list out loud, and the former immediately objects, “Don’t read that now!” Her point is that she may not mind hearing about the not-so-healthy ingredients at some other time, but to hear them listed while she is eating the snack would diminish her enjoyment of it. However, if the food is a particular favorite, she may in fact never appreciate learning how unhealthy it is. Does this sound familiar?

We do not always want to know what is good for us, particularly if such knowledge would interfere with our pleasure. This phenomenon is not limited to the realm of desserts and snack food; we see it in far more important areas as well. The cigarette smoker does not like to read the Surgeon General’s Warning on the pack (except perhaps to scoff and mock, or to wallow in self-recrimination and self-pity). The drunkard does not like to hear what he is doing to his liver. The adulterer does not like to hear about the effect his infidelity will have on his children. We cover our ears and close our eyes to anything that threatens the fulfillment of our desires, and in so doing we block out the very things that could lead to our healing.

This can have eternal consequences. When Jesus’ disciples asked Him why He spoke in parables, He responded with the sobering fact that His teaching was expressly intended for those who had the willingness to hear and see and be healed. He then commented on those who would not hear Him:

And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says: ‘Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, And seeing you will see and not perceive; For the hearts of this people have grown dull. Their ears are hard of hearing, And their eyes they have closed, Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, So that I should heal them.’ (Matthew 13:14-15)

When we have a heart that will not heed those things that lead to our healing, we have a heart that is impervious to the gospel. We have put ourselves in such a condition that it is impossible to reach us with the very message that has the power to heal us of our iniquities and restore our relationship with God. We thus reject the message that leads to life.

As long as you have a healthy lifestyle, it probably will not harm you to enjoy an occasional treat made from less-than-healthy ingredients. When it comes to things that pertain to eternity, however, we dare not be so cavalier. Let us soften our hearts, open our eyes and ears, and gladly receive those influences that will bring us closer to God. And as we learn what it is that God would have us do, let us be diligent to put it into practice (see James 1:19-27).

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I went for a run this evening, but lest I give the impression that I am an athlete or fitness buff, let me assure you that I have never enjoyed exercise for the sake of it. In fact, I have often taken comfort in I Timothy 4:8, by repeating to myself that there is little profit in bodily exercise.

However, it is a fact that Paul wrote to Timothy at a time when most people walked wherever they went, and nearly everyone got plenty of exercise in the course of their normal daily routines, so any additional exercise was more or less icing on the cake. That is not the case for yours truly. As a computer programmer, I can go for weeks on end without any significant physical exertion, so forcing myself to get some exercise on a regular basis is essential to my health.

So as I was saying: I went for a run this evening just as the sun was preparing to set, and I was treated to a glorious sight. There was a cloud cover overhead, but a band of sweet blue sky was visible on the western horizon, and the setting sun lit up the bottom of the cloud with a lovely orangy-pink.

I usually recite Scripture to myself silently as I run, but since I was the only human being on the track, I decided to recite it out loud. And considering the gorgeous sky, the opening verses of Psalm 19 poured easily out of my mouth:

The heavens declare the glory of God;
And the firmament shows His handiwork.
Day unto day utters speech,
And night unto night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech nor language
Where their voice is not heard.
Their line has gone out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world.

In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun,
Which is like a bridegroom coming out of his chamber,
And rejoices like a strong man to run its race.
Its rising is from one end of heaven,
And its circuit to the other end;
And there is nothing hidden from its heat.

As the sun approached the end of his circuit in preparation for tomorrow’s coming forth from his wedding chamber, there was no doubt but that God’s majesty and glory were evident to anyone who took the time to look and consider. But the beauty and wonder described by this psalm is not limited to that of the physical creation.

The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul;
The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple;
The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart;
The commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes;
The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever;
The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.
More to be desired are they than gold,
Yea, than much fine gold;
Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.
Moreover by them Your servant is warned,
And in keeping them there is great reward.

The beauty and wonder of God’s revealed will far exceeds even that of His physical universe. God’s word is wonderful to us because it tells us how He loves us even when we are utterly unlovable. It is beautiful because it tells us of His holiness, and how we might become partakers of it. It not only teaches us to love; it teaches us how to love.

But any honest meditation upon the will of God necessarily brings sober reflection as we are reminded of how far we fall short of it. The next two verses of the psalm really hit home:

Who can understand his errors?
Cleanse me from secret faults.
Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins;
Let them not have dominion over me.
Then I shall be blameless,
And I shall be innocent of great transgression.

I can never be good without God’s grace. Left to myself, I proved to be a selfish, proud, willful, egotistical, cowardly, vain, covetous, envious, and sometimes even violent man. But in His mercy, He looked down upon me in love, and graciously introduced me to His Son, who gave His life so that such as I might have hope. Now, my earnest desire is to be good through and through, as the closing verse expresses so perfectly:

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart
Be acceptable in Your sight,
O LORD, my strength and my Redeemer.

Amen! I have already wasted too much time pondering worthless and evil things. I have  caused too much pain by uttering thoughtless and cruel words. May God cleanse me and guide me so that I cause no more hurt, but rather put the remainder of this very short life to good use.

As I ran under that magnificent sky and breathed in the crisp fresh air, the words of Psalm 19 rolled off my tongue just as naturally as if they were my own. And although I was the only human being in sight, I never for one instant felt alone.

To God be the glory.

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The third chapter of 1 Samuel opens by telling us that, when Samuel was a boy, revelation from God was a rare thing. So it is not surprising that when God spoke to Samuel, the boy did not recognize Him, and assumed that it was Eli who spoke. It is not surprising, but it is funny – especially since it happened three times before Eli figured out what was going on!

One of the many precious things about this passage is that it reminds us that God has a sense of humor. Sometimes we forget that God created us with the ability to laugh, and He wants us to exercise it.

To be sure, the Bible does place an emphasis on sober living (e.g. Titus 2:11-13). However, it is not so much that Christians are more serious than others. On the contrary, it would be difficult to find a group of people who are happier or who enjoy life more than dedicated Christians. What sets Christians apart is not  how serious they are, but rather what they take seriously.

For example, most people take it seriously if they lose their job. And Christians are not an exception here; they would take this very seriously, because they recognize their responsibility to work and provide for their own families as well as those who are in need (e.g. Ephesians 4:28). However, the Christian’s feelings are tempered by his faith that God will provide for his needs. A person without this confidence may be more inclined to feel worry and stress at such a time.

Some people also take it very seriously when they feel that they have been treated unfairly. By contrast, the Christian is often able to shrug this off, because he remembers the example that Jesus set when He was treated unfairly ( 1 Peter 2:21-25 ).

On the other hand, the Christian takes it very seriously when he sins (or at least he should – 1 Peter 1:17-19). By contrast, many people shrug off sins as “mistakes” and just move on without giving them a second thought. After all, they may say, we all know that no one is perfect.

So what do you take most seriously? Are you primarily concerned with physical and material things? Are you focused on the affairs of this very brief life on earth? Or, are you more concerned about spiritual things that have an eternal significance? How seriously do you take the fact that Someone died so that you might live?

As we read the entirety of 1 Samuel 3, we find that this was Eli’s error. He regarded his sons’ sins seriously, but not seriously enough to take decisive action. And God provides us an object lesson in the consequences that Eli and his family suffered for their lax attitude toward sin.

Eli lived over a thousand years before Jesus was born of Mary, yet God expected him to take sin seriously. How much more should we take sin seriously, when we know the terrible sacrifice that was required to pay for it?

Therefore we must give the more earnest heed to the things we have heard, lest we drift away.  For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him, God also bearing witness both with signs and wonders, with various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to His own will?
- Hebrews 2:1-4

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Nobody likes a corrupt priest. Even people who do not mind corruption in general will often find it to be despicable in one who claims to be a representative of God. There is something about this level of hypocrisy that induces revulsion at a visceral level.

The second chapter of 1 Samuel introduces us to two such priests: Hophni and Phinehas, the sons of Eli. In their selfishness, these men treated the sacrifices and the people with such contempt that “men abhorred the offering of the LORD.” (verse 17)

One impressive thing about this story is the way the men Hophni and Phinehas are juxtaposed against Hannah’s son, the boy Samuel. Immediately after describing how the priests abused the people and the sacrifices, we find this statement:

But Samuel ministered before the LORD, even as a child, wearing a linen ephod.
- 1 Samuel 2:18

We are then treated to a beautiful little interlude where we learn that Hannah would make her son a robe and bring it to him each year when she came with her husband to worship. We learn how happy Eli was to have Samuel with him. And we learn that God blessed Hannah with more children.

Then, verse 22 plunges us back into the dark story of Hophni and Phinehas and their vile conduct. We see Eli giving his sons a rather weak and ineffectual “rebuke” in verses 23-25.

Immediately after being reminded of the priests’ outrages, we are again presented with the contrast:

And the child Samuel grew in stature, and in favor both with the LORD and men.
- 1 Samuel 2:26

We are refreshed and relieved to find Samuel growing up well in spite of his unwholesome environment.

Again we are brought face-to-face with the wretched lives of the priests.  A prophet is sent to Eli to tell him of the consequences that his family will face because of his sons’ conduct and his failure to properly confront them. The consequences are dire: Hophni and Phinehas will die on the same day, and none of Eli’s male descendants will live to see old age. God is bringing judgment on the very household that He had chosen to lead the people in His ways.

Immediately, the narrative switches back to Samuel, and we learn the story of his first message from God (1 Samuel 3).

We begin to get the idea. From the perspective of the people living at the time, the situation must have seemed very dark: the men whose job it was to teach God’s ways were themselves corrupt, and this was dampening the people’s desire to worship God. But God was not idle. Even while Hophni and Phinehas appeared outwardly to be having their way, God was rather quietly and subtly preparing a replacement for them in Samuel. Although the people did not know it at the time, it would only be a short while before Samuel would stand before them to teach them God’s will and lead them back to Him.

We need to be confident that God is similarly at work in our day and age. No matter how dark things may seem, God is carrying out His purposes. No matter how godless the government, no matter how faithless the religious leaders, no matter how reprobate the school systems, God is still working away in the lives of countless individuals and bringing about wonders. Moreover, God will make everything right in the end.

He will make things right, whether we believe it or not. So we would do well to believe.

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The first book of Samuel opens with the story of a man of the tribe of Ephraim named Elkanah and his two wives, Hannah and Peninnah. Each year, Elkanah would take his family to Shiloh to worship God, because that is where the tabernacle was located at the time. While at the feast, Peninnah, who had children, would torment Hannah, who had none. This made poor Hannah so miserable that she did not even eat. Like many husbands, Elkanah just didn’t get it:

Then Elkanah her husband said to her, “Hannah, why do you weep? Why do you not eat? And why is your heart grieved? Am I not better to you than ten sons?”(1 Samuel 1:8)

For her part, Hannah took her anguish to the One who would not fail to understand: she poured out her heart to God. Then, after an interesting conversation with the priest who mistook her anguish for drunkenness, we find a change in Hannah’s attitude:

So the woman went her way and ate, and her face was no longer sad. (1 Samuel 1:18)

What had happened to Hannah to bring about this change? She had pleaded, but had not received anything from God. The priest certainly was not much of a comfort. And yet, she evidently felt comforted. This brings to mind the following exhortation from the apostle Paul:

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;  and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:6-7)

If we have truly put our trust in Jesus, and lay all of our cares before God, there is no longer any place for the kind of anguish that afflicted Hannah when Peninnah taunted her. When we put our troubles in God’s hands, we know they will be handled in the right way.