“And the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord
before Eli. And the word of the Lord was precious in those days; there was no
open vision.” - 1 Samuel 3:1
When something is precious to you; it holds
great value in your life. It is something that is not to be wasted or
treated carelessly. What is precious is not easily replaced or
discarded. Furthermore, it is something
you hold very dear, guard very closely, because it is rare. The Word of the Lord was precious in those days,
and there was no open vision.
Samuel was a child lent to the Lord by His
mother Hannah. She has made a covenant with God that if he would give her
a son, she would give him back to the Lord. This child was precious to
Hannah, her first born son. When God
kept his end of the covenant, Hannah also kept her end. Samuel was placed
under the care of the priest Eli. Eli
was a priest after God, but his sons were not.
They were wicked and perverted the office of the Lord. This is the
climate in which the child Samuel finds himself. Ministering to the Lord around hypocrites, as
well as godly men. The scripture in the
book of first Samuel does not go into detail as to why there was no open
vision. However, we understand through hindsight that the Holy Ghost can
be grieved. The Holy Ghost presence in
your life is a precious thing, and it can be a rare thing, when you don't view
the Holy Ghost precious in your life.
When you waste the instruction by following your own way. When you take no care for the preaching,
teaching, and unction of the Spirit. When you fill your time and
head-space with things of this world. It
can grieve that precious Holy Spirit and the visions, direction, and unction
from God become closed. When God called
Samuel, there was no open vision, communication between God's people and God
was scarce. God chose to reach out, to
call his name, to give instruction, and to bring a prophet to Israel once
again. To hear the voice of God and receive instruction from Him is a
very precious thing. It is not something
that will be seen by man, it is not something that will be regarding by the
mighty, but to be in communication with God the Father is a blessing
incalculable, and indescribable. To
have the Word of the Lord is a wonderful thing.
When you live and walk in step with the Holy Ghost, obeying His Word, it
invites the continuing counsel of the Holy Ghost. He may call you to lay
aside something, leave off something, and take up your cross. It may seem like a sacrifice, but when you
regard the Word precious in your life, the visions open and you begin to see
what others cannot; find fellowship where others will not. The Word of the Lord is precious to you,
which creates open vision, and allows you to be a vessel for God.
Samuel the child new nothing about the call of
God. It took the elder Eli to counsel him to answer, and Samuel responded
with “Speak, Lord; for thy servant
heareth.” This is the answer of someone who holds the Word of the
Lord precious, that invites open vision.
Samuel would go on to be a great prophet of the Lord; he and God would
have many conversations. He would never own great wealth, or command
mighty armies, but he would know God and be known of God. In the end, that is all that matters.
