"So all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah. They said to him, 'You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.' But when they said, 'Give us a king to lead us,' this displeased Samuel; so he prayed to the LORD. And the LORD told him: 'Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me as their king.'" (1 Sam 8:4–7)
 
Review
We’ve been studying the kingdom of God through the book of 1 Samuel. Chapters 1 through 7 cover the period just before the first king of Israel was established. Since there was no king at that time, the priests held the greatest authority. Through the example of three types of priests, we examined the important qualities we, as God’s people who serve Him as King, should cultivate in our lives.
First, through the story of Hophni and Phinehas, we learned the importance of knowing God. Although they were appointed to serve in God’s tabernacle as priests, they committed serious sins, and the Bible points out that the root cause was their lack of knowledge of God. In the same way, if we know God only intellectually without truly experiencing Him, we fail to know Him, lose a sense of reverence, and live sinful lives before Him. Therefore, as God’s people, we must earnestly seek to know Him above all else.
Second, through the story of Eli, we learned the importance of loving and honoring God above all. Although Eli knew the wicked actions of his two sons in the tabernacle, he didn’t rebuke them seriously. The Bible explains that this was because he honored and loved his sons more than he honored God.
When we fail to put God first in our love and respect, this misplaced order can bring tragedy not only into our lives but also into the lives of those we love. God’s people are those who love and honor Him above all else and prioritize His will as the most important goal in life.
Lastly, in our previous lesson, through the life of Samuel we learned the importance of growing up in God’s presence hearing His voice as His people. Eli, his two sons, and Samuel were all in the tabernacle, yet Samuel was the one most sensitive to God’s presence.
Samuel’s attitude toward God stands in contrast to Eli’s. Eli’s eyes were dim, so he could not see the visions given by God, and his ears were closed, so he couldn’t hear God’s words clearly. This was the result of him loving and honoring his sons more than God.
But Samuel clearly heard God’s voice, and God continued to reveal Himself to Samuel through His words. As a result, Samuel was able to grow continually in God’s presence and grace, and he was able to fulfill a significant role in leading the people of Israel according to God’s will.
This is also the kind of life we are called to live as God’s people. Jesus describes the relationship between Him and us as that of a good shepherd and his sheep, where the good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep, and the sheep hear the shepherd’s voice and follow him in an intimate relationship with the shepherd.
In the same way, if we are Jesus’ sheep, we must be able to hear His voice. And this is only possible through God’s word. If we strive to come daily to the Word God has given us and hear His voice through it, we will grow into the image God desires for us, rooted in the knowledge of Him and the hearing of His voice, and we will be able to live fulfilling the mission of expanding God’s kingdom on this earth.
 
The Israelites Demand a King
Today, we will continue to look at the final part of the period of the judges through 1 Samuel 8. This chapter is particularly significant because it serves as a turning point in the Old Testament between the era of the judges and the monarchy.
In the passage we read today, the people of Israel demanded that Samuel appoint a human king. By this time, Samuel had served as a judge and a prophet over Israel for many years, and he was already advanced in age. His two sons, however, didn’t follow in their father’s ways; they took bribes and perverted justice, showing that they were unfit as leaders.
So, all the elders of Israel gathered together and went to Samuel to request a king. They said to him, “You are old, and your sons do not follow your ways; now appoint a king to lead us, such as all the other nations have.” (1 Sam 8:5)
A pastor I know once said that this scene is the saddest moment in the entire Bible — and I agree with him. That’s Because what the Israelites were demanding in this moment was essentially to reject God as their King.
Here, we see the underlying motivation behind the Israelites’ demand. They asked for a king because they wanted to be like the nations around them. In their eyes, other nations seemed better. They envied the surrounding nations that had strong kings who ruled with authority, and this envy led them to demand a king from Samuel.
But, what they didn’t realize was that, even without a human king, they already had a very unique political system far superior to any of the nations around them because God Himself was their true King. Because of this, they were a happier people than any other nation. Moses said in Deuteronomy 4:7,
“What other nation is so great as to have their gods near them the way the LORD our God is near us whenever we pray to him?” (Dt. 4:7)
God chose Israel above all other nations and drew them near. He became their King, ruling over them directly, caring for them, and guiding them. Just by this fact alone, the people of Israel were more blessed than any other nations around them.
But they were not satisfied with that. They didn’t realize how blessed they were to be ruled directly by God Himself. So they wanted a king with a splendid appearance and power to rule them, like the surrounding nations. They forgot that God was their king and focused only on the fact that they had no human king. They compared themselves to other nations, and as a result, they lost a clear sense of identity as God’s people.
This gives us an important lesson. As Christians, we are God’s people who live under His kingship and possess a unique, distinct, and excellent identity in Him. But when we fail to remember and give thanks for the blessings God has graciously given us, and instead focus on what we lack and compare ourselves with those in the world, we quickly lose our identity as the people of God.
 We become dissatisfied with God alone and begin to demand something else. We begin to rely not only on God but on worldly things.  Ultimately, this replaces God’s rightful place as King in our lives with something else. This is exactly what the Israelites did when they demanded a king from Samuel.
 
Rejecting God’s Kingship
Samuel didn’t rejoice in the elders’ request, because he knew what it meant. To ask for a human king was to reject God as their King. But instead of rebuking the elders who demanded a king, Samuel first brought the matter to God in prayer. And God responded to Samuel:
"Listen to all that the people are saying to you; it isn’t you they’ve rejected, but they’ve rejected me as their king. As they’ve done from the day I brought them up out of Egypt until this day, forsaking me and serving other gods, so they’re doing to you." (1 Sam. 8:7-8)
God looked at the heart behind the elders’ request. Although it seemed like a political demand, in reality it was like spiritual rebellion. What the people of Israel were asking wasn’t simply to change their political system. It was to give to a human king the authority and sovereignty that belonged to God as their true King.
Rather than listening to God as their King and living under His rule, they chose the rule of a human king. The evil in the people’s demand wasn’t in the demand itself, but in the underlying motive—to reject God and replace His kingship with a human king.
It also showed that they didn’t trust God. Their request for a human king meant that, in their eyes, a human king seemed more reliable than God. They relied more on a visible human ruler than on the invisible God.
 
Even the Israelites knew that having a human king was equivalent to rejecting God as King. Before Samuel anointed Saul as Israel’s first king, he gathered all the people at Mizpah and said:
"This is what the LORD, the God of Israel, says: ‘I brought Israel up out of Egypt, and I delivered you from the power of Egypt and all the kingdoms that oppressed you.’ But you’ve now rejected your God, who saves you out of all your disasters and calamities. And you’ve said, ‘No, appoint a king over us.’" (1 Sam. 10:18-19)
Yet even after hearing these words, the Israelites didn’t regret their decision, didn’t grieve, and didn’t repent before God. On the contrary, when Samuel presented Saul as king before them, all the people rejoiced, shouting, “Long live the king!” (1 Sam. 10:24).
They didn’t care about God’s feeling. They turned away from the God who had delivered them from all disasters and guided them faithfully, and chose to follow a human king according to the customs of other nations.
 
The Rule of a Human King: Taking
When the people of Israel asked Samuel for a human king, God told Samuel to first teach them about the institution of a human king. This is what God said.
“This is what the king who will reign over you will claim as his rights: He will take your sons and make them serve with his chariots and horses, and they will run in front of his chariots. Some he will assign to be commanders of thousands and commanders of fifties, and others to plow his ground and reap his harvest, and still others to make weapons of war and equipment for his chariots. He will take your daughters to be perfumers and cooks and bakers. He will take the best of your fields and vineyards and olive groves and give them to his attendants. He will take a tenth of your grain and of your vintage and give it to his officials and attendants. Your male and female servants and the best of your cattle and donkeys he will take for his own use. He will take a tenth of your flocks, and you yourselves will become his slaves. When that day comes, you will cry out for relief from the king you have chosen, but the LORD will not answer you on that day.” (1 Sam. 8:11–18)
In this passage, one word keeps repeating: take. God revealed the essence of the human king’s rule—it was about taking. The human king would take their sons to make them fight in battles, take their daughters to serve in his household, take their possessions and produce, and ultimately treat them as slaves.
This was not the ideal “kingly system” that God had in mind, but the kind of monarchy that existed among the surrounding nations of Israel at the time.
God knew that eventually Israel would need a king. So He had Moses explain in advance what the “kingly system” should look like. This is found in Deuteronomy 17:14–20.
"When you enter the land the LORD your God is giving you and have taken possession of it and settled in it, and you say, ‘Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,’ be sure to appoint over you a king the LORD your God chooses. He must be from among your fellow Israelites. Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not an Israelite. The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses for himself or make the people return to Egypt to get more of them, for the LORD has told you, ‘You are not to go back that way again.’ He must not take many wives, or his heart will be led astray. He must not accumulate large amounts of silver and gold. When he takes the throne of his kingdom, he is to write for himself on a scroll a copy of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests. It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life so that he may learn to revere the LORD his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees, and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and turn from the law to the right or to the left. Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel.” (Deut. 17:14–20)
This is the kind of king God desires. God wanted a king like this to be established. The appearance and character of this king were clearly different from the kings of the surrounding nations.
The king God envisioned would not forcibly take men from the people to serve as soldiers to increase his own power. He would not take daughters from the people to have many wives. He would not seize the possessions of the people to accumulate silver and gold for himself. Rather, the king God desired would revere Him, keep His word close throughout his life, and faithfully follow all that is written in God’s law.
But, when God spoke through Samuel about the institution of a human king, He described him as a king who takes. This was because the king the Israelites desired was not the kind of king God intended, but merely the kind of king the surrounding nations had. That king would exploit the precious things of the people to maintain his prestige, abuse his power and authority, and use a strong military to make the people his servants.
This is what happens when we set anything other than God as the king of our lives. We choose another king because we think it will give us greater benefit or blessing than what God provides. But in reality, it is the opposite. That king will take from us, exploit us, and ultimately make us slaves.
God, however, is not a king who takes. He is a king who gives. God is a good and faithful King who didn’t spare even His own Son to give us the blessing of eternal life and salvation. He always provides for our needs and bears our burdens for us. So, whom should we make the king of our lives?
 
After God explained through Samuel the kind of king the Israelites were demanding, He added, “On that day you will cry out because of the king you have chosen, but the LORD will not answer you on that day.” (1 Sam. 8:18)
Here, when God says He will not answer, it does not mean that He deliberately ignores their request. Rather, it means that they place themselves in a state where they cannot hear God’s response because they had hardened their hearts toward God, rejected Him, and set a human king in His place. This is also a consequence of living a life that does not recognize God as King. Ultimately, it results in a broken relationship between us and God.
 
The Israelites’ Persistent Demand
Despite all these warnings, the Israelites still demanded a human king.
"But the people refused to listen to Samuel. 'No!' they said. 'We want a king over us. Then we will be like all the other nations, with a king to lead us and to go out before us and fight our battles.'" (1 Sam. 8:19–20)
God’s warnings about a human king didn’t change their stubborn hearts. Their desire to be like the other nations remained unshaken. Even after hearing that the king would take from them, exploit them, and ultimately make them his servants, and that this would distance them from God’s kingship, they still insisted on having a human king. In doing so, they removed themselves from the blessing of having God as their King.
And God told Samuel to grant their request. He knew that nothing He said would change their hearts. But God’s permission doesn’t mean that what they wanted was right in His eyes. Sometimes, God’s permission comes to us as a form of judgment.
At times, God refuses our requests out of love. But at other times, He grants our requests as a form of judgment. He lets us have what we want, even when it leads to consequences. God allowing the Israelites to have a king was such a case. They should have recognized that God’s permission was, in fact, the beginning of His judgment.
Yet even in God’s permission and judgment, we see His grace. The Israelites demanded a human king out of sinful motives, rejecting God as King, but through the very system they chose, God would ultimately send His Son, Jesus Christ, from the line of David.
When the Israelites rejected God’s kingship and chose a human king, the coming of God’s kingdom may have seemed delayed. But God used even their sinful decisions to send Jesus Christ as the true King into this world and, through Him, to establish God’s kingdom on earth.
This is the grace we can see even within God’s judgment. Because of this grace, even in the midst of our own wrong decisions today, we can still return to a life where God reigns as King.
 
Returning to God as King
Now, I want to wrap up today’s message. As we reflect on the story of Israel demanding a human king, we see the dangers of rejecting God’s kingship in our own lives. Just as the Israelites sought a king like the nations around them, we too can be tempted to place other things—our desires, our ambitions, our possessions—on the throne of our hearts. Yet the Bible reminds us that any king other than God will ultimately take from us, exploit us, and make us slaves.
But God is not a king who takes. He is a king who gives. He gives us life, salvation, guidance, and peace. He gave His only Son so that through Jesus Christ we could have eternal life and a restored relationship with Him.
Today, God calls us to examine our hearts. Whom are we allowing to reign over our lives? Are we yielding to our own desires, or are we submitting to the good and faithful rule of our Lord? True blessing comes from acknowledging God as King and living under His rule, trusting that His ways are best.
So, let us, turn away from the temptation to choose our own "kings" and allow God to reign fully in our hearts. He is the only true King who can give us true blessings that we need.
May we leave here today renewed in our commitment to live under God’s kingship, trusting His grace even when we face our own weaknesses and mistakes. May we welcome God once again as the King of our lives, receive all the blessings He gives, and live as His people, faithful citizens of His kingdom. Let’s pray.
 
[Prayer]
Heavenly Father, we come before You today acknowledging that You alone are the true King of our lives. Forgive us, Lord, for the times we have sought to place other things on the throne of our hearts instead of You.
Lord, help us to turn away from the temptation to follow other kings. Instead, may we submit fully to Your good and faithful rule, trusting that You are a King who gives salvation.
Teach us, Father, to live each day under Your kingship. May we keep Your Word close, revere You in all we do, and follow Your commands with a willing heart. Even in our mistakes and weaknesses, remind us of Your grace, that we may always return to You and live as Your faithful people.
We ask, Lord, that You reign in our hearts, homes, workplaces, and wherever we are. May we experience the fullness of Your blessings as we live as Your people, devoted to Your kingdom.
We pray all this in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and King. Amen.
 
[Reflection Questions]
1. Why do you think the Israelites rejected God as their King and demanded a human king? Can you think of moments in your life when you’ve put something else in the place of God as the ruler of your heart?
2. Sometimes God judges us by allowing our requests. Have you ever experienced this kind of judgment in your life, or witnessed it in the lives of those around you?
3. God judges, but He also gives grace. He may discipline us for our mistakes, yet He can use even our wrong decisions to restore us as citizens of His kingdom. Have you ever experienced this kind of grace from God amid your own wrongdoings?

“The boy Samuel ministered before the LORD under Eli. In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions. One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the LORD, where the ark of God was. Then the LORD called Samuel. Samuel answered, “Here I am.”” (1 Sam. 3:1-4)
 
Review
We’ve been talking about the kingdom of God through the period of the Judges. The first seven chapters of 1 Samuel describe the final period of the time of the judges. It was right before Israel’s first king was anointed, a time when power and authority were concentrated in the hands of the priests.
In the opening chapters of 1 Samuel, we encounter three types of priests. The first are Hophni and Phinehas, the sons of Eli. Though they served in the tabernacle as priests, they committed serious sins before the Lord. They stole portions of the sacrifices that belonged to God, and they slept with the women who served at the entrance of the tent of meeting.
The Bible tells us the root cause of their wickedness: they didn’t know the Lord. They had knowledge about God as priests, yet they failed to relate that knowledge to their lives. They didn’t experience God personally, and therefore they didn’t truly know Him. Because of that, they lost the fear of God and lived in sin.
From this, we learn the first essential attitude of God’s people in His Kingdom: to know God. This knowledge is not only intellectual but also experiential. We must first come to know who God is through His Word, and then experience His living presence as we obey that Word in our daily lives. It is through both understanding and obedience that we grow in the true knowledge of God.
Last week, we looked at Eli the priest. Eli knew about the evil acts his sons were committing in the tabernacle, yet he didn’t rebuke them severely or discipline them. Scripture tells us the reason: he honored his sons more than he honored God.
Although Eli served in the tabernacle, his highest priority was not God. The ones he loved and honored most were his sons, not the Lord. Because of that misplaced love, he turned a blind eye to their sins. But that choice brought devastating judgment upon both his sons and himself.
From Eli’s example, we learn the second vital attitude of God’s people: to love and honor God above all else. True people of God place are those who put His will above every other priority in life.
This is the right order of love. Our love for others—even for family—must never come before our love for God. Jesus Himself said that unless our love for Him is so great that our love for others seems like hate in comparison, we cannot be His disciples.
That is the lesson we learn from Eli: as God’s people, we must love and honor the Lord above everyone and everything else.
 
Samuel
Today, we’ll look at the life of Samuel—the last judge of Israel, who also served as a priest and a prophet—to learn what it means for God’s people to live under God’s kingship.
Samuel was the first son of a woman named Hannah. Her husband’s name was Elkanah. Hannah had one deep sorrow: though she had been married for a long time, she had no children. Elkanah’s other wife, Peninnah, constantly provoked and mocked Hannah because of her barrenness.
One day, deeply distressed, Hannah went before the tabernacle and wept bitterly as she prayed. And she made this vow to the Lord: “LORD Almighty, if you will only look on your servant’s misery and remember me, and not forget your servant but give her a son, then I will give him to the LORD for all the days of his life, and no razor will ever be used on his head.” (1 Sm 1:11)
Hannah vowed that if God would give her a son, she would dedicate him to the Lord for his entire life. God heard Hannah’s prayer, and soon she conceived and gave birth to a son. That son was Samuel.
Hannah cared for Samuel until he was weaned, and when the time came, she brought him to Eli the priest and said, “I prayed for this child, and the LORD has granted me what I asked of him. So now I give him to the LORD. For his whole life he will be given over to the LORD.” (1 Sm 1:27–28)
 
Samuel’s Growth before the Presence of God
From a very young age, Samuel grew up before the Lord in the tabernacle and began serving Him. “The boy Samuel grew up in the presence of the LORD.” (1 Sm 2:21)
This verse doesn’t simply mean that Samuel grew physically. His growth went beyond age or stature—it included moral and spiritual maturity.
We can see this from the phrase “in the presence of the LORD.” It signifies that Samuel’s life was marked by close fellowship with God. Similar expressions appear repeatedly in the description of his life:
“The boy ministered before the LORD under Eli the priest.” (1 Sm 2:11)
“The boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with the LORD and with people.” (1 Sm 2:26)
“The LORD was with Samuel as he grew up…” (1 Sm 3:19)
 
These verses refer that Samuel didn’t just grow up in the tabernacle but grew up in deep fellowship with God and in His presence. Samuel’s growth was growth before the Lord. From a young age, he sensed God’s presence and lived before Him. The Lord was with him, shaping him to become a faithful servant—intellectually, spiritually, and morally.
The Bible highlights Samuel’s growth in God’s presence by contrasting it with Eli’s two other sons, Hophni and Phinehas, who appear in the same chapter. They all lived in the tabernacle, yet their lives were completely different. Unlike Hophni and Phinehas, who didn’t experience God, didn’t know Him, and didn’t fear Him—so they sinned greatly before Him—Samuel loved God from his youth. He grew up in the Lord’s presence, hearing His voice and walking in deep fellowship with Him.
This teaches us something important. Where we are matters because we’re easily shaped by our surroundings. That’s why we need to put ourselves in places where we can naturally come to know God more deeply. This is one reason why we, as Christians, shouldn’t give up meeting together.
But even more important than where we are is where our hearts are turned. Even if we’re gathered here in church worshiping together, if our hearts aren’t directed toward God—if we’re not aware of His presence—we won’t truly experience Him or grow in knowing who He is like Eli’s two sons.
On the other hand, even if we’re not in a church building, if we always live with awareness of God’s presence in every moment and every place, we’ll experience Him deeply and grow in our deep knowledge of Him. That can happen at home, at work, while walking, or even while shopping for groceries because the presence of God who created the whole world isn’t confined to a church building. He’s present everywhere throughout all creation.
So there’s no place where we can’t experience God. What truly matters is how much our hearts are turned toward Him. If we live each day mindful of His presence, as if the Lord Himself were right before us, we’ll grow daily in His image—shaped by His presence and deepened in our fellowship with Him.
 
Hearing the Lord
Then how can we, as God’s people, be equipped and continue to grow more specifically? We can find the answer in today’s passage.
Let’s read together 1 Samuel 3:1–4 one more time.
"The boy Samuel ministered before the LORD under Eli. In those days the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions. One night Eli, whose eyes were becoming so weak that he could barely see, was lying down in his usual place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the LORD, where the ark of God was. Then the LORD called Samuel. Samuel answered, ‘Here I am.’" (1 Sam 3:1–4)
Here, we can find several important expressions related to our spiritual life before God. First, the author of 1 Samuel describes the situation at that time as, “the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions” (1 Sam 3:1).
The phrase “the word was rare” relates to hearing, while “visions” relates to seeing. But these expressions do not mean that God didn’t speak to people or show them visions at that time.
One of the greatest differences between the God we believe in and the gods of other religions is that our God communicates with His people.
The God revealed in the Bible isn’t hidden away in a place that’s hard to find, or only discovered through extreme austerity, asceticism, or meditation. Rather, the Bible shows that our God is the God of love, mercy, and compassion, who comes to us even when we show no interest in Him, reject His kingship, distance ourselves from His presence, and live in sin according to our own desires.
For example, in Genesis 11, when people gathered to build the Tower of Babel to defy God, the Bible says that God came down to see what they were doing. When Sodom and Gomorrah were filled with sin, God sent angels directly to witness the corruption there.
In this way, God comes to us first and desires to communicate with us. And the ultimate expression of that communication or grace is found in the Bible and in Jesus. The very Scriptures we read now show that God wants to communicate with us and reveal Himself to us. Jesus Christ, sent by God, is the greatest proof of how much God loves us and wants fellowship with us.
So, God always desires to communicate with His people, and He has given us His Word and prayer as means of communication. Through the Word, we hear God’s voice, come to know Him, and understand His will. Through prayer, we talk with God, bring our requests before Him, and discern His purposes for us.
So when 1 Samuel 3:1 says that “the word of the LORD was rare; there were not many visions,” it doesn’t mean God didn’t speak or show visions to His people. Rather, it reflects humanity’s refusal to listen and see what God was revealing.
We see this especially in Eli’s condition in the following verses. His eyes were growing dim, and he could barely see. Here, Eli’s dimming eyes reflect not only his physical state but also his spiritual state just as Samuel’s growth shows not only physical maturity but spiritual development in his relationship with God.
Eli’s spiritual eyes were becoming dark. But it wasn’t his age that caused this. As we saw last week, it was the result of a life that didn’t love, honor, or prioritize God above all else. God spoke to him, but Eli didn’t listen. God showed him visions, but Eli didn’t see them. His eyes were shut and his eyes were closed before God.
 
Eli’s condition was the opposite of Samuel’s. Samuel grew up always in the presence of God, and as a result, he was sensitive and responsive to God’s voice. 1 Samuel 3:3-4 says,
“The lamp of God had not yet gone out, and Samuel was lying down in the house of the LORD, where the ark of God was. Then the LORD called Samuel. Samuel answered, ‘Here I am.’” (1 Sam 3:3–4)
This was the moment when Samuel first heard the voice of God. When he heard it for the first time, it was so clear that Samuel thought it was Eli calling him. So He went to Eli. But Eli had not called him and told him to go back and lie down.
However, when this happened two more times, Eli realized that it was the Lord calling Samuel. He then instructed Samuel that the next time he heard the voice, he should respond this way.
"If he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant is listening.’" (1 Sam 3:9)
Samuel obeyed Eli’s instruction, and he heard God’s voice. This marked the beginning of God speaking directly to Samuel. From that moment, God continued to speak to Samuel, and Samuel grew under His word, beginning to serve God as both a priest and a prophet. 1 Samuel 3:19-21 says,
"The LORD was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground. And all Israel recognized that Samuel was attested as a prophet of the LORD. The LORD continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word." (1 Sam 3:19–21)
 
Here, we see an important principle for living as God’s people who acknowledge God as King. That principle is listening to God. God’s people are those who, above all else, hear His voice, discern His will through it, and obey that will.
I really love John 10. In this chapter, Jesus describes His relationship with His followers using the image of a shepherd and his sheep. Here, Jesus appears as the good shepherd who willingly lays down His life so that the sheep may have life.
Jesus said in John 10:10-11, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep." (John 10:10–11)
Then Jesus also explains relationship between the shepherd and His sheep. Let’s read John 10:27 together:
"My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me." (John 10:27)
In this verse, we see three important verbs that describe our relationship with the Lord: listen, know, and follow. God’s people listen to the voice of the good Shepherd, which draws us into a deeper relationship with Him. The Shepherd knows us, and through that relationship, we come to know Him as well. And that relationship naturally leads to the life that follows Him.
This is what our daily life should look like if we truly want to follow the Lord. The first step to following Him is listening to His voice—hearing Him, discerning His will, and coming to know and experience who He is. As we grow in relationship with Him, we can truly become His disciples and follow Him. So if you truly want to follow the Lord, please don’t neglect listening to His voice daily.
 
Then, what does it mean to listen to the Lord, and how can we do it?
The first thing we need to hear His voice is to not let other voices distract us. There are many voices in the world, each telling us how we should live and subtly demanding that we follow them. When we get swept up in the currents of the world, it’s hard to hear God’s voice and discern His will. The more we listen to the world, the more we’ll find ourselves following its ways instead of pursuing God’s will. Therefore, to hear the Lord’s voice, we need to intentionally block out the noise of the world.
 
After we’ve intentionally blocked out the voices of the world, we’re now prepared to hear God’s voice. But how can we actually hear the Lord?
The Bible records some examples of people who heard God’s voice. Sometimes God spoke directly with a human voice. Samuel is one example. But God doesn’t speak this way now. The reason is the “completion of revelation.” When God spoke to Samuel, the majority of the 66 books of the Bible hadn’t yet been written. So at that time, God used direct revelation to make His will known, which was later recorded in Scripture.
But now, we have the fully revealed Word of God and Jesus Christ, the fulfillment of that Word. That’s why God no longer speaks directly with a human voice—He’s already given us all we need through Scripture and Christ.
God also speaks to us through circumstances and through the words of others. Sometimes He speaks through dreams and visions, as with people like Joseph and Daniel. He also speaks through our inner conscience.
Though God still uses these various ways to communicate, the most certain way to hear His voice is, as mentioned before, by reading His Word. In Scripture, God has revealed all that He wants us to know about Him. The Bible is the source of the treasure of knowledge about Him and the foundation for true wisdom in life.
Through God’s revealed Word, through Jesus Christ who fulfills that Word, and through the Holy Spirit sent by Christ, we can hear God’s voice and discern His will. As the author of Hebrews says,
"In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom also he made the universe." (Heb 1:1–2)
This is the safest and most certain way to hear God’s voice. I’ve met many people who claimed they heard God speak. But often, I had doubts about whether what they heard was truly God’s voice. That’s because what they described as God’s voice was more often based on their circumstances than on God’s Word.
Here lies the danger of claiming to hear God’s voice. When we desire to do something, we sometimes justify it by packaging it as God’s will. In reality, it’s our own inner voice, our own desire, but we present it as if it were God speaking.
Hearing God’s voice is not like that. We must avoid any arbitrary, emotional “voice of God” that isn’t grounded in Scripture. God’s Word is enough. Jesus Christ is enough. The Holy Spirit leads us in truth, and that is sufficient. We don’t need anything more to hear His voice. All we need is to approach God’s Word daily, seeking the Spirit’s wisdom in our lives. That’s enough.
As we draw near to God’s Word each day and hear His voice through it, we come to know Him more deeply and grow in His presence and will. We become increasingly like Jesus Christ and truly follow Him. This is what it means to live as God’s people, as sheep under the care of our good Shepherd, with God as our King.
Now, let's wrap up today's message. Through Samuel’s life, we’ve learned how to live as citizens of God’s kingdom. Today’s key terms are growth, God’s presence, and hearing. If we truly want to grow in authentic knowledge and experience of God, we must train ourselves to live in His presence in every situation, wherever we are. We should live and act in line with His will, as though He is standing before us. Each small choice contributes to our spiritual growth. And essential to this is hearing God’s voice through His Word.
So, take this time to reflect on your life and faith in light of today’s message. How often do you experience God’s presence in your daily life? Do you intentionally live before Him? How close are you to God’s Word, in order to know Him, discern His will, and follow Him?
Let us now declare once again that God is the King and Lord of our lives. Let us resolve to live fully under His lordship. The first step is to humbly approach His presence each day and hear His voice through His Word. Let us pray.
 
[Prayer]
Heavenly Father, we thank You for speaking to us today through Your Word and for revealing Your will to us through the example of Samuel’s life. Thank You for reminding us that to live as Your people, we must grow in Your presence and hear Your voice each day.
Lord, we are grateful for Your love and grace, for giving us Your word of lif, sending Your Son Jesus Christ to save us, and for giving us the Holy Spirit to lead and teach us. As we go from this place, help us to live lives that honor You in every thought, word, and action. May we speak and act according to Your pleasing will, as if You are right there with us. Please guide our every step.
Strengthen us to walk faithfully in Your ways, to hear Your voice clearly, and to obey with hearts full of love and devotion. We pray that Your will be done and Your kingdom come through our lives.
We pray all this in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and King. Amen.
 
[Reflection Questions]
1. How often do you consciously recognize God’s presence in your daily life? In what situations do you find it easiest or hardest to sense His presence?
2. In what areas of your life do you want to grow spiritually? How can you train yourself to grow in God’s presence each day, like Samuel?
3. Hearing God’s voice is vital in Christian life and faith. How are you listening to God’s voice in your daily life? What was the most recent thing you heard from Him? How did you hear it and what did He speak through it?
4. What is one practical step you can take this week to spend more time in God’s presence and hear His voice more clearly?

The Bible passage God is giving us today is from 1 Samuel 2 verses 27-34. Let’s read it in turn and the last verse together. 
(2:27) Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him, “This is what the LORD says: ‘Did I not clearly reveal myself to your ancestor’s family when they were in Egypt under Pharaoh?
(2:28) I chose your ancestor out of all the tribes of Israel to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense, and to wear an ephod in my presence. I also gave your ancestor’s family all the food offerings presented by the Israelites.
(2:29) Why do you scorn my sacrifice and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? Why do you honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choice parts of every offering made by my people Israel?
(2:30) Therefore the LORD, the God of Israel, declares: ‘I promised that members of your family would minister before me forever.’ But now the LORD declares: ‘Far be it from me! Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained.
(2:31) The time is coming when I will cut short your strength and the strength of your priestly house, so that no one in it will reach old age,
(2:32) and you will see distress in my dwelling. Although good will be done to Israel, no one in your family line will ever reach old age.
(2:33) Every one of you that I do not cut off from serving at my altar I will spare only to destroy your sight and sap your strength, and all your descendants will die in the prime of life.
(2:34) And what happens to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will be a sign to you—they will both die on the same day.
 
Review
We’ve been talking about the kingdom of God through the period of the Judges. Since last week, we’ve begun to explore, what it means to live as the people of God’s kingdom through the Book of 1 Samuel.
Chapters 1 through 7 of 1 Samuel describe the situation just before Saul was anointed as the first king of Israel. The main figures in this section are Eli and his two sons, with Samuel appearing as a contrasting figure.
Last time, we talked about Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas. God had chosen them as priests and set them apart as holy. At that time, Israel had no king, so the priests carried significant power and authority. God gave them this power and authority so that they could reveal His will to His people and help the people offer true worship to Him.
However, Hophni and Phinehas didn’t use the priestly office, nor the authority and power given to them, for God’s purposes. Instead, they used it to satisfy their own desires. When people came to offer sacrifices, they seized portions of the meat inappropriately  to fill their own stomachs. They even threatened those who objected. In doing so, they despised the sacrifices, the worship, and ultimately, the God to whom all things belonged. Furthermore, they had sexual relations with the women serving at the entrance of the tent of meeting.
Thus, they failed to fulfill their role as priests and boldly did what priests shouldn’t do in the very tabernacle that God had chosen to set His name.
So, what led them to such a place, where they had no fear of God and openly despised Him? We find the answer in 1 Samuel 2:12:
“Eli’s sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord.” (1 Sam. 2:12)
Here, the phrase “had regard” in Hebrew comes from the word yada, which means “to know.” This word implies a depth of intimacy far beyond simply knowing about God with the mind. The knowledge that yada describes extends to the closeness found even between a husband and wife. It’s not merely knowing facts about someone externally, but having a personal and intimate relationship with that person.
This is what Hophni and Phinehas lacked. As priests, they likely studied knowledge about God, but that knowledge remained in their heads and in the realm of theory. They didn’t know God experientially.
As a result, they reduced the worship directed toward the living God to nothing more than a religious ritual. They treated the sacrifices for God as mere food for themselves. They treated the women serving at the tabernacle as instruments for satisfying their own desires. This was because they didn’t know God. Had they truly known God personally and experientially, they wouldn’t have treated Him in such a contemptuous manner.
This is what can happen in our own lives when we neglect knowing God. No matter how faithfully we come to church every Sunday to worship and hear God’s Word, if we don’t personally experience God through that Word, if our knowledge stays only in our heads and doesn’t touch our hearts, we can unknowingly end up despising God like Hophni and Phinehas.
Weekly worship can become just another task to get through rather than a time of encounter and fellowship with the living God. Daily fellowship with God through His Word and prayer can feel burdensome instead of eagerly anticipated, and it may even start to feel like holy chores. Worship breaks down, our love for God grows cold, and the purpose and mission God has given us can be forgotten.
That’s why we must strive above all else to know God. Not just intellectually, but personally and experientially. We need to draw near to Him every day, seeking to encounter Him. Just as Paul prayed for the believers in the Colossian church, we should ask to grow in the deep knowledge of God, filled with spiritual wisdom and understanding. God delights in revealing Himself to those who earnestly seek Him this way. Those who seek God daily will meet Him, truly come to know who He is, and that knowledge will transform their lives completely.
God says in Proverbs 8:17, “I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me.” (Prov. 8:17)
God has done everything possible to come to us and to make His grace known to us. He’s revealed His will to us through His Word, forgiven our sins and made us His children through Jesus Christ, and guided us into truth through the Holy Spirit, giving us the wisdom and power to live according to His will. There’s nothing lacking in what God has done for us. So what remains is our response.
God desires that we come to know Him more deeply. But He doesn’t force it. How could a relationship be built by force? How could a relationship stay healthy if only one side made all the effort? That’s why God, after doing everything He possibly can, waits and longs for our response. When we seek Him to know Him, when we read His Word to hear His voice, and when we pray to converse with Him, God delights greatly, revealing Himself to us and allowing us to experience Him even more deeply.
As we live each day in this deep fellowship with God, we’ll come to know Him more personally and experientially. And in that knowledge, we’ll grow into His holy image, reflecting His character more and more. That is God’s will for us.
 
Priest Eli
Today, we’re going to continue exploring what it means to live as people of the kingdom of God through 1 Samuel. We’ll focus on two figures: one is Priest Eli, and the other is Samuel. Both of them were set apart to serve God in His tabernacle with the same purpose and office, yet their attitudes toward that office were very different.
First, Eli the priest was the father of Hophni and Phinehas. Of course, we can’t simply criticize him for being the father of sons who did evil in the tabernacle. Many times, people raised in good families grow up well, but that’s not always the case. Even Samuel, who was an exceptional man of God, ultimately failed in raising children, giving the Israelites the opportunity to demand a king, which we’ll see next Sunday.
So, what the Bible emphasizes about Eli isn’t just that his sons committed evil in the temple, or that he failed in raising them, but rather the attitude he showed toward their wrongdoing.
Of course, he did rebuke his two sons as a father and a priest. 1 Samuel 2:22-24 says, “Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting. So he said to them, “Why do you do such things? I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. No, my sons; the report I hear spreading among the LORD’s people is not good.” (1 Sam. 2:22-24)
 
Eli said to his sons, “Why are you doing these things… don’t do this…” but the tone is not severe. Their sins were extremely serious. So as a father and priest, he had the responsibility to rebuke and punish them rigorously. Yet he didn’t. He treated them as if they had only made minor mistakes, like correcting a stubborn child gently.
We can see why Eli treated his sons this way in the next passage. A man of God came to Eli and spoke to him.
“‘Did I not reveal myself to your ancestors when they were in Egypt under Pharaoh? Did I not choose your family from all the tribes of Israel to serve me as priests, to burn incense on my altar and wear the ephod before me? Did I not give your family all the offerings presented by the Israelites? Why do you honor your sons above me by letting them have your way with my offerings and your rule over the people of Israel? Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: I promised that your house and your ancestors’ house would serve me forever, but now I say that I will not honor you. Those who honor me, I will honor; those who despise me, I will treat with contempt.’” (1 Sam. 2:27–30)
Here, we see why Eli didn’t severely rebuke or punish Hophni and Phinehas despite their unforgivable sins in the tabernacle. He valued his sons more than God. The most important value in Eli’s life wasn’t God. In other words, God wasn’t the king of his life. He loved and treasured his sons more than God. He “honored” them above God, and in matters concerning his sons, he chose to disregard God. In this sense, his sons had become almost like idols to him.
But, what Eli didn’t realize was that loving his sons more than God and treating them gently this way would ultimately ruin them.
When God first appeared to Samuel, He spoke to him about Eli and his sons: “I will fulfill everything I said about Eli’s family, from beginning to end. I warned that I would judge his family forever because of the sins he knew about--he didn’t restrain his sons even though they brought judgment upon themselves. Therefore I swear that the sins of Eli’s family will never be atoned for by sacrifice or offering.” (1 Sam. 3:12–14)
What Eli’s sons did in the tabernacle was essentially bringing a curse upon themselves. It was clearly against God’s will and brought His judgment. Yet Eli didn’t restrain them because he loved them more than God. This misplaced order of love ultimately brought destruction to his life and his sons’ lives.
This is what happens when we don’t live with God as the King of our lives. From Eli’s life, we learn that living with God as our King means first, valuing Him as the most important; second, loving Him the most; and third, honoring Him above all. When we place God first in our lives, making our relationship with Him the highest priority, and recognizing and respecting Him in everything, God honors us and blesses us as the King of our lives.
But when we love something else more than God—even things we should love, like our parents, spouse, siblings, or children—it brings tragedy. Even our acts of love can bring a curse upon ourselves and those we love if God is not first.
So, we should keep in mind that love always requires proper order. Loving our neighbors, no matter who they are, must never come before our love for God. Our love for others must always operate under the proper order of our love for God. Only then can we love the people God has placed around us rightly, and guide them in His ways. This is the lesson we can learn from Eli’s life.
This is a very real and practical struggle in our lives. To love God above all and to honor Him above all is not as easy as it sounds. When we love God most, there will be times when it might feel like we are going against the ones we love the most. When we honor God above all, it may sometimes mean that we are not honoring the desires of those we deeply respect. This will certainly bring conflict and struggle into our lives. But what happens if we try to avoid that conflict because we don’t like it? In the short term, the relationship with that person might seem better. Yet, in doing so, we risk damaging our relationship with God, and even the relationship between that person and God.
So this is a very real struggle. To love God above all and to honor Him above all means seeking God’s will as the highest priority in every situation, every circumstance, and every relationship—even if doing so brings conflict or opposition from those we love and respect. But we also know this: God is the God of peace. While following His will may bring friction and disagreement now, He will ultimately bring peace from it.
Which life will you choose to live? Will you live like Eli, who loved and honored his children more than God, ultimately destroying both their lives and his own? Or will you live a life that prioritizes God’s will above all, loving and honoring Him most, even if it causes division or tension in your relationships? May our lives not mirror Eli’s life, and may our relationship with God never resemble the strained relationship Eli had with Him.
 
The Life of God’s People: Loving and Honoring God Above All
From today’s passage, what we learn about the life of God’s people is that we are called to love God above all. Jesus said in Matthew 22:37-40,
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matt. 22:37-40)
Here, we see the great commandment given to God’s people. It is love. Loving God and loving our neighbors as ourselves is the greatest command given to Christians.
But, as we’ve said earlier, the order matters. Loving our neighbor is important, but it must never come before loving God. Our love for others must always be based on our love for God. Again, this is not easy. Loving God above all can inevitably bring conflict in our relationships with others.
Jesus also said in Matthew 6:24: “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other.” (Matt. 6:24)
It would be ideal if love for God and love for others could coexist. But that is not always the case. Sometimes we must choose. We must decide whether to continue loving and honoring God above all, even if it means that we are rejecting or dishonoring those we love, or to prioritize love for our loved ones above love and honor for God.
Jesus further emphasized this in Matthew 10:34-37: “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. For I have come to turn ‘a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law— a man’s enemies will be the members of his own household.’ Anyone who loves their father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves their son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” (Matt. 10:34-37)
Jesus doesn’t promise that loving Him will bring peace in all relationships. In fact, He warns that our love for Him may bring conflict—even with those we love the most. Loving God first may sometimes make us feel opposed to our own family members.
Of course, this does not mean that because we love the Lord, we are allowed to hate our family members. Here, “hatred” does not refer to literal hatred, but to the degree of love. The kind of love the Lord desires from us is so great that it may appear, in comparison, as “hatred” toward even the family members we love most.
Only those who love and follow Him with such devotion can endure opposition and trials while still remaining faithful. And only by loving God above all can we guide those we love—family, friends, and neighbors—toward Him, salvation, and eternal life. This is the cross we must bear, and the true shape of the love we are called to live. Let’s pray.
 
[Prayer]
Heavenly Father, we come before You today with humble hearts, grateful for Your Word and the lessons You have revealed to us  today. Lord, we confess that too often we place other things, even the people we love, above You. Forgive us for the times we have honored our desires, our relationships, or our comforts more than we have honored You.
Father, teach us to love You above all, to honor You above all, and to seek Your will as the highest priority in every area of our lives. Help us to understand that following You may bring conflict or opposition, even with those we cherish most, but that in You there is ultimate peace and reconciliation.
Lord, give us the courage to place You first in every relationship, every decision, and every desire. Fill our hearts with a love so deep that it aligns with Your will, a love that guides us to live faithfully as Your people, even when it is difficult.
Empower us through Your Holy Spirit to live lives that reflect Your glory, to love rightly, and to lead those around us toward You with wisdom and grace. May our lives be a testimony of Your sovereignty, Your mercy, and Your perfect love.
We pray in Jesus’ name, Amen.
 
[Reflection Questions]
1. In your daily life, what or who tends to take the highest place in your heart? God, family, career, or something else? Are there areas where you may be honoring someone or something more than God?
 
2.  Have you ever experienced tension or conflict because you chose to follow God’s will rather than give in to the desires of others? How did you respond? How do you discern the proper order of love in relationships, ensuring God is first?
 
3. What practical steps can you take this week to honor God above all in your relationships and daily decisions? How can you cultivate a deeper love for God that guides your love for others in the right order?