by Chris Alexion, Copyright February 29, 2008, all rights reserved. 1586 views
The life of Samuel, one of Israel's greatest prophets, begings with a unique story. We start with an average Jewish man and his two wives (we won't go there right now). One wife, Peninnah, has children, and the other wife, Hannah, is childless but beloved by her husband.
Now, Peninnah is a little jealous. Even though she bore her husband children (the ultimate goal or status symbol of a woman in that particular culture), she's upset that childless Hannah gets a double portion of the ritual meal during the yearly sacrifice. A bitter Peninnah routinely taunts and provokes Hannah. This goes on for years.
Hannah can only bear so much; she weeps and can't eat. Her husband Elkanah asks, "Hannah, why do you weep? … And why is your heart sad? Am I not more to you than ten sons?" (1:8). Now it's a little unclear how to take Elkanah's question here. Elkanah probably means well, even if he spits a somewhat lofty view of his own game. But Hannah is unconsoled. "She was deeply distressed and prayed to the Lord and wept bitterly" (1:10).
It doesn't help that Eli originally misunderstands her fervent, silent prayers, thinking she's drunk. But when he learns of her situation, he gives her his blessing. God soon gives His, and Hannah has a son she names Samuel. Hannah keeps her word–she had promised that she would dedicate this son to God's service, and when Samuel is just a few years old (the text says as soon as he was weaned), she takes him back to the temple and leaves him there to learn from Eli and serve God.
Out of this unique background comes Samuel the prophet. I recap the story because it shows that God's providential hand works behind the scenes in the formation of a leader. God uses our circumstances–including even mundane elements of childhood–to shape and mold us. Hannah's story also shows the role of faith and prayer in the preparation of a leader, as well as the crucial role a godly mother plays. No Hannah, no Samuel.
The first "plot point," if you will, of Samuel's career occurs when he's a "young man" (3:1). It was a sign of Israel's decline that "the word of the Lord was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision." Yet one night Samuel hears an audible voice waking him from sleep: "Samuel!" At first Samuel thinks the old priest Eli is calling him, but Eli eventually realizes (after Samuel is called for the third time) that the Lord is the one calling Samuel. "Go, lie down, and if he calls you, you shall say, 'Speak, Lord, for your servant hears'" (3:9).
Samuel does listen, and what he hears is the chilling curse on Eli's house we saw in the last post. Listening to God is another key trait of a good leader. Depending on our own wisdom, strength, insight, or panache won't cut it. We need the "word of the Lord." As we'll see later in 1 Samuel, the godly leader David frequently sought and accepted God's counsel on important decisions–and sometimes his life depended on hearing from God.
This may sound simplistic. But if it's so simple, why do we neglect it so much? We tell ourselves that we too would listen to God more if we could call for a priest to bring the ephod so we'd know His will. But we already have a much greater revelation. It's written in our language, written by men moved by the Holy Spirit, and shame on us if we don't listen to it, whether for our home, church, or work life. How often do we say, "Speak, Lord, for your servant hears"?
We also learn from Samuel that a godly leader isn't afraid to speak what he's heard. The next morning, Eli asks Samuel what God had said. Samuel, of course, knew Eli wouldn't enjoy hearing the truth. But Eli charges him, "Do not hide it from me. May God do so to you and more also if you hide anything from me of all that he told you" (3:17).
Young Samuel does repeat God's words for Eli, and begins his career of prophetic confrontation. Later he will confront unruly Israel over their demand for a secular king: "And in that day you will cry out because of your king, whom you have choses for yourselves, but the Lord will not answer you in that day" (8:18). He will also confront rebellious King Saul, who broke a clear command from God: "You have done foolishly. You have not kept the command of the Lord your God. . . . [N]ow your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought out a man after his own heart, and the Lord has commanded him to be prince over his people, because you have not kept what the Lord commanded you. . . . The Lord has torn the kingdom of Israel from you this day and has given it to a neighbor of yours, who is better than you" (13:13-14; 15:28).
Learning the art of skillful confrontation is a must. While certainly confronting someone requires caution–a pugnacious leader is a disgrace (Titus 1:7)–there are times when refusing to confront sin is itself a sin. Eli was guilty of this offense, and, sadly, even Samuel wasn't in the clear. The apostle Paul's standards for leadership include that one's children "are believers and not open to the charge of debauchery or insubordination."
A leader with kids, in other words, has a responsibility to be a good father. While there's no specific guarantee that the children of Christians will automatically become saved, we do have a right to expect that a godly leader will bring up his children in the "discipline and instruction of the Lord" (Ephesians 6:4). Samuel, unfortunately, had sons who "did not walk in his ways but turned aside after gain. They took bribes and perverted justice" (8:3). This gross misconduct contributed to Israel's desire for a king: "Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah and said to him, 'Behold, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations'" (8:4-5).
This doesn't excuse the elders of Israel from rejecting God for a king. But you can almost see their point. And that hammers home one more thing: Leadership begins at home.
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