A few servants of God who were called for ministry, and used by God, later lost their vision to experience a tragic end. Eli, who served as the priest in the Tabernacle of God, was warned, rejected, and judged.
Bypassed: The Nation of Israel was led by judges for about four hundred years. The traditions of worship, sacrifice, festivals, and annual pilgrimage happened. The Word of God was rare, and there was no widespread revelation. (I Samuel 3:1) The era of the Judges was coming to an end. God used Eli to give assurance that Hannah’s prayers for a son were heard. (I Samuel 1:17-18) Nevertheless, Eli dishonored God by allowing his sons to dishonor the sacrifices offered to God. To warn Eli, God chose a lad, Samuel, to confront him.
Listening to God: Though Samuel was in the Tabernacle of God, doing cleaning, assisting in sacrifices, and in the upkeep of the furniture, he was not trained to listen to the Living God. God called Samuel. However, he thought it was Eli, his mentor, calling him. Two times it happened that Samuel rushed to Eli, and he simply asked him to go to sleep. When the Lord called the third time, Eli realized it was God’s voice, and taught Samuel to listen to God. (I Samuel 3:4-14) God chose to speak to Samuel, with the knowledge of Eli, though the message was against him.
Training children: Eli failed to train his sons to listen to the voice of God. Nevertheless, he taught Samuel to respond to the voice of God: “Speak Lord, your servant hears.” Parents and Sunday School teachers are responsible for training children to listen to the voice of God.
Eli Rebuked and punished: The Lord gave a heavy message to Eli. First, God will punish Eli and his descendants forever, because even after knowing the sins of his sons, he did not restrain them. Second, they blasphemed against God. Third, hence there is no sacrifice or atonement for their blasphemous behavior.
Do I listen to the voice of God and teach my children also?