THE CHILD SAMUEL’S PRAYER – Charles Spurgeon
The Child Samuel’s Prayer
Introduction
“Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears.” (1 Samuel 3:9) In the days of Eli, the Word of the Lord was precious, and there was no open vision. It was well when the word did come, that one chosen individual had the hearing ear to receive it and the obedient heart to perform it. Eli failed to tutor his sons to be the willing servants and the attentive hearers of the Lord’s word. In this, he was without the excuse of inability since he successfully trained the child Samuel in reverent attention to the divine will. O, that those who are diligent about the souls of others would look well to their own households! Alas, poor Eli, like many in our day, you are made the keeper of the vineyards, but your own vineyard you have not kept.
As often as he looked upon the gracious child Samuel, he must have felt the heartache. When he remembered his own neglected and unchastened sons, and how they had made themselves vile before all Israel, Samuel was the living witness of what grace can work where children are trained up in God’s fear, and Hophni and Phinehas were sad specimens of what parental indulgence will produce in the children of the best of men. Ah, Eli, if you had been as careful with your own sons as with the son of Hannah, they had not been such men of Belial, nor would Israel have abhorred the offering of the Lord because of the fornication which those priestly reprobates committed at the very door of the tabernacle.
O, for grace to so nurse our little ones for the Lord, that they may hear the Lord when He shall be pleased to speak to them! Let us proceed at once to consider our short but very suggestive text in four aspects, and I pray that the Holy Spirit may speak to us through His Word. We shall meditate upon this Scripture, first, as the prayer of a little child; secondly, as the cry of an anxious soul; thirdly, as the prayer of an earnest believer; and fourthly, as the spirit of a dying saint.
I. The Prayer of a Little Child
First of all, we shall take our text as the prayer of a little child. Samuel was blessed with a gracious father, and what is of even more importance, he was the child of an eminently holy mother. Hannah was a woman of great poetic talent, as appears from her memorable song—“My heart rejoices in the Lord, my horn is exalted in the Lord; my mouth is enlarged over my enemies, because I rejoiced in Your salvation.” The soul of poetry lives in every line; a brave but chastened spirit breathes in every sentence; even the Virgin Mary, the most blessed among women, could do no other than use expressions of a similar import. Better still, Hannah was a woman of great prayer. She had been a woman of a sorrowful spirit, but her prayers at last returned to her in blessing, and she had this son given her of the Lord.
He was very dear to his mother’s heart, and she, therefore, to show her gratitude, and in fulfillment of the vow which in her anguish she had vowed unto the Lord, would consecrate the best thing she had, and presented her son before the Lord in Shiloh—a lesson to all godly parents to see to it that they dedicate their children unto God. How highly favored shall we be if our children shall all be like Isaac—children of the promise! What blessed parents would we be if we saw our children all rise up to call the Redeemer blessed. It has been the lot of some of you to see all your children numbered with the people of God—all your jewels are now in Jehovah’s casket. In their early childhood, you gave them up to God, and dedicated them to Him in earnest prayer, and now the Lord has given you your petition which you asked of Him.
I like our friends to hold little services in their own houses when their family is increased; it seems good and profitable for friends to assemble, and prayer to be offered, that the child may be an inheritor of the promises, that he may be early called by mighty grace, and received into the divine family. You will perceive, dear friends, that as Samuel was put under the care and tutelage of Eli, Eli had instructed him in some degree in the spirit of religion, but he does not appear to have explained to him the peculiar form and nature of those special and particular manifestations of God which were given to His prophets. I dare say that Eli little dreamt that Samuel would ever be the subject of them.
On that memorable night, when towards morning the lamp of God was about to go out, the Lord cried, “Samuel, Samuel,” the young child was not able to discern—for he had not been taught—that it was the voice of God, and not the voice of man. That he had learned the spirit of true religion is indicated by his instantaneous obedience, and the habit of obedience became a valuable guide to him in the perplexities of that eventful hour. He runs to Eli, and says, “Here am I, for you did call me,” and though this is three times repeated, yet he seems not at all loath to leave his warm bed, and run to his foster-father, to see if he could get him any comfort that his old age might require during the night, or otherwise do his bidding.
This was a sure sign that the child had acquired the healthy principle of obedience, though he did not understand the mystery of the prophetic call. Better far to have the young heart trained to bear the yoke than to fill the childish head with knowledge, however valuable. An ounce of obedience is better than a ton of learning.
When Eli perceived that God had called the child, he taught him his first little prayer. It is a very short one, but it is a very full one—“Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears.”
Many questions have been raised as to whether children ought to be taught a form of prayer. As far as I can judge, I think not, for I do not think that forms of prayer, although they may be allowed, and God may accept them, are ever of very great advantage to those who use them. Forms of prayer are something like the stilts of a cripple; if a man begins with them, it is very probable that he will never be able to do without them. They resemble the copious notes and manuscripts of certain ministers, who began with them, and are quite unable now to preach without them.
Children, who are taught a form of prayer, may perhaps by divine grace be enabled to use the form in all sincerity of heart—I hope they may; but I think they are more likely to understand the things of God if instead of teaching them the form, you explain to them the meaning and the value of prayer. I take this to be the best plan. Let the Christian parent explain to the child what prayer is; tell him that God answers prayer; direct him to the Savior, and then urge him to express his desires in his own language, both when he rises and when he goes to rest.
Gather the little ones around your knee and listen to their words, suggesting to them their needs, and reminding them of God’s gracious promises. You will be amazed, and, I may add, sometimes amused, too; but you will be frequently surprised at the expressions they will use, the confessions they will make, the desires they will utter; and I am certain that any Christian person standing within earshot, and listening to the simple prayer of a little child earnestly asking God for what it thinks it wants, would never afterwards wish to teach a child a form, but would say that as a matter of education to the heart, the extemporaneous utterance was infinitely superior to the best form, and that the form should be given up forever.
However, do not let me speak too sweepingly. If you must teach your child to say a form of prayer, at least take care that you do not teach him to say anything which is not true. If you teach your children a catechism, mind that it is thoroughly Scriptural, or you may train them up to tell lies. Do not call the child up, and command him to say, “In my baptism, wherein I was made a member of Christ, a child of God, and an inheritor of heaven.” If you want to educate him for the gallows, teach him to utter lies about sacred things; if you would make him an habitual deceiver, teach him the church catechism, and make him say, “God the Holy Spirit, who sanctifies me, and all the elect people of God”—when he is altogether unsanctified, and has no evidence of being elected.
I pray you, if you would have honest children, do not teach them to say that they thank their heavenly Father, “who has brought them into this state of salvation,” when they know—and you know—that they are not saved at all. Teach your children nothing but the truth as it is in Jesus so far as they can learn it, and pray the Holy Spirit to write that truth of God upon their hearts. Better to supply no signposts to the young traveler than to mislead him with false ones. The light of a wrecker’s beacon is worse than darkness. Teach our youth to make untruthful statements in religious matters, and Atheism can scarcely do more to corrupt their minds! Formal religion is a deadly foe to vital godliness.
If you teach a catechism, or if you teach a form of prayer to your little ones, let it all be true; and, as far as possible, never put into a child’s mouth a word which the child cannot truly say from his heart.
Dear friends, we must be more careful about truthfulness and correctness in speech. If a child looked out of a window at anything going on in the street, and then told you that he saw it from the door, you ought to make him tell the tale over again, so as to impress upon him the necessity of being truthful in every respect. Especially in things connected with religion, keep your child back from any form until he has a right to be a partaker of it. Never encourage him to come to the Lord’s table unless you really believe that there is a work of grace in his heart—for why should you lead him to eat and drink his own damnation? Insist with all your heart that religion is a solemn reality not to be mimicked or pretended to, and seek to bring the child to understand that there is no vice more abhorrent before God than hypocrisy! Do not make your young Samuel a young hypocrite, but train up your darling to speak before the Lord with a deep solemnity and a conscientious truthfulness, and let him never dare to say, either in answer to a catechism question, or as a form of prayer, anything which is not positively true.
If you must have a form of prayer, let it not express such desires as a child never had, but let it be adapted to his young capacity. At the same time, I would again say, that it would be infinitely better to leave the child alone as to the words, having earnestly instructed upon him the spirit of prayer. Beloved, when we see any trace of good in our youth, then, like Eli, we should be the more earnest to have them trained up in the faith. Let the child learn the Assembly’s Catechism, even though he does not understand all that is in it—and as soon as the young heart can comprehend the things of Jesus, labor in the power of the Holy Spirit to bring it to a simple dependence upon the great Sacrifice.
It is said of the Rev. John Angell James, “Like most men who have been eminent and honored in the Church of Christ, he had a godly mother, who would take her children to her chamber, and with each separately pray for the salvation of their souls. This exercise, which fulfilled her own responsibility, was molding the character of her children, and most, if not all of them, rose up to call her blessed. When did such means ever fail?”
II. The Cry of an Anxious Soul
I beseech you, the teachers of the Sunday school—though I scarcely need to do so, for I know how zealous you are in this matter—as soon as ever you see the first peep of day in your children, encourage their young desires. Believe in the conversion of children, as children; believe that the Lord can call them by His grace, can renew their hearts, and can give them a part and a lot among His people long before they reach the prime of life. Oh, that the Lord may give us to see many Samuels added to this church, as we have seen them in days gone by!
You, who are little ones, when the Lord speaks to you, cry to Him, “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears.” And when in the class, or here in the Tabernacle, the Word of God is preached to sinners, remember it is preached to you quite as much as to the men who are six feet high; and do lift up your little hearts to God, with the desire that while we are preaching, God would speak to you. Do, dear children, expect the Lord to meet with you. Boys and girls have been saved—“Many dear children are gathering there, For of such is the kingdom of heaven.” We have baptized many like you, at twelve, thirteen, and fourteen years of age, who have made a very clear profession of their faith; and rejoiced indeed shall we be, if we see you boys and girls coming forward and saying, “God has called us, has brought us to put our trust in Jesus; and here we are.”
Young Samuel, the Lord calls you; and you are a privileged one to be called so soon, for early grace frequently becomes eminent grace; and those who begin early with God are often preserved in this world to be of distinguished service in the courts of the Lord’s house. May that be your lot and mine!
III. The Prayer of an Earnest Believer
III. The Prayer of an Earnest Believer
Let us now consider the words as the prayer of an earnest believer. For many of us who have walked with Christ for some time, this prayer—”Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears”—becomes not only the cry of the heart when we first come to faith but also the ongoing desire of the mature believer. This is the prayer of one who is not satisfied with just hearing a superficial word but longs for a deeper understanding and clearer communication from God.
As believers, we know that our relationship with God is not a one-time event, but a daily, ongoing walk. The believer who prays, “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears,” is one who actively seeks the Lord’s guidance in all areas of life. Whether in times of joy or in trials, the earnest believer recognizes that they are wholly dependent upon God’s voice to guide them, to encourage them, and to convict them.
As you grow in faith, your heart’s cry should reflect a deep longing for God’s will to be revealed in your life. How many times have you found yourself in a situation where you didn’t know what to do, where you felt overwhelmed by the weight of decisions before you? It is in these moments that the prayer “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears” becomes vital. It is the acknowledgment that we need divine wisdom, guidance, and clarity that only God can provide.
When a believer prays this prayer, they are placing themselves in a posture of submission, saying, “Lord, I will follow You, no matter where You lead. I will listen, I will obey.” In this prayer, we also see the desire for God’s truth to penetrate every area of life. As Christians, we are called to be obedient to God’s Word, but we cannot obey what we do not know. So, the earnest believer desires to hear God’s voice more clearly and deeply. This hunger for God’s Word and His direction is essential for spiritual growth.
IV. The Spirit of a Dying Saint
Lastly, let us consider the words as the spirit of a dying saint. The prayer “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears” takes on an even deeper and more poignant meaning as we approach the end of our earthly journey. It is the prayer of a soul that is drawing near to God, a soul that has learned to trust in God’s promises throughout life and now desires, in their final moments, to hear from the Lord one last time.
In the closing moments of life, the believer is looking not for comfort from earthly voices, but for the voice of God. The prayer is a declaration that, though their earthly struggles are drawing to a close, they are still in the hands of their faithful Savior. The dying saint may no longer have strength to speak many words, but their heart continues to cry out for God’s voice—His final reassurance, His welcoming presence.
For the Christian, death is not a frightening thing, but a passage into eternal life. And at that moment, just as Samuel as a child heard the call of God, so the saint hears the call of their Heavenly Father: “Well done, good and faithful servant.” The prayer “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears” can be the saint’s final expression of faith as they await the Lord’s voice to lead them home.
What a beautiful picture of the soul’s devotion to God! It is a lifelong prayer that continues through all of life’s stages. Whether a child, an anxious soul, a mature believer, or a dying saint, the heart that desires to hear God’s voice is one that is walking in the fullness of faith. As we reflect on this prayer, we should consider how we might more fully live in that attitude of listening, surrender, and obedience.
Conclusion
As we close, let us ask ourselves: Is this our prayer? “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears.” Are we listening for God’s voice in our lives, eager to follow His guidance no matter where it leads? As we continue our journey of faith, may we always remain ready to hear God’s voice, obey His will, and honor Him in all things. Whether we are children learning about God’s Word or adults seeking deeper understanding, may this prayer be our cry each day, and may we find joy and peace in knowing that God speaks to His people, guiding them into all truth.
May God bless us all with open ears and hearts to hear His voice and to walk in His will, from our first steps of faith to our final breath. Amen.
Speak, Lord, for Your Servant Hears
Introduction
I put this question to you in deep solemnity this night; and do, I pray you, before you leave these walls, send up the cry, “Speak, Lord, to me and speak to me NOW!” But can you say, like Samuel, “Your servant hears”? Truly, I am afraid many of you cannot, for you do not hear God’s Word with your hearts. My eye runs down with grief when I think of some of you who listen to my voice year after year, and yet do not hear. You hear me, but you do not hear my Master! Alas, how many have been the arrows out of God’s bow which I have shot at you? Have they not been wasted? They have rattled upon your armor, but they have not pierced your hearts. I have run in vain! I have labored in vain for you. I have beaten the air as far as you are concerned. You would not hear.
I can say solemnly, I have sometimes stood in this pulpit, and have labored with your souls to the best of my power, and I have felt that I would have cheerfully resigned all I had on earth, if I might but have brought you to Christ. If you, my hearers, who sit here constantly, might but be partakers of eternal life, I will leave my Master to do what He wills with me. Shame, contempt, disgrace—these shall be our joy and our crown for our faithfulness to God and your souls; but, oh, I must have you saved; I must have you lay hold on eternal life; I must see you look to Jesus; and my prayer is that you may this night look to a Savior crucified!
The Cry of the Anxious Soul
Can you say, “Your servant hears”? “Yes,” says one, “I can; if now the Lord would say a word in mercy to me, I would gladly hear it.” Then He will speak to you, poor soul, before long. If you will hear it, He will say it, for He never did give a hearing ear to any heart without intending to speak to it. I know how you want Him to speak—you want Him to speak with conviction. You want the broken and the contrite heart such as He will not despise. Well, ask for it—say, “Speak, Lord, with Your convicting voice, for I am ready to hear.”
And you want Him to speak with a converting voice—you desire to be turned from your evil ways, and to follow the Lord. Cry to Him, then, “Speak, Lord, with the voice that turns men, and turn me now from darkness to light.” Or it may be that you want a comforting word. Well, then, pray for it—“Speak, Lord, with Your voice of comfort; bind up my bleeding wounds, and let my soul rejoice in You.”
Yet, truly, I do not know that He will speak anything more to you than this—“Look to Christ and live.” He will speak with power, but that is the substance of it. Jesus is the sum of mercy’s message. He is the Word of God. Do not expect to have any other gospel from God’s lips than that which is revealed in God’s Word. The gospel of God’s Word is, “Believe, and live.” There is life in a look at the Crucified One; there is life at this moment for YOU! If you will not hear the voice of God when He says to you, “Trust Christ,” remember He has no other glad tidings. Effectual calling may speak this same thing more effectually, but the Holy Spirit never reveals any other gospel. There is no other way to heaven but just this—“Trust your soul to Christ; your sins are forgiven you, and you are saved!”
A Plea for Salvation
I am reluctant to leave this point, because my heart is panting to know and to feel some inward emotion which might make me feel confident, that some of you had breathed this prayer. O may the good Master who alone can drive these nails home, use the gospel hammer now! I do entreat you, by the shortness of life, by the certainty of death, by the glories of heaven, by the terrors of hell—seek the Lord and let this be, now, the voice of your seeking, “Speak, Lord; speak to ME; speak NOW; for Your servant hears.”
The Prayer of an Earnest Believer
We will turn to the third view of the text as the prayer of an earnest believer. I was led to select this text, by finding it in the letter of one who has just been taken away from our classes, and from our church. She was about to change her career in life in some degree, and the one prayer that seemed to be always upon her mind was a prayer for guidance, and she often prayed, “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears.” She said she felt that God was about to do something for her, but she did not know what it was. She little dreamed that she was so near the kingdom and the glory, but yet that was the prayer, “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears.”
This is a very appropriate prayer for the Christian when he is in providential difficulty. You may not know what you ought to do tomorrow; of two courses open to you, there may appear certain advantages connected with each, and some friends have urged you to one plan, and other friends have urged you to the other. Now, if you have used your best judgment, and have endeavored to direct your steps according to the Word of God, you may expect, in answer to prayer, to have a distinct directive from God—not perhaps from the mouth of man, though that sometimes happens, for even from this pulpit, cases which we never heard of have been unraveled, and dilemmas with which the preacher was never acquainted, have nonetheless been solved by what seemed but a stray word, meant by God to be a finger, pointing out to His children—“This is the way, walk you in it.”
Take your difficulty to the God of wisdom; spread it out before Him, and having divested yourself of your own will in the matter—having solemnly desired to know the will of God, and not your own wish—you may then expect by some means or other—and God has different ways of doing it—to have an answer from the Most High! Take this as your prayer, “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears.”
We need in our daily life more fully to acknowledge God in all our ways. We are, I am afraid, in this age, in great danger of forgetting God. We ought to acknowledge Him in the common transactions of the day, or else like the Israelites with the Gibeonites, we may be betrayed in the simplest transaction, and deceived to our lasting injury. Take your matters before the God of Abraham, and the Urim and Thummim shall yet speak to you. Domino dirige nos—“Lord, direct us,” is a good motto, not only for the City of London, but for the citizens of heaven!
Seeking God’s Guidance
In points of doctrine, this desire, humbly uttered, may bring us much of the light of God. God’s Word is not all of it alike plain; sometimes when you have heard conflicting views—this preacher earnestly declaring a doctrine, and another denouncing it—you may be somewhat confused. My advice to you is, take your difficulty before God in prayer, and say, “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears.” Do not ask God to confirm your opinion, but ask Him to make your opinion conformable with His truth. Do not go to God’s Word to find texts to support your tenets, but go to Scripture for texts and tenets too. Remember, that to a true Christian, no doctrine has any force upon the conscience, except as it comes with, “Thus says the Lord.”
Follow the simple Word of God as you find it, and rest assured you shall have the light of the Holy Spirit streaming upon the sacred page, and as you read it you shall hear the Master say, “This is My Word.” He shall make it come to your soul with such power, that you shall have no doubt about it if your heart cries, “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears.”
The same course should be adopted by every Christian in matters of practice. I am afraid there are many Christians who have stopped their ears up, that they may not hear the teaching of portions of the Word. There are certain Scriptures which they can never tolerate.
I have heard of one who would never read the eighth or ninth chapter of Romans at family prayer. I have heard of another who invariably omitted that chapter in Acts about the Ethiopian eunuch—a very awkward chapter, I confess, for anyone to read who has not accepted believer’s baptism. You will find many professed Christians in these days who do not like to meddle with certain questions, because they are more than half afraid that a little examination would prove them to be in the wrong. They cannot bear us to put a finger upon their prayer book, their creed, or their church, for they know that they will not bear a close inspection.
They will say, “Well, there are faults everywhere, let well enough alone.” But the fact is that they do not care what the truth of God is, as long as they can be comfortable and go with the fashion of the day. Some whom we gladly hope to be true Christians, think the truths of God unimportant, and are not prepared to “search the Scriptures whether these things are so or not.” Brethren, I would be afraid of my own doctrine if I dared not test it both by Scripture and sound argument. If my foundation would not stand a good shaking, I would be afraid that it was not made of very solid material.
Some people cry out if we say a word about their church; it is a sign that their church is hardly strong enough to endure an honest encounter. Pasteboard and tinsel always pray for peace and charity, but solid metal fears not the day of battle. Be it ours to court the sunlight, and above all, let us beseech the Lord our God to be our light, for in His light we shall see the light of God. Sitting at the feet of Jesus is our position! To receive of His Words is our sweet employ! As melted wax is fitted to receive the impression of the seal, so let us be ready to accept the Master’s teaching. Let His faintest Word bind us as with bonds of steel; and let His minutest precept be precious as the gold of Ophir.
The Spirit of a Departing Christian
We will close by observing that our text seems to us rightly to express the spirit of a departing Christian. There he lies upon the bed; his pulse grows fainter; the many pains of death afflict him. His eyes are beginning to glaze, but a brighter light than that of earth has dawned upon him; and while the outward man decays, the inward man begins to renew his youth. I think I see him when his pains are worst. He desires to go, but he is willing to remain as long as his Master wills. He says sometimes, “I ill can brook delay,” but the next moment he checks himself, and he says, “Not my will, but Yours be done.”
He sits patiently upon the river’s bank, expecting that his Master shall open the passage for him to pass over dry-shod. He is praying, “Speak, Lord, and the sooner You will speak the more shall I rejoice. Say unto me, ‘Come up here,’ Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears”—hears now better and more distinctly than he ever did hear before! He is now nearer to You; the ears are almost closed to the din and bustle of the world, while in secret silence of the mind it waits the still small voice of Your lips. Speak, Lord, and say, “Plunge into the river,” and I will cheerfully do so if You will but come and meet me. “Speak, Lord; for Your servant hears.”
I think I hear that divine and mysterious voice, which, in fact, none can hear but those whose day of glory is dawning! The messenger has come and whispered in the ear of the dying saint, and I pray you, mark his joy for you may see it; its light illuminates the countenance; the eyes sparkle with supernatural glory. “Now,” says the man of God, “my journey is over, and I am almost home.” “Now,” says the expiring sister, “it is victory, glory, triumph! The white horse is at the door—my Master bids me mount and ride in triumph, following my Lord Jesus, and all the conquering ones. The Master is come in His garments of salvation and calls for me!”
The physician says he could see the death-change, and the nurse bears the same witness, but the well-instructed believer calls it the life-change, and reads the true meaning of the mysterious transformation. He sees something, which is a glance of the coming glory; he marks those beaming eyes, and that celestial smile. Now strange words drop from the lips—sometimes words that are scarcely lawful for a man to utter, by reason of the high and awful glory of their meaning. Now come the shouts of victory over death—now the note of defiance of the grave!
The soul has left all care, all doubt, all fear behind. Its foot is not only on the Rock of Ages, but on that part of the rock which is on the other side of Jordan; and the soul cries with transport, “I am with Him! Another moment I shall be in His arms! I see Him! The angelic chariots wait for me—I step into them, and I ride to the kingdom! ‘Victory, victory, victory, through the blood of the Lamb!’”
Something like this was the departing scene of our beloved sister who has gone home this week, and something like this, I trust, will be your departure and mine. But it will not, it cannot be thus with us unless we are resting upon Christ— “None but Jesus—none but Jesus can do helpless sinners good!”
Lo! These 15 years have I been preaching Jesus’ Name, and preaching nothing but His Name, and it has a savor about it sweeter than ever! And if I had but one more word to speak, I think this should be it—none but Jesus, none but Jesus! Oh, fly to Him if you would have a blessed death and a glorious resurrection! Look out of yourselves away from your frames and your feelings! Look away from ceremonies, from priests, and from all men! Look only to the bleeding wounds of my Master! Trust Jesus expiring on the cross, and trust in Him alone! You shall find eternal happiness in Him!
Conclusion
The Lord bless you with His richest blessing, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.