SCRIPTURE: 1 Samuel 3
OBSERVATION/APPLICATION:
The LORD continued to appear at Shiloh, and there he revealed himself to Samuel through his word. [1 Samuel 3:21] The “word of the Lord” is central in this passage. We get confused by our modern view of the bible as the word of God. Obviously these references in 1 Samuel 3 would not make sense if we replaced “the word of the Lord” with “the bible”.

I believe “the word of the Lord” is His Voice, how He shares Himself with us. This aspect of God, His self-revelation, is what we know as the second person of the trinity. In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. [John 1:1] God’s self-revelation comes through a variety of means (prophets, angels, dreams, visions, burning bushes, etc), and through written accounts (scriptures). But His ultimate Voice is heard through Jesus, by His Spirit, speaking to our hearts and minds. In the past God spoke to our forefathers 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 he made the universe. The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining all things by his powerful word. [Hebrews 1:1-3]

The bible is the word (voice) of God, but the word of God is not the bible; it is so much more. Jesus is God’s ultimate messenger, God’s ultimate message. Samuel was hearing Jesus, the second person of God, communicating from God the Father, by the Spirit of God. God still speaks today through Jesus the Word, by His Spirit. Yes, through the bible, but in other ways too – through nature, miracles, dreams, visions, prophets, angels. And hearing His voice, His message through Jesus, and responding to Him, is the most important thing.

We spend time with a book but ignore the person speaking through the book. You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life. [John 5:39-40] It seems that the word of the Lord is still rare today, despite the many of bibles. Many people know the bible but not the Lord speaking through the bible. God is speaking, are we listening? Are we talking with Him, discerning His message through the bible, through circumstances, through others, through nature? Are we hearing His still small voice whispering in our hearts, or is His voice rare in our day too, so we don’t recognize when He is speaking to us?

PRAYER:
Lord, make me better at prayer (listening and talking with You) than at bible knowledge. Help me spend time with You as I read this book, to hear You!