RPG Adults
GROWTH IN GRACE AMIDST SIN AND DEPRAVITY
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15
1 Samuel 2:11-26
Philippians 2:13-18
“Do all things without
murmurings and disputings.”
GROWTH IN GRACE AMIDST SIN AND DEPRAVITY
Judges 17 to 21 presents to us the depths of the depravity of the nation, and the accounts revolved around the lives of the Levites. The depravity of the priesthood is presented to us here in the picture of the house of Eli. But in the midst of the account of the depravity of the priesthood, there is a record of the growth in grace of the last judge of Israel.
“But Samuel ministered before the LORD…” (1 Sam 2:18). In an environment of defiance, blatant rebellion, and disobedience of the priests (the sons of Eli), Samuel learned obedience to the LORD. 1 Samuel 2:12-17 presents the wickedness of Eli’s sons, showing that grace is not inherited. We also see the depth of depravity and sin in the house of God’s anointed priests. But it is in the same house that God’s chosen instrument was nurtured, teaching us also that the power and grace of God are always sufficient for His elect no matter the circumstances. Darkness will never engulf the light, but rather light shines in the midst of darkness. Where priests despised the ordinances of God, a child honoured the Word of God. What a contrast!
“And the child Samuel grew on…” (1 Sam 2:26). When the men of God would not heed instruction or warning, when they cared not for their high calling and privilege and wronged both God and man, the child Samuel grew in favour both with God and man. The sons of Eli did not heed the warnings of their father, and the judgment they were warned against would soon come to pass, just as God’s blessings upon Elkanah and Hannah came to pass. The declension that was brought on by the deeds of the sons of Eli was great and seemed irreversible, but the grace and hope that were evident in the life of the little child growing in the Tabernacle surely was a bright light in the midst of such great darkness. The evil of the priests went on unabated, but it did not stain nor defile the young mind that was learning the ways of God in the same environment. Surely the LORD knows how to keep and protect His chosen saints and keep them from the depravity that pervades.
THOUGHT: Christian testimony is like light needed in darkness.
PRAYER: Father, when evil darkens my world, give me the light of Thy grace.