Why Me, God? - 1 Samuel 1:1-2:10
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Intro
Once again, happy Mother’s Day to all the moms who are here or watching online, we are so blessed to have you join us this morning.
Today we are going to do a special message in honor of Mother’s Day
We finished up the Gospel of Luke last week, and next week we are going to start a 15-week journey though the some select Psalms
But today we are going to be in 1 Samuel 1.
We’re going to read a story about a mom in scripture and see her struggles and her faith in action
This isn’t a message just for moms though - it’s for all of us who have ever wondered, “Why me, God?”
There’ll be some lessons along the way about parenthood and marriage, but the main focus will be on why God allows hard things to happen in our lives, and what our response should be
So let’s go ahead and jump in
Verses 1-2
The book of 1st Samuel takes place in the time at the end of Judges
Moses had led the children of Israel out of Egypt, but they had wandered in the wilderness for 40 years because of their unbelief
Eventually Joshua would take over as the leader of the nation, cross over the Jordan River, defeat Jericho, and win over the Promised Land
But after Joshua died, the nation turned its back on God and started to worship false idols
God would allow them to fall into captivity where some nearby nation would rule over the Israelites, and eventually they would cry out to God to rescue them
God would raise up a judge, like Samson or Deborah or Gideon, to save His people
But after that judge passed away, the cycle would start all over again
Judges 21:25 really sums up what it was like
25 In those days there was no king in Israel; everyone did what was right in his own eyes.
In that context is where we kick off with our story
We’re introduced to a family here
Elkanah who was a Levite - which meant he was responsible to oversee the worship of the nation
The tribe of Levi was the one chosen by God to do this work for the nation. They were the ones who were responsible for overseeing the tabernacle and they were the priests in Israel
We don’t know 100% for sure if Elkanah was actually doing what he was supposed to do or not, but we know he had a legacy of ministry in his family coming from the tribe of Levi
Elkanah is married to Hannah, and to Peninnah
Uh oh, we have a major problem already in this family
Although it was common practice in that day for men to have multiple wives, that was against how God had originally set up marriage
24 Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.
During this time, it was common place for a man to take on a second wife if the first one didn’t have any kids
Family legacies and descendants were a very important thing to the Jews, so that combined with the fact that all the nations around them commonly practiced polygamy led this to be a norm in society
And Elkanah was not immune to the influences of culture during his time
Compare that to today where culture has a whole lot of ideas about marriage that are very different from what the word of God says
As followers of Jesus, we shouldn’t be caving into what culture tells us about relationships and marriage, we should be standing upon what the word of God says
Even things that seem so commonplace and accepted - having sex before your wedding night, moving in together before getting married, those are just “normal” stages of a relationship according to our culture
But that’s not what God calls for in His people. He calls for a different way, but He also honors and blesses those who choose that way
In this family, because the didn’t do it God’s way, we’re going to see there is heartache and struggle
Why? B/c Peninnah has kids but Hannah did not
Already in a polygamous marriage, there has to be a lot of envy, jealousy, competitions, and hurt feelings. We’ll see that Elkanah played favorites too, and I’m sure that didn’t help the situation at all
But then add on the fact that Hannah couldn’t have kids, now there’s something that Peninnah holds over Hannah’s head which leads to feelings of hurt and emptiness and “why me” on Hannah’s part I’m sure
Alright, so even though you’ve got this sin and this struggle going on within the family, there are still elements of faith
Verses 3-7
Once a year Elkanah would load up the camel caravan (the precursor to the Dodge Caravan), and head down to Shiloh where the tabernacle was
They’d go there to make a sacrifice with his family to the Lord
This is a good thing that they’re doing, and Elkanah involves the whole family in worshipping the Lord
He gives portions to his wives and to his kids so they could all sacrifice
He’s setting a good example on not just teaching his kids what to do, but letting them practice it too
But here is where we see the favoritism come in
Elkanah loved Hannah more than Peninnah, so he’d give her a double portion, twice as much as anyone else
You can see the jealousy here - Peninnah would, out of her jealousy, make Hannah miserable every year and provoke her, reminding her that in their society she was “useless” b/c she couldn’t bear any children
That would just tear Hannah apart. She would go to church and just weep and wouldn't eat anything and be miserable
Satan loves to do this to families and to individuals
He loves to make sure the kids are extra disobedient or fight more on Sunday mornings
He loves to make husbands and wives get into fights before they go to church
He loves to make random things that come up to distract us from coming to worship God
So you get here and the drive over was a nightmare and you made the kids get out of the car and go upstairs to Sunday School while you just screamed for a minute
Your heart is angry or filled with sorrow and your miserable. And then you focus on that the whole message and wonder about the trouble your kid is probably causing in their classroom and thinking about the punishment you’re going to give out when you get home and making sure it’s a really good one
Oh, wait, sorry, is this just me? Does this only happen to my family?
Satan loves to stir up trouble within the family in order to distract us from worshipping the Lord
That’s where we have to have the spiritual armor on - realize it’s an attack, realize that the enemy wants to distract you and even discourage you from coming.
You fight for your family. You bring them here anyways. So what if your kids are a wreck when you get here, cause you know what? They’re gonna hear about Jesus. God’s word and His love are going to be shared with them, what better place could you or they be when it all seems so crazy.
We learn something else really interesting here, it says in verse 6 that the reason Hannah couldn’t have any kids is because God had closed her womb
That can be a tough thing to grasp when you think about it
You might say, “God allowed all this hurt and envy and competition and misery!”
But that’s not right. Elkanah, by sinning and marrying another wife, brought that upon his family
But God did allow Hannah to walk through loneliness and to wonder what was wrong with her while everyone else around her seemed to have it all together and to be normal
Have you ever felt that way? Why did God allow this to happen to me when everyone else around me seems to be normal or to not have this problem?
Can I tell you it’s because God loves you?
Story of Lazarus - intro to problem
5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So, when He heard that he was sick, He stayed two more days in the place where He was.
B/c of the love that Jesus had for Lazarus, when He found out his friend was sick, He waited for 2 more days before He even started His travel to Bethany where they lived
It would take Jesus 2 days to travel there, so Jesus showed up 4 days after hearing that Lazarus was sick, and it was too late b/c he dead
Tell rest of story
Jesus chose to wait, He wanted to do a greater work than what everyone was expecting (the crowds had seen Jesus heal sick people many times before), but He wanted to do a greater work. In fact, Lazarus would be a witness to so many people after this, John 12 tells us that people came from all over to hear what happened and Lazarus had the chance to tell them about Jesus
If you have that thing in your life that you’re wondering, “God, why are You allowing this to happen? Why won’t You take this away? How come You’re not moving in this circumstance?”, if it’s something that’s not b/c of sin but it’s something that God has just allowed for one reason or another, remember that God loves you and that He has a greater plan, and He loves to show Himself strong on behalf of those whose hearts are loyal towards Him
Verse 8
Elkanah sees that Hannah is broken and crying and I love how he tries to fix it, “Hey babe, don’t worry, you’ve got me! Aren’t I better than 10 kids?”
What a dude...
Verses 9-11
Hannah goes to the tabernacle in her sorrow and just starts pouring her heart and her burdens out to the Lord
She’s praying in bitterness of soul and in great anguish,
This was absolutely the right thing to do in the situation, take it to the Lord and pour it out before Him
Step #1 if you are asking, “Why me, God?” is to take that burden, that issue to the Lord and lay it at His feet
She asks God for a son, and then makes a vow to give him back to the Lord if she got one and to make him a Nazarite
A Nazarite was someone who took a special vow, typically for a short period of time, to be especially set apart for the Lord
Numbers 6 talks about what went into a Nazarite vow, but basically you wouldn’t cut your hair, you wouldn’t drink wine, and you wouldn’t touch any dead bodies
Samson and John the Baptists are examples of Nazarites in scripture
But even greater than the promise to make any son a Nazarite, she says that she was willing to give the boy back to God all the days of his life
That’s a great example of faith for us - we should be willing to give everything back to God.
In those prayer requests that you are making, asking the Lord for something, you should be willing to take whatever He gives you and lay it 100% back on the table for Him
Whether you’re praying for kids, for a job, for a spouse, for a home, be willing to give that entirely back to God for His glory and His service
Verses 12-18
Remember at the beginning how we said the culture was kind of messed up? Well here’s another example.
Eli, the high priest, walks up and sees Hannah’s mouth moving but he doesn’t hear any words
So naturally he assumes not that she’s praying, but that she’s drunk
He must have encountered more drunks at the temple than people praying
But Hannah tells him no, she’s just praying and pouring her soul out before the Lord
And I imaging Eli is both surprised and embarrassed at his reaction to her, so he tells her, “Go in peace, and may God grant you what you’ve asked for”
I don’t know if Eli meant to speak prophetically for God, or if he was just feeling bad for her and patted her on the head and said, “Hope it works out”, but we know God was indeed speaking though him
Hannah’s entire demeanor changes
She gets up, she isn’t sad anymore, she eats (she wouldn’t eat before) and gets back to her husband
She walks away in faith, trusting that God is going to work
Does she know if she’s going to have a son yet? No. But she is trusting in the Lord, knowing that He has heard her prayer and that He will answer
6 Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; 7 and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.
Step #2 if you are asking God, “Why me?” - Put your faith in the fact that God is at work
Philippians tells us that God’s peace, which surpasses (or is better than) understanding, is what’s going to guard our hearts and minds
It’s not the answers, it’s knowing Who is in control of the journey. It’s not the what, it’s all about the Who
6 But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
We have to have faith
Hebrews tells us that our faith in in the Lord - we must believe that He is, and that He rewards those who seek Him - it’s all about God, not us
Verses 19-20
Important verse here, Hannah and Elkanah worshipped God even before they got the exact answer to her prayer
Step #3 if you’re asking “Why me, God?” - don’t forget to worship
It’s really hard to have faith in someone you don’t worship. See God for who He is, worship Him for who He is, in spite of what you may be facing
Worship helps get our minds in the right place and helps us remember who God is and how little we are in His presence. It draws our hearts closer to Him
But if you’re not trusting that God is at work in your life, you’re going to have a hard time worshipping Him
If that’s the case, be like the man who brought his son to Jesus to be healed in Mark 9.
Tell story
24 Immediately the father of the child cried out and said with tears, “Lord, I believe; help my unbelief!”
In 1st Samuel here it says that in the course of time, God remembered Hannah and she conceived and had a son
The word “remembered” is a figure of speech in the ancient Hebrew, its an earthly term given to describe an action of God so we can understand it
God didn’t forget about Hannah and then go, “oh yeah, I’m supposed to make sure she can have kids”
Joyce Baldwin in her commentary on 1st Samuel would say this word is there ,”not to suggest that his (God’s) memory was faulty but to indicate that he was about to work out his unfolding purpose.”
Hannah gives birth to a son and names him Samuel which means “Heard by God”
This didn’t happen right away, it says “in the process of time” vs 20
Step #4 - remember that God’s timing is not your timing!
8 “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” says the Lord. 9 “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.
But in God’s perfect time, He would answer he prayers and she would have a son
Verses 21-28
After little Sammy is born, when the family is ready to make their annual trip to the tabernacle to worship, she asks to stay behind for a few years until the little guy was weaned
That would have typically been ~ 3 years old back then
And I’m sure Hannah was in no hurry to wean him
After he’s old enough though, she takes him to the tabernacle and drops him off there to serve the Lord for the rest of his life
Imagine that decision process for her
She had promised that she would give her son back to God if she got one
And finally, after all those years, all that heartache, all that sorrow, she gets a son
He heart is so full, all that waiting paid off, but then there’s this vow
Instead of breaking it, she honors what she told God, and as hard and painful as I’m sure that had to be, she does what she said she’d do and takes her little boy to the temple
Now if you keep reading 1st Samuel, you’ll learn that she comes up and visits him every year, and she makes little clothes for him and brings them to him (aren’t moms great!?!)
So that means at some point Sammy probably got too cool for his mom and asked her to stop making him clothes - “None of the cool kids wear these!”
But she loved that kid and would visit him year by year
God would go on to bless her by giving her more kids - 5 more kids
But that choice to surrender the only thing she wanted at that time had to be so hard
The lesson for us is this - Step #5 - everything we have belongs to the Lord, but we still have to be willing to let go
That thing Hannah most wanted in life, her, “Why me, God?” topic, she had to be willing to give it all away to Lord
If you’re here and you have kids, I cannot encourage you enough that you should have the same attitude with your kids as Hannah did with Samuel.
Lisa and I read the book Parenting by Paul Tripp a few years ago (fantastic parenting book if you’re looking for one), and one of the biggest takeaways we had from that book was that our kids aren’t ours.
I mean they are, don’t get any weird ideas like that
But they don’t belong to us, they belong to God. They are His kids.
And He loves them more than we do, and His heart for them is that they get saved and live for Him, even more than we want that for our kids
We’re in a season right now at home where we’re having to remind ourselves of this a lot
I’m not going to get into the details, but we constantly are having to tell each other, “this kid belongs to the Lord, they’re His kid. We need to point them to Him”
It can seem like, “of course the kid belongs to Jesus” but when the rubber meets the road and your’re going through difficult circumstances with that kid, it’s a lot harder to put into practice
I want to do things like control behavior, make sure the outward attitude and actions are good. Make a good kid
To give this kid up to the Lord, to say, “they’re not mine, I’m just shepherding them for now, they really belong to You God and I trust that You love them more than I do” is actually really hard.
Verse 27 here has been a big topic between my wife and I, just praying for our kids.
Maybe for you it’s not a kid, maybe it’s a career. Maybe it’s a relationship that you want so badly. Maybe its something to do with your health. Whatever it is, are you willing to fully let go of it and trust God?
As we close though, I do want to read a few verses into Chapter 2
This is Hannah’s prayer as she drops off Samuel at the tabernacle
It’s such an amazing display of faith
Chapter 2, Verses 1-10
Real quick, a few cool things to see here
Many parts and pieces of this prayer are quoted by Mary after the angel Gabriel visits her and tells her she is going to give birth to the Messiah
Your homework for later is to compare this to Mary’s prayer in Luke 1.
Vs 1, the Hebrew word for “salvation” is yeshua
In the New Testament, translating the same root word for that will give you the name Jesus
I love that picture here
All Hannah is doing is boasting in what God has done - this is all His work, not hers
Last lesson for this morning, why did God wait so long to answer Hannah’s prayer?
Step #6 - The ultimate reason for any, “Why Me, God?” moments is so that He can get the glory
There was no doubt, the only reason she got pregnant and had a kid was because of God
And she gives Him the glory He deserves, b/c He was the one who did the work
Your struggle, your issue, is so much bigger than you. It’s about God.
Remember that, and remember that the goal is to give Him the glory when He works, not for you to take it
Review
Lay those burdens down at God’s feet
Put your faith in the fact that God is at work
Don’t forget to worship
Remember that God’s timing is not your timing
Be willing to let go and give it entirely to God
Make it all about Jesus
Pray & Close