Treating God's Things Lightly: A Warning from 1 Samuel

Have you ever found yourself treating sacred things a little too casually? The story of Eli from 1 Samuel 2 delivers a powerful wake-up call about the dangers of spiritual complacency and the consequences that follow when we honor others above God.

This episode dives deep into the prophecy delivered to Eli by an unnamed "man of God" – a stern warning about how the high priest had failed in his sacred duties by allowing his sons to abuse their positions and by personally benefiting from the offerings meant for God. The text reveals that Eli had grown physically fat from these offerings, a powerful symbol of his spiritual complacency. God's message is clear and direct: "Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained."

The consequences outlined in this prophecy are severe – Eli's family line would be cut short, with no old men in future generations, and his sons would die on the same day as a sign of divine judgment. This ancient story speaks directly to modern believers about the danger of over-familiarity breeding contempt in our spiritual lives. When we become too comfortable with sacred responsibilities, we risk crossing boundaries that carry significant consequences.

One of the most profound insights comes from the nameless prophet himself – a reminder that authentic ministry isn't about building personal platforms or recognition. As we explore this challenging passage, we're invited to examine our own hearts: Are we treating God's things with proper reverence? Are we honoring human relationships above divine commands? Where have we become too cavalier about sacred responsibilities? Join us as we wrestle with these questions and discover how this ancient warning speaks with fresh relevance to believers today. Email us your thoughts at lifearoundthefire@gmail.com or visit our website to continue the conversation.

Chapters

• 0:00 Introduction to 1 Samuel 2
• 3:37 The Prophet's Warning to Eli
• 6:59 Consequences of Dishonoring God
• 10:58 Nameless Prophets and Kingdom Purpose
• 14:46 Final Prayer and Closing Thoughts

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:44

we're going to continue looking into the book of 1 Samuel, and right now we're in chapter 2. We're going to be closing it off and we've talked about the fact that in this book, 1 Samuel, it takes about two and a half hours right around there if a person were to read it out loud, with with feeling, but it took about a hundred years to live out. So, even though we can read it in two and a half hours and it kind of gives the appearance that things happen rather quickly, you know, like they happen either the next day or two weeks or maybe a month down the road, when in all reality sometimes it's taken years for one particular event to take place and then in the meantime it's been often quiet or sometimes even barren, like in the life of Hannah. She was a barren woman for years before she gave birth to Samuel. And so we're beginning at verse 27. And just for the record, this is not for the faint of heart. This is a real strong word that we're going to be looking at. However, I like what one person once said. He said you know I don't avoid reading the hard parts in the scriptures. You know the parts that make your toes curl, those statements that are just really strong, he goes. I don't refrain from reading them because I need that, because I need that, I need to keep myself in check because we're all prone to kind of go our own way, left to our own devices. But we need to have, at times, things brought to us in a very clear and sometimes very strong fashion, and this is one of those portions right here. So let's take a look at it. 1 Samuel 2, verses 27 through 36.

Speaker 1: 3:20

Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him this is what the Lord says Did I not clearly reveal myself to your father's house when they were in Egypt? Under Pharaoh's law, I chose your father, out of all the tribes of Israel, to be my priest, to go up to my altar, to burn incense and to wear an ephod in my presence. I also gave your father's house all the offerings made with fire by the Israelites. Why do you scorn my sacrifice and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? Why do you honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choice parts of every offering made by my people, israel? Therefore, the Lord, the God of Israel, declares I promised that your house and your father's house would minister before me forever.

Speaker 1: 4:34

But now the Lord declares far be it from me. Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained. The time is coming when I will cut short your strength and the strength of your father's house. So there will not be an old man in your family line and you will see distress in my dwelling and good will be done to Israel dwelling and good will be done to Israel. In your family line there will never be an old man. Every one of you that I do not cut off from my altar will be spared only to blind your eyes with tears and to grieve your heart and all your descendants will die in the prime of life, and what happens to your two sons, hophni and Phinehas, will be a sign to you. They will both die on the same day. I will raise up for myself a faithful priest who will do according to what is in my heart and mind. I will firmly establish his house and he will minister before my anointed ones always. Then everyone left in your family line will come and bow down before him for a piece of silver and a crust of bread and plead, appoint me to some priestly office so I can have food to eat.

Speaker 1: 6:08

That is a word of prophecy given to a priest, a high priest in Israel, who had had fallen into the trap of treating the things of God lightly. And folks, sometimes that is a temptation or a snare that we can all fall into, any one of us, and that is to be cavalier concerning the things of God or too casual, just too casual. I'm not talking about the clothes we wear, but I'm talking about the attitude that can be in our hearts and minds. They can become complacent and I know that sounds hard, but it's really meant to be a corrective thing for those of us who are in a place where that's taking place. And also it's a warning. It's a clear warning that there are certain things that we just don't play with man. We don't just come waltzing in on certain things and think that we got the whole right to the whole show. We got dibs of anything, especially in leadership whole show. We got dibs of anything, especially in leadership, that we can just get fat off of the whole name of God. You know, let's do something and make a whole lot of money in the name of Jesus. We've seen that. We have seen it and we've seen people call it God and it just isn't. And we've also seen how those things topple, and they're still toppling today.

Speaker 1: 8:17

There are places that are graveyards that used to be packed full of people because of marketing skill and money-making schemes Nothing more than a pyramid system where the people on top get rich and the people beneath work their tails off for nothing, with the promise of getting something great given to them because they are giving to the Lord. Well, these folks were doing something similar. They were taking the offerings of God and they were just as we read in the previous verses. They were taking some of the choice pieces of meat and using them for themselves. And Eli was as guilty as his sons because Eli was getting fat. Eli was a big, fat man, fat off of the offerings of God, so fat. We're going to learn that when he died he fell over backwards and broke his neck because he was so fat, he was so obese Gluttony was one of his things. But also he failed to correct his sons, and sometimes we can be that as well.

Speaker 1: 9:46

We can be that type of people where we fail to correct our spiritual sons, our spiritual sons and daughters, our spiritual daughters or our natural, our biological sons and daughters. We treat them better than we treat God. That's what Eli was doing, and God sent a prophet, and in the scriptures we don't even know the prophet's name. How do we know it's a prophet? Because when you translate man of God in Hebrew, it is Ish, elohim, i-s-h, elohim, e-l-o-h-i-m. Elohim, meaning man of God or prophet, and so we have a depiction of something that is so significant that we have to take note and say there are things that go on, and when we don't tend to them or we treat them better than when we treat the things of God, there is a message that's going to come to us, sometimes through a prophetic word, sometimes directly to us through a prophetic word, and this came to Eli through a prophetic word, but the man was Esh Elohim.

Speaker 1: 11:15

He was nameless and faceless. I love that he was nameless and faceless and we can see something in that. I see a lot in that. I want to be a nameless and faceless voice. I don't care if people know my name. I want them to know Jesus. I want them to know the name of Jesus. I want them to know God, the Father, god the Son, god, the Holy Spirit. I want them to know God of Jesus. I want them to know God the Father, god the Son, god, the Holy Spirit. I want them to know God, god being elevated, my name let it be just a name a person like this man of God. They didn't name him. So in this we can find something very significant that there are times where we are going to be ministering and we do it in obscurity Hallelujah, we could see more people like that.

Speaker 1: 12:10

But the fact of the matter is this that there are strong things that take place, there are consequences to the acts that we do, and that's not necessarily a popular message where we talk about consequences, and that's not necessarily a popular message where we talk about consequences. If there aren't consequences, there is no way that there could be any type of accountability. There's no consequence, then we have anarchy. But there has to be some element of consequence, but also a respect for God, an honor, a reverence for God. God is worthy. God is the creator of the universe. He is worthy of our ultimate respect and when we don't treat him tabloidly or his things so casual that we can just do whatever we want, we have to go according to what's in his heart, his purposes, his kingdom come, his will, be done in the earth as it is in heaven, and so the word of the lord for us is this let's not treat things of god so casually that we become too comfortable, because over-familiarity breeds contempt, and when we have contempt for things, we treat them wrong and in the process we cross over a line, and sometimes there are significant consequences to crossing over that line.

Speaker 1: 13:36

Eli paid a big price, but because you know why? Here's why he had big privilege. With big privilege comes big responsibility and also big consequences when we don't follow the purpose and plan of God that's given to us for that very role that we're functioning in. So, folks, let this be a note to each and every one of us that there are things that we need to be attentive to, and let's treat the things of God with respect and not be too cavalier about what we're doing.

Speaker 1: 14:16

Let's pray, father, I thank you once again for who you are, and we honor you, we love you, we give you our hearts and our minds, we give you our adoration and we revere you. Lord, there is a healthy fear of who you are and I love you. I love you, but I honor you. So, holy Spirit, teach us to walk in a way that is circumspect to the things of the kingdom, and we pray these things in the name of Jesus. All right, folks, we love you. If you have any thoughts, questions, concerns, please feel free to drop us a line at lifearoundthefire at gmailcom, or type in lifearoundthefire and look us up on the web. We would love to hear from you. In the meantime, god bless you. Adios amigos.