BIBLE READING FOR SUNDAY 5/25/14 260 LIVE~ RELOADED PLUS TEACHINGS FROM JOYCE MEYER

BIBLE READING FOR SUNDAY 5/25/14

260 LIVE ~ RELOADED ~ 

1 Samuel 1-2

Joyce Meyer. Pt.1. Quitting Is Not an Option.

1 Samuel 1

THE BIRTH OF SAMUEL

¹ There was a man named Elkanah who lived in Ramah in the region of Zuph 1 in the hill country of Ephraim. He was the son of Jeroham, son of Elihu, son of Tohu, son of Zuph, of Ephraim. ² Elkanah had two wives, Hannah and Peninnah. Peninnah had children, but Hannah did not.

³ Each year Elkanah would travel to Shiloh to worship and

sacrifice to the Lord of Heaven’s Armies at the Tabernacle. The priests of the Lord at that time were the two sons of Eli - Hophni and Phinehas. ⁴ On the days Elkanah presented his sacrifice, he would give portions of the meat to Peninnah and each of her children. ⁵ And though he loved Hannah, he would give her only one choice portion 2 because the Lord had given her no children. ⁶ So Peninnah would taunt Hannah and make fun of her because the Lord had kept her from having children. ⁷Year after year it was the same - Peninnah would taunt Hannah as they went to the Tabernacle. 3 Each time, Hannah would be reduced to tears and would not even eat. ⁸ “Why are you crying, Hannah?” Elkanah would ask. “Why aren’t you eating? Why be downhearted just because you have no children? You have me - isn’t that better than having ten sons?” 

⁹ Once after a sacrificial meal at Shiloh, Hannah got up and went topray. Eli the priest was sitting at his customary place beside the entrance of the Tabernacle. 4 ¹⁰ Hannah was in deep anguish, crying bitterly as she prayed to the Lord . ¹¹ And she made this vow: “O  Lord of Heaven’s Armies, if you will look upon my sorrow and answer my prayer and give me a son, then I will give him back to you. He will be yours for his entire lifetime, and as a sign that he has been dedicated to the Lord , his hair will never be cut. 5 ”

¹² As she was praying to the Lord , Eli watched her. ¹³ Seeing her lips moving but hearing no sound, he thought she had been drinking. ¹⁴“Must you come here drunk?” he demanded. “Throw away your wine!” ¹⁵ “Oh no, sir!” she replied. “I haven’t been drinking wine or anything stronger. But I am very discouraged, and I was pouring out my heart to the Lord . ¹⁶ Don’t think I am a wicked woman! For I have been praying out of great anguish and sorrow.” ¹⁷ “In that case,” Eli said, “go in peace! May the God of Israel grant the request you have asked of him.” ¹⁸ “Oh, thank you, sir!” she exclaimed. Then she went back and began to eat again, and she was no longer sad. 

¹⁹ The entire family got up early the next morning and went to worship the Lord once more. Then they returned home to Ramah. When Elkanah slept with Hannah, the Lord remembered her plea, ²⁰ and in due time she gave birth to a son. She named him Samuel, 6 for she said, “I asked the Lord for him.”

SAMUEL GIVEN TO THE LORD

²¹ The next year Elkanah and his family went on their annual trip to offer a sacrifice to the Lord . ²² But Hannah did not go. She told her husband, “Wait until the boy is weaned. Then I will take him to the Tabernacle and leave him there with the Lord permanently. 7 ” ²³“Whatever you think is best,” Elkanah agreed. “Stay here for now, and may the Lord help you keep your promise.” So she stayed home and nursed the boy until he was weaned. ²⁴ When the child was weaned, Hannah took him to the Tabernacle in Shiloh. They brought along a three-year-old bull 8 for the sacrifice and a basket 9 of flour and some wine. ²⁵ After sacrificing the bull, they brought the boy to Eli. ²⁶ “Sir, do you remember me?” Hannah asked. “I am the woman who stood here several years ago praying to the Lord . ²⁷ I asked the Lord to give me this boy, and he has granted my request.

²⁸ Now I am giving him to the Lord , and he will belong to the Lord his whole life.” And they 10 worshiped the Lord there.

1 Samuel 2

HANNAH'S PRAYER

¹ Then Hannah prayed:
“My heart rejoices in the Lord !
The Lord has made me strong. 11
Now I have an answer for my enemies;
I rejoice because you rescued me. 

² No one is holy like the Lord !
There is no one besides you;
there is no Rock like our God. ³ “Stop acting so proud and haughty!
Don’t speak with such arrogance!
For the Lord is a God who knows what you have done;
he will judge your actions. ⁴ The bow of the mighty is now broken,
and those who stumbled are now strong. ⁵ Those who were well fed are now starving,
and those who were starving are now full.
The childless woman now has seven children,
and the woman with many children wastes away. ⁶ The Lord gives both death and life;
he brings some down to the grave 12 but raises others up. ⁷ The Lord makes some poor and others rich;
he brings some down and lifts others up. ⁸ He lifts the poor from the dust
and the needy from the garbage dump.
He sets them among princes,
placing them in seats of honor.
For all the earth is the Lord ’s,
and he has set the world in order. 

⁹ “He will protect his faithful ones,
but the wicked will disappear in darkness.
No one will succeed by strength alone. ¹⁰ Those who fight against the Lord will be shattered.
He thunders against them from heaven;
the Lord judges throughout the earth.
He gives power to his king;
he increases the strength 13 of his anointed one.” 

¹¹ Then Elkanah returned home to Ramah without Samuel. And the boy served the Lord by assisting Eli the priest. 

ELI'S WORTHLESS SONS

¹² Now the sons of Eli were scoundrels who had no respect for the Lord¹³ or for their duties as priests. Whenever anyone offered a sacrifice, Eli’s sons would send over a servant with a three-pronged fork. While the meat of the sacrificed animal was still boiling, ¹⁴ the servant would stick the fork into the pot and demand that whatever it brought up be given to Eli’s sons. All the Israelites who came to worship at Shiloh were treated this way. ¹⁵ Sometimes the servant would come even before the animal’s fat had been burned on the altar. He would demand raw meat before it had been boiled so that it could be used for roasting.¹⁶ The man offering the sacrifice might reply, “Take as much as you want, but the fat must be burned first.” Then the servant would demand, “No, give it to me now, or I’ll take it by force.” ¹⁷ So the sin of these young men was very serious in the Lord ’s sight, for they treated the Lord ’s offerings with contempt.

¹⁸ But Samuel, though he was only a boy, served the Lord . He wore a linen garment like that of a priest. 14 ¹⁹ Each year his mother made a small coat for him and brought it to him when she came with her husband for the sacrifice. ²⁰ Before they returned home, Eli would bless Elkanah and his wife and say, “May the Lord give you other children to take the place of this one she gave to the Lord . 15 ”

²¹ And the Lord gave Hannah three sons and two daughters. Meanwhile, Samuel grew up in the presence of the Lord .

ELI REBUKES HIS SONS

²² Now Eli was very old, but he was aware of what his sons were doing to the people of Israel. He knew, for instance, that his sons were seducing the young women who assisted at the entrance of the Tabernacle. 16 ²³ Eli said to them, “I have been hearing reports from all the people about the wicked things you are doing. Why do you keep sinning? ²⁴ You must stop, my sons! The reports I hear among the Lord ’s people are not good. ²⁵ If someone sins against another person, God17 can mediate for the guilty party. But if someone sins against the Lord , who can intercede?” But Eli’s sons wouldn’t listen to their father, for the Lord was already planning to put them to death.

²⁶ Meanwhile, the boy Samuel grew taller and grew in favor with the Lord and with the people. 

If you just started reading the Bible and have not yet asked Jesus into your heart to become your Lord and Savior, all you have to do is:

A - ADMIT YOU ARE A SINNER

Roman 3:23 

For everyone has
sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious
standard.        

Acts 3:19 
Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord

1 John 1:9 If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

B - BELIEVE THAT JESUS IS GOD'S SON AND EXCEPT GOD'S GIFT OF FORGIVENESS FROM SIN

Acts 16:31 They replied, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household"

Acts 4:12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.

John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life, No one comes to the Father except through me."


Ephesians 2:8-9 ....8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.

C - CONFESS YOUR FAITH IN JESUS CHRIST AS SAVIOR AND LORD

Roman 10:9-10, 13  

9 If you declare with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord," and believe in your heart the God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.10 For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. 13 for, "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

If you are ready to ask Jesus into your heart to be your Lord and Savior, you can pray a simple prayer like this to God.

Dear God, 

I know I have sinned and my sin separates me from You. I am sorry for my sin. I believe Jesus died on the cross for me so my sin can be forgiven. I believe Jesus rose from the dead and is alive. God please forgive me. I ask Jesus to come into my life and be my Savior and Lord. I will obey You and live for You the rest of my life, Thank You in Jesus' name I Pray.
Amen

GOD BLESS OUR NATION

Join this site under FOLLOWERS