Today’s Devotion
Topic: Bad Church Boys/ Girls (Self Assessment)
Background
Some of us were born into church and grew up knowing all that church is and stands for. Unfortunately, we often mistake being a “church boy or church girl” to being “born again”. Eli, the high priest of Israel, had two sons who assisted in the priestly duties instituted by Moses. However, they become corrupt in their practices, forgetting it was God they served and not their aging father whose advice they wouldn’t take.
Kindly read the passage below and share with us revelations the Holy Spirit gives you.
Text: 1 Samuel 2: 12, 17, 22- 26.
12 Eli’s sons were scoundrels; they had no regard for the Lord. 17 This sin of the young men was very great in the Lord’s sight, for they were treating the Lord’s offering with contempt. 22 Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
23 So he said to them, “Why do you do such things? I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. 24 No, my sons; the report I hear spreading among the Lord’s people is not good.
25 If one person sins against another, God may mediate for the offender; but if anyone sins against the Lord, who will intercede for them?” His sons, however, did not listen to their father’s rebuke, for it was the Lord’s will to put them to death.
26 And the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with the Lord and with people. Amen
Questions
i. What is the difference between being born into a faith (being a church boy or girl) and being a practitioner of that very faith (born again)?
ii. Mention some of the factors that can make an anointed man like Eli raise stubborn and insubordinate sons like Hophni and Phinehas?
iii. In verse 23, Eli mentions he has heard the wicked deeds of his sons. Does that mean all the illicit activities we engage in as “church boys, instrumentalists or leaders”, such as manipulating God’s children for personal benefit and sleeping with the ladies we are supposed to lead, could be in the public domain while we think it’s still a secret between our innocent victims and us?
iv. How will you explain the advice Eli gave his sons in verse 25, and in what practical ways can that advice change our attitude and conduct in the house of the Lord?
v. What blessings did Samuel attract when he chose to be different from Eli’s sons (verse 26)?
v. What have you learnt from today’s bible study?
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