When Prophets Want to Die Part 4: Eli

April 28, 2024

When Prophets Want to Die - Part 4: Eli

Eli never says, “God take my life, I want to die.” But God tells him on two separate occasions from two different sources that he and his family are going to die. He doesn’t object, repent, or plead. He accepts the judgment as the final verdict.

A heart that has grown towards God sets us on course for a death sentence.

Signs of Spiritual Coldness

  1. Skewed – out of touch with God’s voice

1 Samuel 1:14 - Eli accuses a devout, distraught, desperate woman seeking God’s help of being drunk

1 Samuel 3:1-10 - Eli, who annually enters the very presence of God, needed three tries to discern God was in the house speaking to Samuel.

*If we have spiritual coldness in our lives, we will see things inaccurately, misread people’s motives, be slow to discern what is really happening. *

  1. towards people

1 Samuel 1:17 - Eli doesn’t care why Hannah is so sad, doesn’t ask. He just dismisses her and says, “God will give you want you want.”

  1. towards spiritual matters

*Apathy: absence or suppression of passion, emotion, or excitement. Lack of interest in or concern for things that others find moving or exciting. *

1 Samuel 2:12-17, 22-36 - Eli’s sons were wicked. He told them they were wrong, but they wouldn’t stop. Instead of removing his son’s from ministry, Eli let them continue. When a prophet pronounced judgment on Eli and his descendants, he just accepts it instead of resisting, repenting, or pleading.

1 Samuel 3:11-18 - He does the same when Samuel repeats the message.

  1. Christianity is about not devotion. We don’t see our need for God - As high priest, Eli offered sacrifices every day for people to reconcile them to God. He performs them for everyone else, but he does not see any need to make a sacrifice for himself. The more snapshots we see of Eli in the Bible, the less it seems that he has any contact with God. He’s just going through the motions. It’s all about duty, there’s no devotion.

The Cure for Coldness - Romans 12:9-16

  1. - higher elevations are colder than lower. Elevate God over yourself, you need God, align your ways with His Word.
  1. - rubbing your hands together warms up your hands. Move out of spiritual passivity and become active, engage God & others.