1 Samuel 3:7

"Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him" 1 Samuel 3:7 .

Yet he was in the sanctuary; he was connected with Eli; he had a great destiny before him. We are taken at various points, God always knowing our age and our capacity, and not expecting more from us than we can render. It is not necessary to know the Lord in any purely intellectual sense before we engage in some department of his service. Samuel was the child of prayer, Samuel had been lent unto the Lord, Samuel had but one destiny, according to the purpose of his mother; yet "Samuel did not yet know the Lord." Observe the word "yet," and find in it an abundance of encouragement. We cannot know all things now; we know in part, therefore we prophesy in part. There are words of limitation, such as this yet, which are at the same time words of encouragement; on the one side they seem to discourage us, and on the other they are bright with hope. "What thou knowest not now thou shalt know hereafter" may be said to every Samuel and to every Peter in the Church. Let us be faithful to what we do know. We can at least be in the sanctuary, expecting to hear messages from heaven, and showing our readiness to obey them when they come; we need not be far to fetch when the Master comes and asks for us. Blessed are they who linger about the altar, and who find pleasure in waiting on the threshold of the sanctuary; for when the Lord comes they shall be ready to accept the duty which he assigns them. A beautiful expression is this: "Neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him," it was to come; he was being prepared for it; his life pointed in one direction, and God recognised the direction, and honoured it. This is open to us, every one. We can show what we would be if we could, where we would always be, how we would always act; if we supply these conditions, God will not withhold his discretion or his blessing.