Maurice was so moved by this testimony that he bought a New Testament. Then one day, on the way to the store, he heard a voice—"I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." (John 14:6) As this truth flashed upon him, he repented of his sin, received Jesus as Lord, and entered into Life—he was saved! Even though his father's will stated he would forfeit every penny if he changed religions, his brother offered to buy him off if he would leave the area and move to Montana. "No," he replied, "I have had the light in Pittsburgh, and I am going to witness in Pittsburgh."
Due to the voice he heard, he was admitted into an asylum with 29 other patients. Feeling dejected, and almost bitter, he fell to his knees and poured out his heart to the Lord. Waiting on God, he had a vision of Calvary and knew that every true follower of the Lord would carry a cross. He declared, "Whatever You allow me to go through, I will never complain again." And there would be plenty of opportunity along the way for complaining. When he was released from the asylum, his family took him to court over "the voice" he had heard. Praise God, for the Christian judge who remembered that Paul had heard a voice, too. When Maurice tried to reconcile with his brother and his own wife, they would have nothing to do with him. A year later, his wife and their new-born son came to hear him at a camp meeting, and she got saved. She was willing to come home to him, if he would get a real job and stop the preaching. Once again, Maurice embraced the Cross, and even saw his wife and son off at the train station with joy in his heart.
Three years later, she attended yet another camp meeting, and she, too, had a deep revelation of the Cross of Jesus Christ. She testified that she had been a believer, but had not been willing to enter into the crucified life and be poured out for the Lord—like her husband. But now, if it would glorify God, she would be more than willing to join him as his helpmeet and co-worker in the ministry. Glory to God—she did! So often, we try to forge ahead with our own plans and agendas, choosing our way rather than God's perfect way. We strive for an easy life and can get so impatient, but if we will just stop to hear the voice of God, He will reveal our next step. A.J. Gordon once wrote, "Paul sums up all the things he is enduring—the sword, peril, nakedness, dying all the day long for Christ, led daily like a sheep to the slaughter—and then says, 'In all these things, we are more than conquerors.' How? The man who is victorious through victory is a conqueror, but he who is victorious through defeat is more than a conqueror."
Be careful—there are a lot of voices out there. God won't speak anything outside of the fullness of His Word. At all times—easy and difficult—we need to halt, hear, and heed to what the Lord is speaking. This is the only way to be more than a conqueror. David, in the midst of being hunted down by a deranged King Saul, could turn to his Lord and proclaim, "For thou wilt light my candle: the Lord my God will enlighten my darkness." (Psalm 18:28) This phrase, "the Lord my God," in the Hebrew, is "Jehovah-Elohay," and it speaks of a very personal and intimate relationship between the Creator and His creation. A personal faith in God leaves no room for a complaining spirit. God is truly able to light my candle—my lamp—through the powerif I want that above anything else, it will never go out! Shortly before the times of David, God decided to speak a word to a young boy, in an effort to take him and others in a new direction. 1 Samuel 3:1 tells us, "And the child Samuel ministered unto the Lord before Eli. And the word of the Lord was precious in those days; there was no open vision." Perhaps a little explanation is in order here—the word "precious" refers to something costly, valuable, bright, and clear; it does not suggest that people were honoring the truth and were grateful for it, and therefore, seeing it as precious. No, just the opposite—they were living in a time, not much unlike our own, where "…every man did that which was right in his own eyes." (Judges 21:25b) No one was hearing the voice of God, for they really didn't want to die to self and let Him be their only focus.
of His Holy Spirit, and enlighten the dark path before me—and
Well, not exactly "no one!" Samuel had been left in the care of the elderly High Priest, Eli, to serve the Lord in the temple. According to Josephus, the Jewish historian, the boy was now 12 years old. Eli had gone to bed one night, before, "…the lamp of God went out in the temple of the Lord, where the ark of God was, and Samuel was laid down to sleep; That the Lord called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I. And he ran unto Eli, and said, Here am I; for thou calledst me. And he said, I called not; lie down again. And he went and lay down." (vss. 3-5) Now this happened again, and with the same outcome—"Go to bed!" Verse 7 explains—"Now Samuel did not yet know the Lord, neither was the word of the Lord yet revealed unto him." You see, Samuel did not yet have a personal relationship with the Lord, for he had never heard His voice. Notice, though, that when he did hear God's voice, he responded, but, evidently he didn't wait long enough to hear directly from the Lord. Praise God—the Lord is so loving and merciful that He tries to awaken us before our lamps go out. Samuel was responsible for refilling them with oil so that they would never go out, but he must be spiritually awakened to have this relationship. When we halt in order to truly hear, the Lord will also give the Spirit to heed. In this, He lights my candle, enlightens my darkness, and He, ever more fully, becomes my God!
When the Lord spoke the third time, Samuel had been instructed to say, "Speak, Lord; for thy servant heareth." (vs. 9b) And this is the key—truly desiring to hear the Lord speak, not for the word's sake but for the sake of obedience. The Lord said, "Behold, I will do a thing in Israel, at which both the ears of every one that heareth it shall tingle." (vs. 11) This "thing" will vibrate and rattle everyone; so much so that their ears will be reddened with shame and their teeth will chatter with fear. Such is the definition of "tingle." What could cause that? The Ark of God—the most precious thing to the people—was about to be torn from them by their enemies. God had intended for this box, containing the 10 Commandments, to remind the people of His presence—not to become a god to them. What religious thing in my life is more precious than the Lord? If I won't stop what I'm doing and hear from the Lord, in God's mercy, He will rip it away! Israel hadn't regarded the voice of the Lord as precious, and so now the house of Eli was about to fall. Eli, you see, was a big, fat, back-slidden priest, who knew his sons were in sin, but would not stop them. He had reprimanded them, but did not force them to halt. He had taughttrained them. Proverbs 22:6 makes it quite clear—"Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it." This "training" is a narrowing of the way by cultivating a personal seeking of and surrender to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. You may feel it is too late to do so in your family—then evangelize! Maurice Reuben entered into his training as he waited on the Lord for a deeper vision of Calvary, the call to carry a cross and to deny himself for the sake of others coming into the Kingdom God. Eli would not do that, and on hearing the news of the captured Ark, he fell over backwards—and being heavy—broke his neck!
them, but had not
You see, it is in and through a deep vision of the Cross that we become more than conquerors—victory through what the world would deem to be defeat. He can only be Jehovah-Elohay to me as I stop what I am about, listen for His direction, and then make that my direction. Praise God—the life of Maurice Reuben is not intended to stay back in Maurice Reuben's time—such a crucified life is for all times. This halting, hearing, and heeding could be seen in Samuel throughout his times, too—"And Samuel grew, and the Lord was with him, and did let none of His words fall to the ground." (vs. 19) And so, too, for us right now! Jesus once said, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand." (John 10:27,28) Halt, hear, and heed!!!
