Author's Note: All previous volumes of this series are available here. The first 56 volumes are compiled in the book "Bible Study For Those Who Don't Read The Bible." "Part Two," covering volumes 57-113, was published in December 2022.
Thanks for joining our study. Today we continue discussing when God calls people to leadership. If you missed Part 1, Vol. 345, please read about God’s three foundational callings to Abraham, Moses, and Joshua. Their stories and circumstances are essential to understanding that when God calls us, we must listen because something meaningful, perhaps even epic, is likely to happen that advances His kingdom on earth.
Last week, I also emphasized that you don’t need to be a perfect, godly person for God to “call” you. He knows your gifts and talents because He gave them to you.
We begin Part 2 with the prophet Samuel, whom God called to service when he was conceived because of his mother Hannah’s great faith. In Vol. 101 (February 2022), we studied Hannah’s story, and I wrote:
“The Almighty spoke to Samuel. He became a high priest, prophet, and judge over Israel. Samuel played a pivotal role in selecting and guiding Israel’s first two kings, Saul and David. God conveyed His will through Samuel, as he was the conscience of both kings whenever they went astray.”
Unlike God’s direct foundational callings to Abraham, Moses, and Joshua, God charged Samuel to anoint the young David beginning with this passage:
“The LORD said to Samuel, ‘How long will you mourn for Saul, since I have rejected him as king over Israel? … I am sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king’” (1 Samuel 16:1).
However, David, a shepherd boy, was overlooked by his family, left at home, and not brought before Samuel to be considered for anointing as the future King of Israel. I love this story, especially the verse about how the Lord looks at our heart more than our outward appearance. Below is the lengthy passage which I have abbreviated:
“Samuel saw Eliab [one of Jesse’s sons] and thought, ‘Surely the LORD’s anointed stands here before the LORD.’ But the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.’”
Jesse paraded his seven sons before Samuel, who said to Jesse, “The LORD has not chosen these,” so Samuel asked, “Are these all the sons you have?” “There is still the youngest,” Jesse answered. “He is tending the sheep.” Samuel said, “Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives.” Jesse retrieved David, and brought him to Samuel:
“He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the LORD said, ‘Rise and anoint him; this is the one.’ So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon David” (1 Samuel 16:1-13).
Samuel, through God’s calling, played an integral role in guiding David’s life as a leader to do God’s will, with decades of consequences for ancient Israel. David was a sinner, but God always knew David loved and trusted Him with all his heart. We can feel David’s love and trust for God by reading his Psalms.
Next is how God called the prophet Isaiah to leadership, as described in a passage known as “Isaiah’s Commission,” a vision he experienced. One of my favorite verses is at the end. We read the full passage because the imagery is magnificent and dramatic:
“In the year that King Uzziah died, I saw the Lord, high and exalted, seated on a throne; and the train of his robe filled the temple. Above him were seraphim, each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying. And they were calling to one another: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the LORD Almighty; the whole earth is full of his glory.’
“At the sound of their voices the doorposts and thresholds shook, and the temple was filled with smoke. ‘Woe to me!’ I cried. ‘I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the LORD Almighty.’
“Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, ‘See, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.’
“Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, ‘Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?’ And I said, ‘Here am I. Send me!’” (Isaiah 6:1-8).
And God did send him to warn rebellious Israel of its forthcoming destruction and punish Israel for disobedience. During Isaiah's lifetime and ministry, the northern Kingdom of Israel was destroyed by the Assyrian Empire, including Samaria and its people taken into exile.
Most importantly, Isaiah was called by God to foretell the birth of Jesus:
“The Lord himself will give you a sign: ‘The virgin will conceive and give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel’” (Isaiah 7:13-14). And again:
“For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace” (Isaiah 9:6). Raise your hand if that passage makes you sing.
Our last example of God’s call to leadership is Jeremiah, who, like Samuel, was called while in the womb. It is such a powerful passage worth reading in full:
“The word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born I set you apart; I appointed you as a prophet to the nations.’ Alas, Sovereign LORD, I said, ‘I do not know how to speak; I am too young.’
“But the LORD said to me, ‘Do not say, I am too young.’ ‘You must go to everyone I send you to and say whatever I command you. Do not be afraid of them, for I am with you and will rescue you,’ declares the LORD.”
“Then the LORD reached out his hand and touched my mouth and said, ‘I have put my words in your mouth. See, today I appoint you over nations and kingdoms to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant’” (Jeremiah 1:4-10).
I hope you enjoyed these outstanding passages in which God calls His chosen to leadership. They are powerful beyond description and renew one's faith in God.
God willing, this series will continue on Sunday, November 29, with His New Testament callings, since next Sunday there will be a pre-Thanksgiving study, gobble-gobble!
Finally, after seven years of writing this Bible study alongside my Shroud of Turin ministry, I can’t resist repeating my favorite passage, “Here am I. Send me!” Amen.
Myra Kahn Adams is a conservative political and religious writer. Her book "Bible Study For Those Who Don't Read The Bible" reprints the first 56 volumes of this popular study. "Part 2" reprints Vols. 57-113. Order it here.
Myra is also the Executive Director of the National Shroud of Turin Exhibit. You can help support our popular exhibit at the Basilica in Orlando, Florida. Now extended into 2027! Read more here. Contact: Myraadams01@gmail.com
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