In my last post, I mentioned that as we become older, we sometimes believe that we are useless.

 You are valuable to God! Read about it here. 

Today, I will share with you the story of Eli who felt that he was useless and practically gave up on life.

As a result of his negativity and his lack of firmness, he attracted a terrible curse from God upon his household.

Eli was a priest in Israel for many years, but he became advanced in age, possibl in his nineties.

Consequently, he felt that he was not able to perform the function of the priesthood, so he handed over the position to his two sons.

However, the Bible recorded that these sons were villainous and they treated the offerings of the Lord with much contempt.

Eli’s sons also slept with the women who served at the entrance of the tent of meeting. Their sins were grievous in the sight of God.

The people were also ashamed of them and told Eli about his sons’ misconduct. Eli confronted his sons and rebuked them, but they refused to obey their father.

At this point, the Lord had already decided to destroy them, so their hearts were hardened.

Even though Eli rebuked his sons, he did not restrain them (1 Samuel 3: 13).

The use of the word restraint means that Eli did not exercise his authority as a priest and father by ordering his sons to step down from their position as priests.

As a result of Eli’s lack of control over his sons, the Lord sent His servant to prophecy against the house of Eli.

Punishment for Failure to Exercise Authority

• The Lord dishonored Eli because of his lack of honor to Him.
• The Lord took away Eli’s strength. He also shortened the lifespan of his descendants.
• Distress was pronounced upon Eli’s household.
• Grief would blind his descendants’ eyes and heart.
• Eli’s two sons would both die on the same day.
• The Lord would remove Eli and his family from the priestly office and will raise up a faithful priest who would do according to the will of God.

The punishment of Eli was very harsh, and some people might say it was unfair because Eli was, after all, an elderly man and lack vitality and strength.

Furthermore,  if he removed his sons from the priesthood who would perform the rituals of the temple?

But, God had already made provision for another priest to take Eli’s place.

Read also: God’s Faithful Priest

It was imperative that the Priest performed their duties correctly with a clean heart.

You are not too old to be used by God. The anointing of the Lord on your life is forever.

Ensure that your personal household is in order and never encourage wayward adult children to live under your roof.

Always exercise the authority and power that God has given you. Never throw in the towel and wait for death but continue to minister in the capacity that God has given you.

What age should a pastor retire from the ministry?