A Man After God's Own Heart
PRINCETON CHRISTIAN CHURCH
1 SAMUEL 13:5-14 14 JULY 2024
What does it mean to be a man/ woman after God’s own heart? How would we know if we have the qualities that would make God say that about us?
Several years ago, the football coach at Auburn University - Shug Jordan - asked his former linebacker, Mike Kollin, if he could help him with recruiting for the next season.
Mike said, “Sure, coach. What kind of player are you looking for?” The coach said, “Well, Mike, you know there’s that fellow. You knock him down, but he just stays down?” Mike said, “We don’t want him, do we, coach?” “No, that’s right.
Then there’s that fellow; you knock him down, and he gets up; you knock him down again, and he stays down.” Mike said, “We don’t want him either, do we coach?”
Coach said, “No, but Mike, there’s a fellow, you knock him down, and he gets up. Knock him down, he gets up. Knock him down, he gets up. Knock him down, he gets up.” Mike said, “That’s the guy we want isn’t it, coach?”
The coach answered, “No, Mike, we don’t want him either. I want you to find the guy who’s knocking everybody down. That’s the guy we want.”
APPLY: Throughout Scripture, we find God selecting men and women for His service who would not have been our obvious choices to us:
Moses stuttered.
Jacob lied.
Timothy had ulcers.
Abraham was too old.
Naomi was a widow.
John was self-righteous.
Peter was a braggart.
Jonah ran from God.
Miriam was a bigot and a gossip.
Thomas doubted.
Martha was a worrywart.
THESE were not the kind of people you and I would have expected God to pick for His purposes. But then, Scripture tells us that God does that a lot… and He did it deliberately.
1 Corinthians 1:27-29 tells us “…God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things— and the things that are not— to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him.”
God deliberately chooses people that you and I might overlook.
And here in I Samuel 16 we find God doing it again.
He was handsome, athletic, and tall (taller than anyone else in Israel), and initially, Saul showed a fair amount of wisdom and humility as the ruler of Israel. And he was immensely popular… even Samuel liked him.
“The LORD said to Samuel, ‘How long will you mourn for Saul since I have rejected him as king over Israel? …’” 1 Samuel 16:1
Everybody seemed to like Saul. Everybody was impressed with him.
Everyone except God.
God had a problem with Saul.
God’s problem with Saul problem was that when Saul was faced with tough decisions when he was faced with hard choices –
HE KNEW what God’s will was.
HE KNEW what God wanted him to do.
Saul simply didn’t choose to do what God wanted done.
For example, let’s look at I Samuel 13:5-14
The Philistines assembled to fight Israel, with three thousand chariots, six thousand charioteers, and soldiers as numerous as the sand on the seashore. They went up and camped at Micmash, east of Beth Aven. When the men of Israel saw that their situation was critical and that their army was hard-pressed, they hid in caves and thickets, among the rocks, and in pits and cisterns. Some Hebrews even crossed the Jordan to the land of Gad and Gilead. Saul remained at Gilgal, and all the troops with him were quaking with fear. He waited seven days, the time set by Samuel; but Samuel did not come to Gilgal, and Saul’s men began to scatter. So, he said, "Bring me the burnt offering and the fellowship offerings." And Saul offered up the burnt offering. Just as he finished making the offering, Samuel arrived, and Saul went out to greet him. What have you done?" asked Samuel. Saul replied, "When I saw that the men were scattering and that you did not come at the set time, and that the Philistines were assembling at Micmash, I thought, ‘Now the Philistines will come down against me at Gilgal, and I have not sought the LORD’s favor.’ So, I felt compelled to offer the burnt offering." "You acted foolishly," Samuel said. "You have not kept the command the LORD your God gave you; if you had, he would have established your kingdom over Israel for all time. But now your kingdom will not endure. The LORD has sought out a man after his own heart and appointed him leader of his people because you have not kept the LORD’s command."
When Saul had to make tough decisions and was faced with whether to follow God’s instructions or follow an easier course of action, he made his choices based on his fear.
Fear of failure
Fear that his enemies would destroy him
Fear that his own soldiers would abandon him
In fact, Saul seemed to fear everything EXCEPT God.
So, when times got tough - Saul focused on everything except pleasing God.
As a result, God rejected Saul as His king and went looking for someone who would be a man after His own heart.
So, what would a “man/ woman after God’s own heart” look like?
They weren’t going to look like Saul. Saul was NOT the type of man who pleased God.
But then David didn’t seem all that impressive either. David’s father, Jesse, didn’t even think he was that impressive.
When Samuel came to town, and Jesse had the opportunity to parade his sons before this great prophet… Jesse didn’t even bother bringing David in from the fields. David was insignificant, the runt of the litter. Not worth a second thought when it came to impressing powerful men.
And David’s older brother Eliab wasn’t much impressed by him either. 1 Samuel 17:28 tells us that “when Eliab, David’s oldest brother, heard (David) speaking with the men, he burned with anger at him and asked, ‘Why have you come down here? And with whom did you leave those few sheep in the desert? I know how conceited you are and how wicked your heart is; you came down only to watch the battle.’”
So, neither his father nor older brother considered David all that significant.
And, of course, Goliath wasn’t impressed by David either.
1 Samuel 17:42 informs us that when “Goliath looked David over and saw that he was only a boy, ruddy and handsome… he despised him.” David apparently was not the first choice of anybody who met him. I mean, he wasn’t even Samuel’s first choice.
Samuel was far more impressed with David’s older brothers.
“When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, ‘Surely the LORD’s anointed stands here before the LORD.’”
Eliab was Samuel’s first choice (I Samuel 16:6): “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 man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.’” 1 Samuel 16:7
The Lord looks at the heart… · God isn’t impressed by how handsome/ pretty we are or at our accomplishments in life · Or our college degrees/ educational background.
What God looks at… is the heart.
2 Chronicles 16:9 … “The eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him. …."
God is looking into the homes of every individual upon the earth—He’s looking into your home, into my home, and into the homes of your neighbors—seeking anyone who is willing to be totally committed to His cause, His purposes, and His goals for the world around us.
ILLUS: The story’s told of 3 military recruiters who showed up to address high school seniors. Each recruiter - representing the Army, Navy, and Marine Corps - was to have fifteen minutes. The Army and Navy recruiters got carried away, so when it came time for the Marine to speak, he had just two minutes. He walked up and stood utterly silent for a full sixty seconds, half of his time. Then he said this: "I doubt whether there are two or three of you in this room who could even cut it in the Marine Corps. But I want to see those two or three immediately in the dining hall when we are dismissed."
He turned and sat down. When he arrived in the dining hall, those students interested in the Marines were a mob. That Marine Corps recruiter was saying… “We only want people who will give us their total commitment. No one else needs to apply.
God is looking for people who are totally committed to His cause.
But what does it mean for us to have hearts that are totally committed to Him?
There are 3 ways we can EXAMINE our hearts and to make them acceptable to God.
1st – If we’re going to be a people after God’s own heart our lives need to be built around God.
David wrote: “Sing to him, sing praise to him; tell of all his wonderful acts. Glory in his holy name; let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice. Look to the LORD and his strength; seek his face always. Remember the wonders he has done, his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced (Psalm 105:2-5).
A man or woman after God’s own heart is one who loves being in worship.
There are times, of course, that prevent us from being in the worship service - missing worship – illness, work, or situations over which we have no control. And I fear that sometimes we determine we have no control over situations that we do have control over.
People who have a heart for God want to be with God. They want to be in worship. They want to gather at the communion table. They want to sing praises to him. To tell of all his wonderful acts. To glory in his name.
A person who has a heart for God WILL NOT MISS CHURCH
(except if they are physically unable to be there).
They want to be with God in worship. And because of that, their lives are built AROUND GOD.
If we are going to be people after God’s own heart, we need to build our lives around His Word – the Bible.
David wrote: “The precepts of the LORD are right, giving joy to the heart. The commands of the LORD are radiant, giving light to the eyes. The fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever. The ordinances of the LORD are sure and altogether righteous. They are more precious than gold, than much pure gold; they are sweeter than honey, sweeter than honey from the comb. Psalm 19:8-10
David was deeply committed to incorporating God's Word into his daily life.
He meditated upon God’s Law day and night ·
He wrote songs that sang praises to God’s Word.
Whenever he needed counsel, he looked first to God’s Law for advice.
If we are going to be people after God’s own heart, the Bible has to be the driving passion in our lives.
You WILL NOT understand God’s will for your life if you don’t integrate His Word into your heart.
That’s why David wrote: “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path” Ps119:105
Lastly – if you and I are going to be people after God’s own heart, we...
Need to build our lives around God’s people.
You may recall an event recorded in the Gospel of Matthew when an expert in the Law once tried to trap Jesus with a question. Here was the question:
"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: "‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
But Jesus didn’t stop there. He went on: “And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matthew 22:36-40
If I’m going to “love the Lord with all of my heart,” I need to learn to love others. I need to learn to love others the same way God loves them, not just because I have to.
David understood this. “That’s why – when he was urged to kill King Saul to save his own life he responded: Who can lay a hand on the LORD’s anointed and be guiltless?” 1 Samuel 26:9.
Well… who IS the Lord’s anointed? Every Christian here is one of the Lord’s anointed.
If I want to be a man or woman after God’s own heart, then I will be careful how I treat the Lord’s anointed.
I don’t want to talk about them behind their backs.
I don’t want to be mean to them.
I don’t want to even want to look at them with meanness in my eyes.
God takes it personally when one of His anointed ones is attacked or misused.
Now, bear in mind that Saul was not an admirable man.
He had disobeyed God in such a way that he lost his kingdom.
But David still refused to touch him or misuse him. Saul was still the Lord’s anointed.
How many of you here – if someone else looked hard enough into your life –
would see something that could be used to embarrass you,
something that could be used to shame you.
We’re not all that much different from Saul in that way, are we? But God won’t tolerate us being used and abused like that.
Do you remember Jesus' command to us if a brother OFFENDS US?
"You go to them and try to resolve the problem."
What if YOU’VE offended that brother?
"You go to them and try to resolve the problem."
Why should we do that? Because that is what a man/ woman whose heart is totally committed to God does. We are expected to build each other up… not tear each other down.
By devoting ourselves wholeheartedly to God and demonstrating steadfast dedication in our hearts, we realize that this is what brings God joy.
So, a man or woman who is totally committed to God in their hearts is someone who is also, firstly, totally sold out for God.
They’ve committed themselves to building their lives around God, His Word, and His people.
It has been referred to by many different terms, one of which is the word “consecration” to God.
A Christian woman once ran across the word Consecration in one of her studies, and it confused her.
So, she went to her preacher and asked, “What does ‘consecration’ mean?”
The preacher reached over and picked up a blank sheet of paper, and handed it to her.
And then he said:
“Consecration is when you sign your name at the bottom of this blank sheet and let God fill it in as He wills.”
And that should be the way we start each day—each new day is a blank sheet of paper with our signature on it, on which we eagerly and prayerfully ask God to write the words He wants to hear us say.
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