Introduction
The Capital One credit card company
has commercials that ask “What’s in your wallet?” They want you to think that
theirs is the best credit card and after giving demonstration of why they think
so, they ask, “What’s in your wallet.” Lots of people might be interested in
that kind of a question, but God is not asking that question.
In the musical “Fiddler on the
Roof,” in the song “Matchmaker” Tevye’s two daughters, Chava and Hodel, fearful
of the kind of husband the matchmaker will bring them, sing: “I wouldn’t holler
if he were as handsome as anything.” Lots of people might ask that kind of a
question, but God is not asking that question.
What is the question God is asking?
God does not ask, “What’s in your wallet?” or “What are your abilities?” or “What’s
your appearance?” God asks, “What’s in your heart?” We read in I Samuel 16:7 , “The Lord looks
on the heart.”
This morning, we will study I Samuel 16:1-13 in order to
help us answer the question, “What’s in your heart?”
I.
God Calls a King
A.
Fear and Progress
Samuel had anointed Saul as king
and had a lot invested in him. He anointed him, he challenged him, tried to
help him do right, but Saul proved to be a disappointment. He did not follow
after God and there were several incidents of serious failure in which Saul had
demonstrated lack of trust in God and had chosen disobedience instead of
following God.
The story of the choice of David as
the next king began when God said to Samuel, in spite of his reluctance, “It’s
time to move on.”
Yet Samuel was afraid to move on.
He had seen the violence and jealousy which Saul was capable of and was afraid
that if he openly moved on, he and all those whom he involved in this would be
in jeopardy from Saul and his madness. He feared and there was reason to fear,
but God was gracious and gave Samuel a way that would allow him to anoint the
new king but not raise any suspicion for Saul. The pretext for going to
Bethlehem to anoint one of Jesse’s sons was that he would go there to have a
sacrifice with Jesse and the elders of that place.
As he came to Bethlehem, the people
of Bethlehem were afraid of Samuel and they asked him, “Do you come peaceably?”
The likely reason for this fear was that there had been times when Samuel had
come to a town to announce judgment on that town for its failure to follow God.
So they feared this judgment. Yet Saul assured them that he had come peaceably
and had come to sacrifice to the Lord.
At this time, there was not a
central sanctuary. There were numerous places where people offered sacrifices
to God and so it could be done where Samuel chose. We sometimes think that when
a sacrifice was to be made, it involved the complete burning of an animal, but
that is not what happened. When sacrifices were made, portions of the animals
were sacrificed and burned up and portions of the animal were cooked and eaten
in a sacrificial banquet meal. This was what the plan was for Jesse and the
other leaders of Bethlehem. There would be a time of worship and a sacrifice
made and that meant that there would also be a meal eaten by those attending.
So Samuel instructed them to sanctify themselves, that is to prepare themselves
for an encounter with God and then he also sanctified them. Following these
preparations Jesse, his sons and the other leaders were invited to the
sacrifice and the meal.
B.
The Process of Choice
During this meal, Samuel had an
assignment that was clear. He was to anoint the one God chose as king. All he
knew was that it was to be one of Jesse’s sons. It seems that he must have
communicated something of the assignment to Jesse, although we don’t the extent
of what was communicated.
So the sons of Jesse were brought
before him from the oldest to the youngest. The first one brought before Samuel
was an impressive specimen. The text speaks about “his appearance” and the “the
height of his stature.” Samuel may have looked at him and thought about the
time when Saul was chosen. His appearance was a factor in his choice as king in
I Samuel 9:2 where the
comment is, “There was not a man among the people of Israel more handsome than
he; he stood head and shoulders above everyone else.” In reading the biography
of Pierre Trudeau, it was interesting to consider the shift that took place
when he became Prime Minister. By this time almost everyone had a TV and for
the first time in history, the exposure he received and what he looked like had
to sell on television. Some say that this was one of his advantages (much like
his son among female viewers today). But the appearance of a leader did not
only become relevant when television became common. Even at the time of our
story, it happened. Yet God did not choose him. In verse 7 we have the primary
reason and what I think is a key verse when it says, “…the Lord does not see as
mortals see; they look on outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”
One by one all the rest of the sons
of Jesse were brought before Samuel and each one was rejected until there were
none left. Since Samuel knew it had to be one of the sons of Jesse he asked,
“Are there any left.” The answer of Jesse seems almost to say, “I have shown
you the best of my children. The one left is the youngest and hardly counts. He
is with the sheep.” But Samuel waited until he was summoned and also came. When
he appeared, it is interesting to note that he was also not bad looking. The
text says, “…he was ruddy, and had beautiful eyes, and was handsome.” So the
matter of appearance was still somehow a factor.
Yet this time, when Samuel saw him,
God told him, “This is the one, anoint him.”
C.
David Anointed
David was God’s choice and so
Samuel anointed him and immediately we read that the Spirit “came mightily”
upon him. The Spirit did not come upon him until he was anointed, but from that
point on the Spirit powerfully influenced David and was God present with him in
all he did. After the anointing and the sacrifice, Samuel left and nothing
became of it until later, but the choice had been made and the direction was
set for something that would reach far into the future.
D.
A Critical Juncture in History
The story that takes place in this
chapter is a story that represents a critical juncture in the entire history of
God’s people. In Genesis 49:10 ,
the beginning of this history is declared in the prophecy of Jacob as he lay on
his death bed and gave a blessing to each of his 12 sons, the 12 tribes of Israel .
Among the twelve sons who are blessed was Judah, about whom this passage says,
"The scepter shall not depart from Judah, nor the ruler’s staff from
between his feet, until tribute comes to him; and the obedience of the peoples
is his."
The story we have just looked at gives
us the next step in that history of Judah’s reign when David, who was of the
tribe of Judah, was anointed king of Israel.
During the life of David, the
history was moved forward in the prophecy made to David by God through the
prophet, Nathan, who said in II
Samuel 7:12 , "When your days are fulfilled and you lie down
with your ancestors, I will raise up your offspring after you, who shall come
forth from your body…and I will establish the throne of his kingdom
forever…Your house and your kingdom shall be made sure forever before me; your
throne shall be established forever."
When Jesus was born, this prophecy
was fulfilled as we read in the genealogy of Jesus in Matthew 1:1 , "An account of
the genealogy of Jesus the Messiah, the son of David…" It is declared
completed in Revelation 5:5 ,
"Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep. See, the Lion of the
tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he can open the
scroll and its seven seals.”
So you can see how important the
appointment of David as king was in the entire plan which God had for the
eventual redemption of humanity and indeed of the whole earth.
II.
The Lord Looks on the Heart
As David was chosen, it is interesting
that both Eliab and David were good looking and attractive. Yet one was chosen
and the other was not. Clearly the key difference was that God saw something in
the heart of David that set him apart from the others. What was in David’s
heart that was commendable to God? As we reflect on this, it is an important
question, not only to understand why David was chosen, but also for each one of
us. I believe the story invites all of us to ask the question, “What is in my
heart?”
In David’s case, what was in his
heart was revealed as time went on and much of what was in his heart is
recorded in the Psalms. So let’s look at some of the things that were in
David’s heart and as we do, let us ask ourselves, is this also in my heart?
A.
Trust in God’s Ability
In Psalm 60 the superscription
indicates that this Psalm is “of David; for instruction; when he struggled with
Aram-naharaim and with Aram-Zobah, and when Joab on his return killed twelve
thousand Edomites in the Valley of Salt.”
At least some of this story is
described in I Chronicles 19. Verse 10 describes the situation, "When Joab
saw that the line of battle was set against him both in the front and in the
rear, he chose some of the picked men of Israel and arrayed them against the
Arameans; the rest of his troops he put in the charge of his brother Abishai,
and they were arrayed against the Ammonites."
In Psalm 60:1, David expresses the
natural fear which one might have in a situation when the enemies are in front
and behind. He says, "O God, you have rejected us, broken our defenses;
you have been angry; now restore us!" But fear was not the only thing in
David’s heart. As we come to the end of the Psalm, we read in the last verse,
"With God we shall do valiantly; it is he who will tread down our
foes." And so it happened in that story. They defeated the enemy.
David’s heart had a deep trust in
the ability of God. He trusted God’s power and God’s justice. He trusted in the
promises which God had made. He said in Psalm 25:2, "O my God, in you I
trust..." As a result of such trust he was quick to call upon God in any
and every situation as he expressed in Psalm 17:6, "I call upon you, for
you will answer me, O God; incline your ear to me, hear my words."
Is our heart one which trusts in
God’s ability and calls upon Him?
B.
Willingness to Confess Sin
When we sin, some of our common
responses may be to deny that we have done wrong, to declare that it wasn’t so
bad, to feel guilty, but not do anything about it or conversely to acknowledge
and confess our sins. Only the last is a response after God’s heart.
David had sinned seriously when he
committed adultery with Bathsheba and then tried to cover it up by having her
husband killed. This was a terrible time in the life of David and in II Samuel
11:27 we have God’s opinion of what he had done. There we read, “…the thing
that David had done displeased the LORD,"
God was displeased, but it wasn’t
until about a year later that one day the prophet Nathan came to tell David a
story. He told him about a terrible injustice done in the land. The story
grabbed David’s heart and he became very angry at the injustice, but just at
the point at which he was about to try to find out who did it and to get to the
bottom of this wrong done, Nathan told David, in II Samuel 12:7, “You are the
man.”
It is in the response of David that
we once again see the heart of this man. He immediately confessed, in II Samuel
12:13, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Later, David wrote about this
experience of sin and confession and we read in Psalm 32:3-5, "While I
kept silence, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and
night your hand was heavy upon me; my strength was dried up as by the heat of
summer. Selah. Then I acknowledged my sin to you, and I did not hide my
iniquity; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to the LORD,” and you
forgave the guilt of my sin. Selah"
Is our
heart one that readily confesses sin? It is such a heart that God seeks.
C.
Confidence in God’s Steadfast Love
Psalm 57 was a Psalm of David
written, as the superscription says, “when he fled from Saul in the cave.” This
was a fearful and difficult time for David. On the one hand, he knew that he
had been anointed as the next king, yet Saul was making his life miserable and
he had every reason to fear the madness of Saul and to fear for his life. What
was it that sustained him in this time?
It was more than a trust in the ability
of God. Twice in this Psalm David made mention of the steadfast love of God. In
Psalm 57:3 we read, "…God will send forth his steadfast love and his
faithfulness." And in Psalm 57:10 we read, "For your steadfast love
is as high as the heavens; your faithfulness extends to the clouds."
With the things that I have been
going through lately with my health, I have been greatly encouraged and
challenged by a similar phrase in another Psalm. Psalm 63:3 says, "Because
your steadfast love is better than life, my lips will praise you."
This is what was in the heart of
David. What kind of a heart is able to make such a statement? Is it not the
heart of one who is absolutely convinced that we are not living by the whims of
a world gone mad or the power of an evil person or the things that happen by
random chance? This is the heart of one who knows that he is being cared for by
one who loves him. This is the heart of one who is able to say, “No matter what
happens, no matter how difficult it gets, no matter how much I don’t
understand, I am willing to live in the arms of God and to understand that they
are loving arms. This was David’s heart. Does our heart trust in the steadfast
love of God? It is the same heart that is able to rest in the knowledge that
“The Lord is my shepherd.”
D.
Thirst for God
In human relationships, we do not
look favorably on friendships that exist only to gain an advantage. If we would
befriend someone just for what we could get from them, that would not be
honored by anyone. Such friendships exist but usually don’t last. Yet don’t we sometimes
approach God with just such a motive? We follow God, whether consciously or
not, for what we can get from Him. This is not the heart God seeks.
David did not have such a heart.
Yes, he prayed to God, looked to him for help, asked for help and trusted in
his help, but the heart of David went much deeper. He sought God, not only for
the things God could give him, but for God Himself. He expressed such a heart
often. We read in Psalm 16:2 & 5, "I say to the LORD, “You are my
Lord; I have no good apart from you…The LORD is my chosen portion and my cup;
you hold my lot." We read in Psalm 62:1, "For God alone my soul waits
in silence; from him comes my salvation." And in Psalm 63:1, "O God,
you are my God, I seek you, my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you,
as in a dry and weary land where there is no water."
Is this
also in my heart? Is it in your heart?
E.
A Spirit of Thankfulness
A study of the Psalms gives us many
other revelations of what God saw in the heart of David and they encourage and
challenge us. Let me briefly mention only one more. We see that after all he
experienced, David also had a thankful heart. Psalm 9:1-2 says, "I will
give thanks to the LORD with my whole heart; I will tell of all your wonderful
deeds. I will be glad and exult in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most
High."
Conclusion
When Samuel chose David as the next
king of Israel the critical factor was, “What’s in your heart?”
When the
early church chose those who would serve at tables, those whom we have come to
identify as deacons, servants or caregivers, they looked for similar
qualifications. We read in Acts 1:24, "…they prayed and said, “Lord, you
know everyone’s heart. Show us which one of these two you have chosen"
God is
still looking for hearts like this among those who will be His people, those
who will be His servants. He is looking for those whose hearts belong to Him
and are growing ever closer.
What’s in your heart?
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