The Lord Looks on the Heart

The Lord Looks on the Heart
Words of Faith 10-11-24
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy © 2024
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
Faith Fellowship Church - Melbourne, FL
www.faithfellowshipweb.com
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1 Samuel 16:4-13
[4] Samuel did what the Lord said. When he arrived at Bethlehem, the elders of the town trembled when they met him. They asked, "Do you come in peace?" [5] Samuel replied, "Yes, in peace; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord. Consecrate yourselves and come to the sacrifice with me." Then he consecrated Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. [6] When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely the Lord's anointed stands here before the Lord." [7] 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." [8] Then Jesse called Abinadab and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, "The Lord has not chosen this one either." [9] Jesse then had Shammah pass by, but Samuel said, "Nor has the Lord chosen this one." [10] Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, "The Lord has not chosen these." [11] So he asked Jesse, "Are these all the sons you have?" "There is still the youngest," Jesse answered, "but he is tending the sheep." Samuel said, "Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives." [12] So he sent and had him brought in. He was ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the Lord said, "Rise and anoint him; he is the one." [13] 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 upon David in power. Samuel then went to Ramah.
 
The choice of Israel's second king was quite different from the choice of the first. Saul's choice was in response to complaints from the people. This was all God. The desires and demands of "the people" were not involved. This was not a democratic process; it was a God process.
    The Lord directed Samuel to go to the "little town of Bethlehem" (sound familiar?) and seek out a man named Jesse. When he arrived there, the town's Elders trembled when they met him. They had undoubtedly heard of Samuel and were in awe that this great priest and judge of Israel would come to their little town. After the many wars and battles under Saul, it is little wonder that they asked-- "Do you come in peace?" They did not know if there was a battle in the region or if Samuel came to gather troops.
Samuel expressed a desire to have a fellowship sacrifice and "consecrate" the sons of Jesse. This ceremony was very special and was invitation-only for the family of Jesse. Jesse brought only the older sons, probably because David was of a marginal age, and, as the baby brother, it fell to him to watch the sheep.
     When Samuel began to meet each of Jesse's sons, he was first impressed with Eliab, who was tall and striking. However, this had been the problem in choosing Saul. Saul was a tall and impressive leader in the eyes of the world, but his heart was never committed to the Lord. Leadership is not a matter of outward appearance; it is a matter of the heart.
    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." So Samuel considered a parade of Jesse's sons.
Seven sons of Jesse passed by Samuel, but none of them were signaled by the Lord to be anointed by the next king of Israel. Samuel was sure the Lord had indicated the choice would be among Jesse's sons, so he asked if there were any others. There was only one, the youngest, but he was out tending sheep… the work of children and old men. The Hebrew wording can mean the youngest and "the smallest"; for that reason, he is out tending sheep.
David was small, but his appearance was "ruddy"-- probably meaning "not pale in color." He was of fine appearance and handsome. While David was probably never a tall man, at this age and because of his stature, he was assigned to sheep herding. And David was faithful to his place and assignment to watch the flock. Rather than complain about being left out of this ceremony, he did what he was assigned to do.
When David arrived, the Lord immediately directed Samuel to anoint this small young man as the king of Israel. Surely, this was a shocking and unusual choice, especially since there was still a reigning king named Saul!
The big lesson here is that the Lord looks at the heart, not outward appearance. In the Lord's leadership choices, nothing else matters but a heart wholly dedicated to the Lord. We don't know anything else about David at this point except that he was working faithfully watching the sheep and did not promote himself.
It is interesting that centuries later, Jesus, the Messiah of God born of the lineage of David, would warn his disciples about listening to leaders who have a great appearance on the outside but whose hearts are not right with God-- "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit, you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them" (Matt. 7:15-20).
The Lord looks upon the heart. With His Spirit and discernment, so should we. Our task is to discern leaders who have a heart after God and listen to the voices of people who manifest the fruit of the Spirit.
 
Lord God, help me see Your mighty hand in the choosing of leadership and the process of listening. Help me discern carefully the leaders whose hearts are committed and after Your heart. Help me listen carefully amid the many voices of our day for the fruit of Your Spirit in those who claim to speak for You. Help me see with Your eyes those who follow closely after Your Spirit and heart so that I might encourage them and listen. In Jesus' Name, Amen.

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© Jeffrey D. Hoy 2024
Dr. Jeffrey D. Hoy - Faith Fellowship Church (EFCA)
2820 Business Center Blvd.
Melbourne, Florida 32940 (321)-259-7200
Jeff.Hoy@faithfellowshipweb.com
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The Words of Faith devotion is published five days a week by E-mail, excluding Federal holidays. Please feel free to forward this devotion to a friend who might be blessed by this devotion. Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture is quoted from the New International Version (R) of The Holy Bible. Copyright (c) 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. Words of Faith (c) 1997, 2024 Jeffrey D. Hoy. All rights reserved. Permission is granted to forward this copyrighted material or use portions of it with appropriate notation of the source for non-profit purposes.