Text: I Sam.16: 1-5, 13a
Intro: If you were going to choose someone to do an important job, what would be your criteria? Would they have to have the finest educational background, be a picture of vigor and health, and exude charisma, or would they simply have to be able to do the job, and possess character and integrity to perform that job honestly?
Certainly, choosing someone for an important position is a serious matter. And because it is such, it’s only natural that we should want them to be as qualified as possible. That’s only logical. Of course, at the same time, we must be careful not to go overboard on qualifications. The main thing is getting the job done right, and getting it done with integrity. At least that’s supposed to be the point.
However, though most people want the job done right, and with integrity, sometimes they want more than that. Sometimes people want someone to not only do a job, but to look the part as well. In other words, they want qualifications plus attractiveness.
Some years ago a female newscaster sued her former employer for dismissing her because she didn’t meet their expectations of physical attractiveness. Her employer had come to believe that a more attractive woman would boost their ratings. As I recall, the lady won the lawsuit. But this kind of situation in the media really shouldn’t surprise us, since everything in that field seems to be about appearances.
The fact is man’s criterion for making a choice about someone is quite different from God’s. God has a whole different set of guidelines for making His choice. While man tends to make decisions based on the outward and the obvious, God always looks deeper. Ones talents, good looks, or high I.Q does not impress God. His choice is possessed of more substance than that. God’s choice is based on what a person is, not how they appear.
This is especially evident in the life of David. God sent His prophet Samuel, to anoint a new king over Israel. However, God’s choice was a surprise to all involved.
Let’s look into God’s Word today and see if we fit God’s qualifications for service.
Theme: God’s choice is:
I. CONTRARY TO HUMAN REASON
A. God’s Choice Is Not According To Physical Stature.
I Sam.16: 6 “And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord’s anointed is before him.
7 But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. And he said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this.
9 Then Jesse made Shammah to pass by. And he said, Neither hath the Lord chosen this.
10 Again, Jesse made seven of his sons to pass before Samuel. And Samuel said unto Jesse, The Lord hath not chosen these.”
NOTE: [1] One would think Samuel would have known better than to use appearance as a standard of qualification. After all, that same mistake had been made in choosing Saul as king.
I Sam.20: 13 “And they ran and fetched him (Saul) thence: and when he stood among the people, he was higher than any of the people from the shoulders and upward.”
[2] The problem was that Samuel was looking for a handsome hunk of a man to be king, while God was looking for a man with a holy heart. In essence, God told Samuel, “Samuel, you’re looking at the wrong thing. You’re looking at the outside. I’m looking at the inside. You’re looking only at the cover. I’m looking at the core.”
[3] It’s almost strange how much stock we humans put in appearances. Like this illustration, sometimes man’s thinking along that line is rather illogical.
The Bigger the Better
It was absolutely amazing. I was in West Africa—Timbuktu to be exact—and the missionaries were telling me that in that culture the larger the women were the more beautiful they were thought to be. In fact, a young missionary who had a small, trim wife said that the nationals had told him she was a bad reflection on him—he obviously was not providing well enough for her. A proverb in that part of Africa says that if your wife is on a camel and the camel cannot stand up, your wife is truly beautiful.
Fan The Flame, J. Stowell, Moody, 1986, p. 119
[4] Jesse had seven of his sons stand before Samuel. The number seven is often used in the Bible as the number of perfection. In one sense, Jesse’s seven sons, “…picture the perfection of the flesh, but the perfection of the flesh is always rejected in heaven” (Alan Redpath, The Making Of A Man Of God, published by Fleming H. Revell Company, Old Tappan, New Jersey, pg. 13).
B. God’s Choice Is Not According To Positional Status.
I Sam.16: 11a “And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep…”
I Sam.17: 12a “Now David was the son of that Ephrathite of Bethlehem-judah, whose name was Jesse; and he had eight sons…
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14a And David was the youngest…”
NOTE: David was the baby of the family. As such, he was deemed worthy of only the more menial tasks. No one would have ever thought that David would have been God’s choice. Surely God wouldn’t choose a mere shepherd boy to be king of Israel, would He?
C. God’s Choice Is Not According To Popular Sentiment.
1. Jesse viewed David as being of little importance.
I Sam.16: 11a “…There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep.”
NOTE: [1] There is some indication that the words “the youngest” imply more than merely age.
It meant he was the least in his father’s estimation; so small was David in his father’s esteem that it wasn’t considered necessary to include him in the family when the prophet of God called them to sacrifice (Ibid, pg. 12).
[2] The sentiment of the day seems to be that if it looks good, it must be good. This thinking is prevalent in all of society.
Beautiful People
Joyce Brothers, well-known and popular psychologist, points out in Better Than Ever that “beautiful people have beautiful personalities …We consistently judge them to be more sensitive, kind, intelligent, interesting, sociable, and exciting than less attractive people.” Dr. Brothers goes on to speak of a study made in a school among kindergartners and teachers regarding the people to whom they were most often attracted: “They (the children) picked the most attractive children as their favorites. Their teachers did likewise, and considered the less attractive children more likely to be troublemakers.” She continues, “When we grow up, for both men and women, higher salary levels and greater advancement have a high correlation with pleasant looks, at all ages and in all fields.”
Men in Midlife Crisis, Jim Conway, p. 84
2. Eliab, David’s brother, viewed him as just a mischievous child, full of pride.
I Sam.17: 28 “And Eliab his eldest brother heard when he spake unto the men; and Eliab’s anger was kindled against David, and he said, Why camest thou down hither? And with whom hast thou left those few sheep in the wilderness? I know thy pride, and the naughtiness of thine heart; for thou are come down that thou mightest see the battle.”
3. The fact is God doesn’t make His choice based on people’s opinions.
I Cor.1: 27 “But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;
28 And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:
29 That no flesh should glory in his presence.”
II. CONDITIONED UPON HEART RESPONSE
I Sam.16: 7c “…the Lord looketh on the heart.”
A. David’s Heart Was Fixed On God.
I Sam.17: 37 “David said moreover, The Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw of the bear, he will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the Lord be with thee.
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45 Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hat defied.”
Ps.57: 6 “They have prepared a net for my steps; my soul is bowed down: they have digged a pit before me, into the midst whereof they are fallen themselves. Selah.
7 My heart is fixed, O God, my heart is fixed: I will sing and give praise.”
NOTE: [1] To be fixed on God is to have faith toward Him, to trust Him with your life. C.H. Spurgeon said the following:
Believe or Reject
I would recommend you either believe God up to the hilt, or else not to believe at all. Believe this book of God, every letter of it, or else reject it. There is no logical standing place between the two. Be satisfied with nothing less than a faith that swims in the deeps of divine revelation; a faith that paddles about the edge of the water is poor faith at best. It is little better than a dry-land faith, and is not good for much. - C. H. Spurgeon
Source unknown
[2] Folks, God wants His people to stay fixed on Him. He wants us to look to Him for our every need. I believe this poem says it best.
But God
I know not, but God knows;
Oh, blessed rest from fear!
All my unfolding days
To Him are plain and clear.
Each anxious, puzzled “Why?”
From doubt or dread that grows,
Finds answer in this thought:
I know not, but He knows.
I cannot, but God can;
Oh, balm for all my care!
The burden that I drop
His hand will lift and bear.
Though eagle pinions tire,
I walk where once I ran,
This is my strength to know
I cannot, but He can.
I see not, but God sees;
Oh, all sufficient light!
My dark and hidden way
To Him is always bright.
My strained and peering eyes
May close in restful ease,
And I in peace may sleep;
I see not, but He sees.
Annie Johnson Flint
B. David’s Heart Was Focused On God.
1. David saw the hand of God in the starry sky.
Ps.19: 1 “The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handywork.”
2. David comprehended God’s love for him while watching his father’s sheep.
Ps.23: 1 “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
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6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”
3. David saw the power of God in an approaching rainstorm.
Ps.29: 10 “The Lord sitteth upon the flood; yea, the Lord sitteth King forever.”
NOTE: King David saw God all around him—in the everyday things of life. We’d all be a lot happier if we’d learn to do the same. C. S. Lewis once said, “Nature never taught me that there exists a God of glory and of infinite majesty. I had to learn that in other ways. But nature gave the word glory a meaning for me” (C. S. Lewis in The Four Loves).
C. David’s Heart Was In Fellowship With God.
Ps.19: 14 “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.”
Ps.27: 8 “When thou sadist, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, Lord, will I seek.”
Ps.139: 23 “Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
24 And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
III. CHARACTERIZED BY HEAVENLY RECOGNITION
NOTE: Alan Redpath has said:
We may not know the heart of another, but there are certain evidences by which a man whom God has chosen becomes known, because heaven has bestowed upon him certain qualities which mark him out.
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Unfortunately, how often we meet professing Christian people today who have no power in witness, no radiance in their faces, no sweetness in their personalities, no reality in their spiritual lives. They are indwelt by the Spirit of God, but they are not anointed. The Holy Spirit is in them, but not upon the in power and reality (Ibid, pg. 17).
A. David Was Controlled By The Spirit.
I Sam.16: 13 “Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the midst of his brethren: and the Spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward.”
B. David Was Contemptible To Saul.
1. Saul became jealous of David.
I Sam.18: 7 “And the women answered one another as they played, and said, Saul hath slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands.
8 And Saul was very wroth, and the saying displeased him; and he said, They have ascribed unto David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed but thousands: and what can he have more but the kingdom?
9 And Saul eyed David from that day and forward.”
2. Saul feared David because he walked with God.
I Sam.18: 12 “And Saul was afraid of David, because the Lord was with him, and was departed from Saul.
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14 And David behaved himself wisely in all his ways; and the Lord was with him.
15 Wherefore when Saul saw that he behaved himself very wisely, he was afraid of him.”
NOTE: [1] David may have only been a former shepherd boy, but he had learned to walk with God. In spite of Saul’s wealthy and prestigious background, he had never gained the spiritual depth of David.
Both in history and in life it is a phenomenon by no means rare to meet with comparatively unlettered people who seem to have struck profound spiritual depths while there are many highly educated people whom one feels are performing clever antics with their minds to cover a gaping hollowness that lies within (Herbert Butterfield).
Source unknown
[2] The issue as far as God’s choice is concerned, is not stature, status, or smarts. It is spirituality. Alan Redpath once said, “You can afford to be ten times less clever if only you are ten times more spiritual” (Alan Redpath, The Making Of A Man Of God, published by Fleming H. Revell Company, Old Tappan, New Jersey; pg. 134).
C. David Was Crowned As Israel’s Sovereign.
II Sam.5: 3 “So all the elders of Israel came to the king to Hebron; and king David made a league with them in Hebron before the Lord: and they anointed David king over Israel.”
Theme: God’s choice is:
I. CONTRARY TO HUMAN REASON
II. CONDITIONED UPON HEART RESPONSE
III. CHARACTERIZED BY HEAVENLY RECOGNITION
Be sure to check out the author’s May 12, 2011 book release entitled, "Meditations of the Heart: Thoughts on the Christian Life" at: http://www.amazon.com/Meditations-Heart-Thoughts-Christian-Life/dp/1453739238
