"GOD MEASURES THE HEART"
Introduction:
I DON’T LIKE FATHER’S DAY!
Let Me Be Honest And Get That Out of The Way Right Now
Father’s day, for a preacher is a royal pain in the neck. If the preacher is a male, that is. And especially if the preacher is a Father. And it could be because it’s just too close to home. I can talk to you about God because I know God. I can talk to you about Jesus because Jesus is Lord Of my life. I can tell you about the power of the Holy Spirit, because I have experienced that power. I can describe to you the life of a consecrated Christian. But when it comes to talking about Fathers, about what the perfect father should look Like, or act like...I draw a blank. Perhaps because I don’t know anything about perfect Fathers. As much as I love my Father, he is not Perfect. He made many mistakes. And as much as I convinced myself that I would be better at Fathering than my Father was. I’m not sure I’m any better. In fact I may be worse. I’ve made many mistakes. And I Imagine That A Great Deal Of You Father’s Here Today Feel The Same Way I Do. Imagine having to look your kids in the eyes as Grown ups. Knowing that they know all your mistakes, all your secrets, all the times you lost your temper, all the times you put work before the family, all the times you were not there for them. They look you in the eye as you talk about being The perfect Father. That’s what it’s like for preachers on Father’s day. So to say I feel inadequate on this day is an Understatement. Now It Could Be That Part Of The Problem Is Unrealistic
Expectations. And again, in that area I’m sure I’m not alone. Truth is, the higher we place someone on a pedestal, the more it will hurt when they fall.
There are few of us in life who have not watched
our father’s fall. There are few, if any, father’s who have not fallen in the eyes of their children, at least once. Yes, It is Easy As A Father To Disappoint Your Children. It’s easy to disappoint yourself. And the disappointment doesn’t stop with Fathers, does it?
Brothers, Sisters, Mothers, Grandparents, Friends...
They all have the potential to let us down, To be less than we expect them to be. And when they fail to "Measure up" to our expectations of them... Hearts are broken, Relationships are damaged, And perhaps that is the problem... Perhaps we look at each other through the wrong Eyes. Perhaps we measure each other with the Wrong standards. What If we measured success and failure they way God measured success and failure.
Body:
SAMUEL HAD HIS OWN MEASURE OF SUCCESS
Samuel Thought He Knew What The Measure Of A Good King Was. He had already seen a failed King. King Saul, the first King of Israel was a failed King.
He was prone to temper tantrums. He put his own interests before the interests of his people. But most important Saul Did not have a heart for God.
So the scriptures tell us the Spirit rejected Saul
As King. In this text God has called Samuel to anoint a new king, A king who would have a heart for God.
God has sent Samuel to choose this new King from among the sons of Jesse of Bethlehem. And in todays text, Samuel is standing with Jesse as the sons are paraded in front of him. And These Boys Looked Like Leadership Material To Samuel. Huge hunks of prime beef, Macho men who could have stepped into World
Wrestling Federation ring With Steve Austin or the Rock Any day of the week. These guys were manly men’s men. These were the kind of men who would kill wild animals with a knife And then pick the bear met from between Their teeth with the blade. They were not the kind of men who worried about Being sensitive or nurturing. They weren’t the kind of men who would sit through "Sleepless in Seattle" Or "You’ve got mail"
These were the kind of men who never, a day in their life Watched Oprah! These were Type A, Agressive ,Assertive, Take no prisoners, Leaders!
And Then There Was David....The only sissy in the bunch. There was David singing songs, Writing poetry,
Playing with the lambs on the back forty. Just a sweet, somewhat wimpy, little kid. And yet as much a weakling as this boy was in The eyes of Samuel, In God’s eyes, he was a King! Why? Because God does not measure a man the way we do. God does not look at the things we look at. But the Lord measures the heart!
NOW THAT’S A GOOD LINE ISN’T IT?
For Some Of You I Could Leave It Right There And
Get Away Fairly Easy. God looks at the heart. Just have a good heart and you’re a good father, You’re a good person. Except it’s not that easy is it!? One problem of this text is that this particular scripture does not tell us what exactly the Lord looks for in the heart. In fact there were some aspects of Fatherhood that Saul had that David did not have. If We Measure A Father By His Children Then Saul Was much More Successful Than David Was.
Saul’s Son was Jonathan who was David’s best Friend. Saved David’s life countless times and died in battle a hero. Loved his father in spite of all his father’s weaknesses.
David’s son was Absalom. Absalom murdered a man in cold blood. Ran away from Israel in disgrace. Returned only to try to take his father’s Kingdom from him. And died a shameful death of a traitor.
Cursed his father whenver he got the chance.
No The Measure of A Man Cannot Be His Children. Because God choose David over Saul. Father’s If You Think That You’re A Bad Father Whenever Your Kids Are Out Of Control. Take comfort in the thought that God had problems with his kids. Think about Adam and Eve.
First Thing God said was "Don’t" "Don’t what?", Adam replied. "Don’t eat the forbidden fruit!" "Forbidden fruit! We Got forbidden fruit?" "Hey Eve! We got forbidden fruit!" "No Way! "Yes Way!" "DON’T EAT THAT FRUIT!", said God "Why!" "Because I’m your Father and I said so!", said God Wondering now why he hadn’t stopped after making elephants. A few minutes later God saw his kids having an Apple break and he was angry. "Didn’t I tell you not to eat the fruit?", the first Father asked. "Uh, Huh!", Adam replied. "Then why did you?" "I dunno", Eve answered. "She started it", Adam said. "DID NOT!" "DID TOO!" "DID NOT!" And God decided that God had "had it" with both of them
and their punishment was that Adam and Eve should have children of their own! The pattern has been set and it has never changed!
Yes, the measure of anyone is not necessarily In how successful Or how respectful of authority their children are. True, children are often a reflection of their parents. But children, like their parents will make mistakes. They will make mistakes as children. They will make mistakes as parents.
Conclusion:
GOD SEES THE HEART!
God Measures The Heart!
I think that often Father’s are measured by the
Standards of Mothers. And yet God created them very differently. Think about the different way that a Mother or a Father will carry a baby. Father’s when carrying a small child, tend to hold them face forward. Psychologists call this the football position. The buttocks of the child is on the Father’s upturned palm, The body tucked between the father’s bicep, and the side of his chest. Mother’s on the other hand carry the child, with the child’s body facing into the mother’s chest. The child looking over the mother’s shoulder, gives the child ready access to the mother’s body and space. Now this is not something I made up, but this was observed by Dr, Kyle Pruit in his book, entitled "Fatherhood".
Now here’s another interesting observation. The Father’s position gives the child the same view of the world as the Father sees. The child sees the world as it’s coming. In the mother’s position, with the child looking over the shoulder. The child has a view of the world the mother has just passed through.
Dr. Pruitt goes on to say that neither of these carrying positions are better than the other, just different. And that both views of the world are important to a child’s development. But then he shared something else that he discovered. Both parents, whether left handed or not, 95% of the time,
Would carry their child on the left side, Next to their heart...
I Can’t Tell You What It Takes To Be A Perfect Father
Because I’m Not One. But I do know that a Father cannot parent children the way a Mother can. Because they’re not Mothers, nor were they meant to be. Father’s are generally not as patient as Mothers.
They can be workaholics. They are not nearly as nurturing. And as a whole are not as effective showing their feelings as mothers. But of course, most of this you already know. And I imagine that to this point I’ve not been much help to Fathers or children, On this Father’s Day. So let me stop telling you what I Don’t know And share with you what I do know.
GOD MEASURES THE HEART, THE LORD LOOKS AT THE HEART
David Often Failed As A Father and A Husband
But David had a heart for God
David loved God with all his heart
God saw this in David and God loved David
And God worked in and through David
And David was great because of what God did through him! And this news can be as good for us as it was
For David. You See, I Know I’ve Sometimes Failed As A Father. I’ve failed as a husband. I’ve failed as a man
There are many days when I don’t know what to do, and I feel unworthy, Because I’m not perfect, And I don’t know all the answers.
But here’s the thing....I Know Someone Who Does
I know someone who is perfect. I know someone who never fails as a parent, a friend, or a father
And here’s the way I figure it. If I can love him with all of my heart. If I can allow Him to work through me and my Life...Maybe my kids can some day look at my life and recognize the great things that God did Through me. And maybe then, because of Jesus
I can measure up!
