A Man After God’s Heart

Saul was the first king of Israel, and when God chose him to be king, he was a humble and righteous man.  But there came a time when Saul didn’t put God first anymore, and unfortunately, sometimes people do this.  They start well in their walk with God, and something happens over time.  They forget to keep God first and then stop being faithful in the little things that draw them closer to God.

1 Samuel 13:13

“13 And Samuel said to Saul, Thou hast done foolishly: thou hast not kept the commandment of the Lord thy God, which he commanded thee: for now would the Lord have established thy kingdom upon Israel for ever.

14 But now thy kingdom shall not continue: the Lord hath sought him a man after his own heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be captain over his people, because thou hast not kept that which the Lord commanded thee.”

Samuel the prophet went to Saul, the first king of Israel, and told him, “you will not be king anymore.  God has chosen a man after His own heart.”  Later we find out that the person God chose was David.  Many of us know the story of David, but while David was a superhero in many aspects, we need to remember that it was God who chose David to be great for a reason.  God chose David because he was humble and cared about the same things as God.  A shepherd by trade and a willing servant, David was also honest, straightforward, and a man of integrity.  But most importantly, David had a heart open toward God and wanted to please Him.

Now I’d like to talk to you a bit about some training God allowed David to have.  As a shepherd, David spent much time alone for long periods.  Even alone, David was continually seeking after God.  He didn’t care if anyone was watching.  He desired to please God.  David was faithful in what we would call routine or insignificant tasks.  For young people today, I call these little tasks chores, like keeping your room clean or finishing your homework.  The youngest of his brothers, David, was willing to do the small things even when no one was watching.  David was a young humble shepherd boy who mainly lived alone doing what was right before God.

One day David’s father gave him food to take to his brothers, who were at war with the Philistines.  He found his brothers’ camp, and on the opposite side of the wide-open valley, he saw the Philistines’ camp.  The Philistines had a giant named Goliath!  This giant was probably around three meters tall or more!  We don’t use meters in America, so I would say Goliath was about 9 feet and 9 inches tall, a huge guy!  The Israelites were scared because Goliath would come out and challenge someone to fight him every day!  David came into this situation and told his brothers, “I could take that guy.  He’s nobody!”  His brothers made fun of him and told him to go home, but David insisted, so the Israelites sent him to Saul, the king.

I want to read the interaction David had with King Saul.  It is important to look into David’s life to understand why God chose to use him.

1Sameul 17:34-37

“34 And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father’s sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock:

35 And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.

36 Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear: and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defied the armies of the living God.

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.”

You may ask the question,” where did David get so much courage?”  The answer is that He learned it all alone before God.  David remained responsible when no one was looking, and because of this, Goliath was no big deal to David.  Why?  Because David had killed lions and bears when no one was around just God.  Young people, this morning I want you to understand this basic fact.

“In the little things and the lonely places, is where we prove ourselves capable of the bigger things.“

This morning I also want to give you a verse to memorize.

Luke 16:10

“10 He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much.”

These are Jesus’s words challenging us to do the little things to be faithful before God even when no one is looking.  Because even though no one is looking, someone sees, and that someone is God.  He sees everything that we do.

David learned to serve God in the quiet times when no one was watching.  And when the time came for God to use him, God did use him in a mighty way.  So the king sent David out to fight this big giant, and when David confronted the giant, he only had a sling and five little stones as his defense.  The giant made fun of the boy who came to fight him, but David served a God bigger than any giant.  So, the three-meter tall giant came toward David, and David put a stone in his sling and slung as hard as he could, hitting the giant right in the middle of his forehead!  The giant fell to the ground with a loud thud, and David ran toward him, grabbed the giant’s sword, and cut off his head!  David wasn’t that old when this happened.  He was just a boy, maybe a little older than some of you and possibly younger than others.  But David had learned to listen to God in even the quiet times.  Because of this trait, God used David to destroy the Philistines and gave God’s people victory.

Young people, this morning, I want to challenge you to memorize the verse I gave you in Luke 16:10.  God calls each of you to be faithful in the little things.  So be faithful in your homework, your chores, and your prayer life, and be faithful in the important things that draw you closer to God.  If you are faithful in the little things, together you and God can conquer the big things.  In closing, let’s sing a song about David.

Only a Boy Named David

“Only a boy named David
Only a little sling
Only a boy named David
But he could pray and sing
Only a boy named David
Only a rippling brook
Only a boy named David
But five little stones he took

And one little stone went in the sling
And the sling went round and round
And one little stone went in the sling
And the sling went round and round
And round and round
And round and round
And round and round and round
And one little stone went up in the air
And the giant came tumbling down

RHT