So today, we've looked a lot about what it means to have a godly character, isn't it? And that is the important part about serving in the church, is having a godly character. And my title for today, if you're taking notes, Is this phrase, a man after God's heart, question mark. A man after God's heart, question mark. And Jason is going to read just one verse for now from 1 Samuel 13, Let's read a verse from 1 Samuel chapter 13. And verse 14. But now your kingdom will not be long. Jehovah has sought a man according to his heart, whom Jehovah has appointed to be a prince over his people, because you have not kept what Jehovah has commanded you. So here's the question, was David a man after God's own heart? And your answer is probably, yes. But what does that mean? I've been thinking about this phrase almost since last year's conference. Because we do know it has something to do with our character. But this phrase about David has been really enshrined as a glowing devotional description of David. We usually take it to mean that David was a man who pursued after God's heart. Or that David loved and valued the same things God does. Because that's the way we usually use that expression. At least in English. But we say things like this. You know, this Jason, he's a man after my own heart. Because he loves barbecue chicken. Especially the barbecue chicken that you eat with your gloves. Or he loves golf like I do. Or he likes the same books as I do. And so we say, Jason is a man after my own heart. But now, with the narrative of the life of David, And the spirit of David's Psalms, it does testify that he was such a man. The biblical evidence is obvious. It's all true. But is what we mean by this phrase Actually, the meaning in the context. Or have we adopted or adapted a common translation to mean something that is true but not the original intent. So to get around that, some people say things like this. Well, David did struggle with sin, just like all of us do, but one thing he didn't struggle with at least written down in the Bible, is he never engaged in direct idolatry compared to the lives of other saints Comparado con otros santos, con la vida de otros santos, we do read of times where they did flirt with idolatry. Nosotros leemos en la escritura de esos otros santos que coqueteaban, coquetearon, llegaron a coquetear con la idolatría. They regarded idols as being predominant in their life. Y ellos se referían a los ídolos como cosas predominantes en sus vidas. But not so of David. Pero no así con David. His heart is completely devoted to Yahweh. He's never distracted from Yahweh through idolatry. So that's why he's a man after God's own heart. Well, again, that may be true. But how about the examples of later kings? Who also had devotion to Yahweh. Hezekiah. Josiah. The Bible tells us that they put away the high places. and they destroyed the idolatrous, cultic structure that Israel was engaged in. Those men were also devoted to Yahweh and reformed the worship practices. And yet it's not said of them that they were men after God's own heart. Or we could say that this phrase has something to do with, it has nothing to do with the lack of idolatry per se. But maybe people say, well, it's because a life of morality. But there's a problem with that, too. Because we have other Old Testament characters who have the same or a better moral character than David. Think of Daniel. He had quite the trials given to him, brought into exile, given temptations and opportunities to sin, But he is completely devoted to the Lord. So much so, he ends up getting thrown in the lion's den. But it's not said of him, he was a man after God's own heart. And again, what do we do with men like Elijah, Elisha, Moses, Abraham? It's not said of any of them. So it can't have anything necessarily to do with morality. So then, what does this phrase mean? Well, what's the context? When Israel first demanded a king, they wanted one like all the other nations. It's recorded in the book of Samuel, Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah and said to him, Look, you are old and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the other nations. A king who would rule them like all the other nations. And it's repeated a few verses later. so that they could be like all the other nations. So literally it says this. Appoint for us a king to judge us like all the nations. And I'm not a Hebrew scholar. But apparently those two words, like and all, they're quite attached to each other. So we get the thought like this. They wanted a king in accordance with according to what the other nations had. And what we know, unfortunately, that's exactly what they got. The best Israel had to offer. Yes, King Saul. Heads above all the others. And it turns out he would be like all the other kings. According to all the other nations. But when Saul failed to keep the commandment of the Lord, God announced that his dynasty would not continue. And God sought a replacement. And he commanded that this new replacement would be a captain or a leader over his people. And again, in Hebrew, There's a dialogue going on here. Words are similar, but opposite. And so they wanted a king to be like this, but now God says this. He's gonna pick a king. And this king will be like what he wants. So the Lord sought for himself a man according to his heart. Israel insisted on a king for us. Israel insisted on a king for them, a king for us. But now God appoints a king like him. And now, thankfully, only two years into Saul's reign, God will act. And just for a side note for a minute, maybe you never thought about this. Israel's desire for a king was not wrong. The monarchy was not the problem. I just learned this. God had intended all along to establish a monarchy. Genesis 17, verse 6. God says to Abraham, I will make nations of you and kings shall come from you. Genesis 49 verse 10. The scepter shall not depart from Judah. The symbol of a king, yes. Deuteronomy 17. There's a whole section about principles about governing kings. But let me read a few verses there. But listen, whom the Lord your God chooses, one from among your brethren, you shall set as king over you. So it wasn't wrong. But notice who's in control of that statement. The Lord. The Lord was going to do it. And so the problem with Israel with Saul was their insistence. They demanded a king. And the timing. They demanded a king now. And of course Israel's motive. They wanted a king like all the other nations. And so it was a blatant rejection of God's leadership. And really of God himself. But God acquiesced to their demand. They gave him King Saul, the king they wanted, disaster. But now this time with David, it would be different. This time God would give them a king he wanted. And that's what's going on in 1 Samuel 13. It's basically comparing Saul as a failure, as king, and David as the true king God chose. So going back to my statement, a man after God's own heart, we have to say that David is showing to be a man like that. So that's some context. But in my studies, I found a few problems with that, as if it was all about David's character compared to Saul, as though his godly character is why he became king. Well, the first thing is the timeline. It's obvious that God is not describing David's character directly. Because this phrase, in verse 14, occurs in the second year of Saul's reign. About 1049 B.C. How old is David? The Bible doesn't say an answer to that. He's not born yet. I didn't know that. David has not yet been born. The point is he hasn't shown any character. So it can't be about that. Now, there is some debate about the timeline. Some say that it could have happened when he was a young boy yet at home. But the point is still, he was unknown. not yet anointed, much less any indication about becoming a king. So that's kind of the first problem. The second thing is the translations that we have. Most of them say the Lord has found a man after his own heart. And it's kind of unhelpful because we can get the idea as if God had been looking around for a replacement. And now, oh, oh, David, he's got God's attention. You're laughing so you see the problem with that. Yes. We'll talk a little bit more about that later because that has spiritual implications for us. And later on, the third thing, later on in 2 Samuel 7, The language construction duplicates the very same construction here in 1 Samuel. Now stay with me here. There, the pronouns are just changed to your and his instead of his. So there, David himself exalts in God's gracious choice. That's when God comes to him with his covenant promise, the establishment of his kingdom and his house. I could go down a rabbit trail here, but I have to be careful. That word house is very important. But now, all I'm saying is, is that David exalts in God's gracious choice of him. According to your own heart, have you done all these things? Clearly, in that context, It's God's act of choosing David. It's not about David himself. There's one more passage I could turn to to prove that language. Jeremiah 3 says, return, O backsliding children, says the Lord, I will give you shepherds according to my heart. who will feed you with knowledge and understanding. Isn't that amazing? So my point today is not that the heart of how we usually understand that phrase, but it's not that it's meant wrong, not as an approval or endorsement of David's heart, but it could mix up our theology. Listen to what one man says about this. This Hebrew phrase is best understood not as an approval or endorsement of David's heart, that is his godliness or other qualifications, but rather a technical term referring to divine choosing. This is important because it indicates that the election of David to kingship was totally outside of his own merits, his own scheming, his own plotting. It's a theological point about God, not primarily a devotional description of David. And if we think about this clearly, it's always about God first, all through the Bible. It's the truth about any believer, whether a patriarch, a king, or you, or me. The Bible almost right at the beginning, the Bible right at the beginning, in chapter 3 of Genesis, we have the fall. And therefore, God's right to condemn everybody. All people have sinned in Adam and come under the sentence of the curse and eternal death. And God would not be unjust if it had been his will, if it had been his will, to leave the entire human race in sin, under the curse, and to condemn them on account of our sin. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. The wages of sin is death. We're all in the same boat, by nature. But God showed his love, sent his only begotten son into the world, so that whoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life. And God has sent his messengers to proclaim this wonderful message to the people that he wills and at the time that he wills in order that people may be brought to faith by the preaching of the gospel People are called to repentance and faith in Christ crucified. It is by grace you have been saved. Through faith, this is not from yourselves. It is a gift of God. The fact that some receive God's gift of faith comes from his eternal decree in eternity past. Acts 15 says that all of his works are known to God from eternity. So God graciously softens hearts. However hard However hard they are, those hearts, of certain people, his chosen ones, and he inclines them to believe. Doesn't this gospel truth provide holy and godly souls comfort? God chooses who he wills. He demonstrates his mercy to the praise of the riches of God's glorious grace. So choosing anyone starts with the grace and mercy of the Lord. Think of what David says, of himself. Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me. Create in me a new heart, O David. No, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me. So this choosing by God, think this through straight now. is not on the basis of God seeing some faith coming up in you. You know, Jason, he's going to be a model of obedience. He's going to have all these godly qualities. Therefore, I'm going to choose him. No. It's about God looking past through us. Let me say it this way. It's not based on a condition in the person. But it's for a purpose. of faith, of the obedience of faith, of holiness, and so on. So God's election or choosing is the source of every saving good. And the cause is exclusively God's good pleasure. Okay, so now we have that clear. Faith, holiness, and other saving gifts, and at last, eternal life itself, they flow from this choosing. As one confession says, Fruits and the effects of being chosen. Think of what Paul says in Ephesians 1. He chose us, not because we were, but so that we should be. holy and blameless before him in love. Wow, what a lot of thinking to do about that phrase. And why are you bringing it to a men's conference? We're not kings. We're probably not gonna be kings, even though I'd like to be king sometime. I just wanted to make this point clear, because honestly, I've only ever heard that phrase, look at David, a man after God's own heart, Go and do likewise. That's not helpful. It's not about David's innate character. And why I wanted to bring that up. Because how depressing it could be if all we're told is to look at David And be like him. And we assess ourselves. Well, he was a righteous king and I'm not. He was a psalm writer and I'm not. How depressing. I can't attain that. Or on the other side, we could point his failures. I've never done that. I'm better than he is. We have to understand it's about God's work in us. Ephesians 2, verse 10, for we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them. See how clear things become? If we take that phrase and work it through properly, it's God working in us. But with all this understanding now, the question comes, does this rob us of some devotional description of David? Absolutely not. I know that sounds contradictory. But God has given us examples in the scriptures. We can and must learn from God's work in his people. Like Moses. Think of many men and women that we see God working in. Those two words, the fruits and effects. Isn't that great? Keep those two words in mind. God working and shows up with fruits and effects. And that's what we can learn from David. Just a few things in closing. The first thing is, is that he absolutely loved God's word. He absolutely loved God's word. And we learn a lot of that from the book of the Psalms. Because he opens up his own life for us to examine. Yes, his life was a picture of success and failure. He was far from perfect, but we do see that his heart was pointed toward God. And writing in all these different times of life, how often doesn't he mention how much he loved God's word? It's not hard to see his complete adoration for God's word. He meditated on it. And then God granted David understanding and wisdom and godliness Through daily meditation. How about us? Do we love God's word? We would do well to follow his example. For I delight in your commands because I love them, David says. That's the first thing. The second thing is, is after he sinned, David truly repented. And some of his sins are recorded in 2 Samuel. Adultery, lying, murder. Even the mighty ones fall hard. The mighty ones fall hard. But here's the point, when he was confronted by the Lord, through the prophet Nathan, what was his confession? I have sinned against the Lord. Have mercy on me, O God. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity. And so are we quick to repent? with God and with others. The third thing that's closely tied to that, he was truly thankful. He says in Psalm 26, I washed my hands in innocence and go to your altar, O Lord. proclaiming aloud your praise, and telling of all your wondrous deeds. David's life was marked by seasons of sin, of fear and despair, and times of great peace and prosperity. But in all the seasons of life, he never forgot to thank the Lord for everything he had. This is truly one of David's godliest characters. Though he was a king, small k, He gave thanks to the King of Kings. And as followers of King Jesus Christ, we would do well to follow David's lead of offering praise and thanksgiving to our Lord. For him choosing us in salvation, forgiveness of sin, and the gifts that he works in us. Is that how we think about it? Thank you, Lord, for allowing me to serve. Do we think about that? Well, David also shows his absolute faith in God. And there's fruit and effect of that faithfulness. Just think of young David, fearless before the giant. But what is his confession before he kills Goliath? It's a confession of faith. The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear. will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine. David was fully aware that God was in control of his life. And he had, really think about it, he had amazing faith in that situation. Who of us would have went over to the valley to fight that giant? More than likely, you were going to get killed. But he seems to go with such calm confidence. It's because David knew early on in his life that God was to be trusted. And obeyed. This is not the first time David faces this kind of situation. Remember what he said? The way the Lord delivered me from the lion and the bear. He's going to deliver me now. What courage. But what we're about to see in public, in a public battle, what we're about to see in him facing the giant, in that spectacular public battle, David had learned to do this in secret. Psalm 34, 15. The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, and his ears toward their cry. And we all live Coram Dale. Before the face of God. So don't try to do in public what we don't learn to do in private. What Paul's exhortation to young Timothy in 1 Timothy 4. Keep a close watch on others. Keep a close watch on yourself. And because of the preparation David did in secret, he was able to face the giant. And there's an application for us. The temptation to serve only when it's exciting. We only want to get involved if the service is fun. Or to be around people that please God more. High profile pastors, public figures. How often doesn't the Bible tell us not to look for those things that are exalted? Be willing for God's sake to do the jobs no one else may want to do. The least significant. That no one else considers important. Even David's father didn't think he was important. Wow, he's just a shepherd. But God was preparing him, training him to be a true leader, kind of in secret. It appeared to be insignificant. But never underestimate our character, our godly character in secret. Look at the fruits and effects that God is doing in you. And be faithful. David showed his faith. In his faithfulness, all the things that you're called to do, do it as Colossians 3 says, whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not men. In our faith and faithfulness, Are we serving according to God's heart? And the last thing, brothers, is that David was obedient to the will of God. On one hand, we had Saul disobeying orders from the Lord. And then his heart began to wander farther and farther. And his actions reflected that. It's interesting in the New Testament, when Paul writes to Titus, he describes a similar kind of people. They profess to know God, deny him. They were insubordinate, disobedient, defiant, not listening to God's instruction. Paul knew his Old Testament and he also seen things don't change. We need to be obedient to the will of God. So there's Saul. The other hand, we have David, who is willing to live and reign for God. So what does it mean to be a man after God's own heart? It seems to me, one man says, it seems to me It is that you are a person whose life is in harmony with the Lord. What is important to him is important to you. What burdens him burdens you. When he says, go to the right, you go to the right. When he says, stop that in your life, When God says, stop that in your life, we stop it. When He says, this is wrong and I want you to change, we come to terms with that because we have a heart for God. And if we see there's anything in the Bible that we read, and our life isn't lining up with that, We don't adjust the Bible. We change and adjust ourselves. David set his heart to obey God's will. As Jesus confirmed later in John 14, anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. So that's it, a man after God's own heart. I love this man, David. About the last three years, I've been studying him, mainly because I've been studying the book of the Psalms, which automatically leads you to David's life and God's covenant with David. I can't wait to get to heaven. and ask David, what did you see? What did you know? He was an amazing man. But again, let's keep the foundation straight. He had a special calling. And so do some of you. Different callings. Young men, maybe you want to be deacons. Men serving in the church. Serving at home. Raising children. And then, of course, deacons. Pastors and elders. Missionaries. Yes, God will use us all differently. But let's take comfort that it's God first. Comfort and encouragement. It's not about us. It's about Him. Oh, the depths of the riches, both of the wisdom and the knowledge of God. How unsearchable are his judgments and his ways beyond tracing out. For who has known the mind of the Lord? Who has been his counselor? or who has first given to God that God should repay him. For from him, through him, and to him are all things. To him be the glory forever. Amen. Romans 11. Let's pray together. Lord, what can we say about your goodness toward us? It's past tracing out. Who can figure it out? As Paul says, who can know the mind of the Lord? And yet you have revealed many things to us. to us who you have chosen for salvation and to live out a life of good works and of service. Lord, we pray that you would help us to keep this order straight. It is you working in and through us to the praise and glory of your name. Lord, be with each man younger or older here, and may we encourage each of each other y que nos animemos los unos a los otros. Cuando veamos los frutos y los efectos en cada uno de nosotros, que reconozcamos que es solamente obra de Dios. Lord, bless us in this way we pray. In Jesus' name we pray, amen.