Devotions

Matters of the Heart

“The Lord does not look at the things man looks at.  Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”  1 Samuel 16:7

Two local preachers stood by the side of the road holding up a sign that said, “The end is near, turn yourself around before it’s too late.”  They planned to hold up the sign to each passing car.  “Leave us alone you religious nuts!” yelled the first driver as he sped by.  From around the curve they heard a big splash.  “Do you think,” said one preacher to the other, “we should just put up a sign that says ‘bridge out’ instead?”  You know, sometimes the direct approach is the best approach.  That’s the approach God takes with us as he goes right to the heart of the matter.

 

Our minds can imagine anything.  Our minds according to Scripture can run away with imagination.  That’s why it’s important to stop and realize that God does not view things the way we do.  If I were to ask the question, what does it take to really be somebody, to achieve greatness, what would be your answer?  I guess it would depend on who you ask.  If you were to ask the Hollywood crowd they might say a pretty face.  If you were to ask a politician in D.C. they might answer connections, or knowing the right people.  If you were to go to Wall Street they would say financial clout and leverage.  If you went to the University I’m sure their answer would be education.   But once again the answer that really matters to any question, is what does God say.  Well God made it clear to Samuel in the choosing of a king that He does not see things the way you and I do.  With us - outer appearance becomes pretty important.  With God - you gotta have heart.

God says that being somebody, or achieving greatness begins not by reputation, not by appearance, but by the heart. If you want to be somebody in this life it is a matter of having a heart for God.  The context of our verse in Samuel is in the choosing of David as King.  How appropriate the Lord says to Samuel what he does in our text because God confirms that statement in Acts 13:22 - God says David is a man after my own heart.  There are several things we could say about David if we gave him a spiritual E.K.G., but let me call your attention to one.  Consider David’s heart when it came to sin.  The issue is repentance. David was a sinner, as a matter of fact David was a big sinner.  He committed adultery, murder, and many other sins.  David blew it big time.  But when he was confronted with his sin do you know what David said.  Psalms 51: 2-3  Wash away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin.  For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.  How awesome is that response?  He didn’t deny it, he didn’t excuse it, he didn’t rationalize it, he confessed it.  He repented of it, and he was honest with God.  David was a great sinner, but he was also a great repenter.  The lesson to pull from this story is that you don’t have to be perfect to have a heart for God.  But you certainly have to be repentant.  So what about your heart when it comes to sin.  Can you see what your sin cost our heavenly father.  A repentant heart is a heart after God’s own heart.