David Was Called, and So Are You!?
Gettysburg Presbyterian Church
I Sam. 16:1 - 13
June 26, 2011
David C. Wright
A few years back I saw an Ameriquest commercial during the Super Bowl that I really enjoyed. In the ad, a man is preparing a romantic dinner. While he is chopping vegetables with a large knife, his white cat knocks a pan of tomato sauce off the counter and the cat falls into the mess. The man picks up the tomato-splattered cat just as his wife opens the door. Seeing him standing in the kitchen holding the cat dripping with red sauce with one hand and a large knife in the other, she wonders if they are having kitty casserole for supper! The point of the ad is that things aren’t always what they appear to be. And that is one of the main lessons in the story we’ll be reading from I Samuel.
We begin a series this morning on David, one of the most important characters in the entire Old Testament. Under his rule, Israel comes to the height of its national power, and the prophets said that the Messiah would be descended from him. You may recall that Jesus was sometimes called “Son of David.” As we begin today’s story, Saul is king of Israel, but he has recently disobeyed God, and become increasingly paranoid. So God rejected Saul as king, much to the dismay of the powerful prophet-judge Samuel, who had anointed Saul as king in the first place. We pick up the story in I Sam. 15:35.
35 Samuel did not see Saul again until the day of his death, but Samuel grieved over Saul. And the Lord was sorry that he had made Saul king over Israel.
1 The Lord said to Samuel, "How long will you grieve over Saul? I have rejected him from being king over Israel. Fill your horn with oil and set out; I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons."
2 Samuel said, "How can I go? If Saul hears of it, he will kill me." And the Lord said, "Take a heifer with you, and say, "I have come to sacrifice to the Lord.'
3 Invite Jesse to the sacrifice, and I will show you what you shall do; and you shall anoint for me the one whom I name to you."
4 Samuel did what the Lord commanded, and came to Bethlehem. The elders of the city came to meet him trembling, and said, "Do you come peaceably?"
5 He said, "Peaceably; I have come to sacrifice to the Lord; sanctify yourselves and come with me to the sacrifice." And he sanctified Jesse and his sons and invited them to the sacrifice. (I Sam. 15:35-16:5)
Samuel knows that God wants to replace Saul as king, but he’s having a hard time dealing with it, still grieving the loss of Israel’s first king. God, in essence, tells him, “Get over it!” and sends Samuel out to find and anoint the new king. That’s what the oil in the horn was for. Samuel resists. There is no vacancy in the office of king right now. Saul is still reigning, and he can be ruthless toward anyone he sees as a threat! To anoint someone else as king would be treason! Samuel is right to fear for his life with unstable, brutal Saul still on the throne.
So God gives him a misleading story to tell if he’s caught, something about offering a sacrifice. Some other day, we may want to deal with the issue of God’s involvement in a deceptive scheme, but we’ll just make note of it for now. Anyway, with his cover story firmly in place, Samuel obeys God and heads to Bethlehem, a small village about 6 miles south of Jerusalem. It’s located outside of Saul’s power base in the north of Israel and also outside of the territory where Samuel has usually judged. God is up to something entirely new here.
6 When Jesse and his sons came, Samuel looked on Eliab and thought, "Surely the Lord's anointed is now before the Lord."
7 But the Lord said to Samuel, "Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart."
8 Then Jesse called Abinadab, and made him pass before Samuel. He said, "Neither has the Lord chosen this one."
9 Then Jesse made Shammah pass by. And he said, "Neither has the Lord chosen this one."
10 Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel, and Samuel said to Jesse, "The Lord has not chosen any of these." (I Sam. 16:6-10)
Jesse’s sons are paraded one by one in front of Samuel, yet God chooses none of them! Let’s focus on verse 7. After Samuel is impressed by Jesse’s oldest son, Eliab, the Lord says, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; for the Lord does not see as mortals see; they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” I’ve thought about making this my “life verse”- “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature!” Perhaps I could have it printed on my business card and hand it to people that I meet.
We live in a society that places a huge value on appearances, don’t we? We spend $7 billion each year on cosmetics. Cosmetic surgery is now widely accepted and used, even by very young women as well as men. The weight loss industry makes huge profits, trying to help us look better. And many young women seem driven to anorexia or bulimia in a vain quest to have the perfect body. And have you seen websites like “HotorNot.com”? Thousands of people submit pictures of themselves so perfect strangers can rate their attractiveness! Are we really that insecure about our looks? Apparently we are. And for some good reasons!
Dr. James Dobson, writing in his book, Hide or Seek, tells of an incident that happened to his daughter, who was 3-4 years old at the time. She was an attractive little girl, and in public places people would often go out of their way to speak to her and entertain her. One day she took a hard fall and landed on her face. It became swollen and bruised for a few days. Dr. Dobson noticed that people reacted to her in an entirely new way, no longer seeking her out to interact with her, but averting their eyes and ignoring her. Attractiveness determined how people responded to this little girl. Unfair, but true.
Studies have shown that beautiful babies are touched more than less attractive ones. Good-looking children receive more attention in school. Attractive women and men are more likely to be hired for a job, and they are given more promotions and pay raises. They’re even thought to be more intelligent, more spiritual, and nicer than less-attractive people. We are preoccupied with physical attractiveness, rewarding those who have it and penalizing those who don’t. But God has a different standard.
“...they look on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.” The heart speaks of our character. It speaks of our sensitivity to others. It speaks of our deepest loyalties. And it speaks of our relationship with God, our spiritual strength. Although assessing character is very difficult to do, as we will see later in David’s story, it’s still an important issue in choosing leaders today. I remember a few years back when a church member called me, looking for someone to fill an important job in his office. He wondered if I knew anyone who was looking for work. I asked him about the qualifications for the job. “Well,” he replied, “Character is number one. If they don’t have character, they can have all the talent in the world, but I don’t want them.”
Character and virtue are where it’s at. And according to I Samuel, that’s what God was looking for in a leader. It’s what we look for when we select leaders here at GPC. When Lou and I train our nominating committees, we begin with the biblical qualifications for leadership, which center on character. While we do want people with gifts for leadership, we tell our nominating committees to begin with character. If character is missing, giftedness means nothing.
Let’s read the end of the story.
11 Samuel said to Jesse, "Are all your sons here?" And he said, "There remains yet the youngest, but he is keeping the sheep." And Samuel said to Jesse, "Send and bring him; for we will not sit down until he comes here."
12 He sent and brought him in. Now he was ruddy, and had beautiful eyes, and was handsome. The Lord said, "Rise and anoint him; for this is the one."
13 Then Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him in the presence of his brothers; and the spirit of the Lord came mightily upon David from that day forward. Samuel then set out and went to Ramah. (I Sam. 16:11-13)
A surprise choice, a true dark horse, emerges. In ancient times birth order was given tremendous weight. The first-born son had special rights and privileges. He became the leader of his family or clan. A last-born son like David was considered such an unlikely choice that he wasn’t even brought in with the rest of the sons; He had to be retrieved from the menial job of tending sheep! But he was the one God chose. David was anointed as the next king of Israel, and then presumably was sent back out to watch the sheep!
We should point out one little irony here at the end of the story. Notice what it says about David- that he was handsome, ruddy, and had beautiful eyes! I thought God looked on the heart! Well God may, but the narrator certainly notices the outward appearance. It’s almost as if he can’t help himself and has to comment on David’s striking appearance. Yes, David has it all. Great looks and good character. Later on we’ll see he has musical and poetic abilities, good political instincts, strong courage, and he’s a man of great faith besides. David has it all. Except for one thing, and he’s given that, too!
We’re told that the Spirit fell on David “mightily” from that day forward. This is the way the Spirit worked in the Old Testament. It would descend on someone, equipping and strengthening them to do special work for the Lord. The Spirit fell on military leaders, kings, prophets, and judges for specific times and purposes.
But that has changed! Today the Spirit no longer empowers just a few special leaders. At Pentecost all the followers of Jesus Christ were filled with the Spirit, who gave them the gifts and abilities needed to serve God and the world, and equipped and strengthened each of them to do God’s work. And the Spirit empowers Jesus’ followers today. Something that was once reserved for kings and other great spiritual leaders has now been opened up to us all! Sometimes we fail to grasp the wonder and honor of that gift of the Spirit.
If you’ve got any abilities- an aptitude for science or math, an ability to work with your hands, musical or artistic gifts, management skills, a talent for speaking in public, a knack for making people feel comfortable in your presence- if you’ve got any abilities- thank God for them. And remember that God’s Spirit can take and use those aptitudes to do great things in your family, workplace, community, and church.
And, if you are facing any challenging situations- whatever comes to mind just now!- remember that this is an opportunity for the Spirit to empower you to be an agent for good in that situation. An agent of forgiveness or healing or reconciliation or justice or whatever. The same Spirit of God which came upon David and empowered him to do great things- that same Spirit resides in all followers of Jesus Christ to empower us to do great things for God!
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