If you ask any Israeli today who the most beloved and respected king who ever sat in the throne of Israel was; your answer will always be one man, David. David is popular amongst the world and Christians alike!
If you watch a game and there's a team that is small in comparison to the opposing team, many times you'll hear the commentator say, "Folks, this is a true David and Goliath scenario this very moment!" David's fame is known throughout the whole world. But it wasn't always that way. There was a time when David couldn't be remembered by people who should have remembered him! I can think of one instance in particular. It's kind of interesting when one reads the scriptures, and many take it as a discrepancy; but in 1 Samuel 16, Saul is haunted by evil spirits. The reason is because the Spirit of The Lord departed from Saul because of Saul's rebellion. It gets so bad that someone devises a plan to have a skilled harpist come and ease Saul of the evil spirits tormenting him. So they call for David, and in verse 21 it says, "And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him greatly; and he became his armourbearer. And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favour in my sight. And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him." Notice carefully the key phrases underlined in the text. Saul "loved him greatly." Now notice what Saul says in the following chapter after David killed Goliath, "And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell. And the king said, Enquire thou whose son the stripling is. And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite." This was not a mistake in the Bible. The Bible has no mistakes. It's infallible. After all the times David spent playing the harp for Saul, and even after begging Saul to permit him to go down and fight Goliath; Saul completely forgot who David was! Have you ever met a well known person. A man who's written several books, pastors a large church, runs a successful college? You already guessed who I'm talking about, some of you! I can think of my experience with Paul Chappell, Clarence Sexton, or Ian Paisley. I'll share the story about Ian Paisley. I remember when I met Ian Paisley for the first time at the Snack Shop of Bob Jones University. I had no idea who he was. But he was sitting there all by himself at one of the tables. And I, being the guy who always sat with people I never met before, came up and said, "Sir, do you mind if I share this table with you?" "SURE!" He said with a seemingly strong Irish accent. I asked him what part of Ireland he was from and he told me how he grew up in Ballymena and how he was a preacher. I asked him for how long, and he told me. And then he said, "But I also got involved in politics four years later." Now keep in mind, I had no idea who he was! He then went on to tell me about his experience as DUP prime minister and the many run ins with the IRA, and other factions opposing his stands. I was dumbfounded! I then said, "What was your name again?" And the moment I asked that, I was surrounded by laughter. I was so embarrassed, as Dr. Paisley put his hand on my shoulder and said, "Son, you're the first person I've met in a while who didn't know who I was!" Some of you may not know who he was, but the point is, the next year that he spoke at the Bob Jones University Bible Conference, he had no idea who I was. Such was the case with David. He was not popular at all in this passage. We look at him as popular because we know about what he would do in the future. But even at that point David still was not popular. Even when Samuel came to annoying one of the sons of Jesse king, David was nowhere to be found. His ratings were low. I have an account with LinkedIn, which is a professional social network. And that thing has a rank level that shows you how interesting your are to professionals versus the connections you have. David would be in the low percentage if he were signed on with LinkedIn. There was nothing much to be said of David. Playing a harp doesn't get you places, and having a beautiful countenance doesn't either. So Jesse calls all of his boys in, and Samuel stands before Eliab and says, "Oh, THIS young man has got to be the next king! I mean he's smart, he fights with Saul, he's handsome...KING is written all over him! But God says...no. Samuel then approaches Abinadab and says, "Wow! Look at the guns on this guy! I mean this guy's muscles will take up the whole battlefield. He's not as handsome as Eliab, but he's ripped!" And God says...nope. Samuel goes through the whole line of boys. And God said something to Samuel right after the first guy, Eliab. In 1 Samuel 16:7 He told him, "Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart." Well, when Samuel got down to the last son of Jesse, God said...no way! I love what Samuel asks Jesse in the Bible, "Are here all thy children?" I'm even amused at how it would seem, according to verse 10, that Samuel went through the line of boys the second time. I can almost imagine that Samuel was a little embarrassed as he clears his throat and says, "Um, Jesse...can I talk to you for a minute?" To which Jesse answers, "O, SURE! Sure, sure!" They get away from the boys who were probably thinking, "What was that all about?" And Samuel says, "Listen...Jesse...um...You do know I'm a prophet, right?" To which Jesse responds, "Oh yes! Yes, of course!" Samuel goes on, and says, "Because for some reason, God did tell me to come here and anoint one of your sons to be king, but He hasn't selected any of them." With disappointment, Jesse looks down and draws with his foot in the dirt and says, "Oh yeah?" Samuel then gets real close and says, "This is probably a dumb question, but....um....are all your children here? I mean...haha...you wouldn't just happen to have an extra child in the house would you?" I can imagine Jesse pausing for a second and saying....well, there is—" "Oh GOOD! Bring him here!" Samuel interrupts. Now I can imagine Jesse telling Eliab, "Um...ehem...go get your brother out of the field—" The kid was forgotten by his own parents! But there was something about David that God saw. You can have all your LinkedIn contacts, and you can have favor with men, and you can have your websites and analytics that reveal how many visits you get a day. You may have people that fill your church if you're a pastor, but if your heart isn't perfect before God. The Bible says in 2 Chronicles 16:9, "For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him." When the Bible says that God looketh, in our day it would say, God is looking on the heart. I find another interesting passage that can be compared to this one. John 2:24-25, "But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men, And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man." That is quite a verse. My friend, we need Jesus to commit himself to us! We might have the ability to do great things financially in our church, we might have everything going just right, but I'll tell you one thing, we'd better have a good relationship with the one orchestrating the whole thing, and he won't commit anything unless he looks on our hearts and sees a heart after his own. We can be busy doing all sorts of stuff and say we're doing for God, when all the while we're doing it for ourselves. I think of Joab, and how he took Jerusalem for David...the GREAT JERUSALEM! The place where the temple would be built! But all throughout Joab's life we see a pattern of selfishness and a lust for making a name for himself. David offered a promotion, which is why Joab jumped at the chance. And speaking of patterns, we see a pattern of selfLESSness in David. David was anointed by the prophet, and yet remained faithful doing the job nobody wanted. David left his sheep with a keeper when his father, Jesse sent him out on an errand. And even though Saul offered his daughter, and promises of wealth, David's response was that something needed to be done about the man blaspheming the name of his God! Finally, I want you to also notice that fame and popularity is not always good. Judas Iscariot is very famous to the world...but in what way? Joab is pretty well known, but in a negative way. These men had selfish interests...and look where it led them. David's interests had the mind of God on them. So I want you to remember David, not as the most famous and greatest king who ever lived, but a shepherd boy who really didn't do anything to make the news, a boy who's father wasn't really proud of him at all. A boy who was made fun of by his brothers...a boy who was faithful to a God Who saw him...at all times. It makes Psalms 27:10 that much more appealing, "When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up." So keep fanning the flame, even though it seems like your fire is hardly worth keeping alive. Keep fanning the flame even though naysayers keep telling you it's a waste of time. Keep fanning the flame...because faithful is He that calleth you, who also will do it. Remember, it was Elijah who prepared the altar, but it was God Who sent the fire...and what a fire!
If you ask any Israeli today who the most beloved and respected king who ever sat in the throne of Israel was; your answer will always be one man, David. David is popular amongst the world and Christians alike!
If you watch a game and there's a team that is small in comparison to the opposing team, many times you'll hear the commentator say, "Folks, this is a true David and Goliath scenario this very moment!" David's fame is known throughout the whole world. But it wasn't always that way. There was a time when David couldn't be remembered by people who should have remembered him! I can think of one instance in particular. It's kind of interesting when one reads the scriptures, and many take it as a discrepancy; but in 1 Samuel 16, Saul is haunted by evil spirits. The reason is because the Spirit of The Lord departed from Saul because of Saul's rebellion. It gets so bad that someone devises a plan to have a skilled harpist come and ease Saul of the evil spirits tormenting him. So they call for David, and in verse 21 it says, "And David came to Saul, and stood before him: and he loved him greatly; and he became his armourbearer. And Saul sent to Jesse, saying, Let David, I pray thee, stand before me; for he hath found favour in my sight. And it came to pass, when the evil spirit from God was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him." Notice carefully the key phrases underlined in the text. Saul "loved him greatly." Now notice what Saul says in the following chapter after David killed Goliath, "And when Saul saw David go forth against the Philistine, he said unto Abner, the captain of the host, Abner, whose son is this youth? And Abner said, As thy soul liveth, O king, I cannot tell. And the king said, Enquire thou whose son the stripling is. And as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him, and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. And Saul said to him, Whose son art thou, thou young man? And David answered, I am the son of thy servant Jesse the Bethlehemite." This was not a mistake in the Bible. The Bible has no mistakes. It's infallible. After all the times David spent playing the harp for Saul, and even after begging Saul to permit him to go down and fight Goliath; Saul completely forgot who David was! Have you ever met a well known person. A man who's written several books, pastors a large church, runs a successful college? You already guessed who I'm talking about, some of you! I can think of my experience with Paul Chappell, Clarence Sexton, or Ian Paisley. I'll share the story about Ian Paisley. I remember when I met Ian Paisley for the first time at the Snack Shop of Bob Jones University. I had no idea who he was. But he was sitting there all by himself at one of the tables. And I, being the guy who always sat with people I never met before, came up and said, "Sir, do you mind if I share this table with you?" "SURE!" He said with a seemingly strong Irish accent. I asked him what part of Ireland he was from and he told me how he grew up in Ballymena and how he was a preacher. I asked him for how long, and he told me. And then he said, "But I also got involved in politics four years later." Now keep in mind, I had no idea who he was! He then went on to tell me about his experience as DUP prime minister and the many run ins with the IRA, and other factions opposing his stands. I was dumbfounded! I then said, "What was your name again?" And the moment I asked that, I was surrounded by laughter. I was so embarrassed, as Dr. Paisley put his hand on my shoulder and said, "Son, you're the first person I've met in a while who didn't know who I was!" Some of you may not know who he was, but the point is, the next year that he spoke at the Bob Jones University Bible Conference, he had no idea who I was. Such was the case with David. He was not popular at all in this passage. We look at him as popular because we know about what he would do in the future. But even at that point David still was not popular. Even when Samuel came to annoying one of the sons of Jesse king, David was nowhere to be found. His ratings were low. I have an account with LinkedIn, which is a professional social network. And that thing has a rank level that shows you how interesting your are to professionals versus the connections you have. David would be in the low percentage if he were signed on with LinkedIn. There was nothing much to be said of David. Playing a harp doesn't get you places, and having a beautiful countenance doesn't either. So Jesse calls all of his boys in, and Samuel stands before Eliab and says, "Oh, THIS young man has got to be the next king! I mean he's smart, he fights with Saul, he's handsome...KING is written all over him! But God says...no. Samuel then approaches Abinadab and says, "Wow! Look at the guns on this guy! I mean this guy's muscles will take up the whole battlefield. He's not as handsome as Eliab, but he's ripped!" And God says...nope. Samuel goes through the whole line of boys. And God said something to Samuel right after the first guy, Eliab. In 1 Samuel 16:7 He told him, "Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart." Well, when Samuel got down to the last son of Jesse, God said...no way! I love what Samuel asks Jesse in the Bible, "Are here all thy children?" I'm even amused at how it would seem, according to verse 10, that Samuel went through the line of boys the second time. I can almost imagine that Samuel was a little embarrassed as he clears his throat and says, "Um, Jesse...can I talk to you for a minute?" To which Jesse answers, "O, SURE! Sure, sure!" They get away from the boys who were probably thinking, "What was that all about?" And Samuel says, "Listen...Jesse...um...You do know I'm a prophet, right?" To which Jesse responds, "Oh yes! Yes, of course!" Samuel goes on, and says, "Because for some reason, God did tell me to come here and anoint one of your sons to be king, but He hasn't selected any of them." With disappointment, Jesse looks down and draws with his foot in the dirt and says, "Oh yeah?" Samuel then gets real close and says, "This is probably a dumb question, but....um....are all your children here? I mean...haha...you wouldn't just happen to have an extra child in the house would you?" I can imagine Jesse pausing for a second and saying....well, there is—" "Oh GOOD! Bring him here!" Samuel interrupts. Now I can imagine Jesse telling Eliab, "Um...ehem...go get your brother out of the field—" The kid was forgotten by his own parents! But there was something about David that God saw. You can have all your LinkedIn contacts, and you can have favor with men, and you can have your websites and analytics that reveal how many visits you get a day. You may have people that fill your church if you're a pastor, but if your heart isn't perfect before God. The Bible says in 2 Chronicles 16:9, "For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him." When the Bible says that God looketh, in our day it would say, God is looking on the heart. I find another interesting passage that can be compared to this one. John 2:24-25, "But Jesus did not commit himself unto them, because he knew all men, And needed not that any should testify of man: for he knew what was in man." That is quite a verse. My friend, we need Jesus to commit himself to us! We might have the ability to do great things financially in our church, we might have everything going just right, but I'll tell you one thing, we'd better have a good relationship with the one orchestrating the whole thing, and he won't commit anything unless he looks on our hearts and sees a heart after his own. We can be busy doing all sorts of stuff and say we're doing for God, when all the while we're doing it for ourselves. I think of Joab, and how he took Jerusalem for David...the GREAT JERUSALEM! The place where the temple would be built! But all throughout Joab's life we see a pattern of selfishness and a lust for making a name for himself. David offered a promotion, which is why Joab jumped at the chance. And speaking of patterns, we see a pattern of selfLESSness in David. David was anointed by the prophet, and yet remained faithful doing the job nobody wanted. David left his sheep with a keeper when his father, Jesse sent him out on an errand. And even though Saul offered his daughter, and promises of wealth, David's response was that something needed to be done about the man blaspheming the name of his God! Finally, I want you to also notice that fame and popularity is not always good. Judas Iscariot is very famous to the world...but in what way? Joab is pretty well known, but in a negative way. These men had selfish interests...and look where it led them. David's interests had the mind of God on them. So I want you to remember David, not as the most famous and greatest king who ever lived, but a shepherd boy who really didn't do anything to make the news, a boy who's father wasn't really proud of him at all. A boy who was made fun of by his brothers...a boy who was faithful to a God Who saw him...at all times. It makes Psalms 27:10 that much more appealing, "When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up." So keep fanning the flame, even though it seems like your fire is hardly worth keeping alive. Keep fanning the flame even though naysayers keep telling you it's a waste of time. Keep fanning the flame...because faithful is He that calleth you, who also will do it. Remember, it was Elijah who prepared the altar, but it was God Who sent the fire...and what a fire!