The Man After God's Heart | What Truly Matters

A New Beginning presents a book from Pastor Greg Laurie, with help for those suffering loss, called Hope for Hurting Hearts. God has used this book over the years to touch many people. If you've lost a loved one, or if you know someone that's recently lost a loved one, it would be an excellent thing to get this book into their hands, because I really wrote it for them. So we're offering you a copy of this book, Hope for Hurting Hearts, for your gift of any size. Available at Harvest.org What's going on in the heart?

What's going on on the inside? This is the day when the lost are found. This is the day for a new beginning. Amazing grace, how sweet the sound. Oh, can you hear when the angels are singing? This is the day, the day when life begins. I read social media posts of certain friends and marvel at how great their life is.

Lunch on the beach in Cabo, sipping a hot chocolate in a ski chalet in Aspen. Social media has become a collection of highlight reels, because people want to look good. But today on A New Beginning, Pastor Greg Laurie points out God follows you, no, not on social media, in real life.

And he's most impressed by things that would never show up in a highlight reel. Years ago, when my son Christopher was a little boy, we had this tugboat. It was sort of a bath toy, and then we used it in the pool as well. It was this big tugboat that was basically unsinkable.

I would take it to the bottom of the pool and try to hold it down, and it would always pop to the top. So this thing was around for a number of years, and then Christopher got older. And one day I said to him, Christopher, would you like to blow up the tugboat now?

He's a boy, so of course his answer was, yes. So we decided, how are we going to sink this tugboat? So I cut a little hole in the top, and I dropped a cherry bomb in it. You know what a cherry bomb is?

Okay, I don't know where I got it. I don't know if they're completely legal, but I somehow obtained a cherry bomb. We put it in the middle of the pool. We were very excited. I lit it. I dropped it. It went boom. And this plastic was so thick it hardly made any sound, and then the boat just slowly sunk to the bottom. I was kind of hoping for more of an explosion, something a little more exciting, but we effectively blew a hole in the hole. Basically, here's the takeaway truth of that. Number one, it's fun to blow stuff up, right? Number two, if you want to sink something, especially a boat, blow a hole in the hole, right? Okay, so that can happen in our lives spiritually as well.

It's often gradual, not necessarily overnight. A little compromise here, a little lowering of the guard there, an allowance for sin somewhere else, and you effectively are blowing a hole in your hole. That's kind of a tongue twister. That one, we're starting this brand new series called The House of David. And when you think of David, obviously, two other names come to mind, David and Goliath, and David and Bathsheba, and that sort of sums up his life. David was either sailing or sinking. He was either having one of his great moments or one of his low moments. Goliath was his greatest victory. Bathsheba, his greatest defeat, but to the credit of David, he was a true believer. And even after he sinned, he always turned back to the Lord again, and that's what we should do as well. And you want to talk about ups and downs.

This guy experienced it all. He rose from complete obscurity to having hit songs on the radio written about him. He was an outcast. He became the king of Israel, the shepherd boy, the musician, the poet, the warrior, so many different aspects of his life. In fact, they still sing about David in Israel today.

There's a little folk song that you'll still hear people sing. David David Melek Israel, which means David is the king of Israel. He was the greatest king that Israel ever had. And in fact, David is a member of the very messianic tree.

You know, a lot of people are studying their background and their genealogies today because they want to know who they're related to. David was a part of the most exclusive genealogy in all of the world, the genealogy of Jesus. When Jesus walked this earth, he identified himself as the son of David. He could have said he was the son of Abraham or the son of Adam even, but he said he's the son of David.

When blind Bartimaeus saw Jesus walking by, he cried out, Son of David, have mercy upon me. More verses in the Bible are written about David than any other character apart from Christ. There's 14 chapters dedicated to the life of Abraham and Joseph. Jacob has 11 chapters written about him.

Elijah has 10. In contrast, there are 66 chapters of the Old Testament dedicated to the life of David. Then there are 59 references to him in the New Testament. But having said all that, David was far from perfect. Not only was he a shepherd and a warrior and a great king, but tragically he was also an adulterer, a murderer, and a liar.

And as we look at his story, we see the real message. It's not the greatness of David. It's the greatness of God who called a man like David and gave him a second chance.

David is a study in contrast. In battle, he was fearless. In wisdom and ruling his kingdom, he was without peer. But he wasn't some macho dude. He had a tender heart toward God and was both a poet and a musician. In fact, he's the only man described in the Bible as the man after God's own heart.

So how did this all happen? Well, David was not the first king of Israel. He was the second. The first was a guy named Saul. And on paper, Saul looked pretty good. He was handsome. He appeared to be humble. He was tall. He stood out from other men.

And he started out quite well. But it was only a matter of time before you saw how thin-skinned he was, how paranoid and jealous he could be, and how he self-destructed. God gave them a man after their own heart. But then the Lord said, well, it's not working out so well because Saul turned out to be a horrible king. In fact, in 1 Samuel 13, the prophet Samuel said to Saul, you've acted like a fool. You've not kept God's commandments and your kingdom shall not endure. The Lord has sought out for himself a man after his own heart.

So we pick up the story now. 1 Samuel 16, verse 1. The Lord said to Samuel, you've mourned long enough for Saul.

I've rejected him as the king of Israel. Now fill your flask with olive oil and go to Bethlehem. Find a man named Jesse who lives there, for I have selected one of his sons to be my king.

Samuel asked, how can I do that? If Saul hears about it, he'll kill me. Now this just shows how wicked Saul was at this moment. He would kill a prophet of the Lord if he heard about this. The Lord replied, take a heifer with you and say that you've come to make a sacrifice to the Lord. Invite Jesse to the sacrifice and I will show you which one of his sons to anoint for me.

Now we'll stop there. So now when a man like Samuel shows up, it's a big deal. I mean, if Samuel's in Jerusalem, that's one thing. But he's in Bethlehem. At this moment in time, Bethlehem is like Podunk, USA.

It's like Pedally or, I don't know what to say. I don't want to insult anybody if you're from Pedally, but Barstow, I don't know what. But you know, nothing happens in Bethlehem. The only reason we know of Bethlehem is that's where Christ was born. And why was Christ born in Bethlehem? Because he was the root and offspring of David. In fact, Micah said, Bethlehem, though you be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of you shall come forth one whose origins have been from everlasting. So when a guy like Samuel shows up in Bethlehem, people freaked out a little bit. They see Samuel coming in there.

They're like, hey, is everything cool? Are you coming to call judgment on us? It's all good. I want to offer a sacrifice, so let's all show up and especially Jesse get him out here. You know, one of Jesse's boys, I wonder if Samuel ever thought, I wish he was Jesse's girl.

No, you wouldn't have. No, one of Jesse's boys. How many of you got that reference, old Rick Springfield song? I still have his poster on my wall. Never took it down.

I don't even know why I put it up. One of Jesse's boys. Here's what I find interesting. God doesn't show the prophet who the next king will be. He says, just go to Bethlehem.

And he's from the house of Jesse. Take away point. God leads us one step at a time. You know, as I look back on my own life, I wish I could tell you that, oh, I had it all planned. Everything that happened was just as I planned it.

No, not at all. I just took one step. Then I took the next step. Then I took the next step. I didn't have a blueprint to follow necessarily.

But I found that I needed to be obedient. It's like when the Lord told Philip, go to the desert. He didn't tell him why he should go to the desert. He didn't tell him who he should speak to when he got to the desert. He just said, go to the desert. And to his credit, Philip obeyed.

And when Philip arrived in the desert, there he saw the man he was to speak to, a visiting dignitary from Ethiopia. And he took it from there. It comes down to this. God's way becomes plain when we start walking in it. Obedience to reveal truth guarantees guidance and matters unreveal. So I recommend this. Just start where you are. Be obedient to the last thing God told you to do. Start this way. Read your Bible every day.

There's a no-brainer. Just start with the Word of God. Here's another one. Have a prayer life. Call out to the Lord. Listen to the Lord.

These are disciplines we all should maintain. So start with the obvious and the Lord will show you what to do next. Pastor Greg Laurie will have the second half of his message in just a moment.

It's so encouraging when we hear that listeners are growing by hearing these studies. Pastor Greg, I believe that your mission and message are divinely inspired. You share Bible-based, relatable sermons that are clear and show the power of God's love for us. I appreciate how your podcasts and sermons are down-to-earth, funny and thoughtfully presented. And yet, you share how spiritual battles are real.

But victory is ours through Jesus Christ, who is the real deal. We're so blessed to hear comments like this. Has Pastor Greg heard from you? Why not call him and share your story? Just call 1-866-871-1144.

That's 866-871-1144. Well, we're learning some important principles from this introductory study on the life of David. Pastor Greg continues now. So here comes Samuel and he wants to see the sons of Jesse. Jesse proudly parades his seven sons before the visiting prophet. These were healthy, strong, strappy boys, especially Eliab, who stood out among the others.

They were the magnificent seven. But none of them were the ones that the Lord had chosen. 1 Samuel 16, verse 7.

Read with me. When they arrived, Samuel took one look at Eliab and thought, surely this is the Lord's anointed. But the Lord said to Samuel, don't judge by his appearance or height.

I have rejected him. The Lord doesn't make decisions the way that you do. And now this very important statement, 1 Samuel 16, 7. People judge by outward appearance, but the Lord looks on a person's thoughts and intentions.

Isn't that a great verse? And isn't it true? We do judge by outward appearance. We size a person up. Okay, who is this person?

What do I think of this person? And we're so concerned with the way that we look. I mean, think about a picture is taken. Take a picture. Let's take a photo. Let's do a selfie. Don't post that one.

Why? I don't like the way I look. We want to look good. That's why we use filters and special effects and other things. We focus so much on the outside.

But God looks on the inside. Can you imagine if you could actually see a person's heart? And really knew what they were thinking.

I'm not sure if I would want that ability. I think I would be very disappointed. You know, the person who seems so affirming, so caring, you know, you would see their real heart. That's what Jesus could do. He always knew what people were thinking. He'd call out the Pharisees. Why are you thinking this in your heart? They'd think, like, how did he know that? Because he was God. God looks on the heart.

What's going on on the inside? But we place so much emphasis in our culture today and the way that we look. We spend $16 billion a year on cosmetic surgery. And that's just Newport Beach. That's just... Beverly Hills is even more.

But all that money is spent trying to appear to be something you're not. You know, there was a debate years ago. Some of you will remember if you're quite old. John F. Kennedy debated Richard Nixon. And it was on television and it was on radio. So those that heard it on radio felt Nixon won the debate.

But those that watched on television thought Kennedy won the debate. Why do you think that is? Well, look at the two of them. I'm not saying one is more attractive than the other. But I think we all know that one is more attractive than the other. We make decisions based on the attractiveness of our person.

We're hardwired that way. You know, studies have shown that babies as young as one day are drawn to a more attractive face. A little baby is drawn to the more attractive face. And you're going to find out how attractive you are by looking at a baby. I love babies.

You know, babies, there's no subtlety. Baby likes you. They'll look. They might smile. And they'll be talking to the baby.

And they'll have a little voice. Hello, little baby. Hi, baby. Baby is like, ah. And the baby will look at you and just go, ah, come, turn away. It's like, I'm done with you. I can't get out of this high chair so I have to look that way. But please go away now. I don't like your face anymore. That baby is judging me.

Yes, he is. It's not fair. It doesn't matter. They like more attractive faces. So if the babies never look at you, you're unattractive. Just accept it.

It's okay, though. Because God doesn't look on the outward. God looks on the inward, doesn't he? And so here is all the sons of Jesse. Samuel sees Eliab. See, he even stood out among his brothers. He was a little taller. He said, surely this is the Lord's anointed.

And it wasn't. Maybe some of you guys have seen a girl that said, surely she is the Lord's anointed. Or the girl that's not the same. This is the one.

You know, before I was married, I always thought I was finding that right girl. This is the girl. That's the girl. Maybe this is the girl.

And here's the thing. When you are single and you're looking for that person, look for a godly person. Oh yeah, you want them to be attractive. I married a very attractive girl. I'm not going to lie about that.

But I'm looking for someone that's not just attractive on the outside, but also attractive on the inside. So seven sons are paraded before Samuel. The Lord says, no, no, no, no, no, no, seven times no.

What happened next? 1 Samuel 16, verse 11. Then Samuel asked, are these all the sons you have? Jesse replies, well, they're still the youngest, but he's out in the field watching the sheep. Samuel said, send for him at once.

We're not going to sit down to eat until he arrives. So he sent for him and brought him in. He was glowing with health and had a fine appearance and handsome features. The Lord said, rise and anoint him. This is the one. So David stood there among his brothers.

Samuel took the olive oil he had brought and poured it on David's head, and the Spirit of the Lord came mightily upon him from that day on, and Samuel returned to Ramah. I'll stop there. Don't you love that? Do you have any other sons? Yeah, there's one other. He's out in the field. He's kind of weird. He's a musician.

He plays his guitar, writes these songs to God, watches a bunch of smelly sheep. I don't even want to acknowledge him. It seems like there was a little embarrassment there. In fact, this phrase in verse 11 that remains the youngest does not mean that David was younger than the others. It means he was the least in the estimation of his father. It means his father thought less of David than he did of the other sons. You know it's a sad thing when a parent favors one child over another, isn't it?

And it happens all the time. We call it favoritism. Probably in any family you could say, who was mom's favorite? Who was dad's favorite? They'll probably know. My grandchildren have asked me, Papa, who's your favorite grandchild?

How do you answer that? In fact, two of them have hijacked my phone and removed their name and replaced it with favorite grandchild. The problem, two of them have done it, so now I get a text from favorite grandchild and I don't know what favorite grandchild it is. But we always want to be seen as the favorite and maybe you were the one that was not the favored child. Maybe you have always been the last one picked for the team.

I remember this very clearly from my childhood when they would be putting baseball teams together. I was always the last one picked. Everyone would be picked and I'd be standing there going, hey. They'd say, do you want Lori? I don't want Lori. We had Lori last time.

I'll take the three-legged dog. Come on. Okay, Lori, you can play first base. I can play first base? No, you will be first base.

They're going to slide into you and hit you with their cleats as we come in, right? So maybe you were the first one picked. Maybe you were the good-looking one.

Maybe you were the one that was favored, but maybe you weren't. Maybe your parents disappointed you. Maybe your parents walked out on you. They divorced when you were very young and it affected you throughout your life. Of course, I grew up without a mom or a dad. I mean, my mother was there, but she was so distant.

In many ways, I was the parent in the relationship because of how irresponsible she was because of her drinking. And I never had a father. So when I read the story of David, I think, wow, that kind of reminds me a little bit of my own story. And I love the statement of David when he writes, when my father and mother forsake me, the Lord will take me up. You know this, those who are often rejected by parents become beloved of the Lord.

Even if you didn't have a hands-on earthly father, I want you to know you have a very hands-on heavenly father who loves you and favors you. So put yourself in David's shoes for a moment. Today, like any other day, he's tending the sheep. And he did a good job. He was a great shepherd. Any predator comes in, he took care of them in short order. And when nothing was going on, he'd start singing to the Lord, write a song or two.

We also called them psalms. And all of a sudden, someone comes running to him. David, they want you back in the house. David comes running in, pounding into that room, smelling like the sheep he had been keeping company with. God says to the prophet, that's my boy.

Anoint him. And they pour the oil on David. And so David was God's choice, because God sees things differently than we do. Great insight today from this opening study of the life of David. Pastor Greg Laurie has so much good counsel to come from this series here on A New Beginning.

We hope you'll be listening as often as you can. David was called a man after God's own heart. There was a closeness in the relationship. How about you? Are you enjoying a closeness with the Lord?

Or maybe there's a bit of distance in that relationship. Pastor Greg, would you speak to the person listening who needs to make a change today in their relationship with God? So as you've been listening today, maybe you've thought to yourself, man, I wish I had this relationship with God that is being talked about.

Well, you can. He's only a prayer away. You see, becoming a Christian, it doesn't take years, it doesn't take months, it doesn't take weeks, it doesn't even take hours. It can happen in a moment.

The Bible describes it as turning from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. But before that happens, the Bible says you need to have your eyes open. And here's the amazing thing. It's just like in a flash. A light goes on and you say, this is all true.

That's how it happened for me. I just heard the gospel, and all of a sudden I realize this is all true. And maybe you've realized that as well. Let me ask you, would you like Jesus Christ to come into your life? Would you like him to forgive you of your sin?

Would you like this relationship with God we've been talking about today? If so, why don't you just pray a simple prayer with me? You could pray it out loud if you like, but say this to God. Lord Jesus, I know that I'm a sinner, but I know that you're the Savior, who died on the cross for my sin and rose again from the dead. Jesus, I turn from my sin, and I choose to follow you from this moment forward as my Savior and Lord, as my God and friend. Thank you for hearing this prayer. And I ask this in Jesus' name, amen. Hey, did you just pray that prayer? If so, I want to send you at no charge what we call a New Believer's Bible.

Here's Dave to tell you more. And let me just say congratulations. You've made the right decision.

Yeah, yeah, that's right. And listen, to help you begin to live this new life, this life where you're at peace with God and can begin to enjoy the peace of God, let us send you Pastor Greg's New Believer's Bible. It's the perfect resource for someone who's new to the faith. We'll send it free of charge if you'll just contact us and request it. Call 1-800-821-3300. Again, that's 1-800-821-3300. Or write us at A New Beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, California, 92514.

Or go online to harvest.org and click Know God. And then let us say a word of thanks to those who support us financially, those who make it possible for us to bring you these studies each day. We're definitely a listener-supported ministry.

It's the generosity of listeners that help us be here with these programs. So if you've partnered with us, thank you. And if you have yet to partner with us, I hope you'll get in touch today and let us know that you're standing with us. Even a small investment would help.

It's actually an investment in changing lives. Thank you for partnering with us. You can donate securely online at harvest.org or write A New Beginning, Box 4000, Riverside, California, 92514. Or call us at 1-800-821-3300.

Again, that's 1-800-821-3300. Hey, everybody. I want to encourage you to join us for something we call Harvest at Home. It happens every Sunday at harvest.org and on our brand-new app, Harvest Plus, which is available on your mobile TV devices.

Download it now. And you can watch Harvest at Home with Christians from around the world as we worship together and study God's Word. So again, join us for Harvest at Home at harvest.org or on Harvest Plus. Well, next time, more about the life and character of David as Pastor Greg brings us more from this kickoff message in our new series. Join us here on A New Beginning with pastor and Bible teacher Greg Laurie. This is the day, the day when life begins