Hello and welcome back to Cultivating Growth. We want to thank everyone for joining us again this week. We are on our third episode this month talking about David in different aspects of his life and some of the stories that are contained in scripture about him. Today we're gonna focus in on what is said about David being a man after God's own heart.

We're gonna talk about what that means and why that, uh, is ascribed to him, and we're gonna talk about some of his character traits that lead to that conclusion. So with that, let's get right to the conversation.

Well, John, we've been spending the last couple of weeks kind of talking about, uh, David and we've. We've talked about some great victories that we've seen, uh, with David, but also, uh, we spent time last week and, and kind of talking about what is at least his best well known shortcoming. Certainly not his only, I mean not, not his only shortcoming, but certainly the, the most well known, uh, shortcoming.

And, and although David in no way was a perfect man and he, he, he fell short. Um, and sinned as we talked about last week, and will again, even after. Mm-hmm. Uh, the sin with Bathsheba and Uriah and all of those things. But yet at the same time, you see a fondness of God towards David and, and specifically the mentioning of his heart, and, and then I think in a lot of ways that really, especially in this section of First Samuel.

13, 14, 15, 16, 17. Kind of working your way, you know, through the kind of end of Saul and the, our introduction of David. Mm-hmm. Really, in a lot of ways. It, it is David's heart that kind of comes to the forefront. And so, for example, kind of the first mention of the phrase that we're using, uh, for this episode is, is found in one Samuel chapter 13, and in one Samuel chapter 13, specifically in verse 14, I.

David's name isn't mentioned at all. I mean, he's not really not introduced to us until, you know, chapter 16 when Samuel goes to Jesse's house and you know, David is there, but you know, Saul has made a mistake in chapter 13, uh, of offering sacrifices, uh, and not in a position he was able to do so, but does anyway.

And, um, and he's told that he, he's certainly gonna have to pay the price for that. And in verse 13, uh, of that text, kind of that. Conversation begins. You know, with Santon Saul, you've done a foolish thing. And then verse 14, your kingdom shall not continue. The Lord has sought for himself a man after his own heart.

Now we know Acts helps us with. Referencing this passage. Mm-hmm. It mentions David, but we know that's talking about David. And so when David is introduced to us in one Samuel of chapter 16, it, it's made mention there, as you know, Jesse's sons are lined out in front of him, and Samuel is like, surely it's this one.

Surely it's this one. Surely it's this one. They look the part, right. He's reminded that God doesn't operate that way. He's not looking at the outward appearance. He's looking. At the heart, and then David certainly is the one that rises to the front. Yeah, I think the contrast that we see between David and Saul really help us to understand what this means.

And it does start even with the physical aspects because Saul looked the part. Mm-hmm. Uh, he, that's we're told about Saul. He's heading shoulders taller than everybody else. He's a handsome man. He's. He is a fantastic leader. He's a leader of men. He's a warrior. You know, Saul looked the part and, and then David is this young boy that is overlooked, even though we know him to grow into, uh, you know, a warrior himself and a, a worthy leader, of course.

But early on, he didn't necessarily fit the mold of what Samuel thought God would be looking for because of what he had seen and saw. But that contrast continues on. To really help us understand who God was looking for to be a leader of his people there in First Samuel. If you go to First Samuel chapter 15.

We see a situation in which Saul is given very specific instructions by God as to what he's to do with the nation. He's to wipe everybody out, man, women, child, animals, everything. Saul doesn't do that entirely. He does most of it, right? But he saves some of the animals. He keeps the king alive. And when Samuel confronts Saul with what he has done, Saul responds by arguing.

Saul responds by saying, I did. I was obedient. Mostly, you know, I kept some of these things, but I was gonna offer 'em to God. That's why. That's why I didn't do it. Or the people, it's their fault. They're the ones really that should be blamed for this when confronted with his sin. He's not contrite in any way.

He's argumentative. And you talked about David and his sin we talked about last week with Bathsheba. David too is confronted with his sin, right? His response to that is very different. He's not argumentative. He's not blaming anyone. He's taking responsibility for his sin. He's broken. He's broken. He's contrite.

Right? We'll talk about that in Psalm 51. I'm sure that's how David responds to that. And so we can see in the response by each of these men, which one was the one that had a heart that longed for God? It was the one who didn't. R rebel against God when confronted with sin, but felt the guilt of that sin and it led him to repentance.

Yeah, I mean, David certainly clearly was not a perfect person, and, and, and no one is suggesting that's the case. Certainly God is not suggesting that's the case. He, he gives us, you know, instances where, where David, uh, falls prey to his temptation and sins against God. But I think you're right. It, it is really, it showcases the way he handles himself in those moments.

Uh. Of what his commitment to God is and his willingness to want a relationship with God. You know, we made mention several weeks ago at the very beginning of, of this podcast and talking about David, you know, scripture gives us a pretty full picture of David's life. Mm-hmm. Even though we don't get. You know, his birth in in early years, we, we are introduced to him pretty early on and from that point we have a pretty full picture of him all the way to his death.

But really it is the book of Psalms that enhances our understanding. And, and I think it's important that we have all of those Psalms written by David because when God says it is his heart that I'm, uh, that is really, you know, kind of stands at the forefront, will be could. We get a picture of the inside of that in, in a lot of ways.

And, and the point that you make in the context of the story of Bathsheba and Nathan, the prophet confronting, you know, David and how he. You know, handles himself there. In the context of that story, we're able to see that, you know, play out. But yet it is in the Psalms that David writes specifically about that, that we get the greatest insight into what a heart after God.

Really looks like, and it's not just his way he handles himself after that, it is his willingness to follow God. It is his dependence upon God, his understanding of how important and how high God is. It's all of those things kind of, you know, culminating into one heart that really brings about, you know, a phrase like this.

Yeah, I think Psalm 51 is probably the key to, uh, a fuller understanding of this. Psalm 51 tells us very specifically that David wrote this psalm when Nathan was sent to him to confront him about his sin with Bathsheba. And so we know exactly where David was and what had transpired when he wrote the words to Psalm 51.

And so when you put that in context and you read the words of this psalm, it is. Incredible to consider David's humility in all of this. His heart for God, even in the midst of what would probably be one of the hardest times of his life, sure. To deal with the sin that he had committed, not just adultery, but murder, and then losing the child that came from that sin as a result of his behavior.

It would've been the, the hardest time in his life. And in that, in those moments, what does David do? How does he respond? He pours his heart out to God. Mm-hmm. And he pleads for God's mercy and he pleads for God's forgiveness. And he uses words like, cleanse me, and restore me, and purge me, deliver me, wash me.

You know, the, these are the words that David is using as he. Pleads to God in the midst of these difficult moments, and it gives us that insight into what his heart was truly like. Yeah, he made mistakes, he sinned and he took ownership of that, and he took responsibility for that. He went to the only one that could forgive him of that.

And that's God. Yeah. I mean you, you made mention and we both made mention of, you know, the contrast that we get certainly, you know, kind of that midpoint of the book of first sandal between Saul and David and you know, there's a great. Kind of contrast given to us. You made mention of one Samuel of chapter 15 when Saul is confronted with his sin.

I mean, even before that, you know, he, he sees Samuel Cumming and he is like, I've done everything. I've done everything that God has wanted me to do. And Samuel is like, well, no, you, you didn't do that. You, you didn't follow, you know, God's command. And he is like, oh no, but I did. And, you know, and, and. He, when he started to back away from that, it was, you know, the people, the people, the people, the people, the people, the people, the people.

Right. Uh, or I'm gonna sacrifice, I'm gonna sacrifice, I'm gonna, you know, it, it is all of those things. But then you turn to a, a psalm like Psalm 51 and specifically. You know, verses three and four, you get this from David, he's confronted with this sin for I acknowledge my transgressions and my sin is ever before me.

Verse four, against you. You only have I sinned and done this evil in your sight that you may be found just when you speak and blameless when you judge, he throws himself at the mercy of God. You know, understanding about what. What has done, and yet Saul is justifying himself. That is a heart difference.

Yeah. You know, in every way. And that's, I think that gives us a great example of what God wants from us. If, if we want to strive to, to be a man or a woman after God's own heart. This is what it looks like. It, it's, it's humility. It's recognition that God and God alone is our hope and our salvation and our Savior.

And if sin is a part of our life, then we rid ourselves of it and we throw ourselves at the feet of God imploring for his mercy upon us. That's what it takes for us to be people after God's own heart. That's what we see in David and that's, we don't see that in Saul. Now, David's not the only person in scripture that was, that had a heart like this, but when God was looking for the next king, this was the kind of person he was looking for.

So much so that this reputation continued to be known for generations to come. We can have the same kind of heart. How are we gonna respond in the moments of sin? How are we gonna respond in times of need? Are we gonna look elsewhere? Are we gonna look inward or are we gonna look to God a man after God's own heart, looks to him and pleads for his mercy?

Yeah. You know, before, you know, kind of, we start to close this out, you know, I, I don't want us to, you know, kind of paint the picture that a man after God's own heart is only, you know, comes down to the way that we. We handle sin or when we're confronted with sin, that's a piece of it. No question about that.

And we certainly don't have the time to cover all of the, you know, the, the Book of Psalms even mm-hmm. That talk and showcase all of the things within the heart of David. Yeah. You know, that showcases that. But I will add one other one just to, you know, kind of, you know, point in that direction. Psalm 27 is another incredible psalm.

It almost like. Psalm 51, but, but this is a heart that trusts in God completely. Now we see that in when we talked about David and Goliath in, in one Samuel 17. I mean, that is a heart that trusts God completely. He does not go out and confront Goliath with no armor and just a sling in a few rocks if he does not.

Have complete trust in God. And so you have Psalm 27, verse one, the Lord is my light, my salvation. Whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life? Of whom shall I be afraid of? Verse five. For in the time of trouble, he shall hide me in his pavilion, in the secret place of his tabernacle. He shall hide me, set me high upon a rock.

And so he acknowledges. A heart for God, A heart after Gods is one that is going to trust in God. Mm-hmm. Completely. And that is absolutely another piece that we see in David. Yeah. And you know, we've mentioned the contrast that we see between David and Saul. We see another one between David and Solomon, where Solomon gets pulled into idolatry and he takes his focus and his trust off of God and begins to place it on his wealth.

And women and his abilities, and he, he turns away from God and turns to idolatry. David never does that in, in the lowest moments of his life and in the highest peaks of his life. He never does that. He doesn't leave God in that way. He continues to trust in him, like you said, and the Psalms give us that insight into that just never ending trust that he has in God and that faith.

That he has in him. And I think you're absolutely right. That is another piece of the puzzle that is David that makes him a man after God's own heart. Yeah, there's no question about that. Well, we're gonna stop right here. We appreciate everybody for listening. We made mention there's so many other, you know, things about David and his heart that could be mentioned here and, and we.

Made mention of another one. Maybe you're thinking, you know, of one. We continue, uh, to encourage you to do just that, but we're gonna close with the passage in Acts chapter 13 where it, it is mentioned of this reference that we read already in Samuel. But David here is mentioned by name and in Acts chapter 13 of verse 22, we have this.

And when he had removed him, he raised up for them, David as king to whom also he gave testimony and. Said, I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, who will do all my will.

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