Seeing Inside Out 1 Samuel 16:6-13 Samuel had gotten a Godly prompt to shake off his disappoint of King Saul. God commanded Samuel to take his horn of oil and go to Bethlehem and anoint one of the sons of Jesse to be the next King of Israel. Samuel cringed in fear that Saul would hear about this and come after him. So, God injected peace into the situation by simplifying his obedience. Samuel was to take a cow to Bethlehem and offer a sacrifice. So off he went feeling no fear. When Samuel arrived in Bethlehem, the elders were trembling in fear about Saul. So, Samuel injected peace into the situation by simplifying their obedience. Samuel told them to forget about Saul and the political intrigue and just get ready for a sacrifice and feast, which they did. After they had all consecrated themselves, Samuel sacrificed the heifer. During the time between the sacrifice and the feast, Samuel went to the house of Jesse where he would accomplish the mission God had sent him on, that is, to anoint one of the seven sons of Jesse. 1 Samuel 16:6-10 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, "Surely the Lord's anointed stands here before the LORD." But the LORD said to Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." Then Jesse called Abinadab and had him pass in front of Samuel. But Samuel said, "The LORD has not chosen this one either." Jesse then had Shammah pass by, but Samuel said, "Nor has the LORD chosen this one." Jesse had seven of his sons pass before Samuel, but Samuel said to him, "The LORD has not chosen these." 1
We don t know what Samuel told Jesse and the family about this anointing. They probably did not know that the anointing was for the next king of Israel. The family probably thought that the anointing was for a potential position as a prophet of Israel. When Samuel saw the eldest son of Jesse, he thought that this guy must be the Lord s anointed. He was the eldest son who ruled the other sons. And, he had the appearance of a king. God told Samuel that his speculation based on the appearance of Eliab, the first son of Jesse, was wrong. Here in the midst of this situation with everyone standing around awaiting Samuel s response and with every eye on him, God had a teaching moment with Samuel. God told Samuel, "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart." This teaching moment was a lesson about the difference between the way people view each other and the way that God views people. People can only see the outward appearance of things. People can only see what is seeable and the only thing that is seeable is the outward appearance of things. But the nature of God is that he can see both the outward appearance and the inward condition of the heart. God does not have to speculate about the condition of a person s heart. God can see a person s heart and also read a person s mind. What did this teaching moment do to Samuel? This teaching moment humbled Samuel s confidence to judge people in this process to find and anoint the next king of Israel. 2
After the eldest son was rejected, Jesse had Abinadab and then Shammah pass before Samuel. In each case Samuel announced, The Lord has not chosen this one. Jesse then paraded the rest of his sons before Samuel. All seven sons of Jesse paraded in front of Samuel and his response was, "The LORD has not chosen these." Samuel was on the right track. With only a humble confidence in what he could see in others, he put his confidence in God, knowing that God can see the hearts of people. Samuel was in a predicament. One of the sons of Jesse had to be anointed king because that was what God said. Yet the Lord had not chosen any of the sons of Jesse that had been presented to him. This was an awkward moment. Either God is crazy or there must be another son running around somewhere, and there was. I Samuel 16: 11-13 - So he asked Jesse, "Are these all the sons you have?" "There is still the youngest," Jesse answered, "but he is tending the sheep." Samuel said, "Send for him; we will not sit down until he arrives." So he sent and had him brought in. He was ruddy, with a fine appearance and handsome features. Then the LORD said, "Rise and anoint him; he is the one." So Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the presence of his brothers, and from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power. Samuel then went to Ramah. Samuel asked Jesse Are these all the sons you have? Jesse responded, "There is still the youngest, but he is tending the sheep." Commentators say that the Hebrew here suggests that Jesse is really saying to Samuel that there is another son who is not just the youngest, but he is the one who has the least potential among my sons. After all, I have given him the task of tending the sheep. That should say something about his capacity to lead. Jesse didn t think that Samuel would or should be interested in the boy shepherd, his youngest son, named David. 3
When David was finally brought in from the fields, he smelled like the outdoors and like sheep. He had not gone through the cleansing rituals. He had not put on his Sabbath-go-to-meeting clothes. This was David in the raw. Samuel saw him and the Lord said, Rise and anoint him, he is the one. There is no human accounting for God s choice of people to accomplish his mission. God sees what people can t see. From the foundation of the earth, God knew that David would one day stand before Samuel and be anointed the King of Israel. There was no way for Samuel to see anything in David that would cause him to think that David would become the greatest king in the history of Israel. Only God sees the future that people don t see. David was anointed with oil as a powerful symbol of the Spirit of God coming upon a person. So, we had the symbol and the reality of that symbol. We are told from that day on the Spirit of the LORD came upon David in power. David was just a boy but he was already anointed king of Israel. However, he would not sit on the throne of Israel for decades. For decades we will see God mold the anointed king into the man he wanted him to be. God would use the enthroned king, Saul, as an important part of the molding process. What lessons can we learn from this teaching moment with Samuel and from the anointing of David? Based on our ability to see only the surface appearances of other people, we should be humble in our judgment of others. In all our relationships we are constantly making judgments of other people. We form these judgments through our observations. But our observations are limited because we can only see the outward appearances of a person s life and behavior. 4
We do not know a person s real nature and character because we cannot see a person s past or character. What we see of other people is most often a series of short, living videos that are just tidbits of a person s overall life. Yet we have no difficulty making what we think are positive and absolute judgments, as if we can read people s minds and see their hearts. We must be humble in all our judgments of others, because we see only the surface appearances. All man s judgment of others is imperfect. God sees and knows us completely and God has consistent standards for judgment. God has a clear judgment of every person because he can see both the appearances and the hearts and minds of people. God also has consistent standards of what constitutes greatness in people and that is Christ likeness. Power, wealth, success, competition, possessions, and good looks mean nothing to God. God is not the least bit impressed with these things. God instead values peacemakers, lovers of God and people, reconcilers, healers, and those with faith and integrity. If you want to be great in the kingdom of God, become the servant of all, like Jesus. Each of us, are part of God s intricate plan for the future of the Kingdom of God. For the most part, we are unaware of the consequences of God s calling on our lives and our obedience to that calling. On the day David was anointed by Samuel, he knew little or nothing of what God really had in store for him. He did not know that he would grow to become the greatest king in the history of Israel. David would simply care out his tasks one simple step at a time. Then after a lifetime of simple obedience, he could see what was accomplished by simple obedience. So the simple but hard thing, is to do what God has called us to do and do it well, every time. Success in life and ministry is faithfully doing a series of small things, well. 5