A Man After God’s Heart
Stats on men in US – Pew research
78% of men are certain/fairly certain that they believe in God
73% say religion is important/somewhat important
31% attend church weekly – 35% seldom or never
46% pray daily
21% participate in bible study/prayer group
28% choose the bible for making decisions about right/wrong – 47% say common sense
30% read the bible once a week – 50% never read the bible
Is it any wonder that American churches are made up 61% female/39% male?
If men are not attending and participating in church, what is happening to the next generation?
How long does it take for men to disassociate – feel that church is for women?
What are we doing to the future of God’s people by our actions?
Roughly 50% of children in the US will grow up without a father in the house by age of 18.
How long will it take for that statistic to reflect itself in the church?
We are meant to be men after God’s own heart.
Leaders
Teachers
Role models
Examples
What does God want from a man of God? He wants your heart!
Auburn University football coach Shug Jordan – Linebacker Mike Kollin – recruiting
I think the reason men are falling back, letting others take the lead, abandoning God, their wives and their children is fear.
Biblical example of a fearful man : Saul
Saul looked the part: good looking, strong, charisma, popular – but a man of fear, not of God
Fearful of his own soldiers abandoning him 1 Sam 15: 24-25
24 Then Saul said to Samuel, “I have sinned. I violated the Lord’s command and your instructions. I was afraid of the men and so I gave in to them. 25 Now I beg you, forgive my sin and come back with me, so that I may worship the Lord.”
Fear of failure or public opinion 1 Sam 15:30
30 Saul replied, “I have sinned. But please honor me before the elders of my people and before Israel; come back with me, so that I may worship the Lord your God.”
Saul feared everything except GOD!
God’s chosen man – David
Not chosen by the world – not even by his family! Even his father left him with the sheep.
Not first chosen by Samuel – 1 Sam 16:6
6 When they arrived, Samuel saw Eliab and thought, “Surely the Lord’s anointed stands here before the Lord.”
What are God’s standards?
1 Sam 16:7
7 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 people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart.”
God wants everyone! ( I Want You – Uncle Sam)
1 Timothy 2: 3-4
3 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, 4 who wants all people to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth
You have been chosen to be a man of God.
2 Chron 16:9
9 For the eyes of the Lord range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him.
Why was David considered a man after God’s own heart?
Acts 13:22 says, “After removing Saul, he made David their king. He testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart; he will do everything I want him to do.‘”
Part time shepherd/musician
1 Sam 17:13-15
13 Jesse’s three oldest sons had followed Saul to the war: The firstborn was Eliab; the second, Abinadab; and the third, Shammah. 14 David was the youngest. The three oldest followed Saul, 15 but David went back and forth from Saul to tend his father’s sheep at Bethlehem. (after anointing)
David waited patiently, stepped in when God needed him.
1 Samuel 17:42-47
42 He looked David over and saw that he was little more than a boy, glowing with health and handsome, and he despised him. 43 He said to David, “Am I a dog, that you come at me with sticks?” And the Philistine cursed David by his gods. 44 “Come here,” he said, “and I’ll give your flesh to the birds and the wild animals!”
45 David said to the Philistine, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. 46 This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. 47 All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.”
What made David this man after God’s heart? How can we be men after God’s heart?
1. We need to have lives built around God.
Psalm 105:2-5
2 Sing to him, sing praise to him;
tell of all his wonderful acts.
3 Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the Lord rejoice.
4 Look to the Lord and his strength;
seek his face always.
5 Remember the wonders he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced.
We need to be men who love to worship God.
Do you sing or do you mumble? (who is watching)
We should want to worship
We should seek fellowship with the church
If you have your life built around God, you WILL be in Church!
(and so will your family)
Let go. Let your children see you in complete worship of God. Let them know that this is the way it should be. (David danced)
2 Samuel 6:14-15
- Wearing a linen ephod, David was dancing before the Lord with all his might, 15 while he and all Israel were bringing up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.
Psalm 19:8-10
8 The precepts of the Lord are right,
giving joy to the heart.
The commands of the Lord are radiant,
giving light to the eyes.
9 The fear of the Lord is pure,
enduring forever.
The decrees of the Lord are firm,
and all of them are righteous.
10 They are more precious than gold,
than much pure gold;
they are sweeter than honey,
than honey from the honeycomb.
David meditated day and night, wrote songs that praised God’s word, looked to God for his decisions.
We must have a passion for the Bible, God’s Word. We will not understand God’s will for our lives if we don’t have the Word in our hearts.
Joshua 1:8
8 Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful.
3. Let the love of God’s people take precedence in your life.
Matthew 22: 36-40 (trying to trick Jesus)
36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?”
37 Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’[a] 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[b] 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
A man after God’s own heart is a man who loves what God loves, his people. Like Jesus, we should look with compassion on everyone, be strong in our faith, strong in our love, strong in our commitment to working for God in the world.
4. We should be strong and courageous –
waiting for a chance to Carpe Diem – Seize the day! – Be fearless in service to God.Psalm 27:1
The Lord is my light and my salvation--
whom shall I fear?
The Lord is the stronghold of my life--
of whom shall I be afraid?
Psalm 27:14
14 Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord
Joshua 1:9
9 Have I not commanded you? Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid; do not be discouraged, for the Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.”
2 Timothy 1:7-8
7 For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. 8 So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God.
5. We should be humble –
knowing that we are not perfect but He is!David is known almost as much for his mistakes (Bathsheba and Uriah)
He sought forgiveness and owned his sin, admitting it and repenting.
In 2 Samuel 24 David again sins against God, counting the men instead of trusting in God for his strength. When he realizes it, again he repents.
2 Samuel 24:10
10 David was conscience-stricken after he had counted the fighting men, and he said to the Lord, “I have sinned greatly in what I have done. Now, Lord, I beg you, take away the guilt of your servant. I have done a very foolish thing.”
Romans 3:23
for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God
2 Corinthians 12:9 But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me.
Hebrews 4:16 Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
James 4:6 But He gives more grace. Therefore it says, "God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble."
6. To be a man of God, commit today to following him, leading for him, being who you are called to be.
David after he death was spoken of in a psalm:
Psalm 78:70-72
70 He chose David his servant
and took him from the sheep pens;
71 from tending the sheep he brought him
to be the shepherd of his people Jacob,
of Israel his inheritance.
72 And David shepherded them with integrity of heart;
with skillful hands he led them.
Integrity of heart - the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles; moral uprightness
Shepherded – stewardship – what you have is God’s, given to you for a purpose.
Family
Skills
Finances
Time
I believe that if we want to see a change in the world today, if we want to see a revival of the Spirit and return to the glory of God, we need to have men willing to lead and step up – men after God’s own heart.
If what I have said today has touched your conscience, go to God with it. Pour out your heart. Read his Word to find his will in your life.
Today, understand the you are chosen. You are a man chosen by God. You are a man chosen to serve and to lead. You are chosen.
Make today the day that you become a man after God’s own heart.
Joshua 24: 14-15
14 “Now fear the Lord and serve him with all faithfulness. Throw away the gods your ancestors worshiped beyond the Euphrates River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord. 15 But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”