A Man After God's Own Heart. | Previous Challenge Entry

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TITLE: A Man After God's Own Heart. | Previous Challenge Entry
By Gloria Pierre Dean
06/15/23
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Proverbs 29:18

Where there is no vision [no redemptive revelation of God], the people perish; but he who keeps the law [of God, which includes that of man; blessed is he. {AMP}

In the books of Samuel, there is a detailed report of a man named Saul. He was good looking, tall and handsome. He had been chosen by God to lead his people {1 Samuel 9:2, 16}. He was anointed by the prophet Samuel and the Spirit of God controlled him. He fought battles for Israel and won. The people wanted him to be their king.
There were conditions.

“ If you fear and serve the Lord, if you listen to the voice of the Lord and do not rebel against the Lord’s command, if both you and the king, who rules over you, follow the Lord your God—well and good. But if you do not listen to the voice of the Lord and if you rebel against the Lord’s command, the hand of the Lord will be against you and your king.”{1 Samuel 12:14-15}. As it turns out, Saul disobeyed God’s vision for his people. He took matters into his own hand. He offered sacrifices himself, instead of waiting for Samuel. During his reign, he rushed into battles and even displaced Samuel for a false prophet. {1 Samuel 14:2}.

He was given instructions by Samuel, he did not obey them. He was to attack Amalek and kill the people and the animals.{1 Samuel 15:3}. Instead he spared “He spared Agag and the best of the fat sheep and oxen, and the lambs. They refused to put under the ban anything that was worthwhile, destroying only what was worthless and of no account”.{1 Samuel 15::9}. God regretted making him king. His prayers were no longer heard by God. He consistently disobeyed so God took the kingdom from him. He became a tormented man and was possessed by an evil spirit from The Lord” {1 Samuel 16:14}. Samuel said to Saul “...your kingship shall not endure. The Lord has sought out a man after his own heart to appoint as ruler over his people because you did not observe what the Lord commanded you.” {1 Samuel 13:13}. God gave the kingship to a man ‘after his own heart’.

The Lord chose David. “He was ruddy, a youth with beautiful eyes, and good looking. The Lord said: There..anoint him, for this is the one!”{1 Samuel 16:12}. Before he became king, David worked for Saul as his armor bearer and, “Whenever the spirit from God came upon Saul, David would take the harp and play, and Saul would be relieved and feel better, for the evil spirit would leave him. {1 Samuel 16:23}.
Eventually though, David had to flee Saul because of his hatred of him. Saul pursued him and made every effort to kill him, but he failed. Saul took three thousand of the best men from all Israel and went in search of David and his men {1 Samuel 24:3}.

David kept the law and refused to kill Saul when he had the opportunity. When he did see Saul face to face he said to him,
“May the Lord judge between me and you. May the Lord exact justice from you in my case. I shall not lay a hand on you”{1 Samuel 21:13}..
On another occasion, when he found Saul in a vulnerable place and could have killed him, he refused to. “But the Lord forbid that I lay a hand on the Lord’s anointed!”{1 Samuel 26:11}. Saul’s tormented life did end badly..

David had many difficult years before he became king of Israel. Battles, killings, assassinations and strife occurred in the kingdom, however he remained a good law-abiding king of Hebron. The Isrelitites respected him and said to him, “In days past, when Saul was still our king, you were the one who led Israel out in all its battles and brought it back” {2 Samuel 5:2}.
The Lord said to him “...You shall shepherd my people Israel; you shall be ruler over Israel.” {2 Samuel 5:2b}. Eventually, the elders appointed him king of Israel. He reigned over them for forty years. “Thus the Lord brought David victory in all his undertakings.{2 Samuel 8:14b}. He had many struggles, including with his son Absolam.
However, he was able to declare and celebrate God’s deliverance from many enemies.{ 2 Samuel 18: 1- 51}.
In his own words; “He rescued me from my mighty enemy, from foes too powerful for me. They attacked me on a day of distress, but the Lord came to my support. He set me free in the open; he rescued me because he loves me”{2 Samuel 18: 18-23}. David kept the law and was able to declare, “ His laws were all before me, his decrees I did not cast aside. I was honest toward him; I was on guard against sin”.

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