AFTER GOD’S HEART

 

There was a Marine slogan I saw on TV years ago, “We’re looking for a few good men.”  So is God. He is a seeking God—from Genesis to Revelation, we witness His search. God called Abraham, Jesus called Simon, and the Spirit and the Bride communicate the pursuit of God in saying, “Come,” (Rev. 22:16). The Lord is still after men who will respond and be “after My own heart,” as David was. We focus on Paul’s sermon illustration in Acts 13:22, as he quotes 1 Samuel 13:14. 

Consider, THE PERSON, “a man.” David was a real man—the son of Jesse. He was not Superman, but a spiritual man. We know he was a sinner saved by grace and set apart by God for God. We are aware that he was a man who sometimes stumbled—and once egregiously so—yet, the orientation of his soul was for God’s heart and the direction of his steps was toward God’s heart. 

God is not after perfection, but progression. If being a perfect man is required then we are all disqualified. There has only been One Perfect Man—Jesus Christ. This is not an excuse for sin. David paid a price for his failure—and others suffered also. Yet, God called the “chief” of sinners (1 Tim. 1:15) and made him the great Apostle Paul, who said, “And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord who has enabled me, because He counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry,” (1 Tim. 1‬:‭12‬‬). Paul, like David, was a man—but a man after God’s own heart. 

Thus, there is THE PASSION, “after My own heart.” To be “after” the heart of God is to exhibit a relentless pursuit. Think of a dog in the hunt, who has picked up the scent of the prey and exerts all that is in it to seize that quarry. Is there a passionate fire burning in you?  Is that pursuit to find the heart of God?

This is important. Don’t bark up the wrong tree!  Success in ministry is not the goal. If you want headlines—status and significance—then even if you get it, you will find it hollow and slippery to hold.  How many church “heroes,” have a pride producing fall and become “zeroes”?

It is the heart of God we are after—to know Him, to love Him, to glorify Him, and to enjoy Him, forever. As we read David’s story and listen to David’s songs, we cannot fail to see his passion for God and God alone. Here is one such expression in Psalm 63:1-8:

O God, You are my God; Early will I seek You; My soul thirsts  for You; My flesh longs for You In a dry and thirsty land  Where there is no water. So I have looked for You in the  sanctuary, To see Your power and Your glory. Because Your  lovingkindness is better than life, My lips shall praise You.  Thus I will bless You while I live; I will lift up my hands in Your  name. My soul shall be satisfied as with marrow and fatness,  And my mouth shall praise You with joyful lips. When I  remember You on my bed, I meditate on You in the night  watches. Because You have been my help, Therefore in the  shadow of Your wings I will rejoice. My soul follows close  behind You; Your right hand upholds me.

Does your heart pound, “Amen” when you read that?

We conclude by considering THE PATTERN, “who will do all My will.”  To be “after the heart of God” is to walk in the will of God. Such a man has Christ as the pattern and seeks to conform to His heart. Our Master is our model and His mission is our mandate. Jesus described it this way in His call to disciples to follow Him, “just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” (Matt.‬ ‭20‬:‭28‬‬)

This is a servant mentality, “just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve.”  Do we demand, “serve us,” or engage in “service”?  The servant’s heart is revealed by how we respond when someone treats us like a servant!  The King of Glory stooped to wash dirty feet!

It is also a sacrificial ministry, “and to give His life a ransom for many.”  As John Maxwell’s leadership principle states, “you have to give up to go up.”  We are to be poured out as living sacrifices, (Rom. 12:1). Paul saw his ministry as being “poured out as a drink offering”—a sacrifice to God for men, (ref. 2 Tim. 4:6a). 

May God find in this imperfect man that I am, “a man after [God’s] own heart”!

PLEASING THE ONE THAT MATTERS

Some preachers are pugilistic by nature—always ready to duke it out over some deviance in a doctrine they detect. They are always right and come hell or high water, they will let you know it!  They automatically look at other ministries with a magnifying glass, persistently scouring for what they perceive is a bit of dirt while seldom examining their own.  

But, most of us are not that way. We enjoy tranquility in the church. It is easier to go along and get along. When someone in the congregation is upset, so are we. It is a short distance to slip into being a man-pleaser, where the opinions of others gradually arise to become preeminent. That is deadly in ministry. It leads to compromise. 

Paul gives us the proper balance between these two errors: strive to please the One that matters. Now, that is not your wife, though we should be concerned about her opinions. In fact, I have found that listening to her at times is the way God directs. Neither is it the deacon chairman or some other prominent member in the congregation that we must heed at all costs. Certainly, there are times we may find such a good sounding board and their backing may be profitable in some significant direction to which we are leading. 

The reality is, though, that if you seek to please God, you will inevitably displease some people, perhaps many people.  The bottom line is this—pleasing the Master and not pleasing man is our goal. We have the ultimate accountability to Him. There is coming that dreadful day that we stand before a Holy God who knows all our thoughts, words, and deeds, even able to discern the very intent of why we did what we have done. 

We do not work for the church, but for Christ who is Lord of the church. If we are obedient to Him, the congregation may follow us or fire us, but that is secondary to the primary duty of pleasing Him!  Men, let us seek to serve each day with eternity in view. 

Blessed Lord, deliver us from being men-pleasers and motivate us to seek to be well pleasing to You!

MAXIMUM MINISTRY

“As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.”  (John 17:18)

Christ’s prayer recorded in John 17 was for all His people (v.20).  His commission is for every disciple of all the ages.  Yet, I think as there was a direct application to those eleven disciples (plus one counterfeit), there is a practical dimension for God’s preacher today.  Imagine, man of God—the Lord of glory standing with eyes upraised to heaven, mere hours from the agony of the cross and He prays for you!

His heart was to glorify the Father and fulfill His mission.  “I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.”  (John 17:4)  Can we think of a greater goal—that in all our life and work we aim at the glory of God and faithfully finishing our assignment?

Eternal life can only be found in the Son of God (v.3).  Those the Father gives the Son in His sovereign grace will come to Him (v.2), but manifesting that salvation to sinners in view of their becoming saints is our duty (v.6).  Of the many good things I might do in ministry, I must not forget the worth of a soul.  Heaven is real and hell is also—and the proclamation of the life-changing Gospel is imperative and urgent.

God has entrusted us with the sacred message.  “ ‎For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me.”  (v.8)  This is the treasure of truth contained in clay pots, and meant to be preserved in its purity—undiluted truth—and proclaimed in its power—unleashed truth.

Not all will be happy to hear the truth (v.14).  They will loathe the mirror of God’s Word in the manner in which the evil queen in the Snow White fairy tale hated to hear what the mirror on the wall honestly spoke.  There is a sanctifying power in the Word (v.17), and many would rather roll in the mud like an old hog—comfortable according to their nature.  To those who respond, however, the truth is transformative (v.19-20).  Should persecution arise, Christ will preserve us until our task is done (v.11-12), for we belong to Him and are loved by Him as the Father loves the Son (v.23-26).  When our mission is accomplished we are summoned to dwell in the eternal glory, face to face with Christ!

While the world hates us and the message is polarizing, let us seek to foster love and preserve unity among the people of God.  It was the earnest petition of Jesus and merits our deliberate effort (v.21-23).  A pugnacious preacher in spirit, always splitting theological hairs, and looking for a reason to cause strife is guilty of a severe sin.  To attack the Bride of Christ is an assault on Christ Himself who is one with her.  When the world sees our schisms, and hears venom more than grace from the pulpit, no wonder they scoff at our sermons!  There may come a time when truth, even spoken in love, angers church members who reject it—and reject us—let us love nonetheless.  If we part company may there be no bitterness on our part, only grief as a spurned lover.  This is maximum ministry—the mandate given by our Master, and His prayer for His men.