A Man After God’s Own Heart

A Man After God’s Own Heart Acts 13.21-22 This is during Paul’s First Missionary Journey. He and Barnabas were out together. It is interesting how this came about. The laying on of hands. The Holy Spirit spoke, probably through a prophet. They were sent out. This was in the context of the Church. This is how missionaries are sent. I remember when I went to Haiti for the first time, 11 years ago. I had Pastor Johnson, Rudy Migliore, Ray Toca and Pastor Dennis Hodulick, my prayer group, lay hands on me in a prayer meeting a few days before I left. I wanted to humble myself and be under God’s Blessing. Pastor Dennis said that I would be speaking in a church there on Sunday. I said I don’t even know anyone in Haiti. Yet Sunday Morning I found myself speaking in Pastor Joes Church and the mission began… and it ended it well… with a new church built. They were in Pisdian Antioch. Their pattern was to the Jew first and also to the Greek. So they went to the Synagogue. Paul spoke out of the Old Testament, the Scriptures of the Jews. David was their most beloved King. To this day there is a tomb in Jerusalem which is called the Tomb of David. We know when Acts was written his tomb was there. It is one of the holiest sites in Israel. It is a Memorial to Israel’s most beloved King Paul speaks of David. He was a shepherd, Hero in slaying Goliath, becoming King and most of all in the line of the Messiah. Mary and Joseph were of the house and line of David. This is why they went to Bethlehem to register during the Census. We are sharing about important things today, things of the Kingdom. It is not the Pro 17 iPhone that is important. We are in a time when the news cannot be trusted. Calls are going out since Wednesday for a return to God in our nation. It will happen when the people of God stop talking about Him and begin to cry out to Him. The most important and wonderful thing is that God is at work in the lives of those who are after His own heart. Those who are calling out to Him. In India we are being asked to pray for land for a church. Pastor Johnson’s Indian Village Mission. In Bangladesh a number of hungry children were fed by gifts given through this little church. In Kenya Pastor Daniel had the rim of his motorcycle fixed. He attended a conference in Uganda (6 hour trek on roads that are not like ours) I rode 6 hours thanks to Marcos and Nydia to be with my Mom on her 96th birthday on Thursday. It was a lot different trip than Pastor Daniel had. While there she got to talk to Pastor Humphrey from Nairobi. His church building needs a roof. We have some materials there but more are needed. What is most important? The thing Paul recalls is a deeply spiritual issue. David was a man after God’s own heart. * David was a Shepherd. As the LORD Psalm 80. 1  Hear us, Shepherd of Israel,     You who lead Joseph like a flock. You Who sit enthroned between the cherubim,     shine forth 2 before Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasseh. Awaken Your might;     come and save us. “Shepherd of Israel” is a biblical title for God, emphasizing His role as the loving leader, protector, and provider of the nation of Israel and the Church. I am the Good Shepherd, Jesus said in John 10.11 The good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. The Sacrificial Lamb of God In the Old Testament the LORD is my Shepherd, Israel’s Shepherd. In the New Testament, Jesus is the Good Shepherd, the Great Shepherd of the Sheep, the Chief Shepherd Hebrews 13. 20 Now may the God of peace, Who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, 21 equip you with everything good for doing His will, and may He work in us what is pleasing to Him, through Jesus Christ, to Whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen. I Peter 5. 1To the elders among you, I appeal as a fellow elder and a witness of Christ’s sufferings who also will share in the glory to be revealed: 2Be shepherds of God’s flock that is under your care, watching over them—not because you must, but because you are willing, as God wants you to be; not pursuing dishonest gain, but eager to serve; 3not lording it over those entrusted to you, but being examples to the flock. 4And when the Chief Shepherd appears, you will receive the crown of glory that will never fade away. David said He was His Shepherd This is huge. It shows God’s heart. Loving, caring, graceful, gentle It shows mankind’s need. The crying need is for shepherds today. In this time guidance for the soul is needed. We have medical needs at times. We have emotional needs, physical needs. But the overwhelming need is in the soul, for direction, for comfort, to be heard, to be loved, to be affirmed. Take someone who is successful in their career, makes lots of money, has the things money can buy, may even have friends. If they do not have a relationship with the LORD’s, their life is empty. Take someone who lives in a developing nation, say Bangladesh They just get by, they do not have money or really anything. They just have the LORD. They have all they need. They are content. Fitz Chrysler said, “The person who has everything and Christ is not a whit richer than the person who only has Christ.” The soul is where the issues of life are. The soul is that eternal part of man. We need daily guidance. For someone to care without charging. I love it! Shepherds, true shepherds, have a deep love for the flock. I was blessed in my pre shepherd days to have men who loved the LORD and tended to their flock. * David understood the Kingdom of Israel, God’s Kingdom You do not ascend to power on your own. Psalm 75. 6 No one from the east or the west     or from the desert can exalt themselves. 7 It is God Who judges:     He brings one down, He exalts another. This is precisely what happened with Saul and David. God anointed David and rejected. You do not do what you want to with the power entrusted to you. Jesus said, “For the Son of man has not come to be served, but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many.” Mark 10.45 The LORD seeks servants whom He can work through. David fought the LORD’s battles. I Samuel 25.28 “Please forgive your servant’s presumption. The LORD your God will certainly make a lasting dynasty for my lord, because you fight the LORD’s battles, What are the LORD’s Battles Today? The souls The soul of this nation How do we fight. Clothe ourselves with the LORD Jesus Christ Prayer You submit yourself to God. Sheep are safe when they submit to the Shepherd. The shepherd sees what is ahead. He gathers the sheep together in times of storms. The shepherd seeks out food for them, leading them to a table prepared for them. It is deadly for a sheep to leave the flock and the care of a shepherd. It is also deadly for the sheep to attack the shepherd. It is unseemly. Actually wolves attack, sheep are defenseless. You do not touch the LORD’s Anointed. Psalm 105.15 Touch not mine anointed, and do my prophets no harm. His prophets. All of God’s people. We have an anointing. I John 2.20 * David Shepherded them with skilled hands and integrity of heart. Psalm 78.70-72 He had a heart like God. Full of Grace Full of Love He cared about justice. He led the nation in worship. He saw nature as God’s Handiwork. Throughout the Psalms he praised the LORD for it. He had a beginner’s heart, an awe of His Father’s World At the death of Saul, before he took the throne, he led the nation in mourning. Part of God’s heart breaks for human beings on this earth broken by sin. A man after God’s own heart is * humble * Loving * Kind * Willing to suffer, insulted, spoken evil of, forgiving * Worshipful * Seeking guidance from above * Crying out to God * The eyes of the LORD go to and from throughout the whole earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to Him. II Chronicles 16.9 Be a man or woman after God’s own heart.