← Victory Church: Paul Daugherty
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Come on, everybody say Psalms of David. If you got a Bible, go to Psalm 139. Psalm 139. Come on, Jesus. We're starting a brand new series. And I love studying characters in the Bible, and I love studying the Psalms. You know, I was a worship leader before I was a pastor. And when I was younger, as a child, I remember watching my mom write songs. And oftentimes she would open her Bible to the Psalms and I would say, why do you go to the Psalms? And she would say, these are songs that were already written, like thousands of years ago for us to sing and for us to write songs connected to these verses. And when I think about the Psalms, not every Psalm was written by David. There's 150 Psalms. That's the largest book in the Bible by far. There's not a book that even comes close to that book in the Bible. 150 chapters. But not all of these chapters were written by David. David wrote the majority of them, but there were some written by Moses, some that were written by different people in the Bible. But the ones that David wrote chronicle his life, his journey from when he was a child all the way to the end of his days when he steps into eternity when he dies. And so for the next several weeks, we're going to study the Psalms and. And we're gonna do kind of a Bible study this summer. As we go through the Psalms, we're gonna learn what God wants to speak to us. Through the life of David, through his failures, through his success, through his good decisions, his bad decisions, through his marriage, his family, his parenting, his teenage years, his single years, all of that, his slain the giant. And it's gonna be a powerful series. So Psalm 139, this is one of the psalms that David wrote specifically about reflecting on his younger years. And he goes all the way back. In verse 13, he says, Lord, you created my inmost being. God, you knit me together in my mother's womb. David was reflecting on how God intricately made him specific with a unique personality. Like, God doesn't make mistakes. You are not a mistake if you're. By the way, note takers are history makers, world changers. Before anyone could call you anything, before anyone could label you anything, God already made you on purpose for a purpose. God does not make mistakes. God does not make accidents. David was saying, God, you do well with what you do. I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful. David was saying, you did a good job on me. Now, that might sound kind of arrogant, prideful. But David wasn't saying, like, I'm amazing. He was saying, you're amazing, God, and you do an amazing job creating mankind creation. Like, you can look at the redwood forest. You can look at the Pacific Ocean. You can look at the Arkansas river in Tulsa, Oklahoma. You can look at Turkey Mountain, or you can look at the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. But when you look around the earth and you see the beauty of his creation. I love a sunset in Oklahoma. Does anyone just love a great sunset in Oklahoma? Y', all, the clouds this last week were phenomenal. My kids and I, we were just sitting there as the clouds were moving and the sun was setting and the climate was perfect this last week. The allergies were crazy, but the temperature outside was great. And we were sitting there and I was like, man, God did a great job on that. But David was saying, that doesn't even come close to what God has done with his creation of mankind. And if God is so intricately involved building the mountains and the ocean and the rivers and the creeks and the valleys, he's just as involved creating you. And David said, God, I know you do good. I know everything you make is great. He goes on to say this in verse 15, he says, My frame was not hidden from you when I was made in the secret place. David was someone who understood the power of the secret place. So I figured this is a good series to pull out the guitar, and we'll just hope that it's in tune. Last night, it was not in tune. Hey, that sounds good. Yeah, last night when I started playing, it was so out of tune, I. I had asked the team to tune it before service, and I think they tried to tune it and got out of tune, and it turned into a whole illustrated sermon. Because the truth is, you can't delegate someone else to tune your own heart. You gotta tune your heart yourself. And your heart can get out of tune like that. Like, you. You can just get cut off in traffic and you got a. You got. You gotta. You got some stuff that gets out of tune, right? Someone screams at you, someone says something mean to you, someone looks at you sideways. You know, just. Anything can just get you out of tune. There we go. But David knew how to tune his heart. He knew how to keep his heart in a place of surrender. And that's really why he was a man after God's own heart. Wasn't because he was flawless, wasn't because he was the man of most, like, 100% perfection in his integrity or character. David was Pretty flawed, like, probably sinned even more than Saul. But David goes down in history, in the New Testament and the Old Testament, as the man. He's the only one in the Bible that's called the man after God's own heart. David was writing songs when he was like 10 years old. He was watching his father's sheep when he was just a child. He was out in the fields and he would sing to his sheep, right? He would sing out there as the sun was setting and the hills are alive with the sound of music, right? He was out there. I don't know the chords, but he was writing these songs and he was singing to the Lord and he was worshiping God and he was saying, God, you knit me together. You made me in the secret place when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. David would sing out to God and he would find his relationship with God when no one was around. He would say, lord, your eyes saw my unformed body. I love this part right here. All the days of my life, all the days ordained for me when were written in your book, before even one of them came to be, David had this revelation that God knew his end from his beginning. That God was not just the alpha of David's life, he was the Omega of David's life. He wasn't just the God that started David's journey. He was the God that would stay with David's journey all through the valleys, all through the. This is why David would later on write Psalm 23. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. That God, that same God that was with him in his early days would be with him in his later days. The same God that was with him when he was successful would be with him even when he failed. And David would go down in the Bible. The only person in the Bible that would be described as a man after God's own heart. Now that's a very big title, and it's the only person in the Bible that gets this title. Esther doesn't get this title as a woman after God's own heart. Ruth doesn't get this title. Not even Mary, the mother of Jesus, gets the title as a woman after God's own heart. The only character in the Bible that gets this is David. And he gets it not just once, he gets it twice. God calls him a man after his own heart in the Old Testament and the New Testament. I want to go there real quick. Let's go to 1st Samuel 131 Samuel 13. And here's where it first appears. God was choosing a new king, because the first king of Israel, which really wasn't the first king of Israel, but we'll get to that later. But the first king, Saul, had broken God's heart. He had disobeyed God and he had made a big mess. And he was trying to cover it up, clean it up, and he was trying to save his image. He didn't really care about repenting to God. He just cared about keeping the crown, keeping the throne, you know, keeping the title, the position. But he had lost the anointing. And in this moment, God looks at Saul and I want to go to 1st Samuel 13, verse 14. He says, Listen, your kingdom is coming to an end. There's an expiration date on your kingdom. Here's the scary thing. Saul actually started off as a great king. Saul started off as an anointed king chosen by God. He was like a prophet, like Saul did a great job in the beginning. But over time, after 20 years, Saul started taking his position, his authority for granted. One of the greatest tests for leadership is not who you are when no one's watching. It's who you are when everyone's watching. It's not, you know, what you do leading up to becoming a great leader. It's what you do once the power is given to you. Because power can change men, authority can change people. People start walking with a greater level of arrogance and entitlement when they realize they're in charge of everything. And so this is what happened with Saul is that Saul started thinking, I can do whatever I want. I'm the king, I'm in charge. And eventually what we learned through Saul is that leadership is stewardship. And if you're taking notes, I just want you to write this down. The title of the sermon today is Man After God's Own Heart. And this first thing we're gonna learn from Saul before we get to David is that leadership is stewardship. Whether you're the President of the United States of America or whether you are the Pharaoh of Egypt, or whether you're the king of Israel, or whether you're the CEO of a certain company in Tulsa, or whether you are the pastor, like leadership is stewardship, it doesn't last forever. Don't take your opportunities for granted. If a leader refuses to let God lead him or her, their leadership will eventually self destruct. And this is what happened with Saul. One of the scariest places that we can be is to have a title, but not have the anointing anymore. Saul got to keep the title. He got to keep the crown. He got to keep the throne for another almost 20 years, but he lost the anointing. Samuel, the prophet came to Saul and he said, saul, your leadership is coming to an end. Not yet. God's going to allow you to still lead this nation for a while, but his spirit has been taken from you. So you'll have the title, but you won't have the anointing. And eventually, Saul, it's all going to crumble. Why? Not because Saul was some terrible person. It's because he disobeyed God and he had no repentance in his heart, no brokenness over his sin. The difference between Saul and David is really not that much because both of them were sinners, Both of them were flawed, Both of them were kings that made big mistakes, but both of them responded differently. God was not looking for a flawless leader. He was looking for a broken leader. He was looking for a broken leader. And so we go to 1 Samuel 13, verse 14. And this is what Samuel, the prophet says to Saul. He says, your kingdom is coming to an end. The Lord has sought out a man. In other words, God has been searching. You know, Second Chronicles says, the Lord searches to and fro. If you think God's not watching, he's watching. If you think God doesn't see you, he sees you. If you think your ways are hidden from God, I'm telling you right now, he knows all. He sees all. David said this in Psalm 139. There's not one thing that's hidden from you. You see it all, God, you see me. And by the way, David said your thoughts about me are good. You think good thoughts. Like David had this revelation that God sees me, but he doesn't see me with this angry, like, I want to hurt you. He sees me with eyes of love and compassion. AW Tozer said, the most important thing about you as a believer is your point of view of God, your POV towards God. If you believe that God is a mean God, a bad God, a sad God, you know, like a angry God, and he wants to hurt you and he wants to punish you for all your mistakes, that will drive the behavior of your life. But if you believe that God is for you, if you believe that God loves you. I remember I was sitting in a class with this great, like, leader that had invited me to come and take some classes from him. And there were other pastors in this class. And every time I would go into the class, I would go up to the front and start talking to him. I would shake his hand. Sometimes I would bring in a Dr. Pepper because I knew he liked Dr. Pepper, you know, and afterwards, I would laugh with him. And one time, a couple of the pastors, they found me after class. They go, hey, how come you're so close with this person? Like, how did you become good friends with him? I was like, I don't know. I think he likes me. And they're like, what do you mean you think he likes you? That's weird. I was like, no, not in a weird way. I mean, I think he likes me as a person. I think he likes being around me. I think he's enjoys me being a student in his class. And they're like, well, who told you that? I was like, I don't know. I just have these. I just believe that he wants me to be in his class, and he's happy to. And I realized that my behavior in the class, my closeness to the teacher, was based on my perception of how he viewed me. The rest of the class kept a distance because they were like, oh, well, what if he's mad at me? What if he's going to punish me? What if I get an F in this class? What if he doesn't even want me to ask a question? And. And yet I was freely confident in the class. Why? Because I believed God was searching for someone that wanted to be close to him. I believe my teacher was. Was interested in having a friendship with the students. And this is where David was different than Saul. David didn't just want to have a God that was far off in the galaxies that was like, you know, somehow working and orchestrating favor towards his life. David wanted to have a relationship with God. God. David understood. God doesn't want to just be some distant teacher sitting behind his desk that has no connection to his students. David believed God wants to know me. Before you become a man after God's own heart, you have to first believe that God is after your heart. Like, you are not the hero in the story. God is. It's not all about men and women after God's own heart. My prayer is that our church would be a church after God's own heart. But the first step towards that is believing that we have a God that's after our heart. Friends, God loves you. He thinks good thoughts about you. He's searching for you. He's been pursuing your heart since you were a kid. The fact that you showed up to church today is the wooing of God. He's been Wooing you into his presence. He's been dropping little hints and clues to say, I see you, I love you on the back row, on the front row. Watching online in England or in Florida or wherever you're seeing this sermon or listening to this podcast, I'm telling you right now, you. You have a God in heaven who desires your heart. Before you're a man after God's own heart, you first realize there is a God after your own heart. And so here Samuel tells Saul, he says, saul, your time's coming to an end. God is seeking out a man after his own heart, and he's already appointed him. He's already working behind the scenes. Now, this would turn Saul into a madman. Saul. Saul would become the most crazy king that Israel had ever seen or would see. Saul lost his mind for the next 20 years. He would have nightmares every night, and then he would have crazy visions during the day, tormenting spirits to the point where he needed music to create a temporary solution to a permanent problem. So every day, he needed band aids to deal with the pain in his mind. And he would invite. He would say, find me someone who plays music. And David's first gig was not king, was not giant Slayer. David's first gig in the palace was guitar player, harpist. He would come in with his strings and he would sing, right? And he would play before a crazy king. And God was searching for a future king of Israel. How many have been watching the House of David series? If you haven't seen it, you should watch it. It does have some crazy things that aren't in scripture. So this is not my, like, go watch it. It's all. There's some stuff, but it gives you a view of the ancient times, of what was going on in Israel. And so in this moment, by the way, when Saul became the king of Israel, we need to do a little bit of backstory to the backstory to the backstory. Every story is a story within a story. Before Saul became the king of Israel, there was a king in Israel. Saul was not the first king. God was the first king. In first Samuel, chapter eight, God was leading Israel, and he had set up judges and he had set up warriors. So there were people like Joshua and Caleb, There were judges like Samson and Deborah, and then there were prophets like Samuel. There was no king. Israel was different than all the other nations. Israel was called to be set apart. Friends, God has called you to be set apart. He has not called you to be like everybody else. It's a dangerous thing when we start comparing Our lives with everyone else's life. The church is not supposed to look like the world. People in the church are not supposed to live like people in the world. Y'. All. We are called to live in the world, but not be of the world. So Israel was different. They were in the world, but they were not of the world. They had no human king. God was their king until this one moment. In 1st Samuel, chapter 8, verse 4, the elders of Israel gathered together and they came to Samuel at Ramah. And they look at him and they go, you are old. Which is just mean to say to an old guy, you are old. And. And then the worst part is they said, your sons aren't listening to your sermons. You've been a great prophet, but not a great father. You've been a great pastor in the church, but you haven't done a great job at your house. And your kids, they don't even believe in the God that you preach about. So now. So this is their solution. They're like, here's our solution. Appoint for us a king. Give us a human king. Someone who will lead us. Such as, look at this. All the other nations have. I remember when I was a kid, I used to tell my parents, I was like, why can't we be like all the other families out there? Why can't we watch whatever movie we want to watch? Like, can't we just watch some R rated movies on Friday night? And all the other families let their 7 year olds smoke cigarettes and drink beer. And my parents are like, who are you talking about? That's smoking at 7. I was like, I just want to be like all the other families, right? And my parents are like, we're not like all the other families. Besides Paul, you have a very messed up perspective of what all the other families out there are like. But I remember telling my parents, I was like, why do we have certain convictions? Why can't we do what everyone else does? And why is Victory different than other churches? Why can't we be like this church or that church? And my dad would say, you want to go to that church, go to that church. And I was like, okay. He's like, get out of my house. And I was like, okay. You know, he's like, if you're under my roof, if you're sleeping in my house, as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. And we're gonna have different convictions and we're not called to be like everybody else. And we're not gonna be like every other church. And we're not gonna just do what everyone else does. And my dad was pretty, you know, he had a pretty strong backbone to the point where he was like, you wanna go there? Leave? He's like, I'll find people that are loyal to what God has called us to build. It's a scary thing when you start trying to be like everybody else. And this is really what broke Samuel's heart. He was like, what we have is special. Like, we have something special. Israel has something that Egypt doesn't have, Iran doesn't have, Persia doesn't have, Jordan doesn't. Like, we have something really special. We have a divine king. Why would you, why would you opt for a human king when you have a God king? But Israel wanted it. They said, we want a president, we want a pharaoh, we want a prime minister. We want someone who will hike up the gas prices to 419 in Tulsa, Oklahoma. We want someone who will tax us, who will enlist us in wars that we didn't sign up to be in. We want someone to lead us in the way they think we should go. We don't want God leading us. That's what they said. We don't want God to lead us. We want a human to lead us. And. And when you ask for a human to lead you, one of the worst things God can give you is what you want. One of the worst answers to prayers is to get exactly what you want, friends. One of the best things God gives us, and Garth Brooks wrote it down, is unanswered prayers. One of God's greatest gifts are unanswered prayers. When they said this, give us a king to lead us, this broke Samuel's heart. And he started talking to God about it. And God tells him in verse seven, listen to what the people are saying. He says, samuel, it's not you. They've rejected me. They've rejected me as their king. And because they've rejected me, they will go down a path that eventually will lead them to a place where they will cry out for a messiah. God knew the whole plan, that through this decision, one day a future king would come. And he would ride on a donkey, and he would come from a little town called Bethlehem. And that future king would solve all the problems that the human kings of Israel could never solve. See, Israel was looking for a king, but God was looking for a heart. Israel was looking for some man made leader, but God was looking for a heart. I think that's an important part of this message because most of us in this room, we're looking for Certain people, even if you're single and you're looking to get married, who are you looking for? Which leads me to the next question. What is God's measuring stick for leadership? What is God's measuring stick for? Who he chooses to lead, to lead churches, to lead nations, to lead businesses, to lead ministries. What is God's measuring stick? And what should our measuring stick be when it comes to choosing someone? Whether it's choosing someone to marry, choosing someone to partner with, choosing someone to invest in, choosing someone to. To lead you, choosing someone of who's going to be leading your family. God's measuring stick for leadership was so different than everyone else's. Because in Israel, they would look at, like, age, they would look at size, they would look at birth order, they would look at how pretty he. She is, right? How handsome he is, what his education is, like, what kind of degree. Tomorrow night, we're gonna graduate the seniors of Victory Christian School right here in this room. And I'm pumped to celebrate them. They'll walk across the stage, they'll turn their tassel. We'll shout, you know, we'll say congratulations, and we'll announce who had the highest GPA, 4.0 students, who's going to what university, and who's the summa cum laude, you know? And we celebrate all of these things, and we should, right? But God looks past all of that. God's like, okay, cool, you're smart. Cool. You're tall. Great. You're beautiful. On the outside, everything looks good. The resume looks perfect. But the measuring stick for leadership in God's Bible, in God's word, in God's book, is not age. It's not birth order. It's not fame. It's not how many followers you have on social media. It's not even how perfect your integrity is in the eyes of people. The measuring stick for leadership is the heart. This is what God tells Samuel. He says, you're looking for a king. I'm looking for a heart. I'm looking for a heart that's broken, a heart that's surrendered, a heart that knows when it misses it, because this person will miss it. Whoever I choose next will have flaws. David was possibly even more flawed than Saul. But David's heart was more broken than any king that would ever sit on that throne in Israel. David had a heart that was surrendered to God. And so God sends Samuel. Look at this. In 1st Samuel 16, verse 1, God prepares Samuel for what's next. Because Samuel is now heartbroken like Saul has lost his mind. Saul Is living crazy. He's paranoid. He's overwhelmed. He's lost the anointing. He's still in charge. And God tells to Samuel in verse 1 of 1st Samuel 16, he says, how long will you mourn? How long will you live in heartbreak? How long will you weep over who you lost? How long will you stay in this place of sadness? Grief can become paralyzing to you. Grief can blind you of a vision for the future. When I lost my dad, I remember feeling like I had no hope for the future of our church. When I lost some people in my life, there was just feelings and seasons attached to loss and betrayal and grief and heartbreak that can just paralyze you. How many all know what I'm talking about? Have you ever been paralyzed by grief? Where you just are like, man, I don't even know how to move forward. It just feels like a gray wall. I don't even know what's next because all I'm thinking about is the heartbreak of what I just walked through, the loss. This is where Samuel was at. He loved God, but he was stuck in grief. How do we know this? Because God said, listen, it's time to move on. Your grief has kept you stuck. I've rejected the person that you are still grieving over. You still wish it would have worked out with him. You're still holding on to who you thought it was going to be. And God says, I've already moved on. It's time for you to move on, friends. God has already moved on. He's waiting for you to catch up. And what he has moved on towards, I'm telling you, what's in front of you is greater than what's behind you. The future days that God has in store for Israel and for you on the other side of your heartbreak are going to be 10 times better than what you just experienced. God is not finished with you yet. The question is, are you finished with God? See, Samuel had to answer this question. Am I gonna stay in my grief, or am I gonna trust God with my future? Am I gonna stay in this place of sadness? Or am I gonna believe that the best days are still in front of me? And so here's what God says. He says, fill your horn with oil. Now, this is a big moment here. Because when Samuel anointed Saul, he anointed Saul with a flask. And a flask was about the size of, like, this water bottle right here. This is what Samuel anointed Saul with. And Samuel thought, that's a big deal. But when God prepared Samuel to anoint David, he said, fill your horn with oil. Different than a flask. A horn symbolized strength, A horn symbolized stability. A horn symbolized authority. And a horn symbolized a lasting dynasty. What God was saying was, you anointed Saul for a one generation king, and his leadership is about to expire. But the next one you anoint, he will have a throne for generations to come through the lineage of this next king, and he didn't know the name yet, but through the lineage of David would come the Messiah. That through this anointing, he was saying, fill your horn, get your faith up, get your hope up, get your expectations right. Ready? Because what I have in front of you is greater than what is behind you. And then he says, be on your way. Everybody say, be on your way. He says, I'm sending you to Jesse. And here's the part where I'm like, I bet Samuel's getting excited, like, whoa, get my horn filled with oil. Let's go. It's gonna be great. And God's like, I'm sending you. And he's like, let's go. Where are we going? It's like Bethlehem. Bethlehem. Little town of Bethlehem. Come on. Send me to, like, Hebrew University. Send me to Jerusalem. Send me to the Mecca where the leaders are. Send me to the place where I can find the greatest, next top graduate law school student who can lead our nation with business acumen, spiritual authority, theological intelligence. Send me to find the greatest human in our nation. And God goes, go to Bethlehem. Go to Bethlehem. I go to Jesse's house. Who is Jesse? Right? And so Samuel's like, okay, like, I just picked Saul who was tall and handsome, firstborn, like, strong guy. So I guess I need to start looking for another Saul, like another tall, handsome, strong, sharp looking guy. That's the problem with us humans. We keep picking the same kind of person. And we wonder why we keep getting the same results. God says, I'm sending you to an obscure place. I'm sending you to a place to find someone who reflects my heart. God's heart was not like business God, CEO God, you know, like multi billionaire God. He wasn't like Elon Musk, God, like greatest inventor, you know, making. Sending spaceships to Mars. God. God's heart beats for people from Genesis all the way up until this moment. First Samuel, God has been pursuing people almost like a shepherd would run after sheep. So who does he go looking for next to lead Israel? He look. He looks among the shepherds. He looks for someone that reflects his heart. Someone who has a heart like his. Someone who cares about the least, the last and the lost. Someone who's not consumed and concerned with image projection and protection and trying to look the part in front of the eyes of everybody, but someone who smells like the sheep of Israel. The very job that David was doing when he was found by God would be the job God wanted David to do for the rest of his life. To keep leading sheep. He would lead the father's sheep in Bethlehem, and eventually he would lead the father's sheep for the whole nation of Israel. He says, I'm sending you to Jesse of Bethlehem. I have chosen one of his sons to be king. Now Samuel's kind of worried about this, so he goes, God, how could I go? If Saul finds out, he's going to kill me. Because Saul's crazy and he's trying to protect his throne. And heavy is the head that wears the crown, especially for those who think that the throne and the kingdom rest on them. One of the first lessons I learned as pastor of this church is that I am not the head of this church. Jesus is. The health and the growth of this church does not rest on me. It rests on Jesus. What I need to do is not carry the burden as if it's all on me. What I need to do is sit at my father father's feet and lay at this altar and stay surrendered to God and brokenly continue every Sunday to minister and serve and preach and do my best. But God is the head of this church, not Paul, and it was never a man. The second we think that we're in charge of everything and the growth rests on us, we start making, like, terrible decisions, and we start trying to manipulate and control people. And you can't do that. God is the shepherd. So God was like, hold on. Yes, you're right. Saul is crazy. Saul's trying to protect the throne. Saul's paranoid who's going to steal the crown? And I love God's personality. God doesn't say, get over your worries or don't be afraid, or, let's just kill Saul off. God actually gives him a strategy to almost deceive Saul. He. He says, take a heifer with you and tell Saul that you're going to make a sacrifice to the Lord. But you and I know you're about to anoint the next king of Israel. You know, like, God had this secret with Samuel. I love God. How many? All just love God. You're like, man, I love the way God thinks. He just doesn't fit in your religious box. He's not like the Pharisees, you know, he's just different. He heals people on the Sabbath. And then he works in ways that, you know, just a. So then in verse three, watch what happens. So he says, invite Jesse to the sacrifice and I'll show you what to do. I'm gonna lead you step by step. You will anoint the one that I indicate. In other words, God said, you're not choosing the next king. I'm choosing the next king. And you're not gonna pick another man that's gonna do exactly what the last man did to you. Here's a word for all the single women in the church. Let God pick the next one. And here's a word for all the single men in the church. Let God pick the next one. Stop picking people based on what you think is the best choice. Spend time praying and letting the Holy Spirit speak to you on. Hey. Because here's what's going to happen. We're all going to have opportunities to choose. And we're going to be tempted to choose based on what we think and perceive. Even Samuel the prophet is going to miss it in this moment. And even prophets and pastors and kings will miss it. And so God says, I'm gonna choose. In verse four, Samuel does exactly what God tells him to do. He obeys God. Will you listen and obey God? And when he arrives there, people are trembling. They're like, it's Samuel the prophet, y'.
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Samuel looked like Gandalf from Lord of the Rings. Long beard, walking into. And I've been to Bethlehem. You see things coming from, like 10 miles away. I remember going to Bethlehem when I was little with our family. We went to Israel and we drove a bus up this steep mountain. And I looked out the bus window, and there's shepherds and there's sheep. And we're out in the hills of Israel and we're coming into Bethlehem. And y', all, people can see you. People see you coming from miles away, driving up into Bethlehem. So we're coming into Bethlehem, and I'm imagining what it was like when Samuel is walking towards Bethlehem with a heifer, right? He's got this. And then all these people see him and they start following him. It's like a caravan. They start following Samuel the prophet. Where's he going? What's he doing? Whose house is he going to? And he says, go get Jesse and go get Jesse's sons. And so Jesse gathers all of his sons, or so we think. He gathers seven. And he lines them up Right? And they're all there in front of him. And Samuel sees all the sons of Jesse in verse 5, he sees the whole family come out. And he's watching them all. They're consecrating, they're getting ready for the sacrifice. And watch this. In verse six, the first that catches Samuel's eye when they arrive is Eliab. And when he sees Eliab, this is the oldest son of Jesse. This is David's oldest brother. Later on, we're going to hear from Eliab, who accuses David of being arrogant, conceited, and, like, entitled. It's all like, he had this big brother mentality over David because he's the oldest. And when Samuel saw the oldest, he's like, surely, surely, surely, this is the Lord's anointed. This is the man. Right? I remember one time when my dad missed it on someone on a situation. And my mom was in the kitchen and she was like, I told you so. How many all wives have ever said that to your husband? I told you. How many y' all moms have ever said that to your son? I told you so. So my mom was telling my dad, I told. And my dad went outside, started raking the leaves that weren't on the driveway, praying in tongues, trying to deal with his frustration. But my mom was like, I told you so. And I asked my mom in the kitchen, I said, how did dad miss it? He's, like, discerning. He's prophetic. He's like, praying in tongues. He's close with God. And she said, paul, here's the truth. I miss it. Your dad misses it. Prophets miss it. Prophets like Samuel, moms and dads. Sometimes we don't always see what God sees. Sometimes we're blinded by what looks shiny or what appears to be charismatic and so easy to follow. And so, like, this is the guy as, As a pastor now that's been in this role for 12 years. I. I look at people that we have hired on that work in our school and our college and, and the dream center in the church and, and the camp. And there's been times where people have said, you gotta hire this person. This person is the best person. They got the charisma, they got the personality, they got the resume, they got. They got the education. They're gonna take us from zero to hero, you know, just like that, Hercules, we gotta get this person. And my question is, when I'm hearing all this is like, yeah, but what's in their heart? What's in their heart? Because this is what God Says in the next verse, he looks at Samuel. He says, samuel, the Lord says to Samuel, do not consider his appearance or his height. Don't just look at his resume. Don't just look at how pretty she looks, guys. Don't just look at her Instagram profile. Don't just look at how strong he is or how much money he has or the car he drives. Watch what he says next. He says, the Lord does not look at the things that people look at. We should take a lesson from the Lord here to learn to look at people the way that God looks at people. He doesn't always pay attention to the outward appearance because looks will be fleeting, charm is deceptive, and beauty is vain. I'm telling you, at some point, everybody is going to. Everybody's going to grow up. Everybody, like everything that looks super nice right now, eventually, in 50, 60 years, 70 years, we're all gonna look the same, okay? You can't keep on doing all the lifts and all the tucks and the, you know, all this stuff. Everything you try to fix. At some point, we all grow up. But here's the thing. God goes, listen, stop looking at the outward appearance. Because the outward appearance is not what's gonna sell, what's gonna lead this nation. He says, I'm not looking at people. Look at the outward appearance. This is where they think. This is where it's at. This is where the money's at, right? But the Lord looks at the heart, friends. The Lord is looking at your heart. He sees your heart when no one else. You might be overlooked by man, but you are not overlooked by God. You might feel invisible to your boss. You might feel invisible even in this church, but I promise you, you are not invisible to your heavenly Father. He sees you. He knows what's inside you. And God has a way of promoting the hearts that are committed to him. You stay with it. You stay with it. Don't lose that pursuit. So David was out in the field with. While his father. Watch this next verse. Samuel goes, all right, show me the other kids. So Jesse goes, all right, Abnadab, right places the next son. And Samuel's like, not him. And so Jesse goes, all right, Shamma. And so Shema comes out and he's like, here we go, number three. You know I'm the man. And Samuel goes, not him. And Jesse goes, all right, four, five, six, seven. And after, like, seven is completion. And so Samuel's like, it's gotta be number seven, not number seven. And Samuel goes, is this it? Are these all the sons you Have. And Jesse goes. They're still the youngest. Number eight. We kind of leave him out in the fields. He's a little quirky. This is why David was such a unique person to God. It wasn't that he was perfect. It wasn't that he was the man of, like, 100% flawless integrity and character and honesty. Because, y', all, David was gonna miss it with Bathsheba. David was gonna make some big mistakes, and it was gonna be a big disgrace kicking your can all over this place singing, we will. We will. But David was going to. Y' all are like, what is going on right now? You had me, but. And that was like. David. It was. It would be like one day he was hero, and the next day he was kind of crazy. There's a moment where David lost his mind. He did. No, seriously. Because he was so overwhelmed with sadness. His father and his brothers didn't always believe the best in him. And I was talking to someone who was given the tour in Israel, and they said the reason why most people believe David was left out of the house when Jesse brought all seven in is not just because he was the shepherd out in the fields. And he was a teenager. He was, like, 12 years old. But there's a big belief over there in Israel that he was an illegitimate son, that he was not the biological son of Jesse. The reason why they say this is because Psalm 51, when David's writing this psalm of repentance, he says, I was the son born out of iniquity. That there was this belief that maybe David's mom had slept with another man, and then she had come back to Jesse. And so this was the son that wasn't really part of. He was kind of a stepson. He was a son from another person. And so Jesse didn't even really consider him as an option. David said in one Psalm, in Psalm 68, he said, I feel like I'm an alien to my brothers. We've been talking about aliens on Facebook lately. UFOs. Have you guys been seeing that? Like, the secret meeting of the pastors and the aliens. UFOs. Few of us in this room. Okay. David actually felt like an alien. Not like an actual alien, not a ufo. But he felt like. He said, I am so ostracized by my fear. They don't even view me as one of their own. They don't even see me as a fellow brother. By the way, if you feel left out or rejected, you're in good company with David. If you feel overlooked or forgotten or ignored you're in good company with David. David was right there. If you feel like man has forgotten about you, you are in good company with David because God has not forgotten about you. David was out in the fields, and he's singing to his sheep, and he's singing to the Lord. And worthy is your name.
- [40:17]
A
Jesus,
- [40:21]
B
you deserve praise. Worthy is your name. The sheep would like ba. And they would sway their heads next to David. You're like, what's going on? Right? Just an illustrated sermon. And David would walk through the fields. God, you are with me. Even when my family forgets me, you are always there. You will never leave. You'll never forsake me. You're the father to the fatherless God. You're always with me. And even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.
- [41:13]
A
You are always with me, Lord.
- [41:16]
B
Like David was always flowing, writing these psalms and songs. And then Samuel tells Jesse, is there any other kids? And David's out there singing, right? And again, he's 12 or 13 years old. You are never too young for God to choose you. You are never too old for God to choose you. God doesn't look at age or size or birth or he looks at the heart. And as David's out there singing, there was something about David's heart that was different than Saul. God was so done with Saul's heart. I want to just real quickly show you the contrast of David's heart and Saul's heart. What made David a different king than Saul? Why was David such a better king than Saul? Saul lived with the fear of man. David lived with the fear of God. Saul lived with a constant state of worry, anxiety, tormenting thoughts. Who's gonna steal my crown? Who's gonna take my authority? David lived with a constant heart of worship, and he was always out there. Worthy is your name Jesus? Right? He would sometimes crack in his voice because he was going through puberty. And sometimes he would just, you know, hit those high notes. And Saul was thirsty for man's applause. He was like, who's going to clap for me? Y' all aren't clapping enough. And David was like. As the deer panteth for the waters, O my soul longeth out to thee. For you alone are my heart's desire, and I long to worship you. David was thirsty for the presence of God. Like the deer runneth for the water, David was running after God. Saul was paranoid. David was peaceful. Saul was raging with jealousy. David was oblivious of his. Like, David walks out when the whole nation of Israel is running from Goliath. David walks out and he's like, who is this uncircumcised Philistine that defies the armies of the living God? Y' all are like, what accent did you just. Yes, like that's my best oaky accent right there. 12 year old Okie. But David, David was like, he was oblivious. He was like, why are we running from this 10 foot tall guy? He doesn't stand a chance against our God. Who's bigger than this giant Goliath. Everyone else was running d David was running towards the giant. Saul was self preserving, just wanting to protect himself. David was serving the nation. He would lay his life down for his sheep. He would chase a lion or a bear to protect his sheep. Saul cared about his name. Who's going to honor my name? Who's going to build a statue that looks like King Saul? That's what we get when we choose human kings over God. We get human kings that exalt themselves. But David wanted to glorify God's name. David was like, don't build anything to me. Give God all the glory. I want the band to come out. Saul was a micromanager. Literally told David what strings to play, when to play, how to play, what to put on, what the armor to wear. Was told his son Jonathan, don't do this, don't do that, don't hang out here. He was just constantly, you know, critiquing. And yet David was empowering his team. And we're going to see this later on when David's in the caves with his own team members. He's like, guys, we got to go out. We're going to go and we're going to go in minutes. We're going to do some stuff. And then Saul was suspicious of everyone. He was just constantly suspicious. And David trusted God and believed the best about others to a fault. Even when Saul threw a spear at David, David was like, what are you doing? You trying to kill me? And Saul was like, no, no, I'm just doing target practice. David is like, oh, okay, I believe you. We're like, David, get out of there. He's trying to kill you. He's like, no, he's just practicing target right next to me. You know. David believed the best about people to a fault. And yet that was what kept David on the throne. You know, David would go down as the greatest king that Israel saw up until Jesus. He didn't have as much money as his son Solomon. But David expanded the nation of Israel in ways no Other king would. David would go down in the word of God in the Old Testament and the New Testament, in Acts. In the book of Acts, he's called the man after God's own heart, after he's dead. After a thousand years of him being dead, like he's still in the word of God as a man after God's own heart. No other person got that title. He was just different. So Samuel tells Jesse, he says, go get him at once. Go get this youngest boy at once. Go back to 1 Samuel 16:11. He says, he's outside. He's tending the sheep. Samuel said, send for him at once. We will not sit down until he arrives. And y', all, when I read this, that jumped off the pages at me. There are things in this world, in this life, that won't sit down until you show up. There are opportunities that won't be given to anyone else. I remember the night my dad passed away, and I heard the Lord say, serve your mom. Serve this church, and get ready to pastor. I told Ashley. She was like, don't tell anybody that. I said, why? She was like, I don't want you to get sold to Egypt as a slave by your brothers or anything. You know, because I was thinking about, you know, when the kids start sharing their dreams a little too soon, and not every sibling's happy about that dream. And so I didn't. And I was the youngest in my family, and any of my older siblings could have pastored this church. And even, you know, there were board members that were saying, maybe John Bevere should take over the church. Or maybe, you know, so. And so this other pastor should take over the church. And, you know, definitely not the youngest, definitely not Paul. And I remember during that season, it was such a season where I was literally, like many times in a place of obscurity. And I just felt the Lord saying, serve, serve, serve, serve, serve, serve behind the scenes. Help administer, and don't prefer yourself. Prefer others over yourself. And I remember just serving. And the day came where my mom and the board, they said, you didn't know this, but your dad had one day seen you becoming the pastor of Victory. If you feel called to do that, we want to help you get ready for that. And this was three years later. And I remember just going, yes, I feel called to do this. I know it's not going to be easy. Easy. When God anoints a person for any task, he anoints them for pain just as much as he anoints them for purpose. Like, people see me preaching on this stage. And you have no clue the amount of pain that comes with this role. You have no clue how many tears have been shed on a. On a weekly basis. And I don't think you should pastor until you've wept over a city, until you've wept over a flock. And I meet with pastors and I constantly tell them there is a whole lot of pain connected, connected with anything that God uses you to do. You don't just get anointed for the good days, you get anointed for the hard days. And so David's out in the field. And there's four lessons we learned from David out in this field. Number one, he was faithful in this field. What is the field that God has called you to be faithful to? And if you are faithful in that field, you will be filled in that field. You will be fulfilled in the field that you are faithful to. In other words, you won't be literally sitting in that field going, I can't wait to get out of Bethlehem, can't wait to get a new job, can't wait to find someone else. I can't wait to leave this flock behind. David was fulfilled in the field that he was faithful in. He was happy to take care of his father's sheep. He wasn't itching to get out of town. He wasn't trying to leave that place behind. He was faithful. Number two, he was faithful in the familiar. On, not, not just on the, like, the shiny days, not just on the glory days, but on the rainy days, on the mundane days, on the days where people didn't want to show up to work, he showed up. And that's a test right there. Will you show up when no one else wants to, to show up? Will you show up when you don't want to get out of bed? When you want to sleep in and you want to just send it in, you know, and hit that alarm clock, snooze, David still showed up. Number three, he was faithful when he was forgotten. Even when his dad forgot about him, he was faithful to take care of his dad's sheep. Can you be faithful? Can you be trusted even with a supervisor or a boss who doesn't always see the potential that's inside you, who overlooks you or forgets about, about you? David was faithful there. And the fourth part, most important part, is David was faithful in the future, literally in this moment, David's about to get anointed, but he won't be appointed. There's a difference between anointing and appointing. Anointing means you have a calling on your life, but you're not yet appointed to that position. Appointment is the day and the time that it happens. David would have 16 and a half years of development and process where he was anointed before he was appointed. Can you live in the anointing season long? Long enough to where you lose the ambition and the vain motivation of selfish drive to need a position to feel like you are finally appointed. This is what God would do. God would lead David through an anointing of caves and giants and lions and bears and accusatory brothers and forgetful fathers and crazy kings and spear throwers and through that whole process. God didn't send it, but I promise you, he used it to prepare David for what was coming. And so David starts walking towards that house. What key are you guys in? B. All right, there we go. Let me switch, let me throw on my capo here. Might be a little out of tune. There we go. So David starts walking towards the house. His dad shouts out, davey, I'm coming, dad. Come on, David, someone wants to talk to you. David had already seen the caravan show up to the house. He's like, I know you guys were having a house party once again without me. I know I'm not like always invited to the house party. But he's out there and he's singing and the sheep are following, right? And he's taking one step at a time and he's walking through the field of Israel, he's walking through that field of Bethlehem and he's looking up to God and his dad says, david, come on, come inside. And at this moment I just imagine heaven is watching and God is peering over the grandstand of heaven and he's next to his angels and he's next to Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and they're all in Moses, they're all looking down and they're like, so this is the guy that you choose to lead Israel into its best days yet. This kid right here, this 1312 year old kid with pimples on his face, his voice is cracking, he's kind of quirky, he's singing to sheep, he smells like sheep, he looks messy, he looks dirty, he's got dust on his face, Big disgrace, kicking the can all over the place, right? And they're like, are you sure about this God? And by the way, you are the alpha and omega God. So you know the beginning to the end and, and if we could just watch like the movie of what's going to play out here. You do know this man is Going to commit adultery. Like you're, you're not. Like, you are a God that's not surprised by the affairs of man. So you do know this man's going to, like, mess things up with Bathsheba and then Uriah, and then he's gonna have a son named Absalom, and Absalom's gonna take him to war, and then he's gonna have a son named Amnon, and Amnon's gonna sleep with Tamar and he's gonna have a mess of a family. Are you sure you are choosing the right messed up, dysfunctional future king of Israel with a dysfunctional family that, that you're gonna send the Messiah through? Does this seem like a good idea? And God's watching him. And he sees this dirty kid just singing and playing the guitar, knowing everything that's in front of him for the next 80 years. God sees it all. He's watching him walk from the field to the house. And everybody's trying to figure out, why did God choose a person that's gonna blow it? And maybe that's the question that, that heaven's asking about you. Because heaven knows your beginning to your end. Heaven knows everything you will do, right and wrong. And God still chose you to be alive for such a time as this. And God brought you to Tulsa, Oklahoma, and put you in Victory Church. And you are sitting in that seat because God has a purpose for your life. And sometimes the angels scratch their heads, they're going, God, you still got a plan for this guy. You still got a plan for this girl. You still going to do something through this family? This family. Don't act like you are all perfect on this Sunday morning church service. I know you are crazy like me and you need Jesus just as much as I do. How many y' all are thankful for the grace and the mercy and the calling of God that is irrevocable. And so, I mean, this is. You got to put this in your theological oven and let it cook, because heaven knows what's going to happen. And he sniffs, called a man after God's own heart. How could he be a man after God's own heart when he's going to make so many bad decisions? And God's watching as he takes another step and there's more dust on his feet, and the sheep are still following, swaying as he sings. And he walks into that house. And when he walks into the house, Samuel looks at him and God says, this is the one. In verse 13, verse 12, he says, Rise up, Samuel. And anoint him. And in this moment, that anointing that flows out of that horn, it just begins to fall on David's head. I remember one time when I was little, my brother John said, paul, bow down. I'm going to anoint you. I was like, okay. Because my brother is John Samuel Daugherty, and I'm Paul David Daugherty. And so he's like, I'm Samuel, you're David. So he grabbed my mom's canola oil out of the kitchen, big old bottle. My mom and dad come walking in, my sisters. And I was like, 10, and John was 11, and he just poured the whole thing over my head. And I was like, I am anointed. John was like, I anoint you. Shaking all the oil on me. My mom was like, what is going on, y'? All? Confessions of a pastor's kid right here. We grew up in. We lived out the Bible stories. But here's the point. The brothers of David watch this. And they're looking at him, you know, side eyes, looking at him like, who is this kid? And scholars believe Samuel whispered in his ear. He didn't say it out loud, but he whispered his ear. You are destined to become the next king of Israel. But not yet. Not yet. And David would live with this mystery of what he was anointed to wait. He was anointed to stay faithful with what God had called him to do. I want you to stand your feet all over this place. I don't know who I'm speaking to, but I feel like this is a word for somebody. This is a word for somebody. And I think there's multiple words within this word. I think there's multiple questions that God is asking in our church today. What kind of king will you be? What kind of leader will you be? Which king will you follow? Will you follow the heart of Saul or the heart of David? Will you live with the fear of man or the fear of God? Will you live in worry or will you live in worship? Will you choose to trust in God, or will you live with suspicion? And maybe you're here right now. I'm going to ask us all to just bow our heads and close our eyes. We're going to go into a moment of surrender. This is the most important part of the service, this altar. I feel like God wants to meet with someone today. God wants to work in your heart. One of the greatest psalms that David wrote was, search me, O God. Search me, O God. Investigate my soul, Lord. Look into every thought, every motive, because David was inclined to live Like Saul, at times, David was inclined to make decisions that he shouldn't make. And sometimes he missed it. But David would oftentimes run back to the altar. Friends, the altar is the place where we run to God in our brokenness. And we say, God, teach me how to trust in you. Teach me how to wait on you. Teach me not to be impulsive. Teach me not to be impatient. Teach me, God, to trust that you are doing what only you can do and that your ways are better than my ways and your thoughts are higher than my thoughts. And, God, teach me, Lord, to surrender to you with heads bowed and eyes closed. If you're here today, you just need God to do a work in your heart. Maybe there's a part of your heart that you just need to say, God, I surrender. I surrender the future. I surrender the past. I surrender areas in my heart that I just need you to work on. God created me a clean heart, Lord, make me a man after your own heart. Here today, the women in the room that you would say, God created me a clean heart. Make me a woman after your own heart. God, help me to chase after you the way you chase after me. God, help me to pursue you the way you pursue me. Help me, God, to lay aside the idols of this world.
- [58:23]
A
World.
- [58:25]
B
If that's you across this room, if God is speaking to you, I want you to just raise your hand. All over this room, God's talking to some Davids today. He's talking to some men and women. He's saying, I am setting you apart and I am calling you and I am preserving you and I am preparing you. And you are in a process. You are being developed for greatness, but you got to trust the process. Secondly, you're here today and you say, paul, I just need to surrender to Jesus. I need to let Jesus be Lord of my life. If that that's you, raise your hand. Today's your day for salvation. He's knocking on the door of your heart. He's saying, let me come in. Let me lead you. Let me save you. Let me be Lord of your life. If you raise your hand for either of those, or you just need to get to the altar. Would you leave your seat? Come and meet me right here at this altar. We're going to cheer on brave men, brave women, moms and dads, husbands and wives, college students, teenagers, sons and daughters, grandparents, that you would come to this altar and you would say, God, have your way in my life. Lord, I trust in you. Friends, the altar is open. The altar is Open. And the presence of God is here right now. To heal, to redeem, to restore, to renew, to transform, to purify, to purge. If you'll just say God, you can have my heart. God, I trust in you. We're just gonna worship. Go ahead, lead us in that song. Let's just worship the Lord and ask the Holy Spirit to work in us right now.
- [59:45]
A
Mouth on the Lord and He heard and he answered I sought the Lord and He heard and he answered I sought the Lord and He heard and he answered that's why I trust him that's why I trust him I sought the Lord and He heard and the answer is I sought the Lord and
- [60:12]
B
He heard Cares about
- [60:16]
A
He's with me, he's for me, he's not a king that's why I trust him that's why I trust him I sought the Lord and He heard and he answered I sought the Lord and He heard in the answer I sought the Lord in the earth and he answered that's why I trust him that's why I trust in God he's my Savior who will never fail he will never fail
- [61:03]
B
in
- [61:03]
A
my trust in God he's my Savior. I sought the Lord and I sought the Lord and He heard and he answered I sought the Lord and He heard and he answered I sought the Lord and He heard and he answered that's why I trust him that's why I trust in God, my Savior the one who will never fail.
- [61:56]
B
He will never fail you. He will never fail you. He's with you. He's helping, he's leading, guiding.
- [62:19]
A
He will never fail.
- [62:24]
B
Let's just pray this together. Say Jesus, I surrender my heart. I repent of my sin. I receive your forgiveness. Search me, O God, know my every thought. Renew my mind, Purify my heart. Remove anything that's not of you. Make me more like you, God, I want to be after your heart. I want to live with your heartbeat. I'm all yours, God. And I believe that my best days are right in front of me. And you are not finished with me. And I have victory in my life because Jesus lives in me. Come on, give him praise today. I love you. God loves you. Be blessed.