Think About This A Bit

1 Samuel 16:7 But the Lord said to Samuel, “Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.”

Sometimes it is shocking to realize how our evaluations of people and circumstances can be so different from God’s. We can feel so confident about our assessments and then we’re embarrassed to find out we missed the mark.

The passage above was God’s communication to the prophet Samuel when he was sent to the household of Jesse to anoint one of his sons the future king of Israel. When Samuel’s eyes landed on Eliab, the eldest of Jesse’s sons, apparently Samuel was impressed. Samuel’s immediate deduction was, he’s the one. But the Lord told Samuel, Eliab will not be the future king.

Samuel evaluates seven of Jesse’s sons. None of them is the one God chose. The eighth and last son of Jesse is David. He was the shepherd of his father’s sheep. To correct some misconceptions, we need to realize being a shepherd was not a glorious job. It is demanding and dangerous, and it was a role that typically fell to youngest and most expendable son. David is the youngest, so his job is to care for the sheep. He is the last son summoned to Samuel and is confirmed as the one God chose to be the future king of Israel.

This event should help us to learn that God does not work in material and fleshly ways that show competence and significance from a worldly perspective. We’re impressed by people of means and accomplishments. We tend to devalue the poor and uneducated, that’s if we give them any evaluation at all. To make matters worse, many times we can feel good about ourselves because we see them as projects that we are mercifully willing to assist.

As the prophet Isaiah says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord.” (Isaiah 55:8) What we need to learn to understand is that our evaluations and our structures can become entirely different from God’s. We see things from natural and materialistic eyes.

It has been said, “All the ground is level at the foot of the cross.” This statement accurately declares that all sinners, those we see as “reputable sinners” and those we see as “repugnant sinners,” must understand that Jesus had to die for them and they will find pardon full and free only through the work of Jesus Christ. All people, great and small, desperately need the gospel work of Jesus! With hearts of joy, we are to share the message of gospel deliverance to all manner of people.

Praise God that in Jesus there is hope for the outcast and humility for the achievers! We would all do well to think about this a bit.