LOOK DEEPER

LOOK DEEPER!

1 Sam 16:6-7

6 And it came to pass, when they were come, that he looked on Eliab, and said, Surely the Lord 's anointed is before him.

7 But the Lord  said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord  seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord  looketh on the heart.

           Saul, Israel’s first king, stood head and shoulders above the rest of his people. “And [Kish] had a son, whose name was Saul, a choice young man, and a goodly: and there was not among the children of Israel a goodlier person than he: from his shoulders and upward he was higher than any of the people. (1 Sam 9:2) The word “goodly” basically meant handsome or good looking.

           Now God had rejected Saul from being king because he had an ugly spirit! Samuel, still looking through human eyes, has been assigned to choose and anoint a new king from among the sons of Jesse. One by one they paraded by without God’s approval. Samuel thought that surely “the Lord’s anointed was before him.” He asked if there were any more sons and Jesse, almost as an afterthought, remembered that he had another rosy-cheeked little boy who was keeping sheep. Even his daddy didn’t think little David had what it took to be king.

           This is a good lesson for us to remember! That lovely young lady with the perfect teeth, perfect hair, and perfect body may be hiding an ugly heart. That ruggedly handsome man may be hiding an ugly, twisted spirit. We need to look deeper and adjust our opinions to align with the opinions of God.

Dear Lord, reveal those with ugly hearts and protect those with shallow eyesight today. AMEN