David Bahn – Reflections

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Acts 13:13-25

Now Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia. And John left them and returned to Jerusalem, ¹⁴ but they went on from Perga and came to Antioch in Pisidia. And on the Sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down. ¹⁵ After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent a message to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, say it.” ¹⁶ So Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said:

“Men of Israel and you who fear God, listen. ¹⁷ The God of this people Israel chose our fathers and made the people great during their stay in the land of Egypt, and with uplifted arm he led them out of it. ¹⁸ And for about forty years he put up with them in the wilderness. ¹⁹ And after destroying seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an inheritance. ²⁰ All this took about 450 years. And after that he gave them judges until Samuel the prophet. ²¹ Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. ²² And when he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.’ ²³ Of this man’s offspring God has brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, as he promised. ²⁴ Before his coming, John had proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. ²⁵ And as John was finishing his course, he said, ‘What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but behold, after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.’

I”ve always struggled with David being described as a man after God’s heart. On the one hand I get it. David stood up to Goliath, saying, “You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty” (1 Samuel 17:45). He set an incredible example of generosity when it came time to gather resources to build the temple, giving not only from the Royal Treasury, but from his own personal treasury as well. He united the tribes of Israel into a great kingdom.

He wrote beautiful and deeply personal psalms. These psalms revealed his searching and his believing heart to us. He didn’t pull punches, but expressed his inmost thoughts, fears, joys, anger, faith, and doubt to God – and to us. His psalms often express the hurts and hopes we hold deep inside our souls.

But then there’s the matter of Bathsheba. And Uriah, Bathsheba’s husband. And the census. And the bloodshed. Adultery. Conspiracy to commit murder. Arrogant and prideful trust in his armies. Those are not obviously the actions of one who is after God’s heart. These are much more likely to be the actions of one whose heart is far from God.

One whose heart is truly after God would display marital faithfulness. He would honor his soldiers and not use one of them to cover up his misdeeds. He would rely on God’s protective care rather than his own vast army and human resources.

Yet David is described as a man after God’s heart. That being the case, it must have to do with the manner in which David dealt with his failures and sins. He repented. He confessed. He prayed. He turned back toward God. Take a look at Psalms 32 and 51. They truly are the expressions of a man after God’s heart.

I think that requires we understand what God’s heart is all about. He desires mercy not sacrifice. He wants to be known for his love and grace. He yearns for people to repent. He has said it, “As I live, declares the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways, for why will you die, O house of Israel?” (Ezekiel 33:11).

We all sin. Sometimes our sins are grave and obvious. Often they are subtle and hidden. Big or little, obvious or hidden, sin always destroys. It kills our souls. It separates us from God. Were it not for God’s grace, mercy, love, and kindness, we would have no hope – none of us. But as Psalm 130 so beautifully puts it:

If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities,
    O LORD, who could stand?
⁴ But with you there is forgiveness,
    that you may be feared. – Psalm 130:3-4

David shows that he is a man after God’s heart because he repents. He will not hide behind an unbelieving heart with outward shows of piety. He won’t harumph himself up before others in self-righteousness. He calls out to God,

O Lord, open my lips,
    and my mouth will declare your praise. – Psalm 51:15

And,

Have mercy on me, O God,
    according to your steadfast love;
according to your abundant mercy
    blot out my transgressions.
² Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity,
    and cleanse me from my sin! – Psalm 51:1-2

A man or woman after God’s heart will delight in God’s glorious grace. Reflecting God’s love. Shown in Jesus. Granting us salvation. Capturing our hearts.