Loving God, you know the hearts of your people and renew us by your Spirit.  Lift our hearts and minds to you this day, and strengthen us for service, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

            There is a definite focus on the heart in today’s readings.  David, it seems, is chosen by God because of his heart.  We also hear in Psalm 51 the prayer for a clean heart and a right spirit.  It is perhaps an invitation to look into our own hearts, and to see what we find there.

         Our reading begins by mentioning Saul, and how Samuel is grieving over him.  Saul was the first king of Israel, and at one point we are told that God had given him “another heart” (1 Sam. 10:9).  Saul, it seems, needed another heart, for he tended to be anxious and fearful rather than trusting God.  Unlike David, Saul was tall and wealthy, but his heart, it seems, was never quite right – other than those times when the spirit of the Lord was upon him.

         By the time we get to today’s account of how David is anointed as king, Saul has already started to behave erratically and has acted out of his own anxiety rather than trusting and following God’s commands.  In fact, Samuel has told Saul that God has rejected him from being king over Israel (1 Sam. 15:26).  Samuel is not exaggerating when he says that Saul will kill him if he hears about him anointing somebody else as king.

         As time goes on, the spirit of the Lord is no longer with Saul, and his own inner demons take over.  He becomes paranoid, more and more erratic, and often needs music to soothe his anxiety.  Given this state of affairs, can you imagine David and Samuel praying today’s Psalm while thinking about Saul and what has happened to him?

Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me.  Do not cast me away from your presence, and do not take your holy spirit from me (Ps. 51:10-11).

At the same time, David also prays these words later, when he is aware of his sinfulness and is seeking reconciliation with God.

         For us, too, it would be a scary thing to end up like Saul.  The thing is, though, that God does not just arbitrarily reject Saul as king.  Before this ever happens, Saul rejects God’s word (1 Sam. 15:26) and takes direction only from himself.  We, too, are always free to reject God’s promises to us in baptism.  God, however, does not go back on God’s promises.

         We see this with David, too, as time goes on.  For, just like all of the other people that God calls into service, David is deeply flawed, in spite of all of his good points.  You might recall that David committed adultery with his neighbour and then put a hit out on her husband.  He also failed to deal with his wayward children when they committed rape and incest.  However, whenever David is aware of his sin, he repents, turns back to God, and seeks God’s forgiveness.  In other words, he maintains his relationship with God in spite of his shortcomings.

         For God’s part, the covenant that God makes with David remains in place.  God promises David that one of his descendants will always be king, and that his throne will be established forever (2 Sam. 7).  God never goes back on this promise – even when David’s descendants do some despicable things.  And then, ultimately, this promise is fulfilled through Jesus, who is a descendant of David and is uniquely qualified to reign forever.

         Today we are reminded that, while human beings tend to look at outward appearances, God looks at the heart (1 Sam. 16:7).  We are also reminded not to judge by appearances (Jn. 7:24).  If somebody is trying to look faithful, but is just going through the motions, God knows it.  At the same time, if somebody doesn’t look like much but has some amazing gifts for ministry, God knows that, too.  Whether we are talking about our own hearts, or the hearts of others, God sees what is there.

         God also continues to be the only one who has the power to change hearts.  We might wish that we could change the hearts and minds of other people, but that’s well above our pay grade.  Our job is to pray, and to live out our faith, sharing God’s love by the power of the Spirit.  The rest is in the hands of God.

         At the same time, when we fall into sin – as we will, because we are human – God is entirely capable of giving us clean hearts and renewing the gifts of the Holy Spirit within us.  For we are called, saved, and forgiven, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen.

Pentecost 22 (NL 4)                        1 Samuel 16:1-13

October 24, 2021                             Psalm 51:10-14

St. Luke’s Zion Lutheran Church  John 7:24

Pastor Lynne Hutchison

© 2021 Lynne Hutchison  All Rights Reserved