Sound Doctrine

Jeff Johnson: When people see you, do they see Christ? Listen to this and check yourself out. You've heard it before maybe. If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you? We need to answer that question.

And if there's not enough, maybe we should say, "Lord, give me enough. Lord, I turn my heart toward you because, Lord, I hunger after your things."

Guest (Male): There is only one way to bring peace to the heart, joy to the mind, and beauty to a life. It is to accept and do the will of God. Welcome to Sound Doctrine. Pastor Jeff Johnson is currently developing his study of the Old Testament book of 1 Samuel.

Today we return to a story probably familiar to most of you. When God was looking for the second king of Israel, he chose a 16-year-old shepherd boy. Most folks thought that was a poor choice, but God saw a young man who was after his own heart. Here's Pastor Jeff in 1 Samuel 16.

Jeff Johnson: To those of us today who accept Christ as Savior, who surrender our lives, who seek to serve the Lord, who sacrifice our lives for him, who seek to lose our lives in Christ. He says you're going to gain it. Through us, Jesus now is seen and experienced in others, which is powerful. And this is contrary to human reason. This is not how we think as human beings or how we would have planned it. But remember, his ways are not ours. They're past our finding out.

The second thing I see here is that God's call is conditioned upon heart response. David was called long ago before his first anointing. This is his first anointing by Samuel. And he was called when he was just a kid. David's heart was prepared, and it was a different type of heart. Jesus said, "My sheep hear my voice and they follow." There's a lot of his sheep who will hear and they'll follow. That's a heart that is prepared by God, that is pulled by the Lord.

As a child, he was prepared. He was a shepherd boy. In Psalm 23, it really reveals David's heart. We need to look at it. This is God's choice, conditioned always by man's heart response. Verse one: "The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." David had a believing heart. He trusted in his God to guide and to watch over him. David believed God.

"He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters." David stilled his heart before God and he communed with his Lord. There's a scripture in Isaiah that says, "Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed upon thee: because he trusteth in thee." David's mind was stayed upon Jehovah. His heart was fully blessed, finding, as God promised, perfect peace and rest. Verse three: "He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake." David's heart was set on holiness.

David said, "As the hart panteth after the water brooks, so panteth my heart after thee, O God." David wanted God's righteousness and holiness in his life. David was very confident, brave, and courageous in the Lord because his heart was turned towards his God. Verse five: "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over."

David was a very thankful individual. He had a thankful heart for how God was meeting his daily needs. Finally, verse six: "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever." David's heart was fixed upon his God. His heart was confident toward his God. He knew that he was going to dwell in the house of the Lord forever. He knew surely goodness and mercy were going to follow him because his heart was towards his God.

These things don't come naturally from birth. You're not just born and start to love God. We know that because David was conceived in sin. He's the first one to tell it, as all of us are. But at an early age, God began to work in his life and deliver him from these lions and bears. He'll tell us about that later on, how God's hand was early in his life. This was his only qualification for heaven, as it is for all of us, because God's amazing grace is all that we've got. It's by his amazing grace we're going to heaven. It was God's intervention in David's life, in my life, and in your life.

God's choice is in response to those hearts that are turned towards him. God says, "I will show myself strong towards them." So what should we do? There should be fruit in our lives. We should check it out. Is my heart turned towards the Lord? There's a psalm that says, "Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Search my heart, Lord. Do that work in my life. We need to examine ourselves and respond to the spirit of the Lord convicting our hearts as David did in Psalm 32. In the midst of his sin, he was holding on to it. He let go and said, "I will confess my sin. I will get right with my God." And the Lord restored him.

David sought for the spirit of the Lord, for the fire of the Lord. So should we. Listen to this and check yourself out. If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you? We need to answer that question. If there's not enough, maybe we should say, "Lord, give me enough. Lord, I turn my heart toward you because, Lord, I hunger after your things."

We see God's sovereignty here. God does a work, but yet it goes right along with man's responsibility. There's two sides to this coin as far as God's choice is concerned. God says, "Whosoever will, let him come to me." But then you must come. You must turn your heart toward the Lord. That is man's responsibility, and then comes God's choice. The question is, do you believe? Then you need to acknowledge your sin and receive his forgiveness. As you do, these are matters of the heart. David dealt with this issue of heart response.

In verse 11, Samuel said to Jesse, "Are these all your children?" Is seven all you have? That wasn't enough, seven boys. He said, "Well, there remains the youngest, and he's out keeping the sheep." Samuel said to Jesse, "Send forth and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither." Jesse said he had one more, but he's just a kid. That was strike one against him.

He was maybe 16. He wasn't even invited to the sacrifice. He's just a kid. Don't let anybody despise your youth ever. I don't care how young you are. Don't let anybody despise your youth. Paul said that to Timothy, who was a very young pastor. God raises up young people to use young people. The church in Vladimir, Russia is just full of young people. Eighty percent of the church is young people. As I look back, that's how God started every Calvary Chapel. The young were brought in and they served the Lord and dedicated their lives to God. Then the church began to grow and the parents would get saved and it just went on and on.

He's just a shepherd. Back then, this was a very low occupation. In fact, he stinks of sheep. He's a very naive little boy. He's out there and he plays this flute and he talks to his sheep. The guy is a bit of a fanatic. He says he talks to God and the kid is weird. That's why he's not here. You can read between the lines, but they didn't want him there. Samuel said, "You go get him. This is important business I'm on. We're not going to eat until he gets here." We're going to wait for the kid. Everybody forget the prayer, we've got to go get David. We can't eat until David comes. So they went to get David.

I want you to note David's background when he was called. He wasn't in school getting a fine education. He wasn't in military academy receiving training and skills for warfare. He was like Moses, who remember, was the first shepherd king of Israel. David was with the sheep. God's choice will be with people because the Bible says, "All we like sheep have gone astray." We are people, and we're like sheep. You won't find them in the seminaries, although there are many who think by going there they're going to punch them through a wall and there'll be a puzzle piece of a pastor. You fit the mold. Bless you. It's crazy.

Man gets his fingers in and tries to organize everything and say, "This is how we're going to do it and this is the way it's going to be." I hope the day never comes where Calvary Chapel has a seminary because I'm going to be scared. Have we organized that far, just like every great institution does? Man somehow tries to get in. The only reason we have extended in length as a movement this long is because Chuck kept his hands off of it and the other pastors have kept their hands away from it. Let's just keep praying for all of the pastors of the larger Calvarys to keep their hands out of God's work, that we will not be tempted to do it. We won't want to organize it, mold it, and melt these guys. Man does it, but it's crazy.

David's just watching some sheep. When I thought about this, I thought most of the men who were raised up through Calvary Chapels all went out and just started home Bible studies and started teaching in a home. God began the training as they worked with people, as they gave their lives to people and started to minister to people. God does it right there.

In verse 12, he sent and brought him in. Now look at this little guy. He was ruddy, withal of a beautiful countenance, goodly to look to. And the Lord said, "Arise, Samuel, anoint him: for this is he." So this scrawny little red-haired, probably tanned, blue-eyed little skinny shrimp shows up with his face just lit. You look at him and you see purity and you see truth coming out of his face and innocence. He just came in from watching the sheep. He was a very good-looking little boy. Samuel looked on him and just gazed at him after looking at all the big hunks of the seven, the splendid seven. Now this scrawny little boy stands in front of him. God says, "Quit looking at him, man. This is him. This is the one I love. Anoint him with the oil."

God didn't choose him because he looked good, though. He did look good, but he didn't choose him because of that. He chose him because of his heart. David loved God, and God knew that he was a man after his own heart. 1 Kings 14:8 says, "Thou hast not been as my servant David, who kept my commandments, and who followed me with all his heart, to do that only which was right in mine eyes." There's a man after God's own heart. He just sought to please me, God said. That's the testimony of David.

In verse 13, Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brethren. The spirit of the Lord came upon David from that day forward. So Samuel rose up and went to Ramah. The third way that God chooses, God's choice has a heavenly recognition. Certain qualities mark this man or woman that God chooses. We see the first evidence that God has chosen this man is that the spirit of the Lord has come down upon David in his life.

Note the difference in the anointing. When Samuel went to anoint Saul as king, he brought a little vial of oil and poured it on his head. But when God said to go anoint David as king, he said to bring a horn. He filled one of those big horns with oil. David, who was just a little boy, had it go all over his body. This guy was anointed for the kingship. A full anointing. Oil has always been symbolic in the Bible of the Holy Spirit. David was given power. The spirit of God came upon his life.

With David's anointing, it was with oil. With Jesus, the Holy Spirit came down like a dove. With the disciples, it was cloven tongues of fire as the Holy Spirit came down upon them. There are many today who say they have been baptized in the Holy Spirit, yet you wonder where the power is. If you've been baptized and immersed in God's spirit, where's the power in your life? If there is no reality of spiritual things, it hasn't even clicked in yet. You have to wonder, have you been anointed of the Lord?

There are three experiences that we can have with the Holy Spirit: the with experience, the in experience, and the upon experience. They are all talked about in the Bible as three different Greek words. The with experience is when the Holy Spirit convicts you of your sin. He's with you, convicting you of your sin, and saying you need to get right with God. You need Jesus Christ in your life. Some of you are having that this morning. It's when you come into a place or situation like this where you sit down, you hear the worship, you hear the word, and immediately you're convicted. The Holy Spirit is with you and your heart begins to pound a little. You know that God's tugging on your heart. You're resisting and rebelling against the Lord. Each time you try to win this struggle, hopefully you'll let go and let God have your life. That's the with experience.

Then comes the in experience, and that's when you receive Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit of God comes to live inside of you. Your body becomes the temple of the living God. From the in experience, we know that through the Gospels, they went on to the upon experience, which is the epi. That's when God's spirit comes down upon an individual's life to give that person power. The dynamic of God, the dynamite of the Lord, is to empower that person to do the work of the Lord. David was filled. Jesus was filled. The early disciples were filled.

To those that call upon the name of the Lord and ask the Lord to fill them with this upon experience, he says you just ask. Your Heavenly Father who's a good Father will give you this anointing to empower you to be his witness, his light in a dark place. He will cause the fire to burn within you.

Where are you at this morning in those three experiences? Are you struggling in your walk with the Lord? You have enough of Jesus to be miserable. You know the right way to go and you're just playing with this whole thing. You really haven't yet been filled with the spirit. You haven't been baptized with the Holy Spirit. You have enough of Jesus to be miserable, but not enough to be joyful. You're just dabbling with the whole thing. You've got a Bible and you're looking into it, but you're not convinced. The world's pulling you, friends are pulling you, or your spouse is pulling you, and you just feel like you're struggling all the time. You have need of power in your life.

Maybe you feel like this morning you've got a leak. At one time you had it and you knew it, and now you're tired and feel beat up. Maybe it all leaked out somewhere. Maybe you need to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Are you lacking evidence of his life in you? Does your heart this morning long to be cleansed? John said he shall baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. I love that fire part. Fire always burns off the chaff and the flesh. It does a work in our lives that is needed.

His calling and election is sure. In John 15:16, Jesus says, "Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you." He ordained you that you should bring forth much fruit and that your fruit should remain, and whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you. Turn your heart toward him this morning. Receive him as your Lord and Savior. Become a child of God and ask God to give you all of his power in your life. You will not believe how you will become what God calls a priest and a king. He takes beggars and puts them in the company of princes. He will cause you to be a priest and a king of the Lord as the spirit descends upon you and empowers you. Jesus said, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised." The Lord wants to anoint us.

God's choice is contrary to human reason. Second, it's conditioned by a heart response. He's waiting on your heart to be turned towards him. Third, it has evidence and power. I'd like to end with Ephesians chapter one, starting with verse four. "According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved." Called, chosen, and filled to be his ambassador as David was. God longs for us to be that today.

Guest (Male): God's love for us is amazing, isn't it? Pastor Jeff Johnson will be back in a moment to wrap up today's study in 1 Samuel 16. Don't go away.

You've been listening to a study in the book of 1 Samuel here on Sound Doctrine with Pastor Jeff Johnson. We pray you've been blessed by what you've heard today. 1 Samuel is filled with practical insights for Christian living, and if you'd like to hear this study again, go to sounddoctrineradio.org or listen through the Sound Doctrine podcast app. You can also hear Sound Doctrine on oneplace.com and wherever you enjoy podcasts. That includes Apple Podcasts and Spotify.

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Jeff Johnson: Men and women chosen by God is contrary to human reason. All of us have a story and a testimony. God has called us to do an awesome thing, and that is to represent him in this dark un-Christian-like world. You can't do that on your own or in your own strength. We need power. We need his love filling us in our lives to shine to this world around us.

Guest (Male): We'll dig a little deeper into 1 Samuel 16 next time on Sound Doctrine with Pastor Jeff. This program is brought to you by Calvary Chapel Downey.