Whole Heart

23 Apr

Susan Merritt, PhD Christian Living, Weekly Devotional 0

When we attended a “Walk Thru the Bible” (https://www.walkthru.org) workshop with our children some thirty years ago, we learned a mnemonic phrase to designate the relationships of three kings with God: Saul had no heart for God, David had a whole heart for God, and Solomon served God with only half a heart. More than once, Scripture applies David’s relationship with God as the standard by which other kings of Israel and Judah related to God.

1 Samuel 13:13 records God’s response to Saul’s faithless sacrifice in place of obedience: “And Samuel said to Saul, You have done foolishly. You have not kept the commandment of the LORD thy God, which He commanded you. For now would the LORD have established your kingdom upon Israel forever. But now thy kingdom shall not continue. The LORD has sought Him a man after His own heart and the LORD has commanded him to be captain over His people because you have not kept that which the LORD commanded you.”

With all his wisdom, David’s son, Solomon, failed to heed God’s warning to the Hebrews about intermarriage with those of other nations. As a result, “It came to pass, when Solomon was old, that his wives turned away his heart after other gods and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God, as was the heart of David his father” (1 Kings 11:4).

Jeroboam violated God’s law by encouraging and actively leading his people in idol worship. God’s answer through Ahijah, the prophet was “…You have 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. But you have done evil above all that were before you. For you have…made other gods and molten images to provoke me to anger, and have cast me behind your back” (1 Kings 14:8b-9).

1 Kings 15:3-5 states that “[Abijam] walked in all the sins of his father which he had done before him, and his heart was not perfect with the LORD his God as the heart of David his father. Nevertheless for David’s sake did the LORD his God give him a lamp in Jerusalem, to set up his son after him and to establish Jerusalem because David did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD and turned not aside from anything that he commanded him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.”

The final king compared to David is found in 1 Kings 15:11-14: “And Asa did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, as did David his father. And he took away the sodomites out of the land and removed all the idols that his fathers had made. And even removed Maachah, his mother, from being queen because she had made an idol in a grove. And Asa destroyed her idol and burnt it by the brook Kidron. But the high places were not removed. Nevertheless Asa’s heart was perfect with the LORD all his days.”

I find it comforting that David’s other sins were not remembered; he was righteous in God’s eyes based on his unwavering faith as shown in both his actions and attitudes. Likewise Asa who, though he did not accomplish an entirely clean sweep because he did not remove the high places, which were associated with idolatrous practices, his heart was found to be not just half-hearted but to be “perfect” like the heart of David.

God still looks for that perfect heart toward Him in His servants. Jesus talked a lot about our heart condition. Among them are these pearl of wisdom from His lips:

One of His Beatitudes says, “Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God” (Matt. 5:8).
He called for our priorities to be in Heavenly accumulations, not corruptible earthly assets: “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt and where thieves do not break through nor steal. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also” (Matt. 6:20-21).
Our heart condition dictates our actions and attitudes: “A good man out of the good treasure of the heart brings forth good things and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things” (Matt. 12:35).
Finally, the two most important commandments declare what the basis of every part of our lives should be: “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matt. 22:37-40).

As Christians, then, it is only when we follow the precepts of God’s Word in faith, that we are true servants of Almighty God. “Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering for He is faithful that promised” (Heb. 10:22-23).