1Samuel 13:14 states that “the Lord has sought out a man after His own heart…”
We know, of course that Samuel is speaking about the young King David. So, here’s the question… What does it mean to be “a man after God’s own heart?”
Some say it was the fact that David was always quick to repent when confronted with his sin. Some believe that it was his humility in his dealings with King Saul. Some say it was his willingness to abandon himself and “worship the Lord with all his might.”
The theological offerings could go on and on but I’d like to know what you think.
I hear people constantly making statements like “We’ve gotten church all wrong!”, or “Most church leaders are crooks!”, or; I think the popular one right now is “We shouldn’t be worried about GOING to church, we should just concentrate on BEING the church.”
I only have one rule for this discussion: POSITIVE STATEMENTS ONLY!
I want us to look at this as a body (if you believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God and that He came to earth, lived a perfect life, died on a cross, and rose again on the third day, then we are in the same boat) and see if we can define what it is that the church is supposed to be. I want to find out what it means to “be the church.” I am asking God this year to make me one of those people to whom He would refer as “a man after His own heart.”
Ok… Here we go… What do you think?
What it means to be the church is to be the hands and feet of Christ and to love the Lord our God with all of our hearts, mind, soul, and strength and to love our neighbor as ourselves. If we are obeying those two commands, everything else will flow from that. You could get more specific and cite the commands of Jesus to care for the sick, visit prisoners, welcome strangers, clothe the naked, quench the thirsty, feed the hungry, and serve children, but it still all flows from being obedient to what Christ said was the most important law. If we are doing that, and staying Christ focused, we will “be the church” that God intended.
Great points Heather. Thanks!