Week 3 - David's Pursuant Heart
THE HEART OF DAVID
David’s Pursuant Heart
Psalm 27:4
One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.
David’s lifelong pursuit was for God’s presence. His greatest desire was to live in the presence of God (to dwell in His Temple) each day of his life. This week we will look at four different seasons of David’s life and witness how he continually pursued God throughout them all.
IN THE WILD
As a young shepherd boy, David wrote many of the Psalms. These were songs he played (on his lyre or harp) and often sang to God as he tended the sheep and goats. Though it was dusty and lonely work, shepherding allowed David to take in and appreciate God’s creation. His writing expressed his awe and gratitude for God’s provision even as a lowly shepherd boy. It is in these Psalms that you see (through childlike wonder) David’s heart to pursue the heart of Father God.
Psalm 19:1-4
“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”
Life in the wild wasn’t just all song and dance; being a shepherd was lonely and dangerous work. The Lord clearly used this time to take David through a season of equipping that prepared for a day when he will be called out of the field. It was through his obedience to care for his father’s sheep and goats, his constant connection with God, and his will to honor God in all he did that this lowly shepherd boy not only survived but thrived in the wild.
1 Samuel 17:34-37
But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”
FACING GOLIATH
David probably never expected he’d one day face a giant, but when given the chance, he gladly stepped up. Not only was he the only one willing to step onto the battlefield with Goliath, but he took the opportunity to honor God by declaring His power to all who were gathered. His victory was a testimony of God’s Power to both Israelite and Philistine alike.
David was obedient to his father’s call to the battlefield to serve his brothers and the commanders of their unit (1 Samuel 17:17). Soon after his arrival at the frontline, David heard another call to service…to be obedient where no one else would…to face the giant who cursed his God, his king and his nation.
Saul tried to dress David in his armor to prepare him for what seemed like an impossible feat. (1 Samuel 17:38-40) However, Saul’s custom fit armor did not fit David. We can often put more weight on ourselves with excessive and unfamiliar equipment that we think are necessary to defeat our giants we face. But it is in the familiar things, like David's staff and sling, that God gives us to overcome the challenges we face.
1 Samuel 17:42-47
David said to the Philistine, ‘You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.’”
David pursued God through his obedience. Setting fear aside, he placed his faith in God and embraced the call to sleigh the giant. We often face giants in our own lives, but those usually are not skilled soldiers. Challenges, however, come at us in all areas of life, and some of them can feel overwhelming. Though our struggles are real and sometimes scary, can we also use them as opportunities to declare to the world around us about our amazing God and defy the odds by going into battle against the seemingly impossible.
ON THE RUN
After his anointing by Samuel and his defeat of the giant, David finds himself pursued by King Saul. Saul had a jealous rage for David because of his popularity among the people and his anointing to one day be king. There are multiple times in 1 Samuel where we see Saul pursuing David. What we also see are multiple instances of David sparing Saul’s life.
1 Samuel 24:8-10
Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, “My lord the king!” When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground. He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when men say, ‘David is bent on harming you’? This day you have seen with your own eyes how the Lord delivered you into my hands in the cave. Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you; I said, ‘I will not lay my hand on my lord, because he is the Lord’s anointed.’
David honored Saul because he was still the Lord’s anointed King. David, a warrior who would one day be king, showed mercy to Saul. In doing so, David both pursued and honored God by honoring the king's position and authority (even though the king was wrongfully trying to kill him).
Psalm 63:1-5
You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
This Psalm was written when David was hiding from his enemies, possibly his son Absalom, in the Desert of Judah. He was probably quite lonely, and unsure about his future. But none of his feelings or concerns changed his decision to worship. He kept his eyes fixed on his God, looking up rather than around him.
Much like our own lives, we see David’s with many ups and downs. One thing to recognize here was how David pursued God in both the high and in the low places in his life. Whether on the mountaintops and in the valleys, his eyes were continually fixed on God.
KING OF ISRAEL
Just as he did in the wild, David pursued God through worship and praise. He sang and danced before the Lord as if he had no other care in the world. His elevation from shepherd to King of Israel did not stop his heart to pursue God’s Presence.
2 Samuel 6:12-15
So David went down and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. When those who were carrying the ark of the Lord had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf. David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the Lord with all his might, while he and the entire house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.
This passage shows us a man so engaged in worshiping God that nothing else matters. Others, namely his wife Michal, disapproved of his behavior, calling him vulgar. But David didn’t apologize for his passion, responding, “I will celebrate before the Lord. I will become even more undignified than this…” (2 Samuel 21-22). David knew the power of fully embracing the act of giving glory to God.
In 2 Samuel 11, we find David in Jerusalem at a time when he should have been at war. When he should have been leading his men on the battlefield and pursuing his calling as a warrior and leader. Instead, David chooses complacency over calling and stays home. It was there he saw Bathsheba bathing and sent for her (knowing full well she was a married woman), got her pregnant, and had her husband killed. Rather than confess his sin, he chose to cover it up. It took a prophet with a word from the Lord to rebuke David to his face before he finally saw the error of his ways and was willing to confess his sin and repent. David could have continued to try to cover this up and had Nathan silenced and killed, but Nathan reminded him of all God had done for David. Upon remembering, he turned from his sin and pursued God again even though there were permanent repercussions for his actions.
CLOSING
God recognized David as a man after His own heart. Of all the effort David put into pursuing God, it doesn't even compare to how God pursued him his whole life. Whether he was winning or losing, chasing or being chased, in the valley or on the mountaintop, David loved and trusted the Lord. Nearly everything he thought, felt, and did was motivated by a desire to give glory to his Heavenly Father. For him, pursuit of God through worship was a natural reflex, and in a way, as vital to him as breathing. King David’s example can help all of us grow in our own pursuit of God through worship and faith.
Practical Application Questions
1. Think about a time in your life where you felt like you were in the wilderness and while you didn’t feel like you were where God was calling you to be, you were there for a season of preparation. How did God use that season of your life to prepare you for where you are now or where you are heading? What did God place in you in that season or what did He work out of you then?
2. While we may not ever face a physical giant that God will call us to defeat, we do face situations that seem gigantic and impossible to overcome. When in your life did you face a giant like this and how did you get through it? Was God clearly with you? Maybe you are facing one now and haven’t thought to involve God in it. What are the first steps you can take to invite the Lord into what you are facing?
3. When we find ourselves alone, we have a real choice as to what we do with that time. The good news is we are never really alone. God promises to never leave us or forsake us. Temptation can often rear its ugly head when we are alone. When you are alone, what do you do with that time? What challenges do you face in your alone time? Share with your group.
4. What we pursue in this life we will find. When in your life did you notice you were headed the wrong direction and needed to repent? How quick was your course correction?
5. Which of the seasons of David’s life covered this week stands out to you the most and why? Share with your group.
Week 3 - David's Pursuant Heart
THE HEART OF DAVID
David’s Pursuant Heart
Psalm 27:4
One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.
David’s lifelong pursuit was for God’s presence. His greatest desire was to live in the presence of God (to dwell in His Temple) each day of his life. This week we will look at four different seasons of David’s life and witness how he continually pursued God throughout them all.
IN THE WILD
As a young shepherd boy, David wrote many of the Psalms. These were songs he played (on his lyre or harp) and often sang to God as he tended the sheep and goats. Though it was dusty and lonely work, shepherding allowed David to take in and appreciate God’s creation. His writing expressed his awe and gratitude for God’s provision even as a lowly shepherd boy. It is in these Psalms that you see (through childlike wonder) David’s heart to pursue the heart of Father God.
Psalm 19:1-4
“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands. Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge. They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them. Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”
Life in the wild wasn’t just all song and dance; being a shepherd was lonely and dangerous work. The Lord clearly used this time to take David through a season of equipping that prepared for a day when he will be called out of the field. It was through his obedience to care for his father’s sheep and goats, his constant connection with God, and his will to honor God in all he did that this lowly shepherd boy not only survived but thrived in the wild.
1 Samuel 17:34-37
But David said to Saul, “Your servant has been keeping his father’s sheep. When a lion or a bear came and carried off a sheep from the flock, I went after it, struck it and rescued the sheep from its mouth. When it turned on me, I seized it by its hair, struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both the lion and the bear; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, because he has defied the armies of the living God. The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.”
FACING GOLIATH
David probably never expected he’d one day face a giant, but when given the chance, he gladly stepped up. Not only was he the only one willing to step onto the battlefield with Goliath, but he took the opportunity to honor God by declaring His power to all who were gathered. His victory was a testimony of God’s Power to both Israelite and Philistine alike.
David was obedient to his father’s call to the battlefield to serve his brothers and the commanders of their unit (1 Samuel 17:17). Soon after his arrival at the frontline, David heard another call to service…to be obedient where no one else would…to face the giant who cursed his God, his king and his nation.
Saul tried to dress David in his armor to prepare him for what seemed like an impossible feat. (1 Samuel 17:38-40) However, Saul’s custom fit armor did not fit David. We can often put more weight on ourselves with excessive and unfamiliar equipment that we think are necessary to defeat our giants we face. But it is in the familiar things, like David's staff and sling, that God gives us to overcome the challenges we face.
1 Samuel 17:42-47
David said to the Philistine, ‘You come against me with sword and spear and javelin, but I come against you in the name of the Lord Almighty, the God of the armies of Israel, whom you have defied. This day the Lord will deliver you into my hands, and I’ll strike you down and cut off your head. This very day I will give the carcasses of the Philistine army to the birds and the wild animals, and the whole world will know that there is a God in Israel. All those gathered here will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves; for the battle is the Lord’s, and he will give all of you into our hands.’”
David pursued God through his obedience. Setting fear aside, he placed his faith in God and embraced the call to sleigh the giant. We often face giants in our own lives, but those usually are not skilled soldiers. Challenges, however, come at us in all areas of life, and some of them can feel overwhelming. Though our struggles are real and sometimes scary, can we also use them as opportunities to declare to the world around us about our amazing God and defy the odds by going into battle against the seemingly impossible.
ON THE RUN
After his anointing by Samuel and his defeat of the giant, David finds himself pursued by King Saul. Saul had a jealous rage for David because of his popularity among the people and his anointing to one day be king. There are multiple times in 1 Samuel where we see Saul pursuing David. What we also see are multiple instances of David sparing Saul’s life.
1 Samuel 24:8-10
Then David went out of the cave and called out to Saul, “My lord the king!” When Saul looked behind him, David bowed down and prostrated himself with his face to the ground. He said to Saul, “Why do you listen when men say, ‘David is bent on harming you’? This day you have seen with your own eyes how the Lord delivered you into my hands in the cave. Some urged me to kill you, but I spared you; I said, ‘I will not lay my hand on my lord, because he is the Lord’s anointed.’
David honored Saul because he was still the Lord’s anointed King. David, a warrior who would one day be king, showed mercy to Saul. In doing so, David both pursued and honored God by honoring the king's position and authority (even though the king was wrongfully trying to kill him).
Psalm 63:1-5
You, God, are my God, earnestly I seek you; I thirst for you, my whole being longs for you, in a dry and parched land where there is no water. I have seen you in the sanctuary and beheld your power and your glory. Because your love is better than life, my lips will glorify you. I will praise you as long as I live, and in your name I will lift up my hands. I will be fully satisfied as with the richest of foods; with singing lips my mouth will praise you.
This Psalm was written when David was hiding from his enemies, possibly his son Absalom, in the Desert of Judah. He was probably quite lonely, and unsure about his future. But none of his feelings or concerns changed his decision to worship. He kept his eyes fixed on his God, looking up rather than around him.
Much like our own lives, we see David’s with many ups and downs. One thing to recognize here was how David pursued God in both the high and in the low places in his life. Whether on the mountaintops and in the valleys, his eyes were continually fixed on God.
KING OF ISRAEL
Just as he did in the wild, David pursued God through worship and praise. He sang and danced before the Lord as if he had no other care in the world. His elevation from shepherd to King of Israel did not stop his heart to pursue God’s Presence.
2 Samuel 6:12-15
So David went down and brought up the ark of God from the house of Obed-Edom to the City of David with rejoicing. When those who were carrying the ark of the Lord had taken six steps, he sacrificed a bull and a fattened calf. David, wearing a linen ephod, danced before the Lord with all his might, while he and the entire house of Israel brought up the ark of the Lord with shouts and the sound of trumpets.
This passage shows us a man so engaged in worshiping God that nothing else matters. Others, namely his wife Michal, disapproved of his behavior, calling him vulgar. But David didn’t apologize for his passion, responding, “I will celebrate before the Lord. I will become even more undignified than this…” (2 Samuel 21-22). David knew the power of fully embracing the act of giving glory to God.
In 2 Samuel 11, we find David in Jerusalem at a time when he should have been at war. When he should have been leading his men on the battlefield and pursuing his calling as a warrior and leader. Instead, David chooses complacency over calling and stays home. It was there he saw Bathsheba bathing and sent for her (knowing full well she was a married woman), got her pregnant, and had her husband killed. Rather than confess his sin, he chose to cover it up. It took a prophet with a word from the Lord to rebuke David to his face before he finally saw the error of his ways and was willing to confess his sin and repent. David could have continued to try to cover this up and had Nathan silenced and killed, but Nathan reminded him of all God had done for David. Upon remembering, he turned from his sin and pursued God again even though there were permanent repercussions for his actions.
CLOSING
God recognized David as a man after His own heart. Of all the effort David put into pursuing God, it doesn't even compare to how God pursued him his whole life. Whether he was winning or losing, chasing or being chased, in the valley or on the mountaintop, David loved and trusted the Lord. Nearly everything he thought, felt, and did was motivated by a desire to give glory to his Heavenly Father. For him, pursuit of God through worship was a natural reflex, and in a way, as vital to him as breathing. King David’s example can help all of us grow in our own pursuit of God through worship and faith.
Practical Application Questions
1. Think about a time in your life where you felt like you were in the wilderness and while you didn’t feel like you were where God was calling you to be, you were there for a season of preparation. How did God use that season of your life to prepare you for where you are now or where you are heading? What did God place in you in that season or what did He work out of you then?
2. While we may not ever face a physical giant that God will call us to defeat, we do face situations that seem gigantic and impossible to overcome. When in your life did you face a giant like this and how did you get through it? Was God clearly with you? Maybe you are facing one now and haven’t thought to involve God in it. What are the first steps you can take to invite the Lord into what you are facing?
3. When we find ourselves alone, we have a real choice as to what we do with that time. The good news is we are never really alone. God promises to never leave us or forsake us. Temptation can often rear its ugly head when we are alone. When you are alone, what do you do with that time? What challenges do you face in your alone time? Share with your group.
4. What we pursue in this life we will find. When in your life did you notice you were headed the wrong direction and needed to repent? How quick was your course correction?
5. Which of the seasons of David’s life covered this week stands out to you the most and why? Share with your group.