David’s Heart Attitude

Comparing Solomon, Jeroboam, and the Samaritans to David, we find the biggest Difference was in their heart attitude.   In I Kings 9:4-5 God promised Solomon, “And if thou wilt walk before me, as David thy father walked, in integrity of heart, and in uprightness, to do according to all that I have commanded thee, and wilt keep my statutes and my judgments: Then I will establish the throne of thy kingdom upon Israel for ever, as I promised to David thy father, saying, There shall not fail thee a man upon the throne of Israel.”    I Kings 15:5 tells us, “…David did that which was right in the eyes of the LORD, and turned not aside from any thing that he commanded him all the days of his life, save only in the matter of Uriah the Hittite.” 

Solomon wanted to please God, but he also wanted to have the things the world offered such as wealth, fame, sexual pleasure, and power.  In his efforts to attain those things he began to neglect God’s commands, resulting in his losing the promises.  James 1:8 warns, “A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.”  Because he was not fully committed to pleasing God, Solomon vacillated between obeying God and gaining the things he wanted, steadily getting further from the Lord, even though he never completely turned his back on God.   

Jeroboam retained some of God’s principles, but focused mostly on his own desires and wishes, in particular retaining his power.  God ceased to matter to him, demonstrating what Jesus said in Matthew 6:24.  “No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.”  Jeroboam turned his back completely on the Lord to get what he wanted.  God really didn’t matter to him. 

The Samaritans worshipped their other Gods, but treated God’s law like a set of traditional taboos or moral code that had to be followed to avoid physical problems.  They routinely followed them with little or no concern for God, just as other people habitually follow their family and culture’s traditions. 

David had a completely different attitude.  He was focused on pleasing God with his whole heart, even when it resulted in opposition, as we see in Psalm 119:69.  The proud have forged a lie against me: but I will keep thy precepts with my whole heart.”    He made a special effort to learn what God wanted, so he could be pleasing to God according to Psalm 119:11. “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”   Instead of seeking what he wanted, he found his pleasure in doing what God wanted, according to Psalm 40:8. “I delight to do thy will, O my God: yea, thy law is within my heart.”  Because he knew What God wanted he was able to be sure what he was doing. 

David realized serving God was not just about keeping a set of rules or doing certain actions, as the Samaritans did.  He recognized it took a proper attitude, praying, “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer,” in Psalm 19:14.  He asked God to help him be wholly focused on God’s way, praying , “Teach me thy way, O LORD; I will walk in thy truth: unite my heart to fear thy name,” in Psalm 86:11. He did not want to be distracted praying, “With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments,” In Psalm 119:10, and in Psalm 139:23, “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.”

A heart attitude like David’s is critical if we are to live a Spiritual life   In Matthew 15:19-20, Jesus explained that the heart attitude was what made a person unsatisfactory to God, not the actions themselves.   ”For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies: These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.”  The actions only reveal what is in the person’s heart.    People can fake their actions for a while, but their words give away what is in the heart, according to Matthew 12:34-37.  “O generation of vipers, how can ye, being evil, speak good things? for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh.  A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things: and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things.  But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment.  For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.” 

Under stress, it is much harder to control one’s words than one’s actions.  James 3:8 warns, “But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.”  When people are upset, their words reveal their underlying attitude, no matter how hard they try to cover it up.    We will be judged according to what comes out of our mouth, because it reveals what is really in our heart, and James 1:26 advises, “If any man among you seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain.”  Unfortunately, many ‘Christians’ today blow off what they say under stress as unimportant.

James 3:2 tells us, “… If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body.”  It was with this in mind, David prayed, “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O LORD, my strength, and my redeemer,” in Psalm 19:14.   When the heart attitude is right, it will show even when people are upset.