God Sees What Lies Beneath

“But the Lord said unto Samuel, Look not on his countenance, or on the height of his stature; because I have refused him: for the Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” – 1 Samuel‬ ‭16‬:‭7‬

The Lord had sent Samuel to anoint a son of Jesse to be King over Israel. Samuel’s first choice in his flesh was not God’s choice. God made it clear that he does not judge as men judge, by what seems right, He judges with a righteous judgement, that is to say, by what is right. He judges the unseen things, the very hearts of men.

“Shall not God search this out? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart.” – Psalms‬ ‭44‬:‭21‬

It is true that God commands us to judge others by their fruits, (Matthew 7:20) that is to say, by what their life produces for either the kingdom of God or for the kingdom of darkness. God even gave us an answer key for this in Galatians 5 when He listed out the fruits of the flesh and the fruits of the spirit. God has made it clear in His Word and through His Commandments by which criteria men are to judge the righteousness of other men. God in his mercy, clearly list out what is sin in the bible that we might see and know who is currently striving to live for God and who is not. However, only God can see past the current condition of a mans heart and life. So among those counted as righteous, only God knows the readiness of the heart for positioning or promotion in either your life or in the kingdom of God.

You see, it comes down to this, only God can see below the surface of the gardens of our hearts to know what seeds and weeds lay dormant, waiting to surface when the conditions are right. This is why it is so important not to position people in your life or ministry based on your own understanding, logic, or how that person may appear to fit the roll to you, but rather seek God and trust His decision on who to position in your life no matter how unlikely the person may seem. Something as simple as the seeds of pride can lay just under the surface of the heart of a currently Godly man, waiting to be watered and received the right conditions to spring forth and choke out the good fruit. God knows the hearts that have been broken down, tilled, and conditioned enough to be trusted to produce good fruits not only in its current state but in all the seasons to come. Lean not on your own understanding but rather seek and trust Him to know the good ground from the bad. In all things, but especially when it comes to the people in your life and ministry, let God make the decisions. You may think you see a king when God sees only a jealous and prideful brother. While on the other hand you may only see a Shepard boy, but God may see a king.

“For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.” – 1 John‬ ‭2‬:‭16-17‬