David, the Twelve, and You: How God Chooses

Introduction

When you think of God's choosing, you might picture a spiritual lightning bolt, a voice from heaven, an obvious sign. The Bible tells a different story. God searches. He takes his time. He looks where no one else is looking. And when he chooses, he chooses according to his own heart, not according to the criteria we would have picked.

This message from Pastor Maréchal, preached at the Assemblée de Dieu in Nantes on May 30, 2020, revisits three decisive choices in biblical history: David, the twelve apostles, and Saul of Tarsus. Three moments when God passed over what the human eye would have chosen, in order to place his hand on what he alone had seen in a heart. This word concerns you too. Because if God was searching yesterday, he is still searching today.

Article outline

God actively searches for a heart for himself
God looks at the heart, man looks at appearance
God calls at every age, without exception
The choosing of the Twelve and the chosen instrument
Let yourself be taken hold of by God

1. God actively searches for a heart for himself

The first book of Samuel says something easy to miss: "The LORD has sought out a man after his own heart" (1 Samuel 13:14). In other words, God searched. He did not simply wait for a candidate to show up. He searched in a generation where, as the book of Judges reminds us, "everyone did as they saw fit" (Judges 21:25). Finding a man who would let God carry out all his purposes was not a given.

Psalm 78 tells the end of the search: "He chose David his servant and took him from the sheep pens; from tending the sheep he brought him to be shepherd of his people Jacob, of Israel his inheritance. And David shepherded them with integrity of heart; with skillful hands he led them" (Psalm 78:70-72). God took it upon himself to find the man. His eyes fell on a sheep pen. And there, he found a young boy of about 18, fair-haired, bright-eyed, a child in appearance, the very one Goliath would later see and think he could crush in an instant, forgetting that he carried the anointing of God.

What God was looking for was not a profile, it was a heart. A heart ready to carry out all his purposes, not just a hand-picked portion. Many say, "Still, Lord, not everything is possible." David negotiated nothing. And God did not show him ahead of time everything he would do with his life, because each day has enough trouble of its own (Matthew 6:34). God reveals himself as you walk with him, one step at a time.

2. God looks at the heart, man looks at appearance

When Samuel arrives at Jesse's house to anoint the future king, he watches the sons pass before him. Eliab goes first. Tall. Impressive. A kingly bearing. Samuel thinks to himself, "Surely this is the one." And God stops him cold: "Do not consider his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him. The LORD does not look at the things people look at. People look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7).

Seven sons pass by. None is chosen. Samuel then asks if there is not another one left. He is told, yes, the youngest, he is out keeping the sheep. Go get him. Picture David arriving: the whole family gathered for a ceremony he had been left out of because he was too young, too small, too insignificant. And he is the one God points to.

Later, when David comes down to the camp to bring supplies to his brothers, that same Eliab will grow angry and insult him (1 Samuel 17:28). God, for his part, had already decided. Because God looks at your heart. He looks at your attitudes, your thoughts, what no one else sees. People may forget you, look down on you, misjudge you. God sees you differently.

3. God calls at every age, without exception

This sovereignty in choosing does not stop at any age profile. God uses the young. He uses the not-so-young. He uses the elderly. Never say, "I have done my part, my life is over, let the young take my place." As long as you are breathing, you have no right to stop serving God.

Look at Abraham. He was 75 years old, wealthy, attached to the world, when God called him (Genesis 12:1-4). And God made something extraordinary of his life. Look at David, barely past his teenage years. Look at Pastor Maréchal himself, who testifies: at just 22, God called him to serve. One day, while praying for the city he was in, he heard an audible voice: "You will stand before crowds and I will perform miracles." God did a deep work. Then the nations opened up. Thousands of people healed. The deaf, the mute, the paralyzed, resurrections. It all began with a young man who said yes.

Your age is not a criterion for God. Your heart is.

4. The choosing of the Twelve and the chosen instrument

The same principle runs through the Gospel. Jesus stands before a crowd of disciples. He goes up the mountain and spends the whole night praying to God (Luke 6:12). In the morning, he calls those he wanted and chooses twelve of them, whom he names apostles (Luke 6:13). The choice was not improvised. It was born out of a whole night of prayer, surrendered into the Father's hands.

The crowd of other disciples was not chosen. Scripture does not say how they reacted, and there is no need to know. What you can see, however, is what these twelve men, one of whom would later fall away, accomplished after the resurrection: they turned the world upside down in a very short time. Twelve chosen hearts. Nothing more.

And God does not stop there. On the road to Damascus, while Saul of Tarsus is persecuting the church, Jesus appears to him and declares to Ananias: "This man is my chosen instrument" (Acts 9:15). A persecutor becomes a chosen instrument. That is the sovereignty of God's choosing. It relies on no human forecast. All those who repent, who are converted, who walk with the Lord, and who serve him, are chosen instruments. You included.

5. Let yourself be taken hold of by God

That evening (and today as well), God sees you. He sees you in your sheep pen. He sees you at your workplace, whatever it may be. He sees you in your reflections, your thoughts, your spiritual search. He can reveal himself to your heart right now. Do not be numb to his voice.

If you have not yet answered his call to serve him, answer it. The Lord will bless you abundantly. And if you have already answered, remember that God uses you until the very end. David could say at the end of his life that he had served the purposes of God in his own generation (Acts 13:36). You too, in your generation, can serve the purposes of God.

Key takeaways

God does not passively accept his choices: he actively searches for a heart willing to obey him.
Appearance has never been a divine criterion. God sees what no one else sees.
Age is not a limit: Abraham at 75, David as a teenager, each was chosen in his own time.
The real choice is prepared in prayer, Jesus prayed all night before choosing the Twelve.
To be converted, to walk with Christ, and to serve him, is already to be a "chosen instrument."

Personal application

Do I let God carry out all his purposes in my life, or have I negotiated a set-aside portion?
What judgments based on appearance do I make, about myself or others, that God does not share?
What age, what season of my life, am I using to disqualify myself from serving God?
Do I set aside time for prayer before making important decisions, as Jesus did the night before choosing the Twelve?
What call from God, old or recent, have I not yet accepted?

Verses cited

FAQ

How can I know if God has chosen me for a particular calling?

Pastor Maréchal's testimony reminds us that a calling can come during a time of prayer, sometimes through a deep inner conviction, sometimes through a specific word. What matters is your willingness to carry out all of God's purposes (1 Samuel 13:14), without reservation, confirmed through prayer, the Word, and the body of Christ.

Am I too young or too old to serve God?

Neither. Abraham was called at 75 (Genesis 12:4). David was anointed as a teenager (1 Samuel 16). God uses you whatever your age, what matters is not stopping serving as long as you are breathing.

Why does God sometimes choose people we would not have picked?

Because "people look at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart" (1 Samuel 16:7). God sees what no one else sees, and his choices are never dictated by appearances or human forecasts, Saul of Tarsus the persecutor turned chosen instrument (Acts 9:15) is proof of that.

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