The Essence of a King

1Sa 9:1-2
1 Now there was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Becorath, the son of Aphiah, the son of a Benjamite, a mighty man of valor. 2 He had a son whose name was Saul, a choice and handsome man, and there was not a more handsome person than he among the sons of Israel; from his shoulders and up he was taller than any of the people.
(NASBStr)

God says that, while man looks at the appearance of a person, He looks at the heart. Often, though, His choices seem to coincide with what people look at, the appearance.

Here Saul's pedigree is excellent, of a favored tribe, son of a mighty man of valor. His appearance is excellent, tall, dark,  and handsome. He is the epitome of a king. But does he have the essence?

I have to go back to the fact he is my Master's choice. His heart must have held the essence of a king if my Master chose him. The story goes that Saul fails, but that is not because my Master chose poorly. The people agreed to Saul, they didn't chose him. Samuel only gives them one choice. The God of Israel chose Saul. So what happens to him is not a product of his appearance, nor is it his pedigree. His failure is not because he didn't have the heart of a king.

I have to accept that my Master's choices are right, regardless of what they look like on the front end, or on the backend. I can't judge my Master's choices or actions by 'pragmatic' standards either. Neither can I decide on what was my Master's will only by 'what works' as if only what succeeds in my mind is his will.

What I learn from Saul's pedigree and appearance is that what see on the outside can't be what I use to evaluate usefulness to my Master. Nor can I use their success or failure to determine whether they were called in the first place.

Paul's said that servants of my Master stand or fall in His eyes, not mine. And that my Master enables them to stand. If they fall, it's the servant's choices, not the choice of my Master on the front end. I need to understand that as I serve my church, and as I see myself. It helps to support my church leaders, and see myself as my Master sees me.