I think it’s important that we notice that the Spirit of the Lord departed from Saul before an evil spirit came. Christians read those words about “an evil spirit from God” and they fear that could happen today. I’ve heard evangelists use that as a tool to shock Christians. “You continue to walk in the flesh,” they say, “and God will lift His Spirit from you, and you won’t have God’s presence within you as you once had.”

Here’s our first good look at David. He walks into the house, still smelling like sheep, and all of a sudden an old man hobbles over and pours oil on his head. It drips down his hair and drops on to his neck. Josephus, the historian, writes, “Samuel the aged whispered in his ear the meaning of the symbol, ‘You will be the next king.’ “

Where did David get such courage? He had learned it all alone before God. What kind of man is this David? A man of reality. He’s a man who remained responsible when nobody was looking.

God knew David had the quality of integrity. Today, we live in a world that says, in many ways, “If you make a good impression, that’s really all that matters.” But you will never be a man or woman of God if that’s your philosophy. Never. You cannot fake it with the Almighty.

God saw in David the quality of humility. The Lord had gone to the home of Jesse in spirit form. Jesse didn’t know God was there. Nobody did. God was on a secret surveillance mission in that home, and he spotted Jesse’s youngest son and said, in effect, “That’s My man!”

Paul’s whole thrust in his first letter to the believers at Corinth was, “I’m not coming to you with brilliance or human wisdom, and I’m certainly not coming to you with any kind of impressive physique or profound philosophy.

What was Samuel’s problem? He was panic-stricken. He was just plain scared. Where were Samuel’s eyes? Well, they certainly weren’t on the Lord. They were riveted on Saul.

The tragic story of King Saul is that he never, ever fully repented of his sin. Saul’s greatest concern was his image, how he looked before the people. Even after Samuel gave him a break, Saul took advantage of it and continued in that same vein until the day he took his own life. How sad is that?

When God scans the earth for potential leaders, He is not on a search for angels in the flesh. He is certainly not looking for perfect people, since there are none. He is searching for men and women like you and me, mere people made up of flesh, bone, and blood. But He is also looking for certain qualities in those people, like the qualities He found in David.