Cave of Adullam — A Homily

1 Samuel 22

1David therefore departed thence, and escaped to the cave Adullam: and when his brethren and all his father’s house heard it, they went down thither to him.

2And every one that was in distress, and every one that was in debt, and every one that was discontented, gathered themselves unto him; and he became a captain over them: and there were with him about four hundred men.

I believe it is safe to say that what we have before us here is a picture of Christ in his humiliation and his Church in the Wilderness. David is being persecuted by a King that God has already determined to set aside in favor of David, a man who, like the coming Christ, was a man after God’s own heart. So, this true King, living in humiliation, holes up in a cave that literally means “refuge,” and the refugees of Saul’s false Kingdom — those in distress, those discontented (Lit. — Bitter of soul) those in debt rally around this little Church in the Wilderness and around this type of Christ in his humiliation.

In the Cave of Adullam they not only find a refuge, but they find a stronghold as well (vs. 4). This is a place of rest, protection, and safety with the true King in their midst.

Now, knowing the rest of the story we know that David finally comes into what God has promised him, but at this time that future promise fulfilled is still future. David is outcast and he is surrounded with an outcast Church.

That the Church is often filled with outcasts and goes through times of eclipse is not a theme we find here alone.

In the book of Hebrews the writer to Hebrews can look back retrospectively at the Church and write of it during some of its epochs

36And others had trial of cruel mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment:

37They were stoned, they were sawn asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword: they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, tormented;

38(Of whom the world was not worthy:) they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.

The true Church has not always been a organism that has been embraced by the world, nor even by the visible Church. Many have been the times in history when the worst persecutors of the true Church was the visible Church.

There are times then in History when the Church revisits the place of refuge in order to escape from the deadly intent of those who would do her harm.

And the idea that that church is staffed often by outcasts is not only a Old Testament theme. In I Corinthians the Apostle Paul can say of the Church,

26For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called:

27But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty;

28And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are:

29That no flesh should glory in his presence.

30But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption:

31That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

I believe we are living during a time when the Church must once again become a Cave of Adullam where those counted outcasts by the elite gatekeepers of our culture and often our Church can find a stronghold. In such times, we should not expect to find a great number of Caves. If there were a great number of caves we would not be in the situation where finding one was such a unique blessing.

It is my prayer that God would be pleased to make Charlotte CRC just such a cave of Adullam. A place where those distressed by the current spirit of the age can come and find rest for their souls. A place where those discontented by the strange Christs offered up by much of the Church today can be fed the Christ of Scripture. A place where those in the debt of sin can be reminded that God has paid the ransom and provided full redemption for them — body and soul. It may be the case that those who would come to this refuge has to drive many miles to do so, but should they make the trip — a trip that has to be made because there are no other caves around — let it be a trip that ended in balm for their souls and the word of life for their encouragement.

This may be a time for Adullam in our gathering but we must be reminded that we are in a different part of God’s story then David was. We are in the part of the story where God has already triumphed in Christ. As such we must not and can not be satisfied with a refugee status. If God has provided this place as a refuge and a stronghold He has provided it so we can scatter out from here back to Howell, Ann Arbor, Lansing, Battle Creek, as well as Charlotte and other points in order to be the elite military teams trained to overturn the current corrupt Church to be a Church that once again heralds David’s greater victorious Brother.

The cave is not to be permanent, as if every generation of Christians are to be cave dwellers. Christ is now in His exaltation and we are to be a Church militant that goes from victory unto victory in extending the crown rights of King Jesus — The Great High Priest who has provided a full redemption for us — into every domain.

We need to keep in mind Samuel Stone’s great lyrics

Though with a scornful wonder
Men see her sore oppressed,
By schisms rent asunder,
By heresies distressed:
Yet saints their watch are keeping,
Their cry goes up, “How long?”
And soon the night of weeping
Shall be the morn of song!

We may be in a night of weeping but because Christ is victorious there shall be rejuvenation in history and the Church shall once again have a morn of song.

Author: jetbrane

I am a Pastor of a small Church in Mid-Michigan who delights in my family, my congregation and my calling. I am postmillennial in my eschatology. Paedo-Calvinist Covenantal in my Christianity Reformed in my Soteriology Presuppositional in my apologetics Familialist in my family theology Agrarian in my regional community social order belief Christianity creates culture and so Christendom in my national social order belief Mythic-Poetic / Grammatical Historical in my Hermeneutic Pre-modern, Medieval, & Feudal before Enlightenment, modernity, & postmodern Reconstructionist / Theonomic in my Worldview One part paleo-conservative / one part micro Libertarian in my politics Systematic and Biblical theology need one another but Systematics has pride of place Some of my favorite authors, Augustine, Turretin, Calvin, Tolkien, Chesterton, Nock, Tozer, Dabney, Bavinck, Wodehouse, Rushdoony, Bahnsen, Schaeffer, C. Van Til, H. Van Til, G. H. Clark, C. Dawson, H. Berman, R. Nash, C. G. Singer, R. Kipling, G. North, J. Edwards, S. Foote, F. Hayek, O. Guiness, J. Witte, M. Rothbard, Clyde Wilson, Mencken, Lasch, Postman, Gatto, T. Boston, Thomas Brooks, Terry Brooks, C. Hodge, J. Calhoun, Llyod-Jones, T. Sowell, A. McClaren, M. Muggeridge, C. F. H. Henry, F. Swarz, M. Henry, G. Marten, P. Schaff, T. S. Elliott, K. Van Hoozer, K. Gentry, etc. My passion is to write in such a way that the Lord Christ might be pleased. It is my hope that people will be challenged to reconsider what are considered the givens of the current culture. Your biggest help to me dear reader will be to often remind me that God is Sovereign and that all that is, is because it pleases him. View all posts by jetbrane