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1 Samuel 22:1-5
INTRODUCTION: Today we are talking about dealing with God’s delays. One of the things we learn from reading Scripture, as well as from life experience, is that God’s timetable is often quite different from our timetable. We want things to happen, and we want them to happen now. But God is often more interested in what we are doing and learning in the meantime.
1 Samuel 22:1-5 - 1 David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there. 2 All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him.
3 From there David went to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, “Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me?” 4 So he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him as long as David was in the stronghold.
5 But the prophet Gad said to David, “Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah.” So David left and went to the forest of Hereth. (NIV)
There is a pattern we often see repeated in Scripture where God gives someone a promise, a vision or a task, but he then delays in fulfilling it, at least according to our timetable. For example, God promised Abraham and Sarah a son, but then they waited years for Isaac to be born. When Moses tried to stand up for his people in Egypt, he ended up tending sheep in the wilderness for 40 years. God gave Joseph prophetic dreams about ruling even over the members of his own family. But then Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery, and he spent years in prison before the dream was eventually fulfilled.
A similar thing happened to David in our text this morning. God had promised great things to David. David had been anointed as the future king over Israel (1 Samuel 16:13), and everything seemed to be unfolding according to plan. David was brought into King Saul’s service. (16:21) He defeated the Philistine warrior Goliath. (17) He forged a friendship with Saul’s son Jonathan. (18:1-4) Saul gave him a high rank in the army. (18:5) We are told the Lord was with him in everything he did (18:14), and that all the people of Israel and Judah loved him. (18:16). David had even married the king’s daughter, Michal. (18:27) Everything was falling into place for him to become the next king of Israel.
But then suddenly everything ground to a halt. Saul grew jealous of David’s successes and was determined to kill him. And all of a sudden David found himself running for his life. He became a fugitive - hiding out from Saul and his soldiers, sneaking food and weapons from the priests at Nob (21:1-9), and even having to act like a madman in the land of Gath in order to save his life. (21:10-15) And that brings us to our text this morning in 1 Samuel 22. All of God’s promises have been put on hold, and David is now hiding in the cave at Adullam.
What do you do when life doesn’t turn out the way you thought it would, the way God seemed to be leading? What do you do when you suddenly find yourself in a cave instead of the palace? How do you deal with God’s delays in life? There are three things David did that can help us when we are also dealing with God’s delays.
1) He served where he was at. (verses (1-2)
2) He continued to seek God’s will. (verses 3-4)
3) He was quick to respond to God’s Word. (verse 5)
I. Serve where you are (verses 1-2)
How do you deal with God’s delays? First of all, serve where you are. Look at verses 1-2: “David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. When his brothers and his father’s household heard about it, they went down to him there. All those who were in distress or in debt or discontented gathered around him, and he became their leader. About four hundred men were with him.” (1 Samuel 22:1-2)
Gath was a city that belonged to the Philistines. This was where David had to act like a madman in order to protect his life. Verse 1 tells us that David left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam. The word translated “escaped” here carries the idea of slipping away, being delivered from danger. David had gone to Gath because it was not safe for him in Judah. But as it turned out, it was not safe for him in Gath either. So he left Gath and escaped to the cave of Adullam.
We are not sure exactly where this cave is located, but it was most likely near the Judean border, somewhere in the no-man’s land between Judah and the Philistines, about 15 miles southwest of Bethlehem. There were many caves in this rocky, hillside area, providing David and his men shelter, concealment and security.
We read that when David’s family heard where he was, they went down to him there. Apparently they didn’t feel safe around King Saul either, and so they went to be with David. And then all sorts of other people started showing up in this area. Most of these were people in some kind of trouble themselves. Verse 2 describes them as “all those who were in distress or in debt or discontented.” These people all gathered around David, and he became their leader. The Hebrew word can also be translated “ruler” or “prince.” In some ways David is a type of Christ here who also ministered to the downcast and poor.
So what did David do in the cave? He continued to serve where he was. He ministered to his family. He ministered to those who were in trouble. He did not become passive or paralyzed. He did not sit around and pout. He acted; he organized; he planned; he served where he was at. There is a great verse in 1 Peter that tells us exactly what we should do when we are going through a difficult time. 1 Peter 4:19 says “So then, those who suffer according to God’s will should commit themselves to their faithful Creator and continue to do good.”
A. Commit yourself to God.
What should you do? First of all, commit yourself to God. He is your faithful Creator. He made you, and he cares about you. He knows exactly where you are and what you are going through at all times. He has good plans for you. Commit yourself to him. So many people run away from God when life gets difficult, but that is exactly when you need to be running to him. Trust his work in your life, even during this time of trial, and commit yourself to following him, praising him, serving him.
B. Continue to do good.
And then Peter says, “Continue to do good.” Commit yourself to your faithful Creator and continue to do good. We all have a tendency to withdraw and become passive during times of trial. It is vital that you continue to act, to serve, to do good. That’s what David did. How do you deal with God’s delays? First of all, serve God where you are.
II. Continue to seek God’s will (verses 3-4)
Secondly, continue to seek God’s will. Look at verses 3-4: “From there David went to Mizpah in Moab and said to the king of Moab, ‘Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me?’ So he left them with the king of Moab, and they stayed with him as long as David was in the stronghold.” (1 Samuel 22:3-4)
A. Remember what God has done in the past.
Part of seeking God’s will is remembering what God has done for you in the past. God is sovereign over our lives, which means that everything in life happens for a reason. Countless people can testify how God has taken even the worst things from their past and used them for good later on in their lives. With God, nothing is ever wasted. And so part of seeking God’s will is remembering what God has done in the past and building off of that. Henry Blackaby in his Bible study materials called “Experiencing God” talks about looking for the spiritual markers in your life, those key events and turning points that God has allowed to take place and which he wishes to use for the future.
David illustrates this for us in what he did for his parents. David didn’t want his parents to dwell in a cave or live on the run with him. So he brought his parents to the king of Moab for protection. This was a fairly long journey east, all the way on the other side of the Dead Sea.
Why Moab? Because he remembered what God had done in the past. He remembered how God had brought his great-grandmother Ruth out of the land of Moab and brought her into the community of faith in Israel. David had Moabite blood in him. This was part of his story. The king of Moab would know this. David was a well-known warrior, and genealogies were an important part of identifying another person in those days. David remembered his roots. He trusted that this was part of God’s plan. He brought his parents to Moab for safety.
Are there parts of your life that remain a mystery to you? You don’t know why God allowed certain things to happen? God is writing the story of your life, and although you may not understand all the details now, you will later. God can take even the evil done against us by others and our own foolish mistakes, and turn them for good. Part of seeking God’s will is remembering what God has done in the past and then building from that.
B. Seek God’s will for the future.
David remembered what God had done in the past, and then he continued to seek God’s will for the future. Look at what he said to the king of Moab. “Would you let my father and mother come and stay with you until I learn what God will do for me?” Notice that David wanted to learn what God would do for him. David was not seeking his own will in this matter, but God’s will. He was not trying to force what he wanted to happen and how and when, but he wanted to know what God would do for him. We need to do the same. We need to seek God’s will for our future, not our own.
III. Be quick to respond to God’s word (verse 5)
How do you deal with God’s delays? Serve where you are. Continue to seek God’s will. And thirdly, be quick to respond to God’s word. Look at verse 5: “But the prophet Gad said to David, ‘Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah.’ So David left and went to the forest of Hereth.” (1 Samuel 22:5)
This is the first time we meet the prophet, Gad, in the Bible. Later on the Bible calls him “Gad the prophet, David’s seer.” (1 Samuel 24:11; 1 Chronicles 21:9) David actually had three prophets to guide and instruct him throughout his life: Samuel, Nathan and Gad. We find all three mentioned together in 1 Chronicles 29: “As for the events of King David’s reign, from beginning to end, they are written in the records of Samuel the seer, the records of Nathan the prophet and the records of Gad the seer.” (1 Chronicles 29:29)
Although the king had ruling authority over the people, the prophet who spoke God’s word was considered the higher authority. You could always tell a king’s heart towards God by the way he responded to God’s prophets. David was always quick to respond to God’s word through the prophets. This is one of the reasons why David is described in Scripture as “a man after God’s own heart.” (1 Samuel 13:14; Acts 13:22)
And so when it was time to leave the stronghold, Gad the prophet spoke to David. “Do not stay in the stronghold. Go into the land of Judah.” Judah? Judah had to be the last place David wanted to go at this time. King Saul was still looking for him to kill him. But he was quick to respond to God’s word and went anyways.
You can always tell a person’s heart towards God by the way they respond to God’s word. The word of God reveals a person’s heart. Hebrews 4:12 says, “For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.” Are you quick to respond to God’s word? What does your response to God’s word say about your heart?
A. Be open to hearing God’s word.
What does it mean to be quick to respond to God’s word? First of all, you must be open to hearing God’s word. The first step to cutting yourself off from God is cutting yourself off from his word. Some people intentionally cut themselves off from God’s word because they don’t want to hear what God says. Others cut themselves off from God’s word through laziness, lack of discipline or wrong priorities in their life.
How can you be open to hearing God’s word? David received God’s word through the prophets. We receive God’s word today through the Bible. So if you are open to hearing God’s word, you will be reading the Bible for yourself, sitting under the preaching of God’s word weekly, studying it with others, memorizing key passages, and reading good Christian books that will help you to understand the Bible that much better. The first step in being quick to respond to God’s word is being open to hearing God’s word.
B. Be quick to obey God’s word.
And then, secondly, you must be quick to obey God’s word. It is not enough simply to read the Bible or to hear it preached on Sundays. You must do what it says. God’s word is, well, God’s word. It is what God is saying to you. You cannot submit to God’s authority in your life without obeying God’s word.
How do you deal with God’s delays in your life? Do what David did. Serve where you are. Continue to seek God’s will. Be quick to respond to God’s word.
CONCLUSION: The view from the cave can be a dark and lonely one. The walls of the cave can block your perspective. The view from the cave can sometimes be depressing, but it does not mean that God is through with you or has forgotten his promises. We need to remember that God’s delays are not necessarily God’s denials.
Think about Jesus for a moment. Jesus went into the cave. He was crucified, dead and buried in the tomb. That was a dark day for his disciples. All of their hopes and dreams were crushed when Christ was crucified. All of their future plans lay buried in the tomb with Jesus. The view from the cave was pretty bleak that day. But three days later Jesus rose from the dead and fulfilled God’s plan for the ages.
So when your life seems off course, and certain dreams or plans lay shattered at your feet, remember that God is still God. He has good plans for your life. The view from the cave is not all that God has for you. Even if you are in the cave due to your own sin or foolish mistakes, no matter how bad you may mess things up, God is still bigger than your sin or mistakes. He will fulfill his plans for your life if you will trust and follow him. What do you do when you find yourself in the cave? Keep serving. Keep seeking. Keep following God’s Word.
© Ray Fowler
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