Service Details
Date: SUN 11:30am 6th September 2026
Preacher: Rev. David McLaughlin
Bible Reference: 2 Samuel 23:15-17
Podcast
Sermon Summary
This sermon, preached from 2 Samuel 23:13–17, takes as its text the account of David in the cave of Adullam and the three mighty men who risked their lives to bring him water from the well of Bethlehem. The preacher frames the passage as a picture of the Christian life, drawing three main points: the thirst of the king, the test toward the king, and the tribute of the king. The message is devotional and evangelistic in character, urging believers to put Christ first, to live close to his heart, and to sacrifice everything for his glory.
The Setting of the Text
The preacher first establishes the scene. David is in exile, driven from his throne by the jealousy of King Saul. He is sheltering in the cave of Adullam, a stronghold in the wilderness, some twelve miles from Bethlehem. The Philistine garrison has occupied Bethlehem, and the enemy has pitched in the valley of Rephaim—a name the preacher notes means “the giants.”
It is harvest time. The sun is hot. David, remembering the town of his birth and the well by its gate, expresses a simple longing:
“Oh that one would give me drink of the water of the well of Bethlehem, which is by the gate.”
The preacher stresses that this was not a command. David did not order his men to undertake a military exploit. It was merely a whispered desire of his heart. Yet three of his mighty men heard it, broke through the Philistine lines, drew water from the well, and carried it back to their king. David, however, refused to drink it. Instead he poured it out before the Lord, declaring that it was the blood of the men who had risked their lives. What began as an act of warfare ended in an act of worship.
The preacher acknowledges that the bones of the message were shared with him by an evangelist, but states that he prepared the sermon himself under the Lord’s help.
First Point: The Thirst of the King
The Priority of the King
The preacher observes that everything in the passage begins with the king. Before there is a well, before there is water, there is the king. The mighty men were David’s men. They had come to him, pledged their allegiance, and placed themselves under his care and influence.
He draws a parallel with the modern church, arguing that the principle which desperately needs recovering is this: to put the king first. He cites Matthew 6:33:
“But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.”
The preacher laments that the twenty-first century is marked by self-centredness—an attitude of “me, me, me” and “money, money, money.” He lists the things commonly placed before the kingdom of God:
- My career
- My family
- My pressures
- My house
- My hobbies
- My comforts
- My money
Against this he sets the demand of Matthew 6:33. The Christian life is to be about the king—his person, his word, his people, his house, his authority, his honour, his glory, and his business. The king, he insists, is not an accessory to be added on like a handbag or a watch. He is Lord.
The preacher presses the question of whether those listening truly know Christ as Lord and Saviour, whether there was a time of kneeling, confession of sin, and the cry “God be merciful to me, the sinner.” He quotes the well-known words of C. T. Studd:
“If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for him.”
He applies this to the needs of the church—spiritual, evangelistic, material, numerical, and financial—and challenges the congregation, as autumn and the run-up to Christmas approach, to avoid misplaced priorities and to put the king first.
The Passion of the King
The preacher then turns to the longing of David’s heart. David had memories of Bethlehem, the place of his boyhood, and he remembered the taste of its water. The preacher draws a spiritual application: the water speaks of the washing of water by the word (Ephesians 5:26) and of the witness of the Spirit (John 7:37–39).
The key point here is that David did not issue a command. His longing was sighed out of his heart and whispered from his lips—and there were men close enough to hear it. The lesson is twofold:
- Put the king first.
- Live close enough to the heart of Christ to know what he wants.
The preacher asks whether he himself lives close enough to hear the whispers and sighs of the king. He observes that many know the facts about Jesus, particularly in Northern Ireland, but do not know him intimately and experimentally. They are acquainted with Bible belief but not intimate with the king. He cites John 10:27:
“My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.”
The question is posed starkly: we know the words of Christ, but do we listen to his voice? Of the thirty mighty men with David, only three—ten per cent—were close enough to hear. The preacher asks where the king speaks today, and answers: in his word, the Holy Bible, which he affirms as the infallible, inerrant, and authoritative word of God, citing 2 Timothy 3:16.
He encourages a disciplined reading plan—reading the Bible through in a year, the Psalms twice, the New Testament twice, and the Old Testament once. He laments the lack of thrill, delight, fear, and trembling in the handling of Scripture, and points to John 17:17:
“Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth.”
The Pleasure of the King
David did not ask for any water. He asked specifically for water from the well of Bethlehem by the gate. There was something special about it, tied to his boyhood memories.
The preacher develops this into a warning about the many wells of the world:
- The water of pleasures
- The water of possessions
- The water of popularity
- Education
- Entertainment
- Money
- Success
The world calls to young people and children to drink from these wells, promising satisfaction, but it is, the preacher says, a lie. These are temporary, sinful pleasures. Christ alone offers true, lasting, spiritual satisfaction. He points to John 4:14:
“Whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.”
Bethlehem, the preacher notes, means “the house of bread,” and Christ is the bread of life and the water of life.
Second Point: The Test Toward the King
The Enemy Between Them and the Well
The water was available, but the enemy stood between the men and the well. Bethlehem—the house of bread—was in the hands of the Philistines, who had spread themselves in the valley of Rephaim, the valley of giants.
The preacher asks how this came about and answers from the text: it was due to King Saul’s behaviour. Saul was so consumed with pursuing David—the true king, the champion of truth and righteousness—that he lost his calling, his consecration, and his concentration. He became fixated on attacking one of his own, lost his faith and focus, and the enemy came in.
The application is pointed. If the church becomes fixated on what other professing believers are saying or doing, and fills its heart and mind with that, it will allow the devil to get in. Saul started well but was so filled with rage, jealousy, and envy that he allowed discord in the land and the enemy to advance. David faced the enemy; Saul fought against his own.
The Cost of the Water
To get the water out of the well would cost sacrifice, blood, tears, and sweat. Of the thirty mighty men, only three went. They risked their lives for the longing of the king. This, the preacher says, is a picture of spiritual warfare, citing Ephesians 6:12:
“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.”
One aim of the Christian soldier is to know who the enemy is. The enemy does not want God’s people to drink deeply from the word. He wants to keep them busy, distracted, and in discord with one another.
The preacher then makes a distinctively defence-of-the-King-James point. He argues that the enemy has allowed a proliferation of Bible versions, many of which are not, in his view, true Bibles, and urges a rediscovery of the King James Version as the most faithful and reliable translation—the Bible of the New Testament church in its original Greek and Hebrew, and of the Protestant Reformation.
He insists:
- The Bible is worth fighting for.
- The gospel is worth fighting for.
- King Jesus is worth fighting for.
- Communion with Christ is worth fighting for.
But to fight requires willingness to sacrifice all. The devil, he says, knows the power of the living word, which is why he attacks the Bible. The devil does not mind if a person owns five or fifty Bibles, or even Bibles in Hebrew and Greek they cannot read. But he does mind when they read, study, and meditate on the truth, and when they live under its authority—not merely quoting verses but making them the rule of life.
The Attitude of the Mighty Men
The preacher highlights the perseverance of the three men. There were giants in the way, and fear, doubt, trials, tears, wounds, and temptations awaited them. But they knew the Lord was greater than the enemy. They lived to please their king, and their attitude was “by God’s grace we will overcome.” They risked their lives because of their love for the king.
The application asks what believers are willing to sacrifice:
- Sleep, to come and pray
- Time daily, to read, study, and meditate on the word
- Popularity and reputation, to stand for truth and witness for Christ—including standing publicly against abortion
- Money, to advance the gospel and the cause of Christ
The preacher observes that wealthy Muslim millionaires and billionaires spend thousands every week building mosques and advancing Islam, and that some are even paid to protest the Palestinian cause. The church, by contrast, struggles. He asks whether this is because those who have plenty refuse to sacrifice a little more. He notes that the world understands sacrifice—a soldier for his country, a parent for a child, a wife for her husband, a businessman for his enterprise. How much more should believers sacrifice for Christ, who gave himself for them?
He cites Galatians 2:20:
“I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me.”
And Romans 12:1, where the “reasonable service” of presenting one’s body as a living sacrifice is described as the least one can do in light of who Christ is and what he has done.
Third Point: The Tribute of the King
The water brought to David was not for the satisfaction of his fleshly desire. Twice the text states that he would not drink it. He poured it out as a holy offering to the Lord.
The preacher notes the compelling reasons David had to drink: he was thirsty, it was harvest time, and it was hot. Yet he refused. The reason, the preacher argues, is that the richest blessings God supplies are not for the advancement of the flesh. David recognised that the water was a gift given by the Lord, purchased at the risk of men’s lives, and therefore to be used solely for the Lord’s glory and honour. When God blesses with gifts, those gifts are for the Lord first.
A second lesson is that this military act became a priestly act. The place of warfare became a place of worship, because the water represented, in picture form, the blood of the men who went in jeopardy of their lives. The water became an offering.
The preacher then moves to the gospel application. The three men risked their lives for their king; David’s greater son, King Jesus, gave his life on the cross. The men broke through the Philistine garrison; the Lord Jesus went through the judgment of God and suffered his wrath on the tree. The men brought David physical water which he did not drink; the Lord Jesus purchased living water at the cost of blood, and offers it freely:
“Come unto me, and I will give you the water of life.”
The preacher ends by insisting that the gospel is not about trying harder, turning over a new leaf, or becoming a better person. It centres on the person and work of Christ. The closing appeal is simple and direct: will you come and drink? Have you come?
Summary of the Main Lessons
The sermon draws the following lessons from the passage:
- Put the king first — the Christian life begins and ends with Christ, not with self, career, comfort, or money.
- Live close enough to hear the king’s whispers — intimacy with Christ, cultivated through his word, enables believers to know his desires.
- Drink from the right well — the world offers many wells that cannot satisfy; only the water of life in Christ can.
- Know your enemy and be willing to fight — spiritual warfare is real, and obtaining the water of the word requires sacrifice.
- Use God’s gifts for his glory — the richest blessings are not for the flesh but are to be poured out in worship and service to the Lord.
- Come to Christ and drink — the gospel is an invitation to receive living water purchased by the blood of the Son of God.
