Some circumstances of life are just tragic, and they are all the harder for us to work our way through when they affect children. How many of us give generously to the appeal, to help out a young family, whose child has been struck with cancer. Or who of us help out the family with a child who has a major disability? It’s where we are introduced today to a man named Mephibosheth. Mephibosheth is one of those people we meet in the Bible, who is met with tragedy and uncertainty in life. How Mephibosheth came to be unable to walk goes back to the time Saul & Jonathon went out to do battle against the Philistines at mount Gilboa. The result was both Saul & Jonathon die in the battle. The news of their deaths filters back home, and we read in 2 Samuel 4:4
4 (Jonathan son of Saul had a son who was lame in both feet. He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel. His nurse picked him up and fled, but as she hurried to leave, he fell and became disabled. His name was Mephibosheth.)
In the panic following the death of Jonathon and his father King Saul, and with David around somewhere with his band of misfits, any living relative of Saul’s expected to swept aside. These relatives of Saul were part of the old order about to be replaced by the new. Mephibosheth’s nurse it seems tried to grab him on the run, fleeing for her life. The result was Mephibosheth being dropped, breaking both feet of the boy. In the healing they obviously didn’t join well, ending with him being crippled in both feet. This was A regrettable outcome to a tragic day.
Now we fast forward again as David sits as Israel’s King. He is the established in Jerusalem the new capital city (the center for government and worship). We come to another observation about David, as King and Man. In this high watermark of David’s reign, we face up to a relationship of loving kindness. David now honors his long departed friend Jonathon; by the way he cares for his son Mephibosheth. As we see in this story how we care for others in our relationships reveals our true nature in our relationship with God. This story of David is now turned towards his reign as king, just as our gaze is now shifted forwards to see that there is no ordinary crown for God’s one as King Jesus will show us how to live our lives on God’s terms. He is the Son of God who has come to deal with death and sin, so that we might receive forgiveness and know eternal life. As we read in 2 Samuel 9:1-2:
1 David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” 2 Now there was a servant of Saul’s household named Ziba. They summoned him to appear before David, and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” “At your service,” he replied.
David does something very human here, he’s the king of Israel now responsible for the rule over a nation, who also had a million strategic and political things to work out, Tribal leaders to keep on side, The threat of enemies everywhere outside to protect his people from. So right here we get beneath everything going on. There is a lot to like about David the king and man. The most noticeable characteristic is David’s loyalty is premier, he isn’t necessarily kind to everyone, he is however loyal to those he holds himself an obligation to. David is gracious and steadfast. David remembers a very old promise he made with his best friend Jonathon King Saul’s son. The words of that promise he is now looking to make good from back in 1 Samuel 20:14-15
14 But show me unfailing kindness like the Lord’s kindness as long as I live, so that I may not be killed, 15 and do not ever cut off your kindness from my family—not even when the Lord has cut off every one of David’s enemies from the face of the earth.”
There’s one word repeated here that’s worth digging a little deeper on in this passage. It’s the word we see here as kindness. In the original Hebrew that word is hessed loving covenant, It is a rich word of commitment and love, a loyal in exhaustive promise keeping loving kindness. As we read in 2 Samuel 9 verse 1
1 David asked, “Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan’s sake?”
verse 3
3 The king asked, “Is there no one still alive from the house of Saul to whom I can show God’s kindness?” Ziba answered the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is lame in both feet.”
verse 7
7 “Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.”
David promises protection to Mephibosheth. This son of Jonathon isn’t named up until he meets with David face to face. What mattered for David was it was a son of Jonathon, as David would show his loving kindness . What we see is that hessed is not merely affection but affection that has committed itself. Notice also we are to see ourselves also here on the pages of Scripture. As we also have one who has shown us covenant faithful love, it is steadfast love of the one who we can run to as our refuge. In Jesus we have the one who shows us uncommon faithfulness and love. It is on full display at the cross from the one who is full of grace and truth. We learn lessons in the hard places of our lives of who what we acknowledge over us, where we run to or what we say. With Jesus we pray your will be done, your kingdom come. So the question is “What stories of loving kindness could you tell of another’s generosity or undeserved generosity towards you?” With Mephibosheth the way King David shows his loving kindness was by protection, provision and position. Look again at verse 7
7 “Don’t be afraid,” David said to him, “for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table.”
Protection: no longer does Mephibosheth have to look over his shoulder, wondering what’s going to happen next, to a son of Jonathon a grandson to the now dead King Saul. This was extraordinary protection as Mephibosheth represented all that David had just overcome. Mephibosheth was technically a rival claimant to the throne, in a sense he represented King David’s enemies
Provision: as Mephibosheth has restored to him land his grandfather Saul once owned. Mephibosheth will be independently wealthy, able to support himself and others
Finally – position: as Mephibosheth is invited by King David to eat at his table
King David’s loving kindness towards Mephibosheth. This was a personal embrace of a covenant promise that David made to his best friend Jonathon many years before when he was a simple musician in King Saul’s court. Just as we keep seeing this pointing us forward also to the way we are reminded that loving kindness is where Jesus meets us with living life on his terms. With his disciples Jesus told them in John 13:34-35 (The Message)
34 “Let me give you a new command: Love one another. In the same way I loved you, you love one another. 35 This is how everyone will recognize that you are my disciples—when they see the love you have for each other.”
The question is “How you seeing the loving kindness of Jesus transforming you?” in the theatre of everyday life what is grabbing your heart. Where are you choosing to be generous is characteristic of Jesus? He calls on us to share the same sense of generosity with others, just like it was shown to Mephibosheth by King David
David Hassan @ Tamworth Community Presbyterian Church 23/10/16