2 Samuel Chapter 9 Verses 1 – 4

 David breaks norms here. It was expected in those days, (even the

smart thing to do), when a kingdom is taken instead of inherited,

you would need to wipe out all the remnants of the prior kingdom.

Not only so that you wouldn’t have a future war on your hands if a

remaining son came against you, but also so that the people

wouldn’t/couldn’t be divided.

 David didn’t care about protecting himself, defending himself, he

was who he was, and he left the defense to the Lord. He was more

concerned with doing what was right in the eyes of God than he

was ensuring his own situation.

 Ok, to be that man/woman, that does so much for you! Personal

integrity. Personal respect. The sense of virtue. Poise, confidence,

character. But in addition to that, (and this can be counterintuitive

to walking by sight and customary rationality in the moment or

situation), when you trust the Lord, you ensure your defense.

 There are so so many verses on this principal that I could direct you

to. I’ll go to an entire chapter. Psalm 3 reads, “Lord, how they have

increased who trouble me. Many are those who rise up against me.

Many are they who say of me, ‘There is no help for him in God.’

Selah. But you, O Lord, are a shield for me (my defense and my

sustainer), my glory (source of honor) and the One who lifts my

head (my promoter and source of personal pride). I cried to the

Lord with my voice, and He heard me from His holy hill. Selah. I

lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustained me. I will not

be afraid of then thousands of people (poise, confidence,

character) who have set themselves against me all around. Arise,

O Lord; Save me, O my God! For you have struck all my enemies

on the cheekbone (speaks of not only defeat but of shame); You

have broken the teeth of the ungodly (taken the bite from their

bark). Salvation belongs to the Lord. Your blessing is upon Your

people. Selah.”

 Here’s the thing about being your own defense. If you take that

role, make excuses, defend your actions, justify yourself with what

everyone and everything else did to cause you do what you did

rather than acknowledging, taking accountability and agreeing with

your corrector…, God will let you be your own defense. But if

you choose humility, faithfulness, and Christ-like honesty, God will

be your defense. So we get to choose…

 David makes a wise choice here and instead of gaining an enemy

and perhaps sleepless nights wondering if what he did was right (if

he had of killed the son of Saul), David is going to gain a son! He

turns an enemy into a friend through kindness and reliance upon

God to define for him what is right for him to do!

 It’s for the love of Jonathan that David finds Mephibosheth. Just

think about for a moment the fondness and purity of care David

would have for Mephibosheth because of the treasured bond he had

with Jonathan. David would love to love Jonathan’s son…

 Let’s connect that to your walk with the Lord. If you love someone,

maybe even someone who should be your enemy, as an extension

of your love for Jesus, if that is your reason, that can be incredibly

rewarding. But only if you have a fervent love for Jesus.

 I get it, in my flesh I want my enemy to stay my enemy. But I have

also found a bond that is so tight with the Lord, that to honor

another for the sake of their relationship to Jesus at my own cost is

a thing of special worship and unique spiritual blessing.

2 Samuel Chapter 9 Verses 5 – 6

 We glean a lot from these verses. First, this speaks to the meager

situation of Mephibosheth. He is not only impaired physically but he

lives in the house of someone else, not his own house. He’s dwelling in

Lo Debar which literally translates to “no pasture,” reflecting its

desolation. So what this tells us is that the son of Saul, the son of a king,

lives dependent upon others, in a home not his own, in a state of

perpetual poverty.

 Also, this tells us that he was terrified. He was living in a state of fear.

Safe as long as the king doesn’t know about him or where he lives. But

then there is a knock on the door… And the message is that the king is

asking to see you. Now the king knows about him, knows where to find

him, and he has no choice, he is going to have to present himself to the

king who should (and rightfully would) be expected to either have to kill

him or exile him… He knows all of this so what does he do when he

arrives? He falls down on his face and makes himself David’s servant…

 Ok, this speaks volumes of how God has called you to Himself. Not to

condemn or to enslave or to adjudicate payment or penalty for your

inherited condition of sin. But to redeem you and to bring you to his

royal table!

 Mephibosheth is living in the house of Machir. That name means,

“sold.” Sold into the house of no pasture. Machir was the son of

Ammiel. Ammiel means, “God is my Father.” Something happened in

the line to go from, “God is my Father,” to, “Sold!”

 Mephibosheth is impaired by the debilitation of sin and yet originally

the son of a king… And so, the king seeks us out. Comes for us. And

invites us to the palace, and even to His table. To be one of His adopted

sons. Cared for and called for by choice. A special treasure unto

Himself!

 Undeserved, unmerited…, Mephibosheth did nothing to warrant David

calling for him, sparing him or adopting him. He simply responded to

the call. So, when he gets there, he falls on his face. A position of honor,

respect and humility. How difficult it must have been for him to kneel

himself to the floor in his condition. But difficult or not, he makes

himself the servant of the king unto incredible, unthinkable,

unreasonable and even unwarranted blessing! This is our story! This

is the grace and kindness of God!

2 Samuel Chapter 9 Verses 7 – 8

 David had made a covenant years ago with Jonathan. 1 Samuel 20:14,

Jonathan says to David, knowing that David will be king, “And you

shall not only show me the kindness of the Lord while I still live, that I

may not die; but you shall not cut off your kindness from my house

forever, no, not when the Lord has cut off every one of the enemies of

David from the face of the earth.”

 Then we read in 1 Samuel 20:42, “Then Jonathan said to David, ‘Go in

peace, since we have both sworn in the name of the Lord saying, ‘May

the Lord be between you and me, and between your descendants and my

descendants, forever.’”

 David makes good on his word with Jonathan. It is the right thing to

do, it is outstanding and remarkably wonderful for Mephibosheth, it is

good for David, it is good for the entire nation of people. To be good on

your word, the importance of that, cannot be overstated or overplayed.

A person’s entire relational, societal, professional and personal worth

is found in their integrity. And integrity is simply to be unwavering in

the fulfilling of your volitional commitments.

 Being someone who says what they will do and does it is vital. If you

don’t have that, whatever you think you have in terms of authenticity of

relationship is smoke and mirrors, because it is based on a false reality, a

false version of you. Be a man or a woman of your word.

 And, when you break your word, (we all will, not a one of us is perfect),

have the wisdom to let God be your defense. Fight the immature, unwise

and fleshly, worldly urge to make excuses, defend your actions, justify

yourself with what everyone and everything else did to cause you do

what you did. Rather acknowledge your own imperfection, taking

accountability, accept humility…

 THAT builds trust, demonstrates integrity, strengthens relationships,

fosters self-respect. Showing consistency between your commitments

and your actions creates reliability and respect in both personal and

professional life. And when you fail, ownership. Accountability. It

reflects strong character, making you dependable and creates

opportunities, while breaking your word or defending the breaking of

your word erodes credibility and damages connections.

 Following through and/or humility in failure shows you value others and

expect to earn their appreciation and respect. What a pathetic display of

character, those that demand appreciation and respect or those that

assume and expect it to be there who have shown they cannot be

depended upon, counted on or invested in without someone getting hurt.

And if someone gets hurt, they will defend their reason for the injury

rather than dressing the wounds of a friend…

 Commitment, dedication, caring, love, respect, relationship, loyalty,

devotion, appreciation, dignity, esteem, these words are supposed to

carry a lot of emotional weight because they speak of the greatest of

human qualities. But for the person that does not fulfill their word, and

for the person without humility, they are empty. Be a person of your

word, and when you’re not, be a person of maturity of character about it.

2 Samuel Chapter 9 Verse 9

 Here’s the thing. If all of those things were Saul’s, then by inheritance

they were Mephibosheth’s. But because of Mephibosheth’s condition,

and because of his fear of the king, he had none of what was rightly his!

Just like that, we have been given life, life abundant, newness of life,

access to the everlasting life inheritance of God through the forgiveness,

total forgiveness of sin by the sufficient blood of Jesus…

 And yet it’s so hard to forgive ourselves for what we’ve done. When

God has forgiven us! It’s so hard to allow ourselves the new start of

redefining who we will be to ourselves and others, framed in the

righteous favor of God! It’s there. It’s ours. But the enemy would have

us have none of it. To stay in the house of the “sold,” in the land of “no

pasture.” Don’t do it. Receive AND be strong in the grace of God!

2 Samuel Chapter 9 Verses 10 – 12

 These verses list both the sons of Ziba and the son of Mephibosheth. It

could be that Ziba is not content with this situation. Could be… This

was actually a very good situation for Ziba perhaps. We aren’t told what

he did or what he had prior to this but it appears he was doing ok for

himself. He had fifteen sons and twenty servants… So, this may very

well not have been what he desired…

 Later, Ziba will cause David great trouble. He will cause Mephibosheth

great trouble. We will see that in chapters 16 and 19…

 But I love that Micha is named. All that has happened to Mephibosheth,

the kindness of the king, him being called out of poverty and into

royalty…, his accepting and humility throughout all of it…, secures the

same or better situation for his son!

2 Samuel Chapter 9 Verse 13

 Every time Mephibosheth is mentioned, we are reminded of his

impairment. All that he has gained, he still suffers. 2 Corinthians 4:16,

Paul said, “We do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is

perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day.”

 What gets the attention in your life? The grace and kindness of God

through faith, or the mistakes of the past that have left their mark? What

gets your trust in your life? The rational decisions and actions and

reactions that you make instinctually, or do you trust God at His Word

and force the choice in the moment to do what is right in His eyes?

 The spirit-filled life is not one that doesn’t wrestle and struggle in the

flesh. It’s simply one that doesn’t allow the flesh to dictate any

longer who we will be. You may even lose the day, but the righteous get

up… Get back to the king’s table, even providing that treasured comfort

to the king himself just by virtue of you being there…

 Every time David looks at Mephibosheth at his table, he remembers

Jonathan. Just like every time you walk with God the Father, He sees

Jesus. The beloved, cherished, faithful, strong Son who served His

Father over serving Himself. The impairments of the past will remain,

that’s life. But they don’t have to, and shouldn’t, define who you are

today. I choose to let God do that and the only way to do that is to trust

Him, let Him be my defense, and stop trying to be a better version of

myself or even worrying about that…, but rather learning and drawing

closer to Jesus as I follow after Him…