MEPHIBOSHETH FROM LODEBAR
2 Sam. 9:1-13
INTRODUCTION
A. HUMOR
1. Two robins were sitting in a tree. "I'm really hungry," said the first one. "Me too," said the second. "Let's fly down and find some lunch."
2. They flew to the ground and found a nice plot of plowed ground full of worms. They ate and ate and ate until they could eat no more. "I'm so full I don't think I can fly back up to the tree," said the first one.
3. "Me neither, let's just lay here and bask in the warm sun," said the second. "Okay," said the first. They plopped down, basking in the sun.
4. No sooner than they had fallen asleep, a big fat tomcat snuck up and gobbled them up. As he sat washing his face after his meal, he thought, "I love baskin' robins."
B. TEXT
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. 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.” 4 “Where is he?” the king asked. Ziba answered, “He is at the house of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar.” 5 So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel. 6 When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honor. David said, “Mephibosheth!” “At your service,” he replied. 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.”8 Mephibosheth bowed down and said, “What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?” 9 Then the king summoned Ziba, Saul’s steward, and said to him, “I have given your master’s grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family. 10 You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master’s grandson may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table.” (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.) 11 Then Ziba said to the king, “Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table like one of the king’s sons. 12 Mephibosheth had a young son named Mika, and all the members of Ziba’s household were servants of Mephibosheth. 13 And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king’s table; he was lame in both feet.
C. THESIS
1. We’re looking at the story of one who was:
a. A prince by birth;
b. Deprived of his inheritance/ family;
c. Crippled by a negligent step;
d. Carried into exile and poverty; a helpless dependent in a remote district.
2. THIS STORY IS AN ANALOGY OF THE REDEEMED SINNER.
3. The title of this is “Mephibosheth from Lodebar.”
I. THE HEIGHT FROM WHICH HE FELL
A. BELONGED TO A ROYAL LINE
1. Mephibosheth was like a Kennedy/ a Roosevelt in this country. His Grandfather was King Saul, first King of all Israel.
2. His father Jonathan was in line for the throne.
3. Mephibosheth was the oldest son, in line for the throne.
4. He had it all – riches, power, kingship.
B. LOST IT ALL
1. Grandfather & father killed on Mt. Gilboa by the Philistines.
2. He, 5 years old. Nurse at Jezreel picked up Mephibosheth & accidentally dropped him, crippling both feet.
3. Another man took the kingdom.
4. Mephibosheth (“one who blows upon shame”) fulfilled his name – helpless, poor, and exiled East of the Jordan, outside Canaan-land.
5. Hos. 14:1 says, “Your sins have been your downfall!” We lost our riches in the Fall and were exiled. Eph. 2:12-13; “12 remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.”
6. He was living in Lodebar, a ghetto town in Biblical times. The word means "no pasture,"(2 Samuel 17:27) "no word" or "no communication" [Wikipedia].
7. If it meant “no word,” it was a derogatory name denoting lack of enlightenment or stupidity. If “no pasture” it meant it was a worthless piece of ground. Either way, it indicated exile to the worst area.
II. CHANGE IN HIS FORTUNES
A. COVENANT BETWEEN DAVID AND JONATHAN
1. 1 Sam. 20:14-15. He was remembered because of the covenant between David & Jonathan.
2. It wasn’t until chapter 9 that David had firmly established his kingdom. It was then about 17-18 years since Gilboa.
3. ILLUS. There were some parents who were afraid to die because they had no one to look after their kids. But God reminded them they had a covenant with Him. He would be a Father to their children! Their fear was taken away.
4. David wanted to show his kindness (like God) to Mephibosheth.
B. DAVID SOUGHT HIM OUT(vs. 5, like the Son of Man, who came to “seek & save that which was lost.”)
C. CALLED INTO THE KING’S PRESENCE (vs. 6)
1. Mephibosheth probably thought David was going to kill him. It was common for kings to kill previous ruler’s heirs.
2. Imagine the sweet tone of David, “Mephibosheth!” In marriage it’s not just the content that communicates, it’s also the tone. Experts say “Communication = 7% content, 38% tone, and 55% non-verbal!
3. (vs. 7), “Fear not!” Mephibosheth had been trembling before him, but was assured of positive reception. Likewise before King Jesus we may tremble, but His sweet tone will assure us of our welcome in His presence.
D. ILLUSTRATION: “BEFORE THE KING COULD SEE HIM”
1. There was a young musician in the Royal Orchestra at Hanover, Germany. He was a remarkable young man. But when war came and he was lying in the trenches, he deserted and fled to England. The penalty for desertion was death.
2. In England he became an organist, but he loved astronomy. By ingenuity he constructed a telescope and actually discovered a planet – Uranus. He received the applause of the world’s scientific community.
3. He was sent for by the King and went to Windsor Castle, but the King was George, of Hanover! What would he do?
4. Before the King would see him, he was sent an envelop for him to open. Inside was the King’s pardon for his desertion!
5. “Now,” said King George, “we can talk. And you shall come up and live at Windsor and be Sir William Herschel!”
6. The same is true of us: before we can see King Jesus in Heaven, we too must receive His pardon. Have you gotten yours yet?
III. MEPHIBOSHETH’S ELEVATION TO HONOR
A. GIVEN A GLORIOUS INHERITANCE
1. Not only did David give him the lands at Gibeah that Ziba had managed to hold, but ALL the lands his Grandfather had owned.
2. God doesn’t just restore to our measly inheritance, but ALL that our grandpa Adam lost, and even more, we are HEIRS OF GOD, JOINT-HEIRS WITH JESUS CHRIST! All that’s the Father’s is ours! We are heirs of a marvelous inheritance.
3. God says, “I’m calling you out of Lodebar – the land of exile, the land of worthlessness, the land of ‘no word from God.’ You’re called into relationship with Me!”
B. AMPLE PROVISION FOR ALL HIS WANTS
Ziba and family were to provide all his wants.
C. PRIVILEGE – EAT AT THE KING’S TABLE
1. David would have nothing less than Mephibosheth be a free & constant guest at his table.
2. It was a position of great distinction – to be one of the King’s friends.
3. Not delegated to others – the King would care for him himself.
D. COUNTED AS ONE OF THE KING’S SONS (Vs. 11)
IV. APPLICATION TO OURSELVES
A. INHERITANCE
All that we lost in Adam we regained in Christ!
B. FAVOR OF THE KING
1. Before we knew about it, God determined to pour out His love on us.
2. He sought us out; He called us into the King’s presence. He’s given us a glorious inheritance and ample provision; He counts us as His own son/daughter; we are invited to eat at His table forever!
3. You Mephibosheth, had no legal right to these blessings, but due to God’s covenant with His Son and your relation to the Son, God’s blessings are extended to you as well.
4. This is a picture of God’s unmitigated GRACE – making you what you weren’t and giving you what was another’s.
C. GOD’S PRESENT INVITATION TO HIS TABLE
1. We are invited to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. At this convocation is the best of society, gladness & joy; and safety.
2. “Blessed is the one who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.” Lk. 14:15.
3. When we shall sit at that table, we will realize that GRACE PUT US THERE!
CONCLUSION
A. ILLUSTRATION
1. An October 19, 2009 Associated Press article was entitled, “Ex-nurse's aide in U.S. crowned king in Uganda.”
2. For years, Charles Wesley Mumbere worked as a nurse's aide in Maryland and Pennsylvania, caring for the elderly and sick. No one there suspected that he had inherited a royal title in his African homeland when he was just 13.
3. After years of political upheaval and financial struggle, Mumbere, 56, was finally crowned king of his people to the sound of drumbeats and thousands of cheering supporters wearing cloth printed with his portraits.
4. The new King of Uganda's Mountains of the Moon went from impoverished student and nursing home assistant working two jobs in the U.S., to become King!
5. Mumbere's royal roots only became public in Pennsylvania in July, 2009. To the Americans who knew him, it was a rags-to-riches story. The humble, hard-working man that changed the diapers of old people suddenly became a King in Uganda!
6. Such will be our transformation someday, when we cease being the “offscouring of the world” and enter our inheritance as “sons (and daughters) of God.” What a transformation!
B. THE CALL
1. Have you felt as if you were sub-par in God’s family? Like you’re not under the favor of the Lord? That’s the way Mephibosheth felt, until he heard David’s heart himself.
2. God has expressed His heart love for you; “The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: ‘I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness’” Jer. 31:3.
3. God said of you and me; “In the very place where it was said to them, ‘You are not my people,’ there they will be called ‘children of the living God.’” Rom. 9:26.
4. Let’s rejoice that God has made us part of His family!
5. Are you here tonight and want to make sure you’re forgiven of your sins? Slip up a hand if that’s you. Let’s pray!
