Carried to the table

2 samuel 9

2 Samuel 9 ESV

And David said, “Is there still anyone left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba, and they called him to David. And the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” And he said, “I am your servant.” And the king said, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God to him?” Ziba said to the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in his feet.” The king said to him, “Where is he?” And Ziba said to the king, “He is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar.” Then King David sent and brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar. And Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, son of Saul, came to David and fell on his face and paid homage. And David said, “Mephibosheth!” And he answered, “Behold, I am your servant.” And David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat at my table always.” And he paid homage and said, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog such as I?” Then the king called Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s grandson. And you and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him and shall bring in the produce, that your master’s grandson may have bread to eat. But Mephibosheth your master’s grandson shall always eat at my table.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. Then Ziba said to the king, “According to all that my lord the king commands his servant, so will your servant do.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table, like one of the king’s sons. And Mephibosheth had a young son, whose name was Mica. And all who lived in Ziba’s house became Mephibosheth’s servants. So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for he ate always at the king’s table. Now he was lame in both his feet.

explain table

In 2 Samuel David became king

before him was a wicked king Saul

he tried to have David killed multiple times

out of jealousy

Now David is king because all of Sauls family died except for Saul’s grandson Mephibosheth, son of Jonathan

Mephibosheth was a young boy who became crippled while one of his grandfathers servants was fleeing the kingdom when the enemy was conquering them

he grew up to become a man and a town called Lo-debar

Lo-debar means “nothing”

this is the place where Mephibosheth had found himslef

crippled, alone, scared, helpless, depressed, down & out

no longer felt worthy to even say that he was royal family because his family name was put to shame

king David became more and more powerful because God was blessing him

overcome the enemies

: 1-

2 Samuel 9:1–5 ESV

And David said, “Is there still anyone left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba, and they called him to David. And the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” And he said, “I am your servant.” And the king said, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God to him?” Ziba said to the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in his feet.” The king said to him, “Where is he?” And Ziba said to the king, “He is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar.” Then King David sent and brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar.

King made a request for his servant to invite Mephibosheth to the kings table

If I were preaching this like I normally would I would say...

THE KING OF KINGS HAS INVITED THOSE WHO ARE CRIPPLED, BROKEN, DOWN-CAST, FEEL THAT LIFE HAS LED THEM TO A PLACE OF NOTHING, ABUSED, ADDICTS,

TO JOIN HIM AT THE KINGS TABLE

some of us are too afraid to come before the king because we are afraid and ashamed

So was Mephibosheth

2 Sam 9:6-

2 Samuel 9:6–10 ESV

And Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, son of Saul, came to David and fell on his face and paid homage. And David said, “Mephibosheth!” And he answered, “Behold, I am your servant.” And David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat at my table always.” And he paid homage and said, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog such as I?” Then the king called Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s grandson. And you and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him and shall bring in the produce, that your master’s grandson may have bread to eat. But Mephibosheth your master’s grandson shall always eat at my table.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

and then I would tell you that if you were here this morning that YOU too can be saved from your current state of despair to a an eternal place of hope!

since I shared it already you should know that it is true but that’s not my message today

BUT MAYBE YOU NEEDED TO HEAR IT TODAY

because God would allow us to re-write

2 Samuel 9:13 ESV

So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for he ate always at the king’s table. Now he was lame in both his feet.

to place your name there

to remember what God has brought us from and where He is taking us to

But todays message I would like to draw the attention of the Christians today to the Mephibosheth’s in our lives

people who are close to us

many have children, some have parents or siblings,

maybe it’s a good friend...

how you are connected isn’t the important part

what matters is that they are far from God

not feasting at the table of the Lord

1. KING HAS MADE REQUEST THAT THE PERSON ON YOUR MIND WOULD HAVE A SEAT AT HIS TABLE

in 1 Timothy the Bible is talking about God and says that He

1 Timothy 2:4 ESV

who desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.

it is God’s desire that your lost friends and family come to faith

sit at the table for a feast

In 2 Samuel King David instructed his servant to go to Lo-debar with an invitation and to carry the crippled man to the King

God has instructed His servants to go...

Like when Jesus shared the parable of the banquet

Luke 14:

Luke 14:21–23 ESV

So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled.

we must go out of this place and find those who are lost

those who are not in God’s presence

not experiencing His power

and compel them to come in

but the invitation is often not enough because those who we are calling are crippled

unable to make there way to God on their own

so we may have to carry them

Seems like a lot of work right?

reminds me of a story that we read in

when Jesus was in a house teaching and healing

some guys had a friend who was paralized and they knew that Jesus could heal him

so they carried the man on his bed to the house where Jesus was

Luke 5:19 ESV

but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus.

only to find that it was

Luke 5:1

there was no price too high, no task too tough because the men knew that their friend needed to be with Jesus so that he could be healed

do you truly believe that your Mephibosheth can be saved if he/she would encounter Jesus?

the king has made a request for you to take them an invitation and to help get them to the King!

is there a price too big for your son/daughter to get right with Jesus?

how about your sibling/parents

neighbor or friend?

The task looks tough and the load may be heavy but it’s their only hope

SO LET’S DO TOUGH THINGS TO LEAD THOSE THAT WE LOVE TO SALVATION!

What happened once the invitation was accepted and the servant brought Mephibosheth to the king?

36 people took care of Mephibosheth

2 Samuel 9:9–10 ESV

Then the king called Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s grandson. And you and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him and shall bring in the produce, that your master’s grandson may have bread to eat. But Mephibosheth your master’s grandson shall always eat at my table.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.

2 Sam 9:9-

some prepared the table to serve the food, others prepped in the kitchen, while some were in the fields gathering the food, others were still helping to carry him and tend to his personal needs

As we bring our family and friends in to experience the feast at the Kings table we too will have to serve them and help them

As they move from guest into the baby seat they need someone to help them with almost ever aspect of life

they may need reminded to come to eat or even picked up

when they get here they need someone in the foyer to greet them and help them feel safe and comfortable

when they bring their kids they need someone to teach their children while they come to learn themselves

when they have a tough week they need someone to be close enough to them to comfort and encourage them

when they make a mess in life they need someone to show them and help them clean it up

some will be at the table, some in the kitchen, others in the field but we all must do our part to serve those that have come into God’s House!

It’s not always going to be easy

we aren’t even always going to feel like it but when we see the implications of us not doing our part vs. the impact that we can have on others then we will be encouraged to keep working diligently

we serve the Lord by serving others

His desire is that all will be saved and He wants you to be a part of that mission

HE IS THE ONLY WAY TO SALVATION

people who don’t have Christ in their lives WILL receive eternal punishment for their sins

we live in a culture that will bust a car window to save a hot dog

yet passively watch their children live lives hell bound without speaking a word

I heard of someone losing their life this week to an alligator while trying to keep their pet from being killed

I haven’t heard of many who were willing to step out of their comfort zone or sacrifice for the sake of knowing Jesus

we need to re-evaluate our life’s inventory and decide what is important and what are we going to give ourselves for in this live