Fruit of the Spirit: Kindness

Intro

2 Samuel 9:1–13 NIV

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. 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.

Mephibosheth is one of those characters in scripture who pops onto the scene very briefly - we have 13 verses on him. But, his story teaches something profound. It begins here with King David speaking and he asks “Is there still anyone left of the house of Saul.” Now, David wasn’t always King of Israel. Before David was a man named Saul. Saul reigned as Israel’s first king, but during this reign, because of Saul’s disobedience, God’s anointing passed from Saul onto David. So, Saul was still King, but he knew that David was next in line. Saul’s house would fall, and his crown would be given to David. And at a certain point, David lived in the house of Saul, and Saul tried to murder David numerous times, causing David to go into hiding. A lot took place between David’s life and this story here. But, here, David is reigning as King over Israel, and he’s at the height of his power, and he asks, “Is there still anyone left of the house of Saul?” Now, this question was usually asked by a King about the previous king’s house so that he could kill any remaining members or descendents of the previous king. When there was a regime change in ancient kingdoms, you would wipe out anyone who could potentially pose a threat to you rule. But, that’s not why David asks this questions. David wants to know if anyone is left in Saul’s house so that he may show “kindness” for Jonathon’s sake. Now, the word kindness here comes from the Hebrew word “Hesed” y’all say that with me. And it means loving kindness, or mercy, or grace. It’s kindess shown to someone who doesn’t deserve it, cannot earn it, and cannot repay it. This is what David wants to show to Mephibosheth. But, as the text says, he wants to do this because of Jonathon. Some of you may know this, but Jonathon was King Saul’s son. But, he was also David’s best friend. And, had Saul been obedient to the Lord, Jonathon would have been King after Saul passed away. He was the heir-apparent, next in line for the throne. But, Jonathon knew that David was the rightful King, and he knew that God’s anointing had passed from his father to David, and he knew that his father was jealous and was trying to have David killed. And knowing this, Jonathon makes a covenant with David in 1 Samuel 20:13-17

1 Samuel 20:13–17 ESVBut should it please my father to do you harm, the Lord do so to Jonathan and more also if I do not disclose it to you and send you away, that you may go in safety. May the Lord be with you, as he has been with my father. If I am still alive, show me the steadfast love of the Lord, that I may not die; and do not cut off your steadfast love from my house forever, when the Lord cuts off every one of the enemies of David from the face of the earth.” And Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, “May the Lord take vengeance on David’s enemies.” And Jonathan made David swear again by his love for him, for he loved him as he loved his own soul.

Jonathon and David had a very close friendship, and Jonathon was willing to sacrifice his relationship with his father to make sure that David remained safe. And, he knows that David will be king soon, and he knows that there’s going to be a war, so he says, if he’s alive after the war, he says to David, please show me the steadfast love of the LORD. But, Jonathon likely knows that he won’t survive the coming battle, and so he extends this request to include his family. And so, David and Jonathon make a covenant, and we read later that Jonathon has died. David asks the question, is there anyone left, and so David’s people go searching for someone, and they find someone from Saul’s house who was a servant. So they bring this servant, Ziba, to King David, and he questions him and asks “Is there anyone from the house of Saul that I can show kindness to?” And Ziba responds. Not only is there someone left, but it’s Jonathons son! Jonathon, David’s best friend, has a son who is still alive. But, as Ziba tells us, he’s crippled in both of his feet. Why this designation? Earlier in this book, in chapter 4, we’re told what happened to him. 2 Samuel 4:4

2 Samuel 4:4 ESVJonathan, the son of Saul, had a son who was crippled in his feet. He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel, and his nurse took him up and fled, and as she fled in her haste, he fell and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.

Mephibosheth’s nurse finds out the Saul and Jonathon are dead, and she knows that technically, Mephibosheth is in line to be king. And because of this, and because God has chosen David to be the next King, she knew that the army was on their way to kill Mephibosheth. So she grabs him, and she runs, and in her rush to get him out of their, she drops him. He probably broke both of his feet, and now he’s crippled. In ancient culture, if someone had a disability such as this, they were viewed as less than. They didnt really belong anywhere. And the way that Ziba says this sounds like “Yeah, David, there is someone left from Saul’s family, and it’s actually Jonathon’s son, but… he’s crippled. He’s not someone you want in your presence, and he’s not someone you want in your court.” But, Notice David’s response. He doesn’t say, “How bad is it?” He says, “Where is he?” David, King David, doesn’t care about his disability. He’s like so what?? Bring him here. And this is what God says to us. We’re fallen, broken people. And God says to us “come, come, come.” Come into my presence. Come into my court. Come, with all of your brokenness, with all of your past, with all of your sins, with all of your secrets, with everything you’ve done. Come. Come with every insecurity, come with every fear, come with every anxiety. Come, just as you are, come and see what I have for you. As pastor Sam preached last night, everything has been paid for. God is inviting us into his presence. To experience his freedom. He’s inviting us to go into his forgiveness, go into his kingdom. So, David says, Bring Mephibisheth here, And so, Ziba says, he’s in Lo-Dabar. Now, a lot of time has passed when this story takes place. Mephibosheth isn’t a little boy any more. He’s older. And so, he’s likely been hiding from King David because he’s afraid that David will kill him. And he’s hiding in a place called “Lo-Dabar.” And this name, “Lo-Dabar,” means no pasture. This place is a dessert. It’s a wasteland. It’s a lonely, desolate place. This is where Mephibosheth is hiding. And so, David says “Bring him to me.” Bring him here. So, the guards or soldiers go out and get him. And, you have to see this, Mephibosheth is terrified. He’s been in hiding all of his life because he’s likely been told that David will kill him if he finds him. And now, David has found him. And verse 6-8 says 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, he showed King David honor and respect and then he says, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog such as I?” Meph comes, terrified, and he bows down to David, and David says Don’t be scared! I’m going to show you kindness! I’m going to show you love! I’m going to give you a place to belong. And so, David restores to Mephibosheth all of the land that belonged to his grandfather, Saul. This would have been a lot of land. Meph, within a few moments, went from living in a desert wasteland, to owning thousands of acres of land and is now extremely wealthy. But that isn’t all that Mephibosheth gets. David says to him “you shall eat at my table always.” And the story ends, with this: “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.” Mephibosheth now eats at the kings table as one of his sons for the rest of his life.