Dining at the King's Table

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by: Pastor Joey Vazquez

11/23/2021

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2 Samuel 9:13 (NLT) And Mephibosheth, who was crippled in both feet, lived in Jerusalem and ate regularly at the king’s table.

Mephibosheth was King Saul's grandson. In the chaos and confusion of a lost war where his father, Jonathan, was killed along with his grandfather, his nurse dropped him as she was fleeing from the Philistines and he became crippled (2 Samuel 4:4). With his family decimated and no longer in power and with his being crippled, Mephibosheth wound up poor and living in a ghetto in Israel, totally forgotten. Crippled people in those days were extremely disadvantaged and were considered of no worth. There were no ramps for handicapped people nor were there handicapped parking spaces for them. Their needs were not considered at all.

One day, after David had been crowned king in both Judea and Israel (the ten northern tribes), he remembered his dear friend Jonathan and decided that he wanted to do something good for anyone in his family that may have still been alive. He found out from Ziba, one of Saul's former servants, that there was one person still alive, and that person was Mephibosheth. Ziba was careful to let David know that Mephibosheth was crippled. Perhaps he thought that David would want to reconsider reaching out to him because of his handicap. But David was undeterred and he not only brought him to Jerusalem, but he also returned all of the property that belonged to his family and arranged for Ziba and his family to serve him. Then he made sure that he ate regularly at the king's table. From living in poverty and obscurity, Mephibosheth was now given a great honor that he didn't expect or earn. With all of that, the Word of God makes sure to remind us again that he was crippled in both feet.

David, being a man after God's own heart, exhibited great compassion, mercy and grace to someone who nobody would ever think twice about. God is so good to lead up to His intentions for us, His creation, that He included this story in the scriptures to let us know His heart for us. Many of us who are in the family of God today are of no special significance and don't deserve anything from God...except perhaps punishment for a lot of sinful things that we have done. Spiritually speaking, we were like Mephibosheth. We were crippled in our soul and dead in our spirit (Ephesians 2:1), living our lives as sheep without a shepherd. But God, in His infinite mercy, sent His son Jesus to save us, paying for all of our sins by His own blood so that we could be rescued from the ghetto of sin and darkness that we were in. And if that weren't enough, He brought us to be with Him forever, eating at the King of kings’ table. God is so good! Just as he looked down and had compassion on lowly Mephibosheth, putting in David's heart the desire to rescue him, so He rescued us from the pit and brought us into the newness of life! We, too, were crippled and living in spiritual squalor, but Jesus remembered us. Remember how good the Lord has been to you and where He has brought you from, so that you will always be grateful and full of adoration for Him as you dine every day at the table of our King Jesus!

Pastor Joey Vazquez

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2 Samuel 9:13 (NLT) And Mephibosheth, who was crippled in both feet, lived in Jerusalem and ate regularly at the king’s table.

Mephibosheth was King Saul's grandson. In the chaos and confusion of a lost war where his father, Jonathan, was killed along with his grandfather, his nurse dropped him as she was fleeing from the Philistines and he became crippled (2 Samuel 4:4). With his family decimated and no longer in power and with his being crippled, Mephibosheth wound up poor and living in a ghetto in Israel, totally forgotten. Crippled people in those days were extremely disadvantaged and were considered of no worth. There were no ramps for handicapped people nor were there handicapped parking spaces for them. Their needs were not considered at all.

One day, after David had been crowned king in both Judea and Israel (the ten northern tribes), he remembered his dear friend Jonathan and decided that he wanted to do something good for anyone in his family that may have still been alive. He found out from Ziba, one of Saul's former servants, that there was one person still alive, and that person was Mephibosheth. Ziba was careful to let David know that Mephibosheth was crippled. Perhaps he thought that David would want to reconsider reaching out to him because of his handicap. But David was undeterred and he not only brought him to Jerusalem, but he also returned all of the property that belonged to his family and arranged for Ziba and his family to serve him. Then he made sure that he ate regularly at the king's table. From living in poverty and obscurity, Mephibosheth was now given a great honor that he didn't expect or earn. With all of that, the Word of God makes sure to remind us again that he was crippled in both feet.

David, being a man after God's own heart, exhibited great compassion, mercy and grace to someone who nobody would ever think twice about. God is so good to lead up to His intentions for us, His creation, that He included this story in the scriptures to let us know His heart for us. Many of us who are in the family of God today are of no special significance and don't deserve anything from God...except perhaps punishment for a lot of sinful things that we have done. Spiritually speaking, we were like Mephibosheth. We were crippled in our soul and dead in our spirit (Ephesians 2:1), living our lives as sheep without a shepherd. But God, in His infinite mercy, sent His son Jesus to save us, paying for all of our sins by His own blood so that we could be rescued from the ghetto of sin and darkness that we were in. And if that weren't enough, He brought us to be with Him forever, eating at the King of kings’ table. God is so good! Just as he looked down and had compassion on lowly Mephibosheth, putting in David's heart the desire to rescue him, so He rescued us from the pit and brought us into the newness of life! We, too, were crippled and living in spiritual squalor, but Jesus remembered us. Remember how good the Lord has been to you and where He has brought you from, so that you will always be grateful and full of adoration for Him as you dine every day at the table of our King Jesus!

Pastor Joey Vazquez

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