GOD’S GRACE…IT’S
AMAZING!
God’s unmerited
favor bestowed lavishly upon us is revealed in a powerful array of scriptural
portraits. I love the spectacular story of Mephibosheth because it is so
characteristic and revealing of our Father's nature. How special it is
for God-in-Christ to touch and transform us through agape love, thereby making
the ultimate sacrifice for our safety, security and salvation. And how marvelous
it is that the He encounters us in the places in which we reside, and
transports us to providential palaces of peace and provision.
Although David was
a bona fide champion of Israel, he had become increasingly despised by King
Saul. The king was motivated by a fierce jealousy; and, the Word declares
that “jealousy is cruel as the grave.” (Song of Solomon 8:6) It fueled his
dark determination in Saul to seek David’s destruction. However, the
principles of sowing and reaping apply in every arena of life. The Word
declares, “Do not be deceived; God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that
he will also reap.” (Galatians 6:7) Thus, Saul’s animus toward David eventuated
in his own death, and even in the death of Prince Jonathan, Saul’s beloved son
and David’s closest friend. There is a definite correlation between our
deeds and the welfare of those connected to us; this spiritual truth we should
never forget. Nevertheless, I find it entirely fascinating that God
provides refuge for His own in the least likely of places. Who would have
thought that David would experience such a remarkable friendship, freely
bestowed upon him by the offspring of his chief enemy?
I Samuel 19:1-3 (NKJV)
1 Now Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants, that they should kill David; but Jonathan, Saul’s son, delighted greatly in David. 2 So Jonathan told David, saying, “My father Saul seeks to kill you. Therefore please be on your guard until morning, and stay in a secret place and hide. 3 And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you are, and I will speak with my father about you. Then what I observe, I will tell you.”
1 Now Saul spoke to Jonathan his son and to all his servants, that they should kill David; but Jonathan, Saul’s son, delighted greatly in David. 2 So Jonathan told David, saying, “My father Saul seeks to kill you. Therefore please be on your guard until morning, and stay in a secret place and hide. 3 And I will go out and stand beside my father in the field where you are, and I will speak with my father about you. Then what I observe, I will tell you.”
In the aftermath of
King Saul’s death, agape love motivated David to ask an unlikely and unexpected
question: “Is there anyone who is left of the house of Saul, that I may show
him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” (II Samuel 9:1) In response, Ziba, one
of Saul’s stewards, informed David of a surviving heir, the grandson of Saul
and the son of Jonathan. He bore a rather strange sounding name,
Mephibosheth [mah-FIB-oh-sheth]. Not only was this lad dwelling in the
god-forsaken city of Lodebar, he was physically handicapped as well.
Question: Why would the son of the prince of Israel dwell in such a
terrible place? Answer: FEAR is the ultimate mind-killer and the
destroyer of destiny. Mephibosheth’s fear of retribution, coupled with
anxiety regarding his physical state, moved him away from (not towards) the
place of his heritage. When summoned by King David, he arrived with great
trepidation and trembling.
Remember this: Fear
aggressively distorts the image of God in us. It is a highly effective
satanic strategy that encases our perceptions within perverted prisms of doubt
and despair, through which we come to view ourselves, others and the world
around us. Nevertheless, “God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of
power, of love, and of a sound mind.” (II Timothy 1:7)
The key to
understanding Mephibosheth’s state-of-mind is the fact that his adverse life
circumstances were caused by the negligence of others. At the age of
five, his nurse dropped him while fleeing in haste, resulting in his permanent disability.
So, Mephibosheth arrived (with a limp) for his audience with the
newly-crowned king. Incidentally, whenever GOD CALLS US TO HIS ROYAL COURTS, He is totally aware
of OUR LIMP, that is, He
knows all about our sins and deficiencies. Mephibosheth was profoundly
shaken because he knew his grandfather had been King David’s archenemy.
He had the expectation that he would become a victim of revenge,
based upon his unfortunate lineage and his obvious physical challenges.
Isn’t it characteristic of satanic deception to motivate us to LOOK ONLY AT WHAT IS NEGATIVE OR WHAT IS lacking, as
opposed to the power or potential that IS present? Mephibosheth’s fear
caused a curious strain of spiritual amnesia. He totally forgot that the
newly-crowned king and his father, Jonathan, were the best of friends!
As Mephibosheth
bowed before the king, his very first words were a self-debasing question: “What
is your servant, that you should look upon such a dead dog as I?” What an
incredibly distorted self-portrait he had mentally and verbally painted!
Always remember that your first step toward spiritual liberation and blessing
is to start seeing yourself as GOD sees
you! However, instead of pursuing any course that was punitive,
the king offered what I call a GRACE-REWARD. Summoning Ziba, King David
decreed that Mephibosheth would inherit all the lands that had belonged to Saul
and Jonathan. Ziba, along with his fifteen sons and twenty servants,
would be held accountable to farm those lands and to pass along all profit to
the self-proclaimed “dead dog,” Mephibosheth. And from that moment
onward, Mephibosheth would live rent-free in the palace and dine daily with the
king. King David proclaimed, “He shall eat at my table like one of the king’s
sons.” (II Samuel 9:11) What a miraculous manifestation of God’s grace!
What is the
application of this story? Although your
former spiritual captivity in this world system of sin and shame might make you
feel at times like a “dead dog,” THE KING OF KINGS WILL “RESTORE” YOUR SOUL
(your mind, will, intellect, imagination and emotions) and extend to you His
matchless, inimitable, everlasting and amazing grace. (Psalm 23:3) And from
that point onward, you COMMUNE
DAILY AND FELLOWSHIP JOYFULLY IN HIS PRESENCE. David had received
such amazing grace from his HEAVENLY FATHER, and he paid-forward that same
grace-legacy by demonstrating mercy and kindness to his ‘apparently
undeserving’ NEWLY-ADOPTED SON. Here’s how David would have scripturally visualized
those twin miracles of God’s grace: “You will show me the path of life; in Your
presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.”
(Psalm 16:11) GOD’S GRACE…IT’S
ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!
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