This is the story of a crippled
man living in poverty, living in the land of Lodabar, which
means desert, no pasture. And he is brought, summonsed
and brought by the King of Israel, King David, brought to the palace
and given a place among the King's sons, a place of honor. So I'm calling this message,
as I was studying yesterday, I'm calling this the grace of
the King. That's what we all are interested
in, in the grace of the King. So far as the seed line of Christ
is concerned, this chapter is not even necessary to be in the
Bible. And yet the Holy spirit records
it. that we might see this thought, the grace of the King. David is the King, and yet it
presents clearly the sovereign grace of God in saving sinners
like you and I. We read in this chapter, the
word kindness, which means grace. or unmerited favor. We read it
three times. Verse one, the end of the verse,
he said that I may show him kindness for Jonathan's sake. Again, in
verse three, the middle of the verse that I may show the kindness
of God unto him. And then in verse seven, for
I will surely show the kindness. So it's about, it's all about
the grace of the King. There is no vacancy in the King's
house for anyone pleading justice. He owes no one anything. There is no vacancy in the King's
house for anyone seeking to earn a place. It don't come that way. But there is a place in the King's
house of the King's choosing in his own loving kindness or
grace toward fallen, helpless sinners. This story, it crosses
the great gulf between two extremes. The king has everything and needs
nothing. Mephibosheth has nothing and
needs everything. The king can cross this gulf
and work peace and reconciliation and acceptance by his own will
and by his own resources. Mephibosheth cannot do that. His will is not free. He is bound
where he is unless the king intervenes in his circumstances. This is
the gospel is what this is. That God is not on our level.
We can't come to him by our choosing and obligate him. The ball is
in his court. Salvation is not a right of ours. It's a gift from God. Paul told
Timothy that it was given us in Christ Jesus before the world
began. Paul told the church at Ephesus
we were chosen by God in Christ before the foundation of the
world. Paul told the Thessalonians, God hath from the beginning chosen
you unto salvation. Jesus told the twelve, ye have
not chosen me, but I have chosen you. The Lord told the prophet Jeremiah,
Before I formed thee in the belly, I knew thee. You were, you were,
you were mine. He said, told through the prophet
Isaiah, I have called thee, thou art mine. The little epistle
of James in the New Testament, 118 says of his own will begat
he us. The prophet Jonah, you remember
in the fish's belly, he had it pretty clear. Hey. Salvation
is of the Lord. Not just from the Lord. Everybody
believes that, but of the Lord. Jonah was saying, if I get out
of this mess, it'll be his doing, not mine. So bottom line this
morning, the King is not at our mercy. We're at his mercy. He don't need our help. We need
his. He's not in a dilemma, we are. This is the very message that
thousands of people you and I rub shoulders with every week hate
with a passion. Preachers have to deny God's
Word and twist God's Word to preach anything else. But they
do it every day that dawns. But this book tells us, and I
just quoted you 10 scriptures that says salvation is God's
business. It's his doing. And unless he does it, you perish. You perish. Now the story begins
here. It doesn't really begin here.
It begins a long time before. And it begins with two promises. The previous king was Saul. He had a son named Jonathan.
Jonathan and David were dear friends. The Bible says the souls
of David and Jonathan were knit together as one soul. They were very close. And Jonathan
asked David. to make him a promise. This is
back in 1 Samuel 20. Jonathan knew that David would
be king someday. And he asked David to promise
that he would show kindness, grace, to his family. It's 1 Samuel 20, 15. But also
thou shalt not cut off this thy kindness from my house forever. And they made a covenant. David
promised. But there's another promise.
David promised not just Jonathan, but Saul. Saul also knew that
David would be king one day in his stead. And he says in first
Samuel 24 verse 20, Saul said to David, and now behold, I well
know, I know well, that thou shalt surely be king. I'm sure
of it. I know well that thou shalt surely
be king and that the kingdom of Israel shall be established
in thine hand. Swear now therefore unto me by
the Lord that thou will not cut off my seed after me and that
thou will not destroy my name out of my father's house. And
David swear unto Saul. It was customary that a new king,
ruler, monarch would annihilate the family and friends of the
previous ruler to eliminate any rebellion or insurrection to
try to overthrow the new king. But David did not do that. In time, both Saul and Jonathan
were killed in battle. David could have forgotten about
his promises. These two men he made the promises
to were dead and gone. He's king now, but he didn't
forget. He didn't forget. One writer
said the bright lights of success did not obscure David's character. He was still a man of his word
and he wouldn't forget his promises. It's a clear picture of the immutable
character of our God. He doesn't forget and he doesn't
change. No one reminds David of these
promises. There's no one to remind him. No one can hold him to these
promises, but he holds himself to them. He takes the initiative. That's what the King does. Here
in 2 Samuel 9, note the first three words. And David said. The King spoke. He took the initiative. He didn't have to speak. No one
could make him speak. But he spake. And David said. No one could make God show mercy
and administer grace to fallen, undeserving sinners like you
and I. No one persuaded him, no one could persuade him, but in covenant from eternity. The eternal counsel, Father,
Son, and Holy Ghost, covenanted. The promises will be kept because
of who God is. Don't have anything to do with
the shape we're in or the need we have. It's between the father and the
son. It's the father's love for the son. The story begins with the promises,
and then we consider the providence that went before. When the king
asked about any remaining of the house of Saul, he said, I'd
like to show kindness, show grace. The servant could not say, yes,
there's a grandson. He's a successful businessman.
He's a, or he's a politician or he's a doctor or he's a famous
athlete. No, he had to say this. Jonathan
hath yet a son, Saul's grandson. which is lame on his feet. Why did the servant have to throw
that in? He just did right from the beginning.
And that's all the description he gave. Didn't say if he was
smart or handsome, good personality. No, all he
said was he's lame on his feet. Not one foot, but feet. He's an invalid. Well, how did
that happen? Back in chapter four, verse four,
the child's nursemaid, when he was five years old, she's carrying
him and fleeing from an enemy. And she falls and drops him and
he's crippled for life. Lame on both feet. Now that didn't
happen to every five-year-old in the country, but it happened
to this one. Was God in it? Absolutely God
was in it. And what's happened to you in
life hadn't happened to everybody, but it's happened to you. Providence. And it wasn't that God slipped
up and didn't mean for it to happen. No, it was perfectly
within God's providence to play a vital role in this child's
future. God hadn't messed up in your
life, whether you know it or not. You sure have, but he hadn't. By nature, you and I are in the
condition we're in because of a fall. Redeemed, yes. Subjects of God's grace, yes.
But still fallen, still in these sin-cursed bodies. God's favor and God's forgiveness
does not fix fallenness in this flesh. The name Mephibosheth
means one who scatters shame. In his case, it was the shame
associated with his grandfather Saul. In our case, it's the shame
we have in association with our father Adam, one who scatters shame. And the
very last statement in this chapter reminds us that Mephibosheth
is still lame on both his feet after it's done. So the servant
says, yeah, there's a grandson of Saul, but I'm sorry to tell
you, O King, he's lame on his feet. What that servant don't know
is that the King is not concerned with problems. He's concerned with persons. It's not how he looks. It's not
what he can do. It's not what profit can he be
to me? Profit is not the motive. The king has made some promises. Then there's the purpose of it
all. Why would the king do this? He's doing it. For the sake of
another. The end of verse one. refers
back to the promise he'd made to Jonathan. Is there any left
of the house of Saul that I may show him kindness? Why? For Jonathan's
sake. That's the motive. That's the
purpose. It wasn't just that the king
was feeling good one morning, said, I believe I'll do something
nice for somebody for no reason. No, that wasn't it at all. It's
for Jonathan's sake. And to think that God would do
something nice and gracious for the likes of you and I for no
reason at all. Oh, no. All that he does, he
does for Christ's sake. for Christ's sake. So that's
the picture here. That's the picture. This, this,
this is the gospel. Humanistic religion urges you
to qualify yourself, straighten up and make the grade. You can't qualify yourself for
what you don't deserve and could never deserve. It's all of God's
grace. Grace. Mr. A.W. Pink wrote this, and
I quote, he said, the gospel addresses men as guilty, condemned,
perishing criminals. You say, well, I'm not that bad.
Let me read it again. The gospel addresses men as guilty,
condemned, perishing criminals. It declares that the chastest
moralist, is in the same terrible plight as the most immoral. And the zealous professor, with
all his religious performances, is no better off than the most
profane infidel. You cannot earn yourself a place
with God. He said the gospel contemplates
every descendant of Adam as a fallen, polluted, hell deserving and
helpless sinner. The grace which the gospel publishes
is our only hope. All stand before God convicted
as transgressors of his holy law, as guilty and condemned
criminals, which are not merely awaiting sentence, but sentence
has already been passed upon us. To complain against the partiality
of grace is suicidal. If the sinner insists upon bare
justice, then the lake of fire must be his eternal portion. His only hope lies in bowing
to the sentence of which divine justice has passed upon him,
owning the absolute righteousness of God in it, casting himself
on the mercy of God and stretching forth empty hands to avail himself
of the grace of God now made known in the gospel. That's our hope. So back to the
story. It was not David's desire to
find someone righteous or refined. or even ready, but related someone related. That's the key. That's why the
son of God was made flesh to be like us, to be one with us
yet without sin. It's the man that Christ Jesus.
He's the one and only mediator between God and men. That's first
Timothy two five, but there is one God and one mediator between
God and me and the man, Christ Jesus. And it's through him that we
are accepted. Ephesians one six, we're accepted
with God in the blood. Just as Mephibosheth was accepted
in Jonathan. It didn't matter what he was.
It's what Jonathan was in David's heart that made the difference. And that's the gospel. It doesn't
matter what you are, how low you fallen, how much you failed. It's what Christ is to the father
that matters. We're accepted in him. And I'll
just put it bluntly. You haven't done enough right
in your entire lifetime to keep you out of hell five seconds. We're that desperate by nature, but Christ has. We cannot credit ourselves with
accepting him. He's accepted us. If God hadn't
thought a lot of His Son, He couldn't think much of you. And
if He thought nothing of you, you'd think nothing of Him. That's
the order. That's the order. We love Him
because He first loved us. So we're accepted in Christ.
It's all for His sake. Next is the pursuit. We read
here that King David inquires, is there any left? Yes, there's
a grandson of Saul. Jonathan has a son. Jonathan
is who it's all about. But where is this child? He's not a child. He's a grown
man now. He's unshaven. He's dirty. He's filthy. And the king is told that this
Mephibosheth is way down in Lodabar. Lodabar was in Gilead on the
wilderness side of Jordan. That's where the king finds his
subjects, is on the wrong side of the river. That's where he
found me. The story in Luke 15, the father
receives all his sons from where? From the hog pen. That's where the king finds all
his subjects. We could not come to him. He
came to us. Now Mephibosheth could not schedule
a trip to the King's palace, let alone be admitted and accepted. He couldn't do that. No, no. So the King tells the servant
to go after him. Verse five says the servant went
and fetched him, apprehended him, brought him
back to the king. That was the order of things. So we see the depravity, the
awful shape that Mephibosheth was in. He couldn't help himself. Neither could we, neither can
we. And then we see the blessed doctrine
of election. Mephibosheth was chosen. He's the subject of the king's
kindness and grace for Jonathan's sake. All God's children are chosen.
The subjects of God's grace for Christ's sake. Mephibosheth is as one of the
king's sons for Jonathan's sake. And we're God's sons for Christ's
sake, no other reason. Then it's a definite choice or
a particular redemption is the term. The servant wasn't sent
to fetch every crippled person in the whole country. Just one. Just the one who was in the loins
of Jonathan before he was born. That's exactly who the Holy Spirit
seeks out of the masses of humanity is those in Christ before the
foundation of the world. Then there's the doctrine of
effectual calling. And this is what makes people's
blood boil nowadays. Mephibosheth did not have the
option to say no. The servant was not sent to offer
an invitation. He was sent to get him, go get
him. And our God is blasphemed in
this day and hour. by the implication that the blessed
Holy Spirit, the one who moved upon the face of the waters in
Genesis 1.1 is doing his best to change your mind and heart
and he can't get you to cooperate. That's as blasphemous as it can
possibly be. The servant is sent and Mephibosheth
is coming. He's coming. God, the Holy Spirit, comes after
a sinner. When He came after me, I thought
the ball was in my court, but it wasn't. My answer was no, but He didn't take no for an
answer. You say, well, I was willing to accept Christ. Not
until He made you willing. Psalm 110 verse 3, the father
said to the son, thy people shall be willing in the day of thy
power. That's the only time anybody's
willing. So Mephibosheth is brought in
before the king. He's trembling. He's fearing
for his life. He has no reason to believe anything
other than that the king is going to kill him. But as we read here in verse
six, the first word that King David speaks to the man is this, Mephibosheth. He calls him by name. Mephibosheth
had no idea that the King knew his name. John 10 verse 3, he calleth his
own sheep by name. So we look at this man and ask,
what does a wretched sinner do in the presence of the King? He melts like butter. He knows his condition. He realizes
the seriousness of the moment. Now, good modern religion says
to us, what an asset you would be to God's kingdom. He really needs people as wonderful
and smart and talented as you are. You'd make him proud. Just jump
on board. But here's what convicted sinners
say. Like Mephibosheth did in verse
eight, O king, what would you want with a dead
dog like me? What's a dead dog worth? Look in the mirror. But the king had said to him
in verse seven, Fear not. I'm here to work peace. Not punishment. I haven't called you here to
kill you. I've called you here to show you kindness. Grace. But why me? For Jonathan's sake. Why you this morning? For Christ's
sake. And I'd remind us if you can
boast in anything, you're a little better than in
this or a little better in that than somebody else. You've done a little better.
You're doing a little better than you used to do. If you got any of that to bank on, to stand on, You're
as certain for hell as if you were already there. Because all the mercy and grace
God shows is for Christ's sake. If you have anything in yourself
to recommend yourself to a holy God, you're without hope. It's all of grace. It's all of
grace. Mephibosheth didn't try that
jump. He knew better. He's wretched and filthy and
vile and deserve to die. And he knew it, but he understands
now, this is not about me. This is about my father and his
friendship with the King. The King is doing this for another
sake. And so this sinner, he submits
to the King's right to say, I will be gracious to whom I will be
gracious. I will have compassion on whom
I will have compassion. I will show mercy to whom I will
show mercy. This whole business is about
the King's will. Did you get that? Not nowadays. You're the one with the free
will, they say. And God has to respond to you. It's just not so. It's just not
so. A final thing, the privilege. We'll see this and I'll be through.
Four times in this chapter, the King gives Mephibosheth a place
at his table. Verse seven. The end of the verse,
thou shall eat bread at my table continually. Not out in the servant's
quarters, but at my table. Secondly, in verse 10, Mephibosheth thy master's son
shall eat bread all the way at my table. Again, in verse 11,
the end of the verse, he shall eat at my table as one of the
king's sons. And then a fourth time in verse
13, for he did eat continually at the King's table. He's given a place. He's given
position as one of the King's sons. Christ is the bread of life.
That's why you're eating. Oh, taste and see that the Lord
is good. As Mephibosheth deserved judgment. and death as the offspring of
Saul. Can you see that you deserve
the same as the offspring of Adam as being a liar and a cheat and
a thief and everything ungodly inherit from parents, grandparents, all
the way back to fallen Adam. But Mephibosheth is safe in another. Can you see that our safety is
in Christ? That's why we sing on Christ,
the solid rock I stand, and all other ground is sinking sand. He paid the price. He pleased
the Father. And we're accepted in Him. Three meals a day. Three meals a day. This cripple
was brought to the King's table. Could you imagine the other strong,
healthy boys at mealtime? Here they come barreling in and
sitting down at their place. They're ready to eat. but they've got to wait. They hear something down the
hall, some mumbling, bumbling, and Mephibosheth is being carried
in or rolled in or whatever, I don't know. Why? He's given a place by the king. He's still lame on both his feet.
But guess what? When they get those lame feet
under the table, he looks just like all the rest of them. Huh? And that's how it is with the
king's children. That's how it is. But don't you take any credit. Don't you get a hold of this
religious junk. I this and I that. Uh-uh. It's
all for Christ's sake. Bless this holy name. This is
the old, old story that never gets old to God's children. Thank
you for listening.