Text: 2 Samuel 9:1-11

“Everyone who believes in him will not be put to shame.” —Romans 10:11

Your story doesn’t end in shame. I can promise you that, Beloved. Though guilt and shame often undermine how we see ourselves and live out our faith in community with others, God has never abandoned us to our own shame. He has a glorious redemptive plan to bring us out of our shame and to the table of His blessing.

In the book of second Samuel, we find the story of a young man who faced much shame and disgrace. His name was Mephibosheth. In fact, the name Mephibosheth means “dispeller of shame.” It contains the Hebrew root word “bosh” which means to fall into disgrace or humiliation. Mephibosheth was the son of Jonathan, King David’s celebrated friend. He was also the grandson of King Saul, who spent most of his latter years trying to kill David.

Physically, Mephibosheth was crippled in both feet while still a child. He became paralyzed in connection with the bad decisions of his grandfather. When he was just 5-years old his father and grandfather were killed in battle. Upon hearing this news and fearing that the Philistines might come for the young boy, his nurse took him up and fled, but because it was in haste, she dropped him and he became lame (2 Samuel 4:4). Years later he was living in a place called Lo-debar, which can be translated as “nothing town,” or as we might say in English, “in the middle of nowhere.” It has also been translated as “no pasture,” “dung hill,” or “dust bin.” Mephibosheth had been born a Prince, having royalty in his blood, but he had lived as a poor castaway in a place called “NOTHINGVILLE.” Oh, how the enemy loves it when we are crippled in Lo-debar—hiding away as a disgraced outcast rather than fleshing out our royal DNA. He loves it when we isolate ourselves in shame. 

What is your sense of “NOTHINGVILLE” right now? What circumstances have you feeling like you are in a place of meaninglessness? I want you to hear this truth this morning: God’s promises extend to NOTHINGVILLE. They are not shortened by your circumstances. We see in our text that the kindness of the king moved Mephibosheth from Podunk to the Palace, and the kindness of your God isn’t done with your story yet.

David showed radical love and kindness to Mephibosheth. If you are familiar with the whole story, you will remember that Saul had made himself an enemy of David. Saul had attempted to kill David on multiple occasions. Now Saul was dead and David had replaced him as king. It was customary in those days for the king of a new dynasty to completely massacre anyone connected with the prior dynasty. But David went against the principle of revenge and against the principle of self-preservation and asked what he could do for his enemy. He showed mercy. David was a prefigure of Jesus. We were also God’s enemies before He invited us to His table of fellowship (Romans 5:8-11).

Mephibosheth may have been crippled, disgraced, and living as an outcast in correlation with the actions of others, but that didn’t dictate his ultimate destiny. Maybe you’ve been hurt by someone else, intentionally or unintentionally. Maybe you were abandoned, ghosted, or abused by someone else. That’s not the end of your story. It doesn’t matter if you have been dropped by someone else’s doing or fallen because of your own failures, God is still in the business of lifting people up (Psalm 113:5-8).

Thank God, we serve a BETTER KING than David. David was a kind, but imperfect, human king. JESUS is the PERFECT and sinless Son of the living God. He was fully human and FULLY Divine—the second person of the Holy Trinity. This Jesus became God in the flesh. He clothed Himself in our transgressions as He took all of our shame to Calvary’s cross to pay the ransom for every one of our sins. He then rose from the dead on the third day to prove HIS DIVINITY and to confirm our JUSTIFICATION. The Bible says that at the Name of this Jesus every knee will bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is indeed LORD, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2).

This King, you can trust. This King will never fail you. This King is sure to give you an inheritance far greater than mere land or possessions (Ephesians 1:3-14); He gives you the HONOR of a close and intimate relationship with the King of kings Himself, and a permanent seat at His table of fellowship. Think about that as you seek to abide in Him this week.

PRAYER

Father, thank you for your mercy and kindness. You’ve brought us out of a place of nothingness and given us an eternal seat at your table. Nothing can ever take that from us. What an honor to be in fellowship with you! Thank you for that grace, in Jesus’ name, Amen.

Questions for personal reflection, small group discussion, or dinner table conversations:

1. If you had it within your power, whom would you elevate from “rags to riches” and why?
2. What commitment did David remember when he was established in the kingship of Israel? (2 Samuel 9:1)
3. What promises did David make to Mephibosheth? (v.7) What kind of treatment did Mephibosheth receive in David’s house? (v.11)
4. Why is it a greater honor to ask someone to eat with you than simply to give him or her a meal? In what way are you stewarding the honor of being in relationship with King Jesus? If you are not in relationship with Christ, what is holding you back?
5. What issues of shame, guilt, resentment, or revenge might you need to surrender this week, trusting in the sufficiency of God’s perfect and sustaining love?