Please turn with me in your Bible to two different passages – first, back to Galatians chapter 5; we’ll read again tonight verses 22 and 23. And then also turn to 2 Samuel chapter 9. You see that in your bulletin. It’s in the Bible in front of you on page 260.
Just as you’re turning there, something to consider. In C.S. Lewis’, The Great Divorce, he tells the story of a group of people who are standing between, or they’re touring heaven and hell. And they’re witnessing all of these characters who have passed away and who are now living their lives in eternity. And near the end of the book, the narrator sees this great parade passing by and there are men and women and boys and girls and music and flowers and animals. And this was all being done, they were told, in honor of a woman who was in the back of the parade. And the narrator immediately wonders who this lady could be. This must be someone great, presumably Mary, presumably Jesus’ mother, because what other woman could be so wonderful, so worthy of so great a parade, so grand a parade. But the guide says that it’s someone you’ve never heard of. It’s an ordinary saint, Sarah Smith, and she lived at Golders Green, just a normal neighborhood in London. And he goes on, “She’s one of the great ones. She is one of the great ones because, as you know, fame in this country, fame in heaven and fame on earth, are two quite different things.” And the narrator begins to ask, “So then who are all these people throwing a parade for her?” And the guide tells him, and the guide tells us that they are all people that Sarah loved. They are all people that Sarah Smith loved. And it wasn’t that she was famous herself or that she had this great, this large family herself, but it was this – that “every young man who met her became her son, every young women who met her became her daughter, and had its place in her love. And had its place in her love. And in her, they became themselves.”
This summer we are looking at our life together. We are looking at the fruit of the Spirit, the character of Jesus; these descriptions of Jesus’ character – that Jesus is love, that Jesus is full of joy, that Jesus is peace. And which Jesus? Well, the same Jesus that is inhabiting you, drawing close to you, drawing you close to Him. And we’ve been saying that the fruit of the Spirit – love and joy and peace – that this ought to be how we measure, this ought to be how we measure our health and our life together. Not our budget, not how many people come, but are we learning to love as Christ loved us? Are we learning to be full of joy in the way that Christ had joy in us? “For the joy set before Him, He endured the cross.” Are we learning to make peace the way that Christ has made peace with us? That you, ordinary Christian, like Sarah Smith, are not called to greatness, that you’re not called to productivity or success, but you are called to bear fruit in our life together because of the Spirit’s work on your character.
Tonight we are going to talk about the fruit of kindness. One commentator said, “Kindness is a disposition of the heart that seeks the welfare of others, and this seeking is independent of their deserving it or not and also independent of any services in return. Kindness is to do good to others for the sake of doing good to others.” Another said, “A kind heart is gentle but not weak. A kind heart is gentle but not weak; it’s not people pleasing but kindness doesn’t give up. Kindness doesn’t give up on another person. You see, it takes great power, it takes great courage to be kind.” And this evening, rather than giving you ten principles, rather than giving you five keys to cultivating kindness, I want to simply look at a story. I want to look at a story of kindness. Many of you have heard the famous line from the poet who said that, “You cannot tell people what to do, you can only tell them parables.” And so maybe we could edit that tonight to say that you cannot tell people to be kind, that you can only tell them a story. And the story that I want to think about tonight is one of the best stories. It’s one of the best stories of love and loyalty. It’s one of the best stories of kindness that you will ever hear. Let’s look at this story at what the fruit of kindness looks like, and before we do, let’s ask for the Lord’s help as we consider it. Let’s pray.
Our God of all grace, we thank You for time together tonight under Your Word. We pray that You would help us to believe that it does not return to You void. We pray that the words of my mouth and the meditations of all of our hearts would be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord our strength and our Redeemer. We pray that You would come and give Your Word success. And we pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.
Galatians chapter 5, beginning in verse 22. This is God’s Word:
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
Turn to 2 Samuel chapter 9, beginning in verse 1:
“And David said, ‘Is there still anyone left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?’ Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba, and they called him to David. And the king said to him, ‘Are you Ziba?’ And he said, ‘I am your servant.’ And the king said, ‘Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God to him?’ Ziba said to the king, ‘There is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in his feet.’ The king said to him, ‘Where is he?’ And Ziba said to the king, ‘He is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar.’ Then King David sent and brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar. 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 and said, ‘What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog such as I?’
Then the king called Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, ‘All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s grandson. And you and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him and shall bring in the produce, that your master’s grandson may have bread to eat. But Mephibosheth your master’s grandson shall always eat at my table.’ Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. Then Ziba said to the king, ‘According to all that my lord the king commands his servant, so will your servant do.’ 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.”
Amen. This is God’s Word.
Some of you have heard the name Arch Manning – Arch Manning, the nephew is Peyton Manning, the nephew of Eli Manning, the grandson of Archie Manning. Arch Manning is from New Orleans, Louisiana. In his high school years, he became arguably the most famous high school recruit in the country in decades. With his genetics, with his connection to greatness, with his arm talent and athleticism and mechanics and footwork, a story came out in the summer of 2022 that the University of Texas, in an effort to convince Arch to play football for the Longhorns, spent $280,000 on his weekend recruitment. This included a stay at the Four Seasons Hotel in Austin, a photoshoot at the stadium, a visit to Top Golf, high dollar meals, non-stop entertainment, first-class treatment. And you could say it paid off for the Longhorns. Arch enrolled at Texas in January this year. This fall he’ll be the most followed freshman, maybe in college football’s recent history. And that is a story of greatness going after greatness. That’s a story of the most powerful, the most attractive, the wealthiest college football program going after and pursuing arguably one of the most attractive football prospects, maybe of all time. That’s a story that we’re somewhat accustomed to – of greatness going after greatness. We see that in sports, we see that in business, we see that in entertainment, we see that regardless of the industry.
Tonight we’re going to look at this little story that goes against that pattern. That pattern of greatness going after greatness. This is a little story of someone with greatness, with power, with authority, maybe the most power and the most authority in the world at that time – King David – but he’s going after and he’s looking to show kindness, recklessly, lavishly, to an unworthy, weak young man, an unlovely young man with no greatness, with no real credentials. The king new all about him and the king still came after him. He still chased after him and brought him to his feast. This is a familiar story to us. This little story is David at his best. A lot of you are familiar with this. David now is king of Israel. The kingdom has been established; the kingdom has been unified. David is experiencing a great reign. This is a great period in the history of Israel. The ark is back in Jerusalem. There is peace and there is prosperity in the land. And now, David here in 2 Samuel chapter 9, David remembers. David remembers this covenant that he made with his dear friend, Jonathan. And so a man with great authority goes after and pursues here the lame Mephibosheth. So we are going to consider this story, this great story, and then end just briefly in some application tonight.
So first, this beautiful story. Jonathan was David’s best friend. Jonathan was the son of the previous King Saul. King Saul wanted to murder David. He made numerous attempts in their long feud that surrounded this throne. In a moving scene in 1 Samuel chapter 20, David makes Jonathan a promise; he makes Jonathan a covenant. And Jonathan asked this question. This is 1 Samuel chapter 20 verse 15. Jonathan said, “Will you promise not to cut off your” – and here’s the word – “Will you promise not to cut off your kindness to my house forever?” And David promised. He vowed. He swore to that because we read that, “He loved Jonathan as his own soul.” And it’s been years and years and years, and David now remembers this covenant. And so he’s looking for someone of the now decimated house of Saul, the now decimated house of Jonathan to show kindness. Is there anyone left that he can shower that covenant kindness upon.
And that word, the word that stands behind the word “kindness” here, is the very famous word, the very famous Hebrew word, “hesed.” And it is famous because it’s the word used over and over and over again in the Bible for the love that God has for the people He’s chasing after. It’s the word used for the love that God has for the people He’s chasing after. It’s the word used for the love that God has for you. It’s the word for the love that God has for you. And that word is at the center of this passage. If you look at verse 1, David mentions it. “Is there still anyone left of the house of Saul that I may show him kindness, that I may deal with him in a hesed way?” And then in verse 3, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul that I may show the kindness of God to him?” And then verse 7, “Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father, Jonathan.” And so to pursue this, we read that David summons the former servant of Saul’s household, Ziba, and he asks this question. Again, verse 3, “Is there anyone left that I may show covenant kindness?” And so Ziba tells David about this descendant and sends for him. Now hear this – not because there was anything in this descendant that would in any way benefit David. This young man had nothing to offer. He was called because of the kindness; he was called because of the covenant faithfulness of the king’s heart, of David’s heart. And so Ziba goes and he brings Mephibosheth before King David.
That’s a great Bible name – Mephibosheth. If you have young children, if you have young grandchildren, that would be an exercise to get them to say that one as fast as they can – five times as fast as they can! Mephibosheth, Mephibosheth, Mephibosheth! Who is he? Who is Mephibosheth? Here are some significant details of Mephibosheth’s life. You notice in verse 3 when David inquires of who might be left of the house of Saul, you notice that Ziba doesn’t even say his name. Ziba simply says, “There is that other son of Jonathan who is crippled in both feet.” And so the backstory here is that Mephibosheth is the son of Jonathan, he is the grandson of Saul, and he had a tough life. He was a prince, he was perhaps a future king, and in one battle, in 2 Samuel chapter 4 in one battle, both Mephibosheth’s father, Jonathan, and Mephibosheth’s grandfather, Saul, and all of Saul’s household were killed by the Philistines. Everyone except for one. Everyone except for this young man, Mephibosheth. And then Mephibosheth’s nurse – this is 2 Samuel chapter 4 verse 4 – took Mephibosheth up and ran to find safety for him. And as she ran, the young boy fell and became lame. And so Mephibosheth – you see this in 2 Samuel chapter 4 and in 2 Samuel chapter 9 – that is stressed in both narratives. That brackets our text tonight in verse 3 and in verse 13, is that description that Mephibosheth is crippled in both feet. So he has lost his family. He is an orphan. He has lost his position. He has lost his wealth. He has lost his potential future and he is crippled.
And in this day, in the ancient Near East, names held a lot more significance. The name “Mephibosheth” literally means “one who scatters shame.” It’s one who scatters shame. And so Mephibosheth is defined by shame. Essentially he is a disabled orphan and his name reflects the shame that he likely felt. And so his name, his public name is shame. His bloodline, the disgraced lineage; you see, his home, verse 4, we read that he has been at the house of Lo-debar, which is in the middle of nowhere because that is where people like Mephibosheth hide because he would be considered an enemy of the state; he would be considered an enemy of the king. You see, there’s a narrative that’s not apparent to us when we read this. The narrative is this – in this time, it would have been customary for a ruler who was defeated in battle for the rest of that defeated ruler’s lineage, or that defeated ruler’s family to be wiped out, to be purged. And so Mephibosheth is an enemy because he is the grandson of Saul, someone who over and over again tried to kill David. And so what this means is, the only way for David to be really secure is if he went after, if he hunted down every other direct descendant of Saul’s and wiped them out. The only way for David to be secure in his kingship is to wipe out all of Saul’s descendants. And so he is of the disgraced lineage of the cursed king.
And so you understand why Mephibosheth is most certainly, visibly shaking. That’s why David says, “Do not fear.” For Mephibosheth to be found out, for him to be found out and summoned by the king would surely have put fear in his heart. He is afraid, this frail, this shame-filled man. And he reveals how he views himself. He says he is a dead man, he is a dead dog. And so he believes that he is at the end of his story. He sees himself through the eyes of shame. And so do you see the picture? Let’s look at Mephibosheth’s resume. He is a disabled orphan who has lost everything – his name, his shame – and he is an enemy of the king. Is this story familiar to you? He has nothing on his resume sufficient to bring. Is this story familiar to you? He has nothing on his resume sufficient to bring to be at the king’s table. And so he falls on his face, prostrate before the king. And let that sink in. As you are waiting for the sword on your neck, to hear the king say, “You were once my enemy and now you are my son; you were once my enemy, now you are my son. Your debts are paid and every day you will eat at my table.” The covenant kindness of the king. The king’s kindness loved him all the way to the bottom. Is this story familiar to you?
I remember the first time I heard this story preached and it was in this pulpit by Derek Thomas. And I remember that when he preached this text he said, imagine David’s table. Like imagine the crowd. Who would be there? And Derek said there is David the king and there is Amnon, David’s eldest son, who was named a mighty man of valor. And Tamar, the most beautiful woman in all of Israel. And Absalom, his other son. It says of Absalom that from the crown of his head to the sole of his feet that there is no blemish in him. There is Joab, the captain of David’s army, the leader of David’s mighty men. And then there is Solomon, the future king, who would become the wisest and the wealthiest in all of the world. And so Derek asked this question. He said, “Can you imagine Mephibosheth? Can you imagine hobbling or limping into that room, into that sight, that table, every day, every day for the rest of your life? The strongest, the wisest, the wealthiest, the most beautiful people in the world?” So this man once called shame, but because of the kindness of the king, this man once an enemy of the king but because of the kindness of the king, this man once in hiding but because of the kindness of the king, this man once with great debt but because of the kindness of the king, this orphan, this disabled orphan but because of the kindness of the king – now he is a son, now he is a brother, now he experiences all the rights, all the privileges of a child because of the kindness of the king. Every day he would slide his knees up under the table.
Do you think the narrator wants you to know that Mephibosheth now sits at the king’s table? He says it four times! He says, verse 4, “You should always eat at my table.” Verse 10, “You should always eat at my table.” Verse 11, “So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table like one of the king’s sons.” Verse 13, “He ate always at the king’s table.” The most beautiful words. Is this story familiar to you? “He ate always at the king’s table.” Can you imagine what he would say? “Why me? Why would you be this favorable to someone like me? Why would you be this kind to someone like me? I don’t deserve this. I don’t deserve to be here. I don’t have anything to offer. I don’t have any bargaining chips. The king’s kindness pursued me. The king’s kindness chased after me.” You know there’s that line in the hymn that we sing, “How Sweet and Awesome is the Place” where it reads, “While all our hearts and all our songs join to admire the feast; each of us cries with thankful tongue, ‘Lord, why was I a guest? Lord, why was I a guest?’”
There is a story that I told a number of years ago of a pastor in the Chicago area associated with Moody Bible College named Joseph Stoll. Joseph Stoll tells the story of going to visit a ministry that they were associated with called The Shepherd’s Home for Children. And The Shepherd’s Home for Children was a home that cared for children with Down Syndrome. And so one day, Pastor Stoll was at The Shepherd’s Home for Children, he was walking around with the director of this ministry, this home, and the director was sharing with him all kinds of things that they do for these children. And he said, “You know, Pastor Stoll, we teach these kids the Gospel. We teach these kids that the Word became flesh and that Jesus Christ lived a perfect life, He lived a life that we should live, that He died the death that we should have died. We tell these kids that Jesus defeated death and we tell them that one day, some day, He’s going to come back and make all things right.” And of course Pastor Stoll loves to hear this. And the director says, “Pastor Stoll, do you know what our biggest maintenance problem is here at The Shepherd’s Home for Children?” And that’s an odd question. And so Pastor Stoll says, “I don’t know what your biggest maintenance problem is.” And the director said, “Our biggest maintenance problem is dirty windows because every day these kids wake up and they run to the windows and they press their hands and their faces on the windows and they say, ‘Is today the day that Jesus is going to come and make all things right? Is today the day?’”
And I love that story because that is a beautiful picture and that is a beautiful posture of need. That’s a beautiful picture of need. Do we realize that what qualifies us to be recipients of the King’s kindness is our neediness? Do you need His kindness tonight? Will you own that you are a Mephibosheth tonight? Sinclair Ferguson said, “The greatest enemy of rejoicing in grace is the thought that God will be gracious because of something He sees in me.” The greatest enemy of rejoicing in God’s grace to you is the thought that God will be gracious because of something He sees in you. You see, David loved Mephibosheth not because he’s attractive and not because he’s good, not because he’s productive, not because he is faithful. David loved Mephibosheth because of covenant kindness. You see this story, 2 Samuel chapter 9, is pointing to the King of kindness Himself, Jesus Christ. It’s pointing to Jesus who would pursue you, who would come down to pursue you, His enemy, the enemy of the King, to pursue you in your unloveliness, to pursue you in your helplessness, to pursue you, the weak orphan, and to redeem you. Look at verse 9. All of Saul’s possessions, all of Saul’s land, all of Mephibosheth’s debts are crossed out. They are all canceled. All the privileges, all the rights, all the riches of this, of being a son. He has pursued you to honor you, to welcome you, to say your name, beloved son, beloved daughter; to say, “You were once My enemy. Now I call you My son. Now I call you My daughter. You will feast at My table. You will feast at the table of the King.” Is this story familiar to you?
Some of us in the depths of our psyche, in some little dark corner, we have that nagging doubt; we have that nagging doubt that we live every day on probation with a cold God, with a detached God, and that our position before Him is hanging by a thread depending on the best efforts of our daily performance. You may wonder tonight if anyone really wants you. You have a deep sense that you are unacceptable, that you are unlovely, that you are unclean, that you are unworthy because of something that you have done, because of something done to you, or you are internally accused about things that grieve you from our past or you feel like you are at the end of yourself. There is no exit. There is no way out. The things that keep you locked in regret. I want you to hear tonight, God sees you. He’s not disappointed in you. He is not indifferent towards you. He is filled with kindness. Is this story familiar to you? That He is not simply waiting from a distance. He is not willing to take you in, but He is running, He is chasing. He is looking for you.
Don’t you know that’s why you are here tonight? You’re not here because of routine. You’re not here because someone invited you. You’re here because God is looking for you. He is coming after you. He is pursing you. He wants you. He loves you. And so I ask you, have you been embraced? Have you been embraced by the King of kindness – not at a theoretical truth – have you been embraced by the King of kindness? Has it dripped down from here, not as a theoretical truth, but as a lived reality? Have you been embraced by the King of kindness? Some of you hearing this, you see yourself in this young man – as an enemy of the King, full of shame – and you know that you have not surrendered to embrace. You have not surrendered to His kindness. I want to invite you tonight to place your trust in Him, in the kindness of the King.
And the question for all of us, the question for all of us – are you resting in this tonight? Do you slide your knees under His table knowing that it’s not a potluck meal; you don’t bring anything to the table. You come with empty hands. You come and feast and know the hesed love of the Lord. Do you know tonight that you have been loved well by a King that has condescended to you? Is this story familiar to you? Christian, do you see that this is your story? Do you see tonight for the first time afresh that this story of the King of kindness is your story, Christian?
I don’t know about you, sometimes when I think of this story I think it would be so much easier to be a hired hand. It would be so much easier to be brought into David’s house as an employee. Like let me do some work. Let me pay it back. Let me work it off. Let me pay down the debt. But that’s not the story. That is not the story of kindness. All you can do is accept God’s kindness on God’s terms, and God’s terms are empty hands. That is the kindness of the King. So you may be gifted tonight, you may be busy, you may be important, but do you receive? Can you receive and go on receiving from the King of kindness a love that does not depend on what you bring to the table, on your busyness, on your attraction, on your usefulness? Lord, why was I a guest?
Every parent, every grandparent in the room knows that for the first few years of a child’s life it is a pretty good waste of money to buy that child extravagant presents. I was reminded of this recently. This was the case for my three-year-old daughter, Jane, when the first two years of her life she would get some big present from a grandparent or from a cousin or from an aunt or an uncle and she would go and find something like toilet paper or she would find the wrapping paper or she would find socks to chew on. It just didn’t mean anything to her. It was a waste of money. I think that all us know this. I vividly remember this past Christmas with Jane. She had just turned three and the lights had come on. She just had started to develop the categories for what presents can be and kind of what toys can be. And so the presents kept coming from grandparents, from parents, from cousins, from siblings, and there’s just that first time, that utter unbelief. “These just keep coming! These presents just keep coming!” That raw joy grew and grew and grew and she kept saying, “More? There’s more?” This is too good! As a three-year-old child.
Is that our posture towards God? Is that your posture tonight to your King of kindness? For the first time or again, is that your posture? How could You be so good to me? How could You be so faithful to me? How could You be so kind to me again and again and again? Is this story familiar to you? Remind yourself that this is your story – that you have been redeemed, that you have been shown kindness by the King Himself who has pursued you, who has taken you into His house, who has made you His own, who sets you free, who wipes your tears, who carries your burdens, who fights your battles, who keeps you, who rejoices in you. This story is an invitation. No matter who you are, no matter what you have done, no matter what is in your past, no matter your debt before Him, God is not ashamed. God is not ashamed to chase after you, to redeem you, to honor you, to call you His son, to call you His daughter, to give you a seat at His table. And so bear the kind embrace of the King tonight. Live in that embrace. Remember and rest in the King of kindness.
Let me close with this. What do you do with this? What does 2 Samuel chapter 9 have to do with our life together? This is a fruit of the Spirit – love and joy and peace and patience and kindness. The ability to extend kindness to one another like God does, to have relationships in our life together, it is possible but it’s not possible from our own resources. It’s not possible when we look within to build up, but it comes from having experienced it. I think all of us can say in our life together that we can cry out for more kindness, that in our life together we should read and we should hear a story like this and we should drop to our knees in repentance for the ways that we have been unkind. And so you go back to His kindness, again and again and again. Lord, why was I a guest? You go back to His kindness, you remember and rest, and when you do that, your capacity, it widens. Your capacity for kindness, it deepens.
You know I wonder, I put myself in Mephibosheth’s shoes – if I had been pursued like this, would I be crying? If I had been pursued like this would I be laughing? What would I be worried about? Am I just going to sit at the table, enjoy the feast, enjoy the music, enjoy the King, enjoy the smile of the King for me? Don’t you know that’s what God wants for you. Lord, why was I a guest? Can bitterness survive in that kindness? Think of Mephibosheth. Can a grudge survive? Can unforgiveness survive? Can fears remain when you are in the arms of the kind King? And that is an invitation for our life together – the fruit of kindness in our life together, to believe again and rest afresh in the King of kindness who has pursued us while His enemy. And He is now calling us to love in the ways that we have been loved. Lord, why was I a guest?
Let me pray for us. Let’s pray.
Our God of all grace, great is Your kindness to come to us, and so help us tonight to rest, to remember Your kindness, Your love for us in the Gospel, that this story would be precious to us. Help us to not grow weary in coming to You with empty hands. And so make kindness, make the kindness of the King beautiful to our hearts this evening. We pray this in Jesus’ name, amen.