Come to the Table

I want to tell you a little story. It's my favorite story ever. I have to tell it the way I picture it when I read it. First I would like to introduce a word to you that is woven throughout the story. It is the word covenant. Covenant means agreement or promise. It means a bond between two people. You will find this all throughout the bible. In 1 Samuel 18 we read about the covenant between David and Jonathan. Jonathan, son of King Saul was very fond of David and it says that they became one in spirit and Jonathan loved David as himself. Jonathan made a covenant with David. To seal it, he gave David his robe and his belt and his bow and his tunic. Whenever anyone would see David coming, they would know that he was in covenant with Jonathan. Saul put David in charge of his armies and as time went by he grew jealous of David and tried to take his life on several occasions. God was displeased with Saul and David was then appointed to be the next king. So there was a war raging for the throne. The armies of Saul vs. the armies of David. Jonathan had a son. His name was Mephibosheth. He was five years old when the armies of David stormed the castle and all of Saul's household was slaughtered. Mephibosheth's nursemaid picked him up and in her haste to escape the battle, she dropped little Mephibosheth and he was crippled in both feet. He was the only survivor in Saul's household. Mephibosheth goes into hiding in a place called Lo Debar. It is important to know that this place was a wasteland. The misfits in society, the forgotten, and he outcasts hung out in Lo Debar. The words below the bar come to mind as this was little Fibby's new home. I call him Fibby because he bought into the lie that he was worthless. He lived out the remainder of his childhood in this wasteland. Now we will pick up the story years later when David is King and he remembers the covenant between him and Jonathan. In 2 Samuel 9 David asks if there is anyone left in the household of Saul that he can show kindness to. A servant of Saul's household named Ziba tells him about Fibby. So King David has Fibby brought to him. As you can imagine, Mephibosheth must be terrified! After all, he is an heir. He should be taking the throne. David tells him not to be afraid. He tells Fibby that he is going to restore all that he has lost and he gives him a seat at his table. He moves him in as part of his family. He tells him that he will always have a place at his table. Fibby has a son names Mica. Mica means gift from God. King David welcomes him in as well. Mephibosheth's response to this breaks my heart. He says to David, "What would you want with a dead dog like me?" Oh my goodness! Is this not a great picture of us? Life has happened to a lot of us and we walk with a spiritual limp. We have been maimed and some have done just what Fibby did. We went into hiding. We are in a beautiful covenant with Jesus. Because of what he did on the cross, we now have a seat at the table. We are heirs and co-heirs with Christ. He has set a beautiful table before us and wants us to come and dine with him everyday and always. Will you take your place? Jesus is waiting.