"And David said to [Mephibosheth], 'Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan... you shall eat at my table always...' So Mephibosheth ate at David's table, like one of the king's sons... Now he was lame in both his feet." (Compilation of 2 Samuel 9)
This probably isn't surprising for those of you who know me and my love for people with disabilities, but I have been enamored by this passage for some time. To see a king treat this disabled man so well is astounding to me. This man couldn't offer anything to David and yet he was brought into the king's home and treated as his son. Upon first reading this, I was so pumped that David would do such an unexpected service to this man. But after reading through it a few times now, I see that there is more to it than just an act of service. David was obligated to take care of this man because of a promise he made to his pal Jonathan back in 1 Samuel 20. They had made a covenant to take care of each others' families and David was a man of his word. Jonathan had died and Mephibosheth was Jonathan's son; therefore, David was obligated under the covenant to bring him into his family.
The fact that David stuck to his word and took in Mephibosheth, who likely would be considered an outcast for his disability, is very beautiful. But the obligation involved here makes what David did seem a bit less astounding, somehow. The cynical side comes out in me, thinking that if Mephibosheth was not Jonathan's son, he would have remained an outcast and David would not have done anything for him. And that very well could be true.
After mulling that over, the Lord led me to this passage:
"In love [God] predestined us for adoption as His sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of His will, to the praise of His glorious grace with which He has blessed us in the Beloved. In HIM we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses..." (Ephesians 1:5-7)
Like Mephibosheth, we as Christians have been adopted into a family we did not deserve to be a part of. Like Mephibosheth, we were broken, crippled, outcasts with nothing to offer up to the King.
Like David (but wayyyy better), our Lord saw us in our helpless estate and He invited us to be a part of His royal family. He has made a covenant to "unite all things in Him," (v.10) and He is keeping that covenant by turning us outcasts into His offspring. I don't believe for a second that He felt any sort of obligation when He chose to do this, but rather it was out of love for His creation and to remind us that apart from Him, we truly are nothing.
Praising my Father today and every day for choosing me to be His daughter. I pray that He will allow me to show His perfect love to those who are outcasts - literally and/or figuratively - for the rest of my days. All for the praise of His glory, amen.
