"Greater Covenant" Part six of "How Great is our God"

Greater Covenant, Part six of “How Great is our God”

Jeremiah 31:31-33

³¹ "The time is coming," declares the LORD, "when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.

³² It will not be like the covenant I made with their forefathers when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them," declares the LORD.

³³ "This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time," declares the LORD. "I will put my law in their minds and write it on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.

Setting of this story: The place of the King David. His predecessor, King Saul, has passed away. In the Eastern dynasty, when a new king steps into his office, the family of the old king flees. They know they are no longer wanted. Sometimes, the new king would kill them. Because they would be considered a threat to the new king’s throne.

David did not want to do that. So, David is now in his palace.

And he remembers a promise he had made with Jonathan.

He promised that he would take care of his family.

2 Samuel 9:1 David asked, "Is there anyone still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show kindness for Jonathan's sake?"

² Now there was a servant of Saul's household named Ziba. They called him to appear before David, and the king said to him, "Are you Ziba?"
"Your servant," he replied.

³ The king asked, "Is there no one still left of the house of Saul to whom I can show God's kindness?" Ziba answered the king, "There is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in both feet." ⁴ "Where is he?" the king asked.
Ziba answered, "He is at the house of Makir son of Ammiel in Lo Debar."

⁵ So King David had him brought from Lo Debar, from the house of Makir son of Ammiel. ⁶ When Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, came to David, he bowed down to pay him honor.
David said, "Mephibosheth!" "Your servant," he replied.

⁷ "Don't be afraid," David said to him, "for I will surely show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan. I will restore to you all the land that belonged to your grandfather Saul, and you will always eat at my table."

⁸ Mephibosheth bowed down and said, "What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?"

⁹ Then the king summoned Ziba, Saul's servant, and said to him, "I have given your master's grandson everything that belonged to Saul and his family. ¹⁰ You and your sons and your servants are to farm the land for him and bring in the crops, so that your master's grandson may be provided for. And Mephibosheth, grandson of your master, will always eat at my table." (Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants.)

¹¹ Then Ziba said to the king, "Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do." So Mephibosheth ate at David's table like one of the king's sons.

¹² Mephibosheth had a young son named Mica, and all the members of Ziba's household were servants of Mephibosheth. ¹³ And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king's table, and he was crippled in both feet.

1) The King never forgets His covenant with you.

I Samuel 20:16, 17 ¹⁶ So Jonathan made a covenant with the house of David, saying, "May the LORD call David's enemies to account." ¹⁷ And Jonathan had David reaffirm his oath out of love for him, because he loved him as he loved himself.

I Samuel 24:21, 22 Now swear to me by the LORD that you will not cut off my descendants or wipe out my name from my father's family." ²² So David gave his oath to Saul. Then Saul returned home, but David and his men went up to the stronghold.

Have people let you down?
Has someone you loved broken your heart?

Most of you have had experiences in life where someone has let you down. A husband, a wife, a boyfriend, girlfriend, best friend, brother or sister.

People whom we love let us down.

To most people, ‘covenant” doesn’t mean much. (That’s why so many people are doing pre-nuptual agreements). They don’t believe in Covenant Relationship.

God extends to you a GREATER COVENANT!

So, (2 Samuel 9) King David asks Ziba if there is anyone in Jonathan’s family left for his to show kindness to.

David is saying, “I have a greater covenant to fulfill.” Just like King David extended grace to a ‘nobody,” King Jesus extends grace to you and I.

2) The King restores you to a place of honor

Mephibosheth was disabled. He was crippled in both feet.

2 Samuel 4:4 Jonathan son of Saul had a son who was lame in both feet. He was five years old when the news about Saul and Jonathan came from Jezreel. His nurse picked him up and fled, but as she hurried to leave, he fell and became crippled. His name was Mephibosheth.

Mephibosheth was only five years old when his grandpa – who had been the king, was no longer king.

His promising future was now falling apart.

Have you ever gotten frustrated because life didn’t go the way it was supposed to be?

Life was so promising – things were going so well and then, life happens.

God extends to you a GREATER COVENANT!

2 Samuel 9:7 (restore)

Picture the scenario: King David’s men go to Mephibosheth’s shack. I can imagine what was going through Mephibosheph’s mind. He was a nobody. Life had gotten the best of him. And when the King’s men knock on his door, he probably thinks they are there to kill him off.

The King’s men said, “Mephibosheth, the King wants to see you.”
So, he gets in the King’s chariot.

Reminds me of what I experienced a few weeks ago My parents went on a week long cruise and I got to drive my dad’s Cadillac. Now, I am used to driving my 2003 Ford Explorer with 144,000 miles on it. So, getting in my dad’s Cadillac was a thrill.

How did Mephibocheph respond?

⁸ Mephibosheth bowed down and said, "What is your servant, that you should notice a dead dog like me?"

3) The King adopts you into His family.

2 Samuel 9:11, 13

¹¹ Then Ziba said to the king, "Your servant will do whatever my lord the king commands his servant to do." So Mephibosheth ate at David's table like one of the king's sons. (v. 13) And Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, because he always ate at the king's table, and he was crippled in both feet.

Can you picture the King’s dinner table?

King David, Solomon, Absalom, Tamar . . and then, Mephibosheth.

Do you have to be perfect to be in the King’s family?

No. We are all disabled?

Q1: What is your disability? (Please note that I didn't ask, "Do you have a disability?" Because you do. You are not perfect. I am not perfect. We ALL have disabilities)

Unforgiveness? Bitterness? Jealousy? Co-dependency? Abuse? Divorce? Rejection? Worry? Stress? Financial Debt?

Q2: What are you doing about your disability? What steps are you taking to overcome your disabilities?

Cleansing Stream

Celebrate Recovery

Q3: Are you willing to come to the King’s table?
He has invited you. Will you come?

Song: “Carried to the Table” Leeland