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This phrase is trending hard as social, political, and racial unrest continues to challenge the status quo.
Who deserves a seat at the table? Who doesn’t? Who owns the table? Who decides who gets a seat? Can I just build my own table – with my own set of standards and conditions of merit?
Let’s cool it for a sec, and remember that actually… NO ONE deserves a seat at the table!
No one is right with God. Not. Even. One.
– Romans 3:10
Now, there’s a story in 2 Samuel about a special seat, at a special table that I really think is worth exploring.
It takes place long after David slays Goliath, and after King Saul turns on David and tries to have him killed. Our story begins after David is finally crowned king of Israel himself.
Our new king asks a question. It’s a simple question, and we may not even pay it much heed. But he asks:
“Is anyone in Saul’s family still alive—anyone to whom I can show the kindness of God for Jonathan’s sake?”
2 Samuel 9:1
I had to ask myself, why is this on his radar? Why does David feel compelled to show God’s kindness to Saul’s family? And what would that even look like?
Here’s the lowdown:
- First of all, he wasn’t actually compelled, because…
- It was not out of guilt or obligation.
- And it wasn’t even about Saul at all!
- He was committed to a covenant promise he made to his friend, Jonathan. That’s it.
In 1 Samuel 20:14-15, Jonathan had pleaded with David to promise to show his family kindness even after Jonathan passed.
So now, David’s on a mission. He is determined to keep this covenant promise to his dear friend. And even though Jonathan isn’t around to benefit from it, or even know about it, he will not be swayed.
Finally, David finds Mephibosheth, Jonathan’s son. He was crippled after a tragic childhood accident, and could no longer walk. He was in hiding out of fear of what David might do if he was discovered.
Mephibosheth was terrified of David for two reasons:
- He was the grandson of David’s rival and enemy, King Saul
- His very existence was a threat to David’s throne and rule
So this is not an unreasonable concern or irrational fear. Because under normal circumstances, a new king would do everything in his power to eliminate any threat to his throne as well as any remnant of a former dynasty.
Mephibosheth was absolutely both of those things.
Instead of focusing on himself and his fear, he should have focused on who David was: the rightful king, fulfilling a covenant promise to his father, Jonathan.
Because David followed God, the kindness of God that David wanted to bestow on Jonathan’s family was a direct outpouring of the kindness that he had received from God first.
So what does David do when he finds Mephibosheth?
He doesn’t kill him or exile him. He doesn’t torture him or punish him.
David responds with compassion:
He tells Mephibosheth to not be afraid.
He restores to Mephibosheth all of the land that belonged to Saul.
He gives Mephibosheth a seat at the king’s table for the rest of his days.
This meant that David didn’t just allow Mephibosheth to inherit what had previously belonged to his family…
But through David’s extravagant generosity, Mephibosheth was invited into the king’s inner circle, and he and his household were provided for, for the rest of their lives!
Let’s consider how we might relate to this story.
Do you want a seat at God’s table? Do you, like Mephibosheth, see yourself as an enemy of God?
Isaiah 30:18 says that, God is full of mercy and rises to show you compassion…. not because of righteous things you’ve done, as we find in Titus 3:5, but because of His great love.
I hate to break it to you, but we don’t deserve that seat. We just don’t.
Because of the inherent sin we possess from birth, we are disqualified from a seat at the table.
Just as Mephibosheth whose grandfather, Saul, tried to have David killed, Romans 5:10 says that we were God’s enemies.
But as David made a covenant to Jonathan, which had absolutely nothing to do with the evil in Saul’s heart… so too did God make a covenant to His people that overrides the sin in our hearts.
In addition, David’s covenant did not hinge on the actions of Jonathan’s descendants: namely, Mephibosheth who was hiding out of fear of David and his own personal shame.
So in the same way, any ongoing shortcomings we may continue to raise as a barrier between us and God, do not affect the extravagant generosity of God’s covenant and the offer of a seat at His table.
Like Mephibosheth, we need our King to rescue us. We are poor, lame, weak, and fearful. We cannot save ourselves. We desperately need the kindness of God extended to us through His hand of restoration, redemption, and forgiveness.
But let’s not settle too comfortably into the seat of the helpless victim.
For we are not just Mephibosheth in this story – an enemy of the king. If you’re like me, and you’ve recognized your own poverty and need of a Saviour, then we can’t stop the story there.
Friend, you and I are also King David in this story! And he was known as a man after God’s own heart.
David’s actions here are like the ultimate pro tip on kindness.
How can we, like David, use our influence to fulfill the covenant promise we make as believers? How can we show God’s kindness to others, inviting them to sit at His table?
Here’s a page out of David’s book:
- Seek out those in need of God’s kindness
This required work on David’s part! Mephibosheth didn’t run to David for saving. David sought him out, not the other way around. Let’s not assume that because there’s no one in need at our door step, that there’s no one in need at all.
The Son of Man has come to seek out and to give life to those who are lost.”
– Luke 19:10
As followers of Jesus, we’re invited to be part of that mission and do the same! Because the fields are ripe for harvest, but the workers are few. (Matthew 9:37)
- Bless those who don’t deserve it. Even our enemies.
Ok, enemies is a strong word, and maybe you look around and don’t notice any. But surely you know people who rub you the wrong way… with whom you strongly disagree… whose lifestyle or life choices is perplexing to you at best.
Mephibosheth was an enemy and a threat to David’s throne, but David’s relationship with Mephibosheth’s father, Jonathan meant more to David than that. And the covenant they shared was more important than any threat to David himself.
Are we similarly committed to our own role in the covenant promises of God to show kindness to a world that needs it?
I close the best way I know how. By quoting a different Saul – who turned Paul, from Romans 12:9-21:
What’s in the Ears
In reflection… do you feel yourself unworthy of a seat at the King’s table? Mephibosheth certainly did! In fact, in verse 8 he asked David why he’d concern himself with a dead dog such has himself? Those are strong words!
Although we are undeserving, God has sought us out and offers us a seat at His table through His Son, Jesus. In gratitude of the kindness God has shown us, let’s consider how we may show the kindness of God to others in turn.
Have you got any thoughts on this you’d like to share? Send me a message or comment below!
From The Overflow 