Covenants That Cover The Crippled

Jesus came to seek and save the lost and heal the sick and broken-hearted.   #daybydaylw   Interested in learning more about becoming a devoted follower of Christ? Go to follow.lifeword.org!   ~~~   If you and I are to see the true import of 2 Samuel 9, and how it radically calls out to us, then we only need to consider how far this covenant reaches. When David asked if there was anyone left in the house of Saul, something was going through the original reader’s mind. They were thinking, “Here comes the elimination of any internal threat to David’s kingdom.” It was customary in those days that a king would execute anyone who posed a threat to his kingdom, whether they be fellow countrymen, or even a blood relative. David had calmed the fury of competition outside his kingdom, and now, it would seem to calm the threat from within, and there was no better place to start than with the house of Saul, David’s greatest enemy from within. And we learn that there is one person left in the house of Saul, a man who was crippled in his feet, who cannot look after himself but is cared for by Machir, and who lives in Lo-debar (which means no pasture). So get the description—of the house of Saul, whom saw David as an enemy; a crippled; a man who couldn’t care for himself but was seen after by Machir; who lived in a land where there was no fertile, green pastures. This is a picture of weakness, of helplessness, of destitution. If David were to show kindness to this man, there would be no way that this man could bring anything of worth to the table. And yet, because of the kindness of David towards this covenant, David gladly, willingly seeks for this man and brings him, Mephibosheth, into his presence to bestow upon him all the covenant blessings. My friend, is this not a picture of what Christ has done for us? He came to seek and to save that which was lost. He came to be a doctor for the brokenhearted, for the sick at heart. He came to extend covenant blessings to those who were enemies of his, to those who are helpless and hopeless, who lived in the land Lo-debar, a place that was like a desert. All of those descriptions fit the life of the believer before he closed with Christ. And yet, the covenant of redemption extends to our brokenness, reaches through our helplessness, and finds us in the desert and calls us forth to come and receive the blessings of salvation.