2 Samuel 4:4 “And Jonathan, Saul’s son, had a son that was lame of his feet. He was five years old when the tidings came of Saul and Jonathan out of Jezreel, and his nurse took him up, and fled: and it came to pass, as she made haste to flee, that he fell, and became lame. And his name was Mephibosheth.”

I recently had the great pleasure of doing a Bible study on “Mephibosheth” in the Bible. He was the son of Jonathan, who was the son of Saul… the first king of Israel.

His story is incredible! And if you have never heard of this man and his redemption, prepare for an exciting journey through the grace, mercy and kindness of God! But today we will look at “the fact of his fall”… but there is glory to come!

… Mephibosheth is not a major character in the Bible, but when his turn comes, his example plays “support role” to the main character, the“star” in the story … king David. He makes David shine, but ultimately he brings great glory to our Lord Jesus Christ “That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world”.

If you are a Christian, like Mephibosheth, we realize it’s not about us, our salvation gives great glory to Jesus Christ, because everything he does in redeeming our lives is “to the praise of his glory”! The word “star” gets thrown around a lot in this world… but truthfully, there is only one true “star” faithful enough to set your navigation to… the Lord Jesus Christ, and he is my star, and I hope his star has risen in your heart also “until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts”.

… The story of Mephibosheth is found in 2 Samuel 9, but I have quoted from 2 Samuel 4:4, where he is first mentioned and we find out the first details about him, which are important to know, so that we can understand why he is like he is when his story comes into full focus in chapter 9, where David’s attention is turned to him much like our own.

… We have a Bible that starts with Genesis for a reason… you have no way of orienting yourself in life without Genesis. That’s why people are so upside down now. We need to get some facts straight, such as the fact of “the fall”

… Do you want to find out why the world is like it is? Do you want to know why there is pain, suffering and injustice in this world? Do you want to know why bad things happen to good people? Do you want to know why death is in this world? … you need to go back to the start, where God’s word was already true, point of truth where our salvation must be seeded from also “Thy word is true from the beginning”

The starting point is vital to getting the rest right. Many people still somehow believe in evolution, despite what creation (the hint is in the word) tells them. Evolution gives you no starting point. It cannot explain “In the beginning” I know, I know, many puff their chest out like they’re rational, “balanced” and sanctified from religious hogwash… while they believe life came from nonlife, order came from disorder, something came from nothing and cause came from chaos … “Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools”

Amazingly, even many professing Christians these days do not get Genesis right. How could you ever build right on the wrong foundation? It is no wonder that even their own salvation seems more a story of personal evolution than new birth… You will be what your doctrine is, so be warned! Nevertheless still there is only one way to enter the kingdom of God “ye must be born again”… you will never evolve your flesh into something acceptable to God.

… but we have digressed! Back to Mephibosheth, and the first thing we learn about him is that he was lame on both his feet… because he had a fall back when he was a child. And this happened when Saul and Jonathan got killed in battle, a catastrophic loss, and his nurse, upon hearing the news, made haste to escape with him because of the peril to Mephibosheth’s life… but in the process he had a fall, and his life was forever altered by that fall that rendered him a cripple for life.

If you want to know God, and experience his salvation in much the same way Mephibosheth did…. the first thing you will have to face is that you are fallen, and that fall has had consequences, it has damaged you, and in a way that you cannot overcome yourself. You will never be able to walk right … not in your flesh anyway. That’s why when you get saved you are meant to walk in the Spirit! But I’m getting ahead of myself!

What brought the fall? Saul’s disobedience. Which brought defeat, death and the dominion of the enemy. It’s the pattern from Genesis 3 …and maybe you quickly note from this story that the fall was not Mephibosheth’s fault… and that’s right, it wasn’t. He didn’t have any control over it. I wasn’t there when Adam and Eve sinned and plunged humanity into death and destruction and all the misery we’ve seen for the last six thousand years of human history. And in that sense, it’s not my fault. Nor yours.

So what we are responsible for then? Because we do not get a choice in being born into this world in our sins… and while you do somewhat have the excuse of “I was born this way”… fact is, you also sin because you want to and choose to, making yourself guilty “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God”.

… If we were just sinners doing what we cannot but do we might well try and wash our hands of responsibility and accountability for our actions. But the Bible also says “where sin abounded, grace did much more abound”. And also “How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?”

… Because even though you have Adam and Eve to blame for your sin… you were also born into a world that God has not abandoned to its fate, a world which has still enjoyed the light of Christ, a world that God sent no less than his only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to die at the hands of sinful men to save us from perishing with. And so we have received grace “and grace for grace”. Grace enough not to choose sin. Grace that forgives, restrains, enables, teaches, empowers, endures, saves, which no one has an excuse for not appearing unto …“For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men”

This grace would reach a long way to fetch Mephibosheth from a wretched place in life… but that’s for next time! We haven’t even gotten to 2 Samuel 9 yet! We have only seen the fact of Mephibosheth’s fall. Thank God that is not the end of the story. He may have thought it was over, but it was far from over. God wants to save you too. I hope God’s grace has changed your life. But first of all you have to be truthful about how things are, not according to you, but according to God’s word.

There is a most wonderful truth to finish up on. We have realized the importance of looking back at Mephibosheth’s fall because that explains the state David finds him in…

… but if you look even further back there’s more! Read further back and you find that before the fact of his fall there was a promise that had already been made! David had made a promise to Mephibosheth’s dad Jonathan to always show mercy and never forget him and his seed!

… Did you know the promise of Christ predated the predicament of mankind? Did you know that the Bible teaches that before mankind ever sinned, God had already promised the Saviour? Hallelujah! The Bible says Jesus Christ “was foreordained before the foundation of the world”. There is nothing that God didn’t see coming, there is nothing that God hasn’t already provided for. Before the mess was the solution to the mess. That’s the God I serve! I hope you put your trust in the promises of God, promises that predate all our predicaments including “the fact of the fall”… to the praise of his glory… Amen!

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