Call to Worship: Psalm 67 NIV
May God be gracious to us and bless us
and make his face shine on us
2 so that your ways may be known on earth,
your salvation among all nations.
3 May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.
4 May the nations be glad and sing for joy,
for you rule the peoples with equity
and guide the nations of the earth.
5 May the peoples praise you, God;
may all the peoples praise you.
6 The land yields its harvest;
God, our God, blesses us.
7 May God bless us still,
so that all the ends of the earth will fear him.
Quote “the wise man only wonders once in his life, but that is always”;
- Reading: Ephesians 2:8-9 NIV “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”
Amazing Grace: Paul experience\John Newton\ Testimony\Bible Stories
- Reading: Corinthians 12:9 And He said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.”
Hebrews 12:15 See to it that no one misses the grace of God…
- Reading: 2 Samuel 9: 1-13NIV
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 summoned him to appear before David, and the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?”
“At your service,” he replied.
3 The king asked, “Is there no one still alive from 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 lame 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!”
“At your service,” 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 steward, 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[a] table like one of the king’s sons.
12 Mephibosheth had a young son named Mika, 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; he was lame in both feet.
Grace gives us what we do not deserve. Rom 6:23: “For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
Grace is often defined as “the unmerited love and favor of God toward the undeserving.”
“God’s Riches at Christ’s Expense: GRACE
- Grace is Extended
David desires to extend grace to a member of Saul’s family.
The key word in verse 1 is “anyone”. Messy crippled spiritual condition.
- Grace is Embraced
Lo-debar, which means “no pasture.” A dry-dusty-desert
A With a Humble Heart
B With a Happy Heart
C With a Honest Heart
What a picture this is of a lost sinner who encounters grace.
- Grace is Expanded:
When he received grace, he also received more blessings than he could have ever imagined. We are promised a new identity in Christ (Christian) and God’s presence all the way to heaven. Grace Provided a Family (church family.)
See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! 1 John 3:1-3.
Brennan Manning: We should be astonished at the goodness of God, stunned that he should bother to call us by name, our mouths wide open at his love, bewildered that at this very moment we are standing on holy ground.
When have you been favoured by a substantial donor?
How did you express gratitude?
Have you been an heir? How did it feel?
In what ways are you like Mephibosheth as you “stand” before God’s throne?
- As you break bread at the Lord’s Table?
- As you are heirs to your heavenly Father’s spiritual kingdom?
Where have you shown or received God’s kindness as a “friend of a friend” as epitomized in this story?
What Wonders of Grace Moments are you prepared to share with others?
To whom can you be that kind of a friend this week?
Peace and Love
Colleen