Is This Seat Taken? Part 2

Is This Seat Taken? Part 2: Sitting In Silence

2 Sam 9, 9 And David said, “Is there still anyone left of the house of Saul, that I may show him kindness for Jonathan’s sake?” 2 Now there was a servant of the house of Saul whose name was Ziba, and they called him to David. And the king said to him, “Are you Ziba?” And he said, “I am your servant.” 3 And the king said, “Is there not still someone of the house of Saul, that I may show the kindness of God to him?” Ziba said to the king, “There is still a son of Jonathan; he is crippled in his feet.” 4 The king said to him, “Where is he?” And Ziba said to the king, “He is in the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar.” 5 Then King David sent and brought him from the house of Machir the son of Ammiel, at Lo-debar. 6 And Mephibosheth the son of Jonathan, son of Saul, came to David and fell on his face and paid homage. And David said, “Mephibosheth!” And he answered, “Behold, I am your servant.” 7 And David said to him, “Do not fear, for I will show you kindness for the sake of your father Jonathan, and I will restore to you all the land of Saul your father, and you shall eat at my table always.” 8 And he paid homage and said, “What is your servant, that you should show regard for a dead dog such as I?”

9 Then the king called Ziba, Saul’s servant, and said to him, “All that belonged to Saul and to all his house I have given to your master’s grandson. 10 And you and your sons and your servants shall till the land for him and shall bring in the produce, that your master’s grandson may have bread to eat. But Mephibosheth your master’s grandson shall always eat at my table.” Now Ziba had fifteen sons and twenty servants. 11 Then Ziba said to the king, “According to all that my lord the king commands his servant, so will your servant do.” So Mephibosheth ate at David’s table, like one of the king’s sons. 12 And Mephibosheth had a young son, whose name was Mica. And all who lived in Ziba’s house became Mephibosheth’s servants. 13 So Mephibosheth lived in Jerusalem, for he ate always at the king’s table. Now he was lame in both his feet.

ESV

Background of the Text: ( Preached on this subject last week )

David and Jonathan’s Relationship
Mephibosheth was Jonathan’s Son
Saul and Jonathan died in Chapter 5
Mephibosheth was cripple in his feet by the time he was 5 years old…

Transition: Last week I told you Mephibosheth was stuck sitting in Lo-Debar…Place of No Communication. That is the place the enemy wants you and me to live…where we can’t talk to God about it…Sitting in Silence over:

Being Dropped by Authorities and Leaders
Dropped by Caregivers
Dropped now sitting in our brokenness, in our unforgiveness, in our silence of What Could Have Been…

But listen to me…We are not Powerless.

We have the Goodnews of the Gospel
We have Prayer
We have the blood of Jesus
We have the Holy Spirit…

The Greatest Power God has given to us is the Power of Choice…

Choices
1. Your choices effect you…it effects your present, past and future.
2. Other People’s choices affect you.
  1. Paying at the Pump before you pump the Fuel…it is because someone made a choice to pump fuel and drive away, now we are affected because of their choice to steal.
  2. Baby born with a drug addiction, not their choice, but they live with the results.

How many remember the Nursery Rhyme “Humpty Dumpty”
1. Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall, Humpty dumpty had a great fall. Why, Cause He was PUSHED!

Choices of Others which effect you and lead to feelings of:
1. Anger
2. Resentment

Rejection

Hatred
Bitterness
Unforgiveness

Some of you didn’t choose
1. Parents Getting a Divorce
2. To be Abused

Marginalized

Spouse cheat on you
Birth Defects
Didn’t choose to eat the Fruit in the Garden, but are affected by the choice of Adam…

Transition: In our story…I can relate to all the characters at different times…sometimes I feel like David, I have the ability to help someone and see them restored…other times I’m like Ziba, looking and searching for those the King as told me to search for…but more times than I like to admit…I relate to Mephibosheth!

Become a Victim

Intro. You didn’t choose to be dropped, to be a victim, but you do choose to remain a victim…it’s not easy but you can get out of a victim mentality!

Victim verses Victimized
1. Victimized is something done to you
2. Victim is or has become your identity

That is why guilt and shame are so vital to our understanding…guilt says “I did it.” And I have to agree, because I did.

Shame now say, because I did it…that is who I am…well that is a lie my friend…repentance says, I’m a new creation in Christ Jesus!

Victims refuse responsibility for their future Life Quality
1. Angry at God
2. Angry at Others

Somewhere they stopped living for the Future and started living in the Past and are always looking back to yesterday’s wrongs!

Refuse to Remain a Victim
1. Job
  1. Look at Job’s response and God’s response concerning Job
    1. Job 1:8; 2:3 & 10
    2. The entire process took 9 months, the time it takes to give birth…to give birth to the next move of God in your life it may take you going through the process of Pushing to get what God has for you!!!!!!!
    3. Job 42:2 & 10
  2. Daniel
    1. We read in 2 Kings 25 where Daniel and his friends, Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are carried away to Babylon…
    2. In Daniel chapter 1 we read that Daniel and his boys refuse to give in to the Group…matter of fact Daniel wouldn’t let them try to rename HIM to “Belteshazzar” (someone will always try to define you and label you…)
    3. Daniel got a Word (You and I need a Word…Just One Word)….
    4. He refused to be a Victim…he had been done wrong…but refused to let that wrong IDENTIFY HIM
  3. Joseph
    1. From 17 years old – 30 years old went through a process
      1. Not his fault
      2. Had been done wrong
    2. Don’t react to the problem, but respond to God!
      1. Play with the Cards you have been Dealt!
      2. Sometimes you have to Rare back and give God Praise and move forward…

Proverbs 23:7 – “For as a man thinketh in his heart, so is he…”

Some of us Need to Let Jesus Do the Impossible in our lives…

Transition: Just because you were dropped yesterday doesn’t mean you have to be broken today.

Missed Opportunities

Intro. A cat that sits on a hot stove, won’t sit on a cold stove either.

Because of past burns your afraid you’ll be burnt again
1. Bad marriage doesn’t mean you give up on Marriage
2. Had a baby and weren’t married, honey you push yourself and that baby out of that situation, hold your head high and refuse to allow your past to identify you and become a new creature that God intends you to be…

Bad Church Experience (My Oklahoma Experience…I had quit ministry)

Bad Pastors…Hurt by a Pastor

These things try to keep us from Future Opportunities
Hurt People, Hurt People
1. If you don’t take the issue to Jesus the only one who can fix the problem, you’ll become like the person who hurt you…
2. Story: There’s this boy and his pet dog, the dog gets hurt and bites the boy…he doesn’t bite the boy because he doesn’t like the little boy…he bites because he is hurt.
How to Be Healed

Introduction: Not an easy thing to accomplish.

The first thing you must do is quit looking at the one who dropped you and look to the one who can heal you…
1. “Looking unto Jesus the Author and Finisher of our Faith…”
2. Paul said, “Forgetting those things which are behind I press toward the mark of the high calling in Christ Jesus.”

Remember our Nursery Rhyme…Humpty Dumpty…He never turned to the King
1. All the kings horses and all the kings men couldn’t put humpty dumpty back together again…we can’t call on people, we must call upon the only one who can put us back together…JESUS! THE RESTORER OF THE BROKEN HEARTED!

Transition: You will never leave the place of being a victim of sin and hurt until you truly understand, that Jesus has forgiven you of all of your sin…You are redeemed and your past no long identifies you.

The second thing is much more difficult….we must forgive the ones who hurt us!
1. Matthew 6 “The Lord’s Prayer”
  1. Matt 6:12
  2. “ And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors”
  3. The word “AS” means in like manner….
  4. The only part of the Disciples’ Prayer that Jesus restates is found in verses 14 and 15
    1. Matt 6:14-15

14 For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:

15 But if ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.

KJV

You’ll never forget, but you can forgive…
1. Jonna and a Pastor’s wife who hurt her incredibly, but then 7 years later call us and ask us to help their son and recover him for Christ…

Forgive means “to treat someone as if they had not committed the offense…even if they were dead wrong and never apologized”

Transition: Can I just say this outloud cause others are thinking it…”The Christianity Thing Isn’t Easy”

Don’t Live in the Past…it is a trap of the enemy

Closing
1. Isa 53:1

53 Who has believed our report?

And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed?

NKJV

Isa 53:4-5

4 Surely He has borne our griefs

And carried our sorrows;

Yet we esteemed Him stricken,

Smitten by God, and afflicted.

5 But He was wounded for our transgressions,

He was bruised for our iniquities;

The chastisement for our peace was upon Him,

And by His stripes we are healed.

NKJV

Bruised for our iniquities – a bruise is an internal wound that manifests outwardly…iniquities are internal hurts, wounds and tendencies that have hurt us and Jesus has come to Heal those Wounds…
Mephibosheth comes in the courts of the King the King’s kids…sits at the table restored…still has the scars and the limp from being dropped…but that event never again controls Mephibosheth’s future, purpose, and destiny.

Altar Call:

Today is the Day of Forgiveness of Salvation
- Oh my goodness, I almost messed the Whole Message Up…I almost left out the most important part…
- You need to forgive yourself!!!
Today You may need Forgiveness…Salvation!
You may need to forgive someone…

I want you to come as the Worship team sings

Is This Seat Taken? Part 2

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