Peninsula enterprise. [volume] (Accomac, Va.) 1881-1965, 1896-07-18
iieved before now you believe that
Mephibosheth is lame on both feet.

Restored.
Again, Mephibosheth in the text
stands for the disabled human soul
humbled and restored. When this in
valid of my text got Il command to como
to King David's palace he trembled.
The fact was that the grandfather Of
Mephibosheth had treated David most
shockingly. and now Mephibosheth says
to himself: what docs the king want
of me? Isn't it enough that am lame?
Is he going to destroy my lifeP Is he
going to wreak on me the vengeance
which he holds toward my grandfather
Saul? It's too bad. F." But go to the pal
ace Mephibosheth must, since the king
has commanded it. With staff and
crutches and helped by his friends, 1
see Mephibosheth going up the stairs Of
the palace. hear his staff and crutches
rafting on the tessellated floor of the
throneroom No sooner have these two
persons confronted each other-Mephib-
osheth and David, the king-than
Mephibosheth throws himself fiat on his
face before the king and styles himself
dead dog. In the east when man
styles himself a dog he utters the ut
most term of self abnegation. 1t is not
term SO strong in this country, where,
if dog has fair chance, he sometimes
shows more mobility of character than
some human specimens that we wot Of,
but the NANCY ours of the oriental cities,
as 7 know by my own observation, are
utterly dctestable Mephibosheth gives
the utmost term of self loathing when
he compares himself to dog, and dead
ut that.
Consider the analogy. When the COM
mand is given from the palace of heaven
to the human soul to come, the soul be-
gins to tremble. 1t says: "What is God
going to do with me now? Is he going
to destroy me? Is he going to wreak his
vengeance upon me?" There is more
than one Mcphibosheth trembling now
because God has summoned him to the
palace of divine grace What are you
trembling about? God has no pleasure
in the death of sinner. He does not
send for you to hurt you. Hc sends for
you to do you good. A Scotch preacher
had the following circumstances brought
under his observation: There was poor
woman in the parish who was about to
be turned out because she could not pay
her rent. One night she heard loud
knocking at the door, and she made no
answer and hid herself: The rapping
continued louder, louder, louder, but
she made no answer and continued to
hide herself. She was almost frightened
unto death. She said, "That's the Off
Ger of the law come to throw me out of
my home. p"
A few days after Christian philan
thropist met her in the street and said:
my poor woman, where were you tho
other night? came round to your house
TO pay your rent. Why didn't you let
me in? Were you at homer" "Why,"
she replied twas that you?" Yes,
that was me. came to pay youipfent. :"
"Why," she said, eff I had had any
idea it was you I would have let you
in. / thought it was an officer come to
cast me out of my home. - O soul. that
loud knocking at the gate today is not
the sheriff come to put you in Jail it is
the best friend you ever had come to be
your security. You shiver with terror
because you think it is wrath. 1t is
mercy Why, then, tremble before the
King of heaven and earth calls you to
his palace? Stop trem bling and start
right away. "Oh," you say, II can't
start 1 have been so famed by sin and
so famed by evil habit can't start. I
am lame in both feot. - MY FRIEND we
come out with our prayers and sympa-
thies to help you up to the palace. If
you want to get to the palace, you may
get there Start now. The Holy Spirit
will help you. All you have to do is
just to throw yourself on your face at
the feet of the King, as Mephibosheth
did.
Gods Mere.
Mephibosheth' caninal comparison
seems extravagant to tho world, but
when a man has seen himself as he
really is and seen how he has been treat
ing the Lord there is no term vehement
enough to express his self condemnas
ton. The dead dog of Mephibosheths
comparison fails to describe the mans
utter loathing of himself. Mephibo-
sheth's posturing does not seem too pros
trate When Il soul is convicted, first
he prays upright. Then the muscles Of
his neck relax, and he is able to bow
his head After awhile, by an almost
superhuman effort he kneels down to
pray. After awhile, when he has seen
God and seen himself, he throws him
self fiat on his face at the feet of the
king, just like Mephibosheth. The fact
is, if we could see ourselves as God sees
US, we would perish at the spectacle.
You would have no time to overhaul
other people. Your cry would be, "God
be merciful to me, q sinner. ,"
And again, Mephibosheth in my text
stands for the disabled human soul
saved for the sake of another. Mephib-
osheth would never have got into the
palace on his own account. Why did
David ransack the realm to find that
poor man and then bestow upon him q
great fortune and command q farmer
of the name of Ziba to culture the estate
and give to this invalid Mephihoshetb
half the proceeds every year? Why did
King David make such mighty stir
about poor fellow who would never be
Of any use to the throne of Israel? 1t
was for Jonathan's sake 1t was what
Robert Burns calls for "auld lang syne.
David could not forget what Jonathan
had done for him in other days. Three
times this chapter has it that all this
kindness Oh the part of David to Mephib.
osheth was for his father Jonathan's
sake. The daughter of Peter Martyr.
through the vice Of her husband, came
down to penury, and the senate Of Zu-
rich took care of her for her fathers
sake Sometimes person has applied
to you for help and you have refused
him, but when you found he was the
son or brother of some one who had