Psalm 23 Part 6

THE SHEPHERD

A study of the 23rd Psalm

Part 6

“Goodness and Mercy Follow Me”

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.

3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.

4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.

6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

This time we’re looking at verse 6, the final verse in Ps. 23:

23:6 “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord.”

In closing out his psalm, David is looking back over an entire year in the life of a sheep with his shepherd. And he ends the journey with one thing every Christian can know for certain—goodness and mercy will always be a part of Jesus’s care for us. Goodness and mercy will be the treatment we receive from our Good Shepherd.

Now it’s easy to say this when things are going well, when the bills are being paid, we’re in good health, people are treating us right, and the sun is shining.

But what about when life takes a hard turn? When a job falls through, or our health erodes, or people we thought were our friends turn on us for no apparent reason. What about then? Do we still view the Lord as a good Shepherd that takes excellent care of us?

I can think of many times in my walk with Christ when I encountered deep, dark valleys. People I trusted and assumed were my friends proved otherwise, particularly when times were tough. In fact, I found myself surrounded by a tiny handful of supportive people who I never expected to be there. And those I DID expect to be there walked away.

But one thing I discovered through it all was when everyone else walked out, Jesus walked in! And He always over time worked His goodness and mercy into my circumstances. Paul the Apostle had the very same experience. He wrote,

“At my first defense (before Caesar), no one came to my support, but everyone deserted me. May it not be held against them. 17 But the Lord stood at my side and gave me strength, so that through me the message might be fully proclaimed and all the Gentiles might hear it. And I was delivered from the lion’s mouth” (2 Tim. 4:16-17).

The Lord’s goodness and mercy followed the Apostle wherever he went. And that is what David says of us all. Goodness and mercy are the signature blessings of Jesus Christ.

Our Good Shepherd has not promised we will be shielded from trials and testing, but He HAS promised to be with us in the trial, and to work it out to our good in the end. Goodness and mercy are always seen in retrospect!

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Now, not only do goodness and mercy follow along behind me as part of my walk with the Shepherd, I also leave them behind me, by way of a legacy to others, everywhere I go. Surely goodness and mercy shall be left behind me where I’ve been for others to enjoy.

Interestingly, in ancient literature sheep were referred to as “those of the golden hooves” because of the beneficial effect they had on land they had occupied. A sheep’s manure is the best fertilizer of any animal alive.

One sheep rancher wrote that he had personally witnessed two derelict ranches restored to high productivity and usefulness by sheep being brought onto the land for a season. In other words, goodness and mercy followed the flock of sheep.

We all leave a legacy behind everywhere we go. We might ask ourselves, “Do I typically leave a blessing behind me? Good memories? The fragrance of Jesus Christ? Or do I leave a trail of sadness and pain? If we walk with Jesus we will leave behind us a blessing. Paul the Apostle wrote, “For we are the aroma (fragrance) of Christ...” (2 Cor. 2:15).

The Prophet Isaiah wrote, “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of them that bring good news, that publish peace” (52:7). This is the way the followers of Christ should be viewed! Everywhere their feet trod they leave behind a blessing.

So let’s ask ourselves a few simple, searching questions:

Do I leave behind peace in others lives—or turmoil?

Do I leave behind forgiveness—or bitterness?

Do I leave behind contentment—or conflict?

Do I leave behind the aroma of joy—or frustration?

Do I leave behind love—or hostility?

Some people leave behind such a mess that their whole lives are comprised of covering their tracks!

But not those who walk closely with the Good Shepherd. They leave a legacy like Jesus did who, “went about everywhere doing good, and healing all who were oppressed of the devil!” (Acts 10:38)

Those that follow the Good Shepherd harbor no shame or trepidation about returning where they’ve been because they left an uplifting legacy, encouragement, goodness, and mercy!

So not only do goodness and mercy follow me personally, courtesy of my own Good Shepherd, I in turn leave behind me the legacy of goodness and mercy. You can’t give what you don’t have, but you will ALWAYS dispense what you do have. Thank God for goodness and mercy!

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Now we come to the close of this incredible psalm. The shepherd has taken us through a year in the life of a sheep. We’ve traveled from the green pastures and still waters of the home ranch, up through the mountain passes on the high tablelands of the summer range.

Fall has come with its storms and rain and sleet that drives the sheep down the foothills and back to the home ranch for the long, quiet winter. In a sense, this is coming home. For the sheep it is a return to the familiar surroundings of fields, corrals, barns, and shelters of the owner’s home.

It is with this scene in mind that David says, “I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.”

The application for we Christians is obvious. In our journey through life, our own Good Shepherd has guided us through all the trials and tribulations of this fallen world. He has safely led us through dark valleys, and has delivered us from dangerous, demonic predators. He has wisely instructed us to avoid the poisonous weeds of sin and the toxic unclean waters of worldly ways.

He has walked us through the seasons of our life as our faithful Shepherd and guide. The Bible says in Ecclesiastes 3:1 that, just as sheep are guided through the seasons of a year, we experience four seasons in our own life. “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven.” Life happens in seasons for us all.

It says that first there is ‘a time to be born’—this is the Spring of our lives when we are young and in need of instruction. In the spring of life we learn morals, ethics, and values. Our character begins to form. If we are fortunate enough to be introduced to Jesus in the spring of our life, the Lord begins the lifelong experience of leading us as our Shepherd.

Then next there is ‘a time to plant’—this is the Summer of our lives when we go about using what we have learned in the Spring season. We get out of school/college, and secure a job/career where we can demonstrate our talents. We typically get married and raise a family.

On the spiritual side of things, the summer season is when we put to use our calling and gifts. The seeds we sowed of Bible truth and time spent with the Lord in the spring season burst from the ground to bring forth kingdom fruit. The summer time is the time of opportunity, open doors, and maximum energy output for the kingdom.

Next comes ‘a time to pluck up’—This is the autumn of life. Autumn is harvest time and so it is with our life. In autumn time we draw on the resources we have ‘planted’ earlier in life. It’s like we are harvesting the vegetables from our garden which were planted for ‘another day’. Now it is time to pluck them up and put them to good use. In the autumn season we are sustained by the fruit of wise living of our summer season.

The dictionary gives one of it’s definitions for ‘pluck’ as, ‘Resourceful courage and daring in the face of difficulties’. That is the autumn of life. This is also the season where we pour our accumulated wisdom into others that are only now in their spring or summer seasons.

Lastly, there is ‘a time to die’. The Winter of our life is old age. To each of us there comes a time when material things no longer matter. My mother is in a retirement home. Everything she owns now fits in one small apartment. It wasn’t always that way.

In the winter season we are close to finishing our journey. We will soon stand before God and be judged according to our deeds, and receive our crown of life. Rev 2:10 says, “Blessed are those who die in the Lord that they may have rest from their labors, and their works follow them.”

Rev 14:13 says, “Precious in God’s sight is the death of his saints.”

The Bible says that we should be understand the season we’re in and “redeem the time (season),” making the most of every opportunity presented in that season (Eph. 5:16).

And it is the winter season of life where we gain comfort from the final verse of Ps 23, “I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Thank God the day is coming for the Christian when the devil will be bound, sin will be vanquished, pain and suffering will cease to exist, and we will dwell in endless bliss and peace in the arms of our Good Shepherd!