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The Shepherd’s Psalm
Psalm 23: 1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Even 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.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.[1]
Introduction
Today I begin a new sermon series and I stand before you today with a sense of trepidation.
Not that I fear to stand before you.
Not that I fear preaching the Word of the Lord to you.
No, my apprehension is in the form of the central passage: Psalm 23.
Of all the psalms, this may be the most familiar within earshot this morning.
I have never preached a series on this beloved psalm and that is where the nervousness rises.
I chose this psalm as its first five words have preoccupied my thinking for months.
My meditation of this psalm has led me to wanting more:
1.
I want to know my Shepherd in a real and tangible way.
2. I want to trust my Shepherd with a stronger faith.
3. I want to love my Shepherd with a new relationship.
4. I want to worship my Shepherd realizing what He has done for me.
I have basked in the light of Jesus’ love since I was twenty-two and I am assured of my salvation, and I know where I will spend eternity.
However, my conundrum is fully trusting in the realization that the LORD is My Shepherd.
I have been a reader of Phillip Keller for many years.
He is a shepherd himself and his insight into the mind of a shepherd and his take on the Psalm 23 thrilled me as I dove into his book with both feet.
I first became acquainted with him in 1978 when I picked up a copy of his book titled, “A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23.”
The introduction to those first five words in his book read:
“The LORD!
But Who is the Lord?
What is His character?
Does He have adequate credentials to be my Shepherd – my manager – my owner?
And if He does – how do I come under His control?
In what way do I become the object of His concern and diligent care?”[2]
John J. Davis, from his book, “The Perfect Shepherd,” writes:
I find the Twenty-Third Psalm like moving water that begins as a small stream, but the more one traces its path, it continues to widen into a river, and ultimately an overwhelming ocean of spiritual truth.
It would be tragic indeed if we merely outlined the course of that river and never took time to drink for refreshment.
The incredible beauty and spiritual wealth of this poem will never be fully exhausted, simply because its focus is on the Good Shepherd, who is the Lord Himself.[3][4]
I wonder if David, prone to writing, singing, and playing music perfected this song on the sweeping hills of his father’s pastures.
Perhaps it came to him all at once, or through many experiences as he tended his father’s sheep.
Through the eyes and song of David, we can get a fresh and new look at our Great Shepherd Jesus Christ.
The beauty of the setting and its literary impact is missed by most readers.
I have performed many funerals and almost without a doubt, the 23rd Psalm is the most requested to be read.
It is a psalm of hope and comfort.
Through this sermon series, my desire is to mine the nuggets of David’s love and reliance of God through his life.
We know that David was the youngest son of Jesse, tended the sheep of his father, and will one day be enthroned as King over Israel.
We know that he spent days and nights under the Judean skies caring for the family’s sheep.
Through the rainy season, summer, and winter, David was with the sheep.
He would direct his sheep from afar with his voice or whistle which the sheep knew.
We are told that adversaries came to steal, and the lion and bear were always in the area to destroy the sheep.
David had to deal with rustlers who wanted to steal his father’s sheep.
David was the youngest of Jesse’s sons and therefore the task of caring for the sheep fell to him.
While we do not know when this psalm was written, we can sense the passion in the words as David identifies the LORD in his own words.
When I read the words of David’s psalm, I am intrigued by his comparison to two things that David knew best: tending sheep, and his relationship with the LORD.
While Psalm 23 is not a complicated psalm, it is filled with a richness that transcends the ages.
Its simplicity lay in the two identities found in the psalm.
The LORD God of Israel is compared to a Shepherd and God’s people are compared to sheep.
By extension, we can see that the believers in Jesus Christ can be likened to the sheep in this psalm.
The idea that the Lord is likened unto a Shepherd is not a single instance.
For example, the Prophet Isaiah compared the Lord to a Shepherd in Isaiah 40:11.
Isaiah 40:11 He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young.
The Prophet Jeremiah declared the work of the Lord as a shepherd keeping his flock.
Jeremiah 31:10 Hear the word of the Lord, O nations, and declare it in the coastlands far away; say, ‘He who scattered Israel will gather him, and will keep him as a shepherd keeps his flock.
The eightieth psalm, attributed to Asaph also included the idea that the LORD was a shepherd, this time as a shepherd of Israel.
Psalms 80:1 Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, you who lead Joseph like a flock.
You who are enthroned upon the cherubim, shine forth.
Several times in the Old Testament we find the reference to the LORD as the Shepherd to Israel in the wilderness:
Psalm 77:20 Thou leddest thy people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron.
Psalm 78:52 But made his own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.
53 And he led them on safely, so that they feared not: but the sea overwhelmed their enemies.
Being a shepherd was a common trade in the near east as families would have livestock.
The shepherd was responsible for feeding, leading, guarding, and finding rest for the flock.
Within the six verses of this psalm, we can get a glimpse of the faith, trust, and confidence that David has for his LORD to be his Shepherd.
Echoing Psalm 23 in the New Testament
The Apostle John points to Jesus as the Shepherd three ways:
Jesus is the Shepherd of His sheep (Jn 10:2)
Jesus is the Door of the sheep (Jn 10:7)
Jesus is the Good Shepherd Who gives His life for His sheep (Jn 10:11)
Today, I will be reading from the English Standard Bible (ESV) instead of the King James Version of the Bible.
Simply because I want to view this passage through a different lens.
I have this psalm memorized in the KJV, so bear with me if I slip up and quote the KJV in lieu of the ESV.
Please stand with me as we read this very familiar passage:
The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Even 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.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.[5]
Breaking Down the Text
David’s psalm contains several statements.
In these statements he uses “first person, second person, and third person.”
I shall not want (Ps 23:1)
He makes me lie down in green pastures (Ps 23:2)
He leads me beside still waters (Ps 23:2)
He restores my soul (Ps 23:3)
He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name sake (Ps 23:3)
I will fear no evil (Ps 23:4)
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