Shepherdship of God 2
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Shepherdship of God Vs: 4-6
Shepherdship of God Vs: 4-6
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.
4 Even if I pass through death-dark ravines, I will fear no disaster; for you are with me; your rod and staff reassure me.
Psalm 23:4 “Yea, though I walk through the valley..”
Now the sheep turns to address the shepherd directly .. personal pronouns I and Thou. Becomes most intimate.
During summer the shepherd and the sheep will be travelling to distant ranges .. slowly making their way up the mountain.
David knew it and thats the reason he could right clearly (when Samuel called).
The shepherd is fully prepared and skilled to take care of the sheep under every circumstances. He never takes the sheep where he has not gone before.
11 Through our union with Christ we too have been claimed by God as his own inheritance. Before we were even born, he gave us our destiny; that we would fulfill the plan of God who always accomplishes every purpose and plan in his heart.
All of this is brought out in a beautiful simplicity of the last verse.. “I will not fear, for you are with me.
In Christian life we, as with ordinary sheep management, so with God’s people, one only gains higher ground by climbing up through the valleys.
Note: I walk through the valley of the shadow of death - not stay there or die there.. rather walk through
Our Shepherd knows all of this when He leads us through the valleys. He knows where we can find strength and sustenance and gentle grazing despite every threat of disaster about us.
33 These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.”
The basic question is not whether we have many or few; dark or merely dim valleys .. the question of how we react to them, how do I go through them, how do we cope with the calamities that come our way? WITH CHRIST OUR GREAT SHEPHERD WE FACE THEM CALMLY.
I will fear no disaster; for you are with me
Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me.
Rod and Staff (picture)
In the Middle East the shepherd carries only a rod and staff
Each shepherd boy, from the time he first starts to tend his father’s flock, takes special pride in the selection of a rod and staff exactly suited to his own size and strength. It will perfectly fit the owner’s hand - David and Goliath
The rod was in fact the extension of the owner’s right arm - 1. Offensive weapon
It stood as the symbol of strength, his power, authority in any serious situations. The sheep asserts that owner’s rod, his weapon of power, authority, and defense, is a continuous comfort to him.
Moses used the rod - to demonstrate power vested in him. Miracles - to convince Pharaoh of Moses’ divine commission , but also to reassure the people of Israel
Rod is the spoken Word, the expressed intent, the extended activity of God’s mind and will in dealing withe men. It carries with it the convicting power and irrefutable impact of “Thus saith the Lord”
It is reassuring to the child of God to turn to the Word of God and know it to be His Shepherd’s hand of authority.
2. Discipline- The second dimension in which the rod is used by the shepherd for the welfare of his sheep - discipline
Shepherd wandering away to danger - the rod/club whistles through the air to send the wayward animal scurrying back to the bunch - it is the Word that swiftly comes to our heart - Holy Spirit convicts our conscience of right conduct
11 Your word I have hidden in my heart, That I might not sin against You.
3. To examine and count the sheep
37 “I will make you pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant;
A sheep that passed “under the rod” was one which had been counted and looked over with great care to make sure all was well with it.
It is, too a comfort to the sheep, for only in this way can its hidden problems be laid before the shepherd. Wool carefully examined
Wool in scripture speaks of the self-life, self-will, self assertion, self-pride, God has to get below this and do a deep work in our wills..
23 Search me, O God, and know my heart; Try me, and know my anxieties; 24 And see if there is any wicked way in me, And lead me in the way everlasting.
4. Rod used both as defense and a deterrent against anything that would attack.
Drive out predators, often used to beat the brush to get rid of snakes and other creatures from disturbing the flock - the Word of God
David - killed lion and bear that came to raid his flocks - the Word of God
Shepherd’s Staff: - long, slender stick, often with a crook or hook on one end (picture)
In a sense, the staff more than any other item of personal equipment identifies the shepherd as a shepherd
Unique instrument for care and management of sheep
Staff - symbol of concern & compassion
In the Middle East, the shepherds in the twilight of life, standing silently leaning on their staves, watching their flocks with contented spirits. Somehow the staff is of special comfort to the shepherd himself. (Practice thanking God before bed)
The Staff of God is symbolic of the Holy Spirit
1. Drawing sheep together into an intimate relationship - newborn lamb - odor of shepherd’s hand
To catch and draw individual sheep close to him
2. For guiding sheep - gently into a new path or through a gate
He never beats the sheep
13 However, when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth; for He will not speak on His own authority, but whatever He hears He will speak; and He will tell you things to come.
Holy Spirit quietly and emphatically make the life of Christ, my Shepherd real and personal and intimate to me.
He can be relied on to assist us in every decision - He actually conveys the mind of Christ in the matter to my mind
Stubborn sheep running to danger can be pulled back only by the long staff
Your staff comforts me ! Your Spirit, O Christ, is my consolation!
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.
It is well to bear in mind that the sheep are approaching the high mountain country of the summer ranges- known as alp-lands or tablelands so much sought after by sheepmen ( picture)
So it may be seen that what David referred to as a table was actually the entire high summer range.
The shepherd will go ahead and make preliminary survey trips into this rough, wild country. keeping ever in mind its best use for his flock during the coming season. Just before the sheep arrives he make another expedition or two to prepare the tableland for them.
make sure grass is available on the route
check for poisonous weeds on the way- either avoid or take drastic steps to eradicate them
Christian life — we want to do everything and taste everything that comes our way - some are deadly and some do no good to us
Our great shepherd has gone before us to cope with every adverse situations we may encounter
Jesus warning Peter
31 And the Lord said, “Simon, Simon! Indeed, Satan has asked for you, that he may sift you as wheat. 32 But I have prayed for you, that your faith should not fail; and when you have returned to Me, strengthen your brethren.”
2. Another task the attentive shepherd takes on in the summer is to keep an eye out for predators
8 Stay sober, stay alert! Your enemy, the Adversary, stalks about like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.
Call upon the Lord
3. The shepherd clears out the water holes, springs, and drinking places for his stock. He will open the springs that may have become overgrown with grass and brush and weeds
Christ our our Great Shepherd has gone before us — he was tempted in all points lis as we are. He identifies with the humanity .. made provision for us to cope with satan, sin or self
Valleys and mountain tops in Christian life - without valley there is no mountain top
Christ paid the price - Lord’s table — deep appreciation and gratefulness to him- He gave up everything
It is this attitude of rest in Him, of confidence in His care, of relaxation as we realize His presence in the picture that can make the Christian’s life one of calm and quite confidence.
15 For this is what Adonai Elohim, the Holy One of Isra’el, says: “Returning and resting is what will save you; calmness and confidence will make you strong— but you want none of this!
10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
To live thus is to live richly
To walk here is to walk with quiet assurance
To feed here is to be replete with good things
To find this tableland is to have found something of my Shepherd’s love for me
You anoint my head with oil
Recounting the salient events of the full year in a sheep’s life. Psalm 23 takes us with him from the home ranch where every need is so carefully supplied by the owner, out into the green pastures, along the still waters, up through the mountain valleys to the high tablelands of summer
Intimate contact with the shepherd
Summer time is fly time - different types of flies and mosquitos - annoys the sheep
break their head
run off - kill itself because of aggravation (suicide)
demons attack our mind - battle field
Beelzebub means “lord of the flies.” In Hebrew and Jewish literature, the name is translated to mean “lord of dung” or “lord of filth.
24 Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, “This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons.”
At the very first sign of the flies among the flock he will apply an antidote to their heads - oil (Olive Oil with sulfur and spices) - anoint the sheep’s nose and head with oil
Holy Spirit only will help us to overcome the demonic attacks on our mind
Scab - literally the sheep’s head must be dunked in the oil tub
Contamination of our mind from the world
13 If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”
6 So he answered and said to me: “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ Says the Lord of hosts.
Daily ask for Holy Spirit’s anointing
Apply the oil of Your Spirit to my mind
My cup runs over
The autumn days — the sheep have respite now from flies and insects and scab. No other season finds them so fit and well and strong . No wonder David wrote, “My cup runs over”
Jesus - Gethsemane - wine cup - His blood spilled for us
And now matter what storms I face, His very life and strength and vitality is poured into mine . It overflows so the cup of my life runs over with His life
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.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life
Throughout the study of this Psalm continuous emphasis has been put upon the care exercised by the attentive sheepman. It has been stressed how essential to the warfare of the sheep is the rancher’s diligent effort and labor. All benefits enjoyed by a flock under skilled and loving management
Now all this summed up here by the psalmist in one brave but simple statement: “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life”
Our great Shepherd’s care and management - Goodness and mercy will be the treatment we receive from our Master’s expert, loving hands
A boast and ab exclamation of implicit confidence in the One who controls his career and destiny
Psalm 33:11 TPT His destiny-plan for the earth stands sure. His forever-plan remains in place and will never fail.
Not just when the things are going well but when in valleys— These are the sort of times that test a person’s confidence in the case of Christ
With my limited understanding as finite human being I could not always comprehend His management executed in infinite wisdom. Worry, fear and ask why?
My serenity has as it basis an implicit, unshakable reliance on His ability to do the right thing, the best thing in any given situation.
This to me is the supreme portrait of my Shepherd
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life
The question is, is this true of my life? Do I leave a blessing and benediction behind me?
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.
This psalm opened with the proud, joyous statement, “The Lord is my Shepherd”. Now it closes with the equally positive, buoyant affirmation.. “And I will dwell in the house of the Lord Forever.”
Sheep utterly satisfied with its lot in life all through the year and finally from summer trek back to the house of the shepherd - “Nothing will ever make me leave this outfit - it’s great
On the Shepherd’s side - has developed a great affection and devotion to his flock. He would never think of parting with such a sheep. Healthy, contented, productive sheep are the delight and profit. So strong, now are the bonds between then it in very truth - forever
Christian and the relationship with Christ His great Shepherd - everlasting lif
Boast to others about the goodness of Christ to others
Actually what is referred to by “house” is the family or household or flock of the Good Shepherd
By the contentment and serenity of our lives we should show what a distinct advantage it is to be a member of His “household of faith”
I will live ever aware of God’s presence
David had in his heart as he ended this hymn of praise to divine diligence