Finding Contentment in God

**Turn to Psalm 23

NEW SERIES coming SOON on the LIFE of DAVID…going to go through 1 & 2 SAMUEL + some Psalms...

DAVID = RELATABLE…TRIUMPHS & DOWNFALLS.

DAVID = MAN AFTER GOD’S OWN HEART.

DAVID NEVER HAD FALSE GODS in LIFE.

B4 SERIES…look @ Psalm 23, get an IDEA of DAVID’S HEART toward God...

Read text & pray...

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Intro:

(Q) Anyone here today ever STRUGGLE with FINDING CONTENTMENT in life?

Often SIGNIFICANTLY IMPACTED by WHAT you FOCUS on:

SELAH @ the MOVIES…WANTING GAMES...

DESPITE all the FUN STUFF & popcorn…there was MORE to BE WANTED!

PROBLEM we DON’T GROW OUT OF...

STRUGGLE for NONBELIEVERS.... & if we AREN’T CAREFUL it can CHARACTERIZE BELIEVERS TOO

See, we’re OFTENTIMES HAPPY with WHAT WE HAVE UNTIL we FIND OUT that there’s BIGGER or BETTER THINGS out there.

FAMILY member/FRIEND GETS NEW THING…house, car, camper, boat, etc.

KIDS = GOOD, until you SEE ANGELS @ STORE w/ perfect parents.

SPOUSE = GREAT... UNTIL you see SOMEONE ELSE’S…better looking, more fun, etc.

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SOCIAL MEDIA COMPOUNDS PROBLEM....see everyone’s HIGHLIGHT REEL vs. OUR ENTIRE LIVES, good, bad & ugly

Need:

This STRUGGLE might not hit everyone, but for those it does, it CAN BE DEVASTATING to our LIVES and our RELATIONSHIPS, ESP. our RELATIONSHIP with GOD.

** GOD = PROVIDER…one who cares for us.

INGRATITUDE/DISCONTENT says “what you’ve given me isn’t good enough.”

Yet, DESPITE THESE THINGS we see that when we HAVE GOD in OUR LIVES, we should be able to COME to PEACE with OUR LIVES we’ve been given.

And so we need this text today, because DAVID is going to SHOW US where TRUE CONTENTMENT is found, that we can experience for ourselves today.

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Text:

Thought 1: David’s Contentment with God (v1-3)

Psalm 23:1–6 (ESV)

1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. 3 He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

Lord, YAHWEH = SHEPHERD.

Remember, DAVID WAS a SHEPHERD, prior to becoming king.

POSTURE we MUST ADOPT in LIFE… ESP. DURING DISCONTENTMENT

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Personal nature:

LORD is MY SHEPHERD...

NOT INHERITING RELATIONSHIP SECOND HAND

BEYOND CORPORATE WORSHIP, WE MUST all HAVE an INDIVIDUAL RELATIONSHIP with the Lord…

BOTH = NECESSARY

CORPORATE side ISN’T BENEFICIAL IF you DON’T HAVE it on an INDIVIDUAL level!

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Result of having Lord as shepherd:

HAVE NO WANT/need..... “HAVE NO LACK...”

At present: NEEDS are PROVIDED.

In future: NEEDS are PROVIDED.

NO CAUSE to WORRY w/ Lord as shepherd.

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(V2) Metaphor continues:

He makes me LAY DOWN in GREEN PASTURES

he LEADS ME by STILL WATERS

For SHEEP, this means PROVISION.

PASTURES = EATING

WATER = DRINKING

**When God is your shepherd you don’t need to keep searching…your NEEDS are MET.

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STILL MUST WORK…SHOP for GROCERIES…YET GOD = PROVIDER.

Blessings/Provision:

Ability to go to work

place to work

having an employer w/ money

ways to turn money into food, clothing, shelter

WE DO OUR PART surely, yet GOD SUPPLIES OUR NEEDS...

Illustration: MAN on ROOF, PRAYING FOR GOD to SAVE HIM.

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(V3a) He RESTORES MY SOUL.

same word, Garden, GOD BREATHED into ADAM the BREATH of LIFE…BECAME a LIVING SOUL.

Since beginning, GOD is MEANT TO BE our LIFE SOURCE!…taking us FROM LIFELESS BODIES to LIVING BEINGS!!

The SOURCE of REFRESHMENT...

WONDERFUL NEWS, BECAUSE LIFE is DRAINING!

EUGENE PETERSON paraphrase...“You let me catch my breath.”

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MODERN AMERICANS—SUPER BUSY! Probably BUSIEST PEOPLE in HISTORY?

struggle to even get together with friends

GO on VACATION for REFRESHMENT…NEED VACATION FROM VACATION!

Story: LAKE TRIP on Friday = WORK.

BUSYNESS can be a DRAIN on the SOUL…BURNED OUT & tired....stop caring.

RUNNING on TREADMILL…WANT to TURN DOWN, BUT CAN’T…HE LET’S US CATCH OUR BREATH

God desires to restore and refresh our souls during draining times of life...

SHEEP ENJOY PASTURE & GRAZING...

DRINKING by STILL WATERS...

HAVE PEACE....

WHAT GOD DESIRES FOR US.

**There’s a reason you count sheep to sleep.

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DAVID BEGINS (v1-3a) GOD = PROVIDER....., cares for us, meets our needs, etc.

(V3b) GOD = SHEPHERD = our GUIDE.

RIGHT PATHS...

PATHS of RIGHTEOUSNESS...

SHEPHERD LEADS SHEEP NATURALLY, KEEPS them FROM going ASTRAY.

(Q) Have you experienced the guidance of God in life?

GOD PROVIDENTIALLY WORKS in our LIVES…WE OFTEN DON’T NOTICE TILL AFTERWARDS.

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SOME CHRISTIANS OVERPLAY the WILL of GOD —hooky/spooky

SOME DOWNPLAY it...

**MUST FIND HEALTHY BALANCE.

Two extremes:

PRAYING over FLAVOR ICE CREAM

NEGLECTING GOD’S HAND AT ALL!

Testimony: NUMBER of MINISTRY ROLES NEAR COUDY OPENING up SINCE we’ve MOVED…not previously available...

**CONSIDER GOD’S TIMING in this!

(I’m not looking already! Just happened to see them advertised!)

CAME AFTER WE MOVED & WERE ESTABLISHED HERE.

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Right paths/ Paths of righteousness...

GENERAL GUIDANCE + STANDARDS to LIVE BY…growing to BE HOLY AS HE is HOLY!

BEING LED as SHEEP on PATHS.... + GROWING in GODLINESS…FOLLOWING GOD’S DECREE in GOD’S WORD.

ALL for the SAKE of HIS NAME!

God as shepherd (V1-3):

PROVIDES for NEEDS

GUIDES us on RIGHT PATHS

Transition: Now, IN the MIDST of all these GOOD THINGS, DAVID also ACKNOWLEDGES that DIFFICULT TIMES COME, look at verse 4.

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Thought 2: David’s Confidence During Trial (v4)

4 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.

PSALM 23 BEGINS by RECOUNTING GOD’S GREAT CARE...

(Q) Yet at times doesn’t this seem contrary to reality?

AT TIMES, WE DON’T FEEL LIKE WE’RE BESIDE STILL WATERS, or IN GREEN PASTURES....

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IN VALLEY…VALLEY of SHADOW of DEATH...

Psalm 23 isn’t just pie in the sky!

IN MIDST of DARKNESS & DESPAIR…WE CAN HOPE!

GOD as SHEPHERD is GUIDING US…LEADING US...

Sometimes we’re in GREEN PASTURES

Sometimes in VALLEY of SHADOW...

valley of, “impenetrable gloom” (HALOT).

**SOMETIMES the “RIGHT PATHS” LEAD you TO the VALLEY...GOD is USING the DIFFICULTIES & TRIALS of LIFE

The COMFORT that WE can FIND, is that WHILE we are in the VALLEY, the LORD is STILL our SHEPHERD, he is still with us and he hasn’t abandoned us.

See, the SOURCE of HOPE in the VALLEY doesn’t come from a hope for escape,

it comes from the PRESENCE of the SHEPHERD who has PROMISED to BE WITH YOU,

NO MATTER how DEEP or DARK the VALLEY.

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SCRIPTURES are VERY PLAIN, GOD WILL NEVER LEAVE nor forsake us!

He will NEVER, NO NEVER, no never, FORSAKE!

Ill.: ANY OTHER PARENTS here a bit of HELICOPTER PARENTS, always watching?…

Ever WISH you could BE THERE to WATCH over THEM 100% of the TIME?

**The MOMENT you TAKE YOUR EYES OFF little KIDS is when they GET HURT

Our SHEPHERD, our FATHER in HEAVEN, is ALWAYS WATCHING. He’s omnipresent.

The BEST EARTHLY SHEPHERD, or PARENT, CAN’T PERFECTLY WATCH…yet ours does!

Our SHEPHERD HAS both GOOD INTENTIONS & ABILITY to CARRY THEM OUT…whether in PASTURE or VALLEY.

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(V4b) In VALLEY: Shepherd’s ROD & STAFF bring COMFORT!

ROD was for FIGHTING OFF ANIMALS/enemies…PROTECTION

SHEPHERD’S STAFF was for CORRALLING SHEEP...

EVEN IN the VALLEY, GOD is OUR DEFENDER, our SAVIOR, our GUIDE, and our HELPER.

These things are INTENDED to COMFORT US.

ASSURING US of HIS PRESENCE

Transition: Now, DAVID is going to CHANGE the SHEPHERD METAPHOR and REPLACE it with a HOST or FRIEND and US as the HOSTED ONE. Look at verses five and six.

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Thought 3: The Lord as a Host (v5-6)

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

BEYOND a SHEEP being GUIDED & PROVIDED FOR …the LORD = a FRIEND/ HOST....

IN the MIDST of ENEMIES, GOD GIVES a FEAST.

VALLEY TIMES DON’T MEAN GOD is DISTANT!…GOD is WITH US for OUR GOOD & for HIS GLORY!

GOD as the HOST ANOINTS the HEAD and OVERFLOWS the CUP,

OFFERING the BEST HOSPITALITY to the ONE whom HE LOVES...

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BECAUSE of ALL THIS.... we CAN BE SURE GOD’S GOODNESS & MERCY (STEADFAST LOVE) FOLLOW after us.

Follow = gentle…more plainly means, “to PURSUE/CHASE AFTER”

In context, YOU’D EXPECT ENEMIES would be CHASING him down…

GOD’S GOODNESS & his COVENANT-KEEPING, FAITHFUL LOVE, are CHASING DOWN!

If you’re in Christ, you can’t outrun the faithful love of our God!

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Ill.: HUMANS AREN’T as FAST as WE THINK anyways.

**EVER HEAR, NEVER try to OUTRUN a BEAR?

You see a BIG WILD ANIMAL…TEMPTED to RUN

HEAVY & CLUMSY…I MUST be FASTER...

BLACK BEARS are FASTER than 95% of DOGS and ALL HUMANS...

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TRAIL by WATER COMPANY off RT. 54....going for BIKE RIDE...

CAN’T OUTRUN a bear

CAN’T OUT CLIMB a bear

**I can PROBABLY OUT BIKE A BEAR! (BEARS CAN’T RIDE BIKES)

Truth be told…RUNNING BEAR = FASTER than ME on BIKE...

And in the SAME WAY, we have GOODNESS and STEADFAST LOVE, in HOT PURSUIT of US, and WE CAN’T OUTRUN these ATTRIBUTES of GOD if we tried.

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David FINISHES 2ND METAPHOR. “I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever”

The DOOR is ALWAYS OPEN...

not just a visitor on occasion.

Derek Kidner, “So to be God’s guest is to be more than an acquaintance, invited for a day. It is to live with him.”

How much more does this apply to us as new covenant believers!?

VEIL = TORN…come BOLDLY into his PRESENCE....for GRACE to HELP!

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Big Idea:

“If God is all you have, you have all you need.”

If GOD as SHEPHERD is FAITHFUL:

to LEAD you,

GUARD you,

CARE for you,

GUIDE you,

PROVIDE for you

LOVE you

What more can we desire in life? What do we lack? What can we fear?

Intention:

And so, our worship response this morning is FINDING TRUE CONTENTMENT in GOD as our PERSONAL SHEPHERD, who WATCHES OVER us and CARES for us.

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Gospel:

GOD as SHEPHERD BECOMES MORE PLAIN throughout salvation history...

JESUS is introduced as the “GOOD SHEPHERD.”

The HIRELING RUNS away...

GOOD SHEPHERD GIVES his LIFE FOR the SHEEP...

The SAFETY and WELL-BEING of the SHEEP is MORE IMPORTANT TO the SHEPHERD THAN his OWN LIFE!

Think about this!

I CAN’T IMAGINE someone GIVING their LIFE for a PET…maybe...

but the GOOD SHEPHERD would be willing to DIE for his SHEEP.

JESUS DIED FOR UNWORTHY, REBELLIOUS, STUBBORN SHEEP...

ISAIAH: ALL LIKE SHEEP have GONE ASTRAY....

The LORD God has LAID UPON CHRIST the INIQUITY of US ALL!

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JESUS BORE our SIN & SHAME on the CROSS...

NOTHING CAN SEPARATE us FROM LOVE of GOD in JESUS CHRIST:

The Scripture says that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Rom. 8:38-39).

GOD’S STEADFAST LOVE and GOODNESS are in PURSUIT of THOSE who ARE HIS.

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In TODAY’S PSALM: GOD as SHEPHERD is FAITHFUL to SEE US THROUGH the VALLEY of the SHADOW of DEATH...

There’s a GUARANTEE ALL of us WILL FACE VALLEYS …also a GUARANTEE that ALL of us WILL FACE DEATH.

IF YOU’RE IN CHRIST, DEATH is the ENTRANCE to GLORY!

Our GOD’S PRESENCE with us ISN’T EVEN NULLIFIED BY the GRAVE…THANKS to the WORK of JESUS!

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JESUS as the SHEPHERD DIED FOR his SHEEP…and HE SAID there were MORE BEYOND the FOLD that he HAD TO GATHER

Perhaps this is you.

IF YOU DON’T KNOW the LORD as your SHEPHERD, you can BE SAVED & FIND this CONTENTMENT in HIM TODAY!

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SALVATION NOT BASED on MERIT of the SHEEP…BUT SHEPHERD ALONE....

LEAVE the 99 to FIND 1 ASTRAY

And if you don’t know the Lord today, YOU CAN BE SAVED by grace, through faith, TODAY.

And if you aren’t sure where you stand with the Lord, we’d love to speak with you after the service.

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Takeaways:

IF the LORD is YOUR SHEPHERD, you will HAVE NO LACK...

This promise is only for those in covenant with God!

GOD is STILL the SHEPHERD, and HE IS STILL WITH YOU, whether you’re in GREEN PASTURES, or in the VALLEY.

He is with you & cares for you.

GOD’S GOODNESS and His STEADFAST LOVE and mercy, are FASTER THAN YOU.

They’re FASTER than your SIN, your SHAME, your IMPERFECTIONS, or your STUBBORNNESS .

And if you’re in Christ, and have made covenant with God, they’re chasing after you.

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Application:

Are you in GREEN PASTURES and BESIDE STILL WATERS?

Are you in the VALLEY?

Or are you SOMEWHERE IN BETWEEN and in NEED of REFRESHMENT?

BAD TIMES can MAKE us WEARY...

GOOD TIMES can make us COMPLACENT...

Remind yourself every morning, “Because I am in Christ, God has made covenant with me as my shepherd, and I will not lack.”

GOOD TIMES = SOURCE of BLESSING...

BAD TIMES = HOPE for FUTURE...

This ISN’T a PROSPERITY THING... This DOESN’T GUARANTEE you HEALTH and WEALTH and ALL the THINGS in BETWEEN.

BUT it does ASSURE YOU that HIS PRESENCE will GO WITH YOU, and that HE WILL NEVER LEAVE, you nor forsake you.

And if you have Him, you have all you need.

Close in prayer.