"The Lord is My Shepherd"

Psalm 23 ESV

A Psalm of David. 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.

When I read this Psalm and close my eyes, I can see a number of different clear mental images. Hospital beds, with people I loved saying their final goodbyes. Graveside services, as many of us together watched in shock, disbelief and sadness as we said goodbye. The verse that I have found that most always sticks with people as it is read is “even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.” Because of this, we use this verse most often in funerals and in times of sickness.

But something really struck me that helped me think about the 23rd Psalm in a whole new light. But in order to share this with you, I have to first make a confession to you: prior to this year, I had never, ever read Pilgrim’s Progress. Even now, I have only read the children’s version of it! We read it together as a family, and it was pretty amazing. But do you know what really struck me about reading the book? In Bunyan’s work, the valley of the shadow of death is the second valley the Christian goes through, and is very early in his journey, a long long way from the celestial city. That vexed me from the time we read it until last week! As I was preparing for this message this week, I came across a commentary on Pilgrim’s Progress written by Ken Puls, and he said this about the valley: “This second valley represents the struggles and oppression we face in our pilgrimage when we can no longer see clearly the light of the gospel. Truth is shrouded in darkness. Temptation and sin threaten to cast us down.”

When you think about that reality, that we live in a weedy world, where thorns and thistles often threaten to choke out the truth of His Word, and where we are constantly beset by troubles, it not only makes Bunyan’s book comes alive, it gives us new perspective on the 23rd Psalm. And that is what I hope for us today. This Psalm is a light for those in darkness, whether that be standing on the precipice of the unknown in eternity, or navigating the fog of sorrow. In each time and season of our life, God is a shepherd for His children. And that, my friends, it the big idea for today! God is our shepherd. How does God as shepherd encourage us to continue to press on in seasons of hardship?

We don’t have all the information about the background of this Psalm, but many think it may have been written when King David was in the wilderness on the run from Absalom. I think, whether that is true or not, it is a fascinating case study on a difficult time to have peace. If you care to read the whole story, you can jot down 2 Samuel 15 for more information about it. In short, if you can imagine being run off from your reign as king, being betrayed by your own son, who desires to kill you, and having no earthly security, that’s where David is. If there were a time when one would be wrestling with having peace, this would be it. David relates to us how to live peace by giving us two primary truths that relate to shepherding: shepherds provide for their sheep, and shepherds have a destination for their sheep.

I. The Good Shepherd Provides for His Sheep

I think the picture of God as shepherd is one of the most enduring pictures of God’s love and care. There’s something about it that just resonates with us. The Psalm gives us two aspects of this care in these verses that strike us as powerful

A. The Shepherd provides personally for each sheep – first, look at the personal nature of God’s care. David says the Lord is MY shepherd. Our salvation is deeply personal. We affirm, as we should, that God has saved a people, and named us the church. That church operates as a body, but each individual member is intimately loved and cared for by God Himself. The temptation in the Old Testament era was to emphasize the corporate nature of salvation at the expense of the individual nature. The Shema, one of the greatest exclamations of the nature and character of God, is written, “The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” It was important, then, for a Psalm like this to explain and exclaim that the covenantal love of God was deeply personal as well. He loves us. In our time, the temptation is to neglect the corporate nature of the love of God. He loves you! But He also loves us! And these are both equally true. But as we think about those of us who wrestle with sorrow and suffering, it can be difficult to think of the personal, intimate love of God for us individually and personally. I think David would have had this same struggle as he was on the run from his own son: he needed to be reminded of the personal care of God, even in the midst of crisis. This personal care is demonstrated in three ways:

1. First, He supplies my need. The little phrase “I shall not want” reminds us that God supplies our needs. When we translate this passage “want,” we have to be careful to understand what that word means here. We often relate that word to desire, thus implying that if you have Christ, you will no longer desire anything else. This phrase is more accurately translated “I shall not be lacking.” But, maybe you are like me, and you find that you often feel like you are lacking! You see hungry Christians, or suffering Christians, or lonely Christians, and you wonder how we deal with the reality of life in a fallen world in light of this little verse. But there is more here. This is set almost like a cause and effect statement. God is my shepherd; I will not lack. It is a statement of confidence. It is a statement of satisfaction. God supplies my need, because He has supplied Himself. I can trust the hand of God to supply all He thinks is good for me at the time. I will, in Christ, be complete. Even if I am seemingly deprived from material things, I will have completeness in Him. And that’s where the definition of peace starts for us. I will have the wholeness I long for when I rest in the hand of God.

Even in those times when I cannot see God’s hand, or feel His hand, I must trust the shepherd. Even when I am in the dregs of sorrow, or dealing with suffering, I must trust the shepherd. I will not lack any good thing, because I have been given Christ. I find I have to remind myself of this often. The easiest way to apply this passage to our own lives is to fill in one simple blank: If I just had _______, then I would have all I need. How do you answer this question?

2. Second, He provides my rest. In verse two, the shepherd is described as doing two things for us. First, He makes me lie down in green pastures. The green pastures were a seasonal sort of phenomenon, In the winter, the sheep would be able to stay in one place, not having to move from field to field in search of food. There is a stability to this phrase, a confidence that God will settle a restless soul. One doesn’t have to search from field to field, we as God’s sheep rest in Him. His care is constant. Our peace comes in knowing and trusting the consistency of the shepherd’s care. And then, not only is my soul settled from its restlessness, it is refreshed. The quiet waters are the places the shepherd leads us to be refreshed from the draining nature of living in a restless world. Restlessness is contagious. If you spend any time working with toddlers, you know this is true. God’s hand guides His sheep to the still, quiet places where we can be refreshed. And in this refreshment, our soul often hears best the voice of our shepherd. Matthew Henry, in his great little book The Quest for Meekness and Quietness of Spirit writes “the meek will be guided in judgment by a still small voice which cannot be heard when the passions are loud and tumultuous.”

3. Third, he guides my path. Not only does He restore, He refreshes, and He guides. I am guided through these “paths of righteousness” for His glory. As life moves on about me, as I don’t understand the trajectory of life, peace comes in resting in the glorious plan of God to bring about His glory in all the earth. If I am in Him, my life is intended to bring about His glory. Peace comes in reminding myself of this truth, and living in light of it.

B. The Shepherd gives protection to His Sheep – and along with the personal nature of God’s care, seen in this provision, is the protection of God’s hand. The Psalm shifts to “even when I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.” The tenor changes to a dangerous, dark place. The path of righteousness has moved to a lightless place, where we must trust the hand of the shepherd. David shifts the person from third person to first person here. He is no longer just talking about God, he is talking to God – “you are with me.” This is what my son does when he is scared. David is saying “God, you are with me.”

Thinking about what we said at the beginning here, that the valley of the shadow of death isn’t just at the end of our lives, makes this promise of His protection even more rich right now. For some of us, the valley of the shadow of death are those moments when we just can’t dig out of the sorrow. For others, it is that moment of quiet and nervous waiting as we wait for a doctor’s prognosis. For some still, it’s when we pray over wayward adult children who have not submitted to Christ. But the reality of the Christian life is that we will walk through the valley of the shadow of death, most likely several times. But He is with us. And because of that, we fear no enemy. His rod, His staff, they are my comfort. The staff was used to keep the sheep close; the rod, to discipline and defend. The word is clear. I do not have to fear because I know and understand the protection and provision of the shepherd. Our God protects us from all harm. He keeps us close, despite our tendency to wander. He gently corrects us. My peace comes from knowing that, though the path of righteousness may go through dark valleys, God Himself attends my way, and will see me through.

II. The Shepherd has a good destination for His sheep

When we have the opportunity to lead others, we must always have a destination in mind. Likewise, we are always more inclined to follow people that we believe have a destination in mind. David reminds us in this Psalm that God not only provides for us on the journey of the Christian life, but it leading us to a good destination. the metaphor shifts in verse 4, and now we see this picture of us sitting at the table of God. So, not only am I a sheep, I am a child. What do both have in common? They are generally helpless without someone coming alongside them. (if time, talk about the sheep behind the house) Certainly God does describe us as sheep, but I think that is often to point to the exceeding value of the shepherd, not to the stupidity of the sheep. He also calls us His children. So it is here. Certainly, we are like sheep; but we who are in Christ are also children.

A. we will dine at the table of grace – and so we sit, in the presence of our enemies, at the table of grace. Spurgeon writes about this passage “Nothing is hurried, there is no confusion, no disturbance, the enemy is at the door and yet God prepares a table, and the Chrsitian sits down and eats as if everything were in perfect peace.” Because everything is at perfect peace. We live in light of the table of grace. We face opposition in this world, knowing that we who are in Christ are accepted by God.

The Christian has three main enemies: the world, the flesh, and the devil. When we trust God as our good Shepherd, then we can sit and eat at the table of grace without fear or worry about these enemies. When I am in the valley of the shadow of death, it is because this is the path God must take me on so that I can sit at the table of grace. When I am wrestling through despair, God is using that to take me to the table of grace. When I am navigating suffering and loss, when my health fails, and my friends forsake me, it is all so that I will be led to the table of grace.

B. God sees us as honored guests – and not only accepted, we are seen as honored guests. “He anoints my head with oil.” The honored guest at a table would have his head anointed with oil. We, who once were enemies of God, at war against Him, now sit as guests at His table. Our peace is lived as we remind ourselves that we will be rejected by those who oppose us on earth, but Christ has loved us perfectly. God, our shepherd, our host, loves and cares for us and provides for us.

These things are things that are objectively true! Again, imagine David, homeless and on the run from his son, with many in his nation against him, reminding himself o this truth! “He anoints my head with oil.” He cares, very carefully and specifically for me. And He will provide for me according to His riches in glory. It doesn’t much matter whether these things feel true. What matters, and what helps, is when you stubbornly believe that they are true!

C. God’s grace is abundantly greater than our troubles – our cup runs over, and we see God’s grace as abundantly greater than our troubles. If we have a right view of salvation, of the depth of our sin and the riches of God’s grace to save us from sin, we will have a right view of the superabundant mercy and grace of God. We often cheapen the grace of God, or underestimate the depth of His mercy. We are anxious to get what we think we need now, and we forget His great gift of salvation, both the cost and its value. But when we remind ourselves that this great gift is to us as honored guests, seated at the table of God, we may have the peace, the calmness that we seek. We glorify God, and praise His great salvation, and sit as honored guests.

D. We are being led to a glorious place – we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever! Listen to that again: we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever! WE are headed to something beyond description. As Paul says, these light and momentary afflictions are nothing compared to the weight of glory! We find that the longer we walk with Christ, the more sensitive we become to seeing the evidences of His grace in our life. The manifestations of goodness and mercy that we see in life become more visible to us as our eyes and ears are tuned to hear the voice of the master. And in the end of it all, the monuments of grace, built by God, that serve to remind us of His ever present care, show us the protection of our shepherd and the graciousness of our host as we long, finally, to dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

III. Application – so, how does this work itself out practically? In the midst of unsatisfying jobs, or a house full of screaming kids, or too much money and too little month, how do I live this life in peace? Certainly the peace of God has been promised, but what does it look like? I think it may be helpful to have two points of application here:

A. First, apply these verbs to your life. Look at the way David describes what God does: He makes. He leads. He restores. He guides. He comforts. He prepares. He anoints. He follows. I dwell. The only part of this that has anything to do with what I do is the dwelling part. Living out peace means submitting to the shepherd. And it all happens now. In the midst of an unsatisfying job that seems to leave a yawning hunger of unfulfilled expectations, I do not have to long for God to give care for my needs. He has cared for my needs. I do not have to long for God to lead me and replenish my soul. Resting in His care does replenish my soul. I don’t have to hope for His hand to guide my life. He is guiding my life. Even in this season. We take each of those words, remind ourselves of these truths. Take a page from David and speak them to God. There is no peace if there is no prayer. To speak in turmoil “God, you lead. You restore. You guide. You comfort.” Remind yourself that you are not supposed to just rely on God, you are supposed to submit to Him. If you are in Him, you belong to Him. In belonging to Him, we find our rest and peace. In the midst of all the crazy, He is our refreshment.

B. Second, and more importantly, we look at this psalm in light of the Gospel. The placement of the Psalms is fortuitous for us, for there is no Psalm 23 without first going through Psalm 22. There is no “The Lord is my Shepherd” if there is no “my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” We must have the good shepherd, who lays down His life for the sheep. We must have the shepherd who cares personally for His sheep, who would say “I know my own, and my own know me.” We must have the shepherd who supplied my greatest need, who reconciled me to God, for I was an enemy of His will. We must have the shepherd who gives peace by being peace for me, so that I may have peace with God. We need the shepherd who walked the road of Calvary so that I may do good works, which He prepared beforehand, along the paths of righteousness, for His glory and for His namesake. I must have the shepherd who used the rod of His righteous right hand to knock in the teeth of the enemies of death and hell, who now sits at the right hand of God the Father on High. In short, I must have Christ to have peace. There is no peace apart from the prince of peace.

I must have the shepherd of heaven who also serves as the host. I must have the good shepherd who overcame death and reconciled man to God so I can be seated at His table. I must have the Host who makes us adopted sons and daughters of God. The host who dries our tears and gives overabundant grace. The one who has given the ministry of reconciliation. Peace starts, lives with, is given by, dwells in, and consists of Christ. He is peace. I must have Jesus.

C. So then, we end where we began – peace is the settled state of the soul that is satisfied in Christ. We live peace by doing four things: First, we surrender our lives, our loves, and our desires to Jesus, the lover of our souls. Second, we rest in His atoning work, comforted by the fact that we are in Him. Third, we find His glory to be our greatest joy. We find peace in our life by relinquishing rights to our life, and pursuing His holiness for His glory. Finally, we look at our circumstances in light of the truths of the Gospel, not the Gospel in light of our circumstances. We see God as glorious, and we find that our souls may sing the tune they were created to sing. We then, and only then, have peace.