God the Shepherd

Good morning!

It’s good to be back

Wed. Night: Luke 1, read ahead, bring your questions/comments/thoughts

This is not going to be a lecture, this is us as a church growing together, learning from one another

Plan is to meet in the Sunday School room now that I know how to work the lock (that was embarrassing)

Psalm 23:1

Prayer

Who is God?

Not a simple question is it? Go ahead and think about it for just a moment…

Who is God?

……………….

AW Tozer, in his book Knowledge of the Holy, said this:

“What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”

Our right understanding of God, His nature, His characteristics, who God is; What we think about……most important thing

Do you view God as a genie who grants wishes…..gumball machine (prayers or quarters?)

Do you think God is vengeful, cruel, or evil who seeks to punish those who dare to disobey him?

There are a lot of opinions about God floating out there

Our thoughts about God are often shaped by our environment

No matter where you are in the world, this is true

How do we know what’s right? How can we begin to understand? 

Good news: you don’t have to take anybody’s word for it, we have THE word, The Bible

God has given us his word, passed down intact for thousands of years so that we may understand His redemptive plan for humanity and see it play out throughout history

Contained within this book is what God has chosen to give us so that we might rightly understand him

Is it complete? Is everything about God here? No

How could all there is to know about an infinite and eternal God be contained within the binding of a book? It can’t.

But this is what God has given us and we can be confident that it is exactly what we need

Over the next few weeks we are going to examine a few select passages so that we may better understand God

Again, this is not a complete list, it could never be complete

My prayer is that your understanding deepens each week

Every day during your personal bible study time as well

We will spent the rest of our lives seeking to understand God and by his grace we will move closer each day and we will never even scratch the surface

We are going to begin this journey with Psalm 23

I would venture to say that Psalm 23 is one of the most recognized passages in the Bible

Many of you I’m sure are very familiar with this psalm

If you grew up with any exposure to church you’ve heard it

Coffee mugs, wall decor, Grandma had it on a needlepoint pillow

What is God telling us about himself in these few verses?

v.1

The Lord – Yahweh, I AM WHO I AM

The covenant name God gives to His people

The same God who is David’s shepherd is the same God who spoke to Moses in the burning bush (Ex. 3), when Moses asked God his name:

Exodus 3:14-15 – God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The Lord, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.’ This is my name forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.

the same God, who brought the plagues upon Egypt, the same God who led His people out of captivity

The same God who brought the Hebrew people across the Red Sea on dry ground and brought the sea crashing down upon their pursuers

This is the same God who created all things and sustains you and I today

Yahweh, written as “Lord” in small capital letters in your bible, is the personal name of God

The Lord is 

we don’t get to tell God, who created everything, who He is.  He tells us

Notice how David doesn’t write “I like to think of God as a shepherd” or “God is like a shepherd to me”

By inspiration of the Holy Spirit David tell us The Lord is [his] Shepherd

David, who grew up shepherding as a boy, says the Lord is his shepherd

Very personal

Is the Lord YOUR shepherd?

Jesus tells us in John 10 that he is the good shepherd

The good shepherd, God in the flesh, who died in your place so that you might live…..

Have you given your life to him, are you following his lead, and if not, then whose lead are you following?

We’re all following something. It’s a huge mistake to believe that you are not being led at all times

Either the culture is moving you in one direction, or your peers, celebrity influence, or even your own desires

Is Jesus your shepherd, or are you following something else?

Here in America we love the cowboys but there aren’t too many movies made about shepherds (John Wayne, Eastwood, Lonesome Dove)

What’s the difference?

Cowboys drive from the rear; (shepherds lead)

Cowboys count heads of cattle, and a shepherd knows His sheep

Megan is the shepherd of our goat herd; I know them, she KNOWS them

Jesus knows his sheep

I shall not want

I lack nothing

Completely and utterly satisfied in the Lord

Have you ever been around a sheep? (They live their entire lives at the bottom of the food chain / they need a shepherd)

V.2

He makes me lie down in green pastures

If the Lord is your shepherd then his authority does not stop where yours begins

If it didn’t then by definition he would not be your lord

He leads me beside still waters

Sheep are indiscriminate grazers

v.3

He restores my soul

That deep longing feeling within us? 

He leads me in the paths of righteousness

This is all sounding really good for us isn’t it? (v.1-3)

Why does God do these things?  

For His name’s sake.

His name is synonymous w/ him

For his name’s sake = in order to manifest his glory, his power, & his reputation

Everything is always going to be smooth sailing then, right?

VIII.v.4

This is the world we live in isn’t it? (In the news, in our own families)

Just think about David, what he’s been through in his life

We don’t know his age when he wrote this psalm but we can look back and know his story

Whether he was a Shepherd boy defending his flock from predators

Facing down a giant with only a sling and five stones

(Why did David take 5 stones?)

On the run as Saul sought to kill him

Bathsheba (lost a child)

Later adult life (family turmoil)

David’s been through it (valley is real, we have a real enemy who wants nothing but to steal, kill, and destroy)

I will fear no evil

Why no fear?

For You are with me.

The good shepherd has come so that we might have abundant life

Our God is not at the end of the valley waiting for you, He is in it with you

He stepped out of glory, put on flesh, and lived a human life to pull us back to him

Out of our sin, out of death, and back to life

We were dead in our sins but when you cry out “save me, Lord,”  you get a new heart, and his holy spirit lives in us

2 Timothy 1:7 – For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.

We do not fear b/c the Lord is our shepherd

Your rod and Your staff they comfort me

We find comfort in the protection and correction of the Lord

You all know what a shepherd’s staff looks like

If you’re a sheep getting off track the shepherd will pull you back in

He doesn’t mind you being a little uncomfortable if it keeps you alive.

Rod is an instrument of protection

Sheep are defenseless (enemy)

1 Peter 5:8 – Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.

Matthew 7:15 –  “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. 

A shepherd has no tolerance for lions or wolves in his sheepfold

he cracks them in the skullJesus is the shepherd of His church, but he has set up shepherds to operate under his ultimate authority

Consider this a reminder to Pray for the shepherds in your life

Husbands, you are called to love your wives as Christ loves his church, to raise your children in the discipline and instruction of the lord

You are the shepherd of your house

Do not tolerate wolves in the presence of your sheep

Pray for your own strength, for wisdom and discernment, and ask for those around you to pray for these things for you

At the risk of sounding selfish I would ask that you pray for me

The word “pastor” comes from “shepherd”, 

it’s my duty to shepherd this flock under the authority of Jesus

Pray for me, pray for my family

Strength, wisdom, protection

v.5

You prepare…….in the presence of my enemies

Once again, God is not taking away our enemy but has made him powerless to steal our enjoyment of God’s hospitality

We do not fear our enemy

Because the good shepherd gives us abundant life

Blessing…. Lord’s supper

A meal, given to us from God, as a reminder of what Jesus has done for us

To remember his broken body and his blood that was shed to cleanse us of our sins

You anoint my head with oil

Anoint - set apart for God

Consecration, refreshment, & rejoicing

Not just enough oil for us to squeak our way into His presence but so much that:

My cup overflows 

v.6

Surely = unshakeable, unchanging

God is who he said he is, no shadow of turning

Goodness and mercy are not just ideas, they’re a person

Goodness and mercy poured Himself out on the cross at calvary

His body was broken and His blood was shed so that you and I might be forgiven of our sins

Relationship restored - reconciled

Goodness and mercy has been following you all the days of your life and has led you to be here today

Because of His life, death, burial, and resurrection He has made it possible for us to dwell in His house forever

Not talking about a physical house

No temple in Jerusalem today

You’re not going to live here in this building forever

You have a home in heaven….

No more sin, no more pain…..

All means all & forever means forever

<invite: if you need forgiveness // forgive others>

When we put our bodies in the position we want our heart to be in…….

Is he your shepherd?  He will be, if you ask.

Prayer

XIII.Invitation