Psalm 23 Part 1

Introduction

Psalm 23 is one of the greatest known Psalms in the whole book. It does us well though to revisit some of these great known Psalms and dig out the great truths that are there for us.

This Psalm has so much for us to see. It is a beautiful Psalm from the imagery it produces, but more than that it is the truth and the way it is expressed here that really shines.

English Standard Version Psalm 23

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

The Lord As Shepherd

Let’s think first about the Lord as our shepherd. This is an amazing thought to behold. Shepherds were responsible for the sheep that were in their care. They stayed in the fields with the sheep constantly. They were concerned with the well-being and the welfare of the sheep day and night. As you may know, sheep aren’t very smart. They have to be watched over and cared for because they are defenseless and careless by nature. They do not have the capability of watching over themselves and protecting themselves. Thus, they need a shepherd.

So, we see the imagery here that the Lord is our shepherd. The Lord, the almighty creator stoops so low as to become our shepherd and take care of us as we are often needy and helpless. Isn’t that an amazing thought, that the Lord comes to us as our Shepherd, as our keeper?

Next we note the Lord IS my shepherd. Note here there is no qualifying phrase, it is a definite statement. The Lord IS my shepherd. He is for us in all things, he longs to look after us, to keep us, and to guide us through the paths of life.

Listen to these words from John 10

English Standard Version Chapter 10

11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep

English Standard Version Chapter 10

14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,

English Standard Version Chapter 10

4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.

We see from these verses that Jesus is the good shepherd, that He delights in caring for us, and the ultimate that He lays down his life for the sheep. That is what we celebrate with Easter, and every single day as a Christian. We celebrate the fact that Jesus was willing to lay down his life for us, to save us.

This Is Personal

Notice also that it says “The Lord is MY shepherd”. You don’t see any “we” or “us” or “they”, but only “my” and “me” and “he” and “you”. We see so much of David’s heart coming out in these verses. David knew the life of a shepherd. But he also knew the fact that God was HIS shepherd and that he needed shepherding. Isn’t that true with us? Don’t we need shepherding? We do. We need to be watched over and protected. At least I know I do. I need God to correct me when I go towards a dangerous spot or when I am straying from the herd.

This fact that the Psalm is personal means so much to me. You see, the whole Bible is personal to us. Yes it speaks of Israel as a nation and God’s people, but more than that it speaks to us personally. It is a personal relationship that we have with God, and that is what we see here. The fact that this is a personal Psalm speaks to our personal need for a personal Lord and shepherd.

I Shall Not Want

This is a direct continuation of the fact that the Lord is our shepherd. It naturally follows that we wouldn’t lack anything if the LORD is our shepherd right? Read this like a question “If the Lord is my shepherd, How can I lack anything?”

Now, this is difficult because if we are honest - at times we feel like we are lacking don’t we?

Now, this is a little bit harder for us to understand if we don’t view it through the lens of God’s provision. We have needs right? David had needs, he needed comfort, he needed encouragement, he needed wisdom. All those things are needs. But what we see here is echoed in Psalm 84:11

English Standard Version Psalm 84

For the LORD God is a sun and shield;

the LORD bestows favor and honor.

No good thing does he withhold

from those who walk uprightly.

So, this means that the Lord will provide everything we need.

Listen to what Philippians 4:19 says:

English Standard Version Chapter 4

19 And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.

So, when this says that “I shall not want” it means that God will not withhold anything that we need from us at the proper time.

If we are a child of God, God is duty bound as our Father to provide for us, to watch over us and that is why David uses the metaphor as “the Lord as Shepherd”.

This is speaking to our needs and that God will provide all that we NEED. Many times that is different than what we see. Our fleshly nature or our comfort says that we NEED certain things, but the Lord knows better. God knows what we need. Listen to Deuteronomy 2:7

English Standard Version Chapter 2

7 For the LORD your God has blessed you in all the work of your hands. He knows your going through this great wilderness. These forty years the LORD your God has been with you. You have lacked nothing.”

Also Deuteronomy 33:25

English Standard Version Chapter 33

25  Your bars shall be iron and bronze,

and as your days, so shall your strength be

I like that. “As your days, so shall your strength be” That means that God is going to give me the strength that I need in the moment I need it. That’s a great comfort to us in our time of need.

He Makes Me Lie Down in Green Pastures

We come to verse 2 here and it speaks of green pastures. One of the main tasks of a shepherd is to make sure that the sheep have enough pasture to stay well fed all the time. He is responsible to keep them in a pasture where they are well supplied with nourishment.

Now, this may mean more than this, but I think that we could draw a conclusion that one of the green pastures we are able to enjoy as a child of God is His Word. God’s Word is a green pasture with spiritual nourishment for us as much as we could ever ask for. We too often take God’s Word for granted, and we don’t cherish it and take it in like our nourishment that we need.

We take our physical food in on a regular basis. I’m a prime example of that. But, how often do we skip a meal of spiritual nourishment? How many times can we go days without eating of the green pasture of the Word?

How well do we know the Word of God?

There’s a story told about a Bible study class and the Pastor asked the question - What are the epistles? And the answer that was received was “They were the wives of the apostles”. The Pastor didn’t feel like embarrassing anybody during the class so he kept teaching. After the class was over a man came up to him and asked, “Pastor, I didn’t get the joke. If the epistles weren’t the wives of the apostles, whose wives were they?”

Is it any wonder that sometimes we are spiritually famished and malnourished?

We Need Spiritual Rest

This speaks of spiritual comfort and rest. That is what God wants for His children. He wants us to rest in Him. Sheep don’t lie down until they know they are safe to rest in a certain area. And we must be certain that God is for us in every situation of life and that we can rest in HIM, knowing He is our shepherd.

Too many times we get all stressed up and no where to go! We get too busy, MYSELF included, we have too many things going on at once and we miss the best thing.

We are all too often like Martha who is rushing around getting things ready for Jesus’ visit and she is all stressed out about the small, insignificant things - while Mary is sitting at Jesus feet soaking it all in. Martha is doing good things, but she is missing the best thing.

We need to give ourselves time to spend with God on a regular basis and remember how important it is. It needs to be so important to us that we can’t go a day without it!

Still Waters

Another of the most important tasks of a shepherd is to seek abundant water for the flock. The still waters are the revival of the soul.

And you’ll notice these are still waters, they are a refreshing stream of flowing water that is clear and cool. The sheep get thirsty on the journey and need water often, so this is an important thing for us to remember. We need God’s Word to keep us refreshed during our journey with the Lord. We can’t afford to

And it’s the still waters of the Word that provide us the quench to our spiritual thirst when we are worn out and weary.

Restoring Our Soul

How would a shepherd restore a sheep? Remember, sheep are not very smart. So many times they would go headlong into a crevass or a ravine, or fall into a rushing river. So they need to be rescued on a regular basis. He restores us when we wander.

Luke 15:3-6

3 So he told them this parable: 4 “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? 5 And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. 6 And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’

He restores our soul by cleansing us when we are dirty, by lifting us up when we are down, by strengthening us when we are weak. We need to be restored and revived and it is our good and faithful Shepherd who can do it for us.

Blessed Obedience

Psalm 23:3 ESV

He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.So David continues his shepherding imagery here with this leading in paths of righteousness. He is leading us in paths of righteousness. What are these paths? How does He lead us in righteousness? Well, these are paths of obedience. What does the Bible say about obedience? ALOT!

Deuteronomy 26:16 ESV

“This day the Lord your God commands you to do these statutes and rules. You shall therefore be careful to do them with all your heart and with all your soul.

Matthew 26:39 ESV

And going a little farther he fell on his face and prayed, saying, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.”

John 14:15 ESV

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

Acts 5:29 ESV

But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.

The Lord wants to lead us in paths of obedience, paths of righteousness. That is his desire for us. Why? To take away all the fun? To be a cosmic kill-joy?

No, the Lord knows that when we are obedient to Him, we are choosing the very best option every time for our lives. Every time we disobey, we choose to take less than God is willing to give to us.

I say obedience is a blessing. Some people may disagree, but I have found in my own life that when I leave my life in God’s hands and do what HE wants for me - things go ALOT better than when I try to do things my way.

But that’s what the world wants today right? The world wants things “my way”. It goes back to the garden of Eden and it has been happening every since. Frank Sinatra sang it and I want to share some of his lyrics here with you.

And now, the end is near And so I face the final curtain My friend, I'll say it clear I'll state my case, of which I'm certain

I've lived a life that's full I've traveled each and every highway And more, much more than this I did it my way

Regrets, I've had a few But then again, too few to mention I did what I had to do And saw it through without exemption

I planned each charted course Each careful step along the byway And more, much more than this I did it my way

Yes, there were times, I'm sure you knew When I bit off more than I could chew But through it all, when there was doubt I ate it up and spit it out I faced it all and I stood tall And did it my way

I've loved, I've laughed and cried I've had my fill, my share of losing And now, as tears subside I find it all, all so amusing

To think I did all that And may I say, not in a shy way Oh no, no, not me I did it my way

For what is man, what has he got? If not himself, then he has naught To say the things he truly feels And not the words of one who kneels The record shows I took the blows And did it my way

And did it my way

Does that sound like someone who was being “led in paths of righteousness?”

No, it sounds like the typical worldly view of “do whatever you want, whenever you want, as many times as you want to do it.”

I say again, obedience to God is a blessed thing. I have seen it in my own life. The true Christian delights to be obedient to Christ because he knows that Christ gives him life and everything in it. Christ gave HIS LIFE so that we might have life and have it abundantly.

How dare we spit in the face of our saviour by doing things “my way”!!!

It is love that leads us to be obedient. Have you ever had somebody try to force you to be obedient? It is very hard to force someone to be obedient against their will. But listen, when your will is submitted to Christ in HIS love, then you will obey Him because you LOVE Him. You probably didn’t want to disobey your parents when you were little because you didn’t want to disappoint them right? Well, that is the idea but on a totally different scale.

The path of this righteousness is a narrow path. Do not be fooled into thinking that it is easy. It is narrow and it is hard. That is what Jesus said in Matthew 7 right?

Matthew 7:13–14 ESV

“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few.

How does the Lord lead us into paths of righteousness?

Psalm 119:105 ESV

Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.

The way God leads us into paths of righteousness is by us patterning our lives after the Bible. When we let the Bible be the light to our path then we won’t trip up near as much on this path of righteousness.It is a great thing to let Jesus mold us into who we need to be by the reading and applying of God’s Word.

But why do we do this? Is it for our own glory and fame that we are led into these paths of righteousness?

For HIS Sake

The last part of verse 3 says “for his name’s sake”. The whole reason why we are obedient to Christ, the whole reason why we were created at all was “for his name’s sake”.

Everything we do in our lives should bring glory and honor to God’s name. If it doesn’t then we know we have walked out of the path, we’ve gotten hung up in the brambles and the briars. Ever seen a sheep caught in the briars? Me neither. But I bet they get hung up big time lol.

It delights the Father to see His children live holy and pure lives.

I wonder this morning are you living for you or are you living for Christ? Are you doing everything out of selfish ambition or are you submitting to God’s Will and yielding to Him? Do you love Him more than anything else on this Earth and then some? Is He your first and last desire in each day?

Are you doing things YOUR WAY or are you doing things GOD’S WAY?

Have you let the Lord lead you to green pastures and still waters?

Have you accepted the fact that you are a sinner and that you need Christ to save you?

Are you a Christian here this morning living like the world wants you to?

Are you living for yourself or for Jesus? That’s the question.