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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.
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
11 I am the good shepherd.
The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep
14 I am the good shepherd.
I know my own and my own know me,
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
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:
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
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
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.
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