Please open your Bibles to Psalm 23.
I'm going to begin by praying. Let's ask the Lord bless the public reading of his word.
Dear Lord, help me to express my thoughts clearly. And thank you for this opportunity. And I pray this in your name.
The Lord of the Shepherd has people, a psalm of David.
This is a solve that most people are familiar with. And if you were to outline this song, you could do it like this.
1st one to 3, the shepherds gentle care of the sheep.
For Sport to 5, how the shepherd deals with danger. And verse 6, our eternal home with the great shepherd of our souls.
It's difficult to tell what the circumstance prompted David's writing of the song, but one commentator believes it was written during David's flight from his rebellious son, Absalom.
Whatever the circumstance was.
It was written to proclaim God's provision for people who are in danger or those who need God's comfort.
There are countless fathers who've read this song to their kids at night and there are countless kids who have memorized this song for Sunday school.
And even though it is very short, it contains a lot of very powerful statements about our God and this care for us.
Let's read through Psalm 23 together.
Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leaves me beside the still waters. He restores myself. He leaves me in the path of righteousness for his namesake.
Yeah, they do our walks to the Valley of the Shadow of Death. I will fear no evil.
If you're Rod and your staff, they comfort me. For you're with me. You're riding your staff, they come from me.
You prepare a table in the presence of my enemies. You annoyed my head with oil. My cop runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy will follow me for the rest of my days. And I will dwell in the house of Lord forever.
Let's look at the 1st verse again. The word is my shepherd, I shall not want.
Your god is at work as a heart, a shepherd. And there are so many passages of the Old and New Testament that use the image of a shepherd to show God's loving tender care.
Those he cares about. And the shepherd
Does everything for the sheet. But most importantly, he washes over them. Why? Because they are helpless and not very smart.
Someone told me that a time when they went to the Wisconsin State Fair. And he was walking, in one of the big tents that housed the different animals on this play at the fair.
And in one of the pens, there were sheep.
He asked the lady who was the owner of the sheep. To describe how the sheet behave. And the 1st thing that came out of this her mouth was that the sheep are very dumb animals.
She wanted to say that if you left them in alone in the pasture, They'll keep their heads down and start eating and walking and eating and walking.
Until they are very far away. They're also very easily frightened. See moving groups. That can cause them to run away.
This is until they find themselves very, very far away from the sheep. Out on some hell completely exposed to danger.
So the shepherd has to constantly watch them. And even more the shepherd must constantly provide protection.
And care and guidance or he will lose the sheep under his care. But the solemnist is referring to something greater than just the animals.
He's talking about his own life and by extension ours too. Lord is my shepherd.
This is what David felt. Throughout all of his life for being a shepherd. Jessie's flock to being the anointed king of Israel.
To defeating Glyath and being a great warrior. Was the Lord who was the shepherd of his life?
David knew that God would provide all that he needed. And when you need to that most. David knew that the Lord saw a whole horizon ahead of him.
And he had the only good things for him. David knew that he could trust Lord with his life. I thought the Lord would protect it.
The Lord is my ship. I shall not want. Now the verse 2. He makes me to lie down in green pastors.
Sheep need all kinds of things. They need green pastures to feed in. And they can really eat.
She can survive on grass alone, but they can eat all kinds of things. Imagine a life for a shepherd scouts out good pastors for a sheep.
A life for the shepherd is concerned about taking out the sheep for a day or even longer.
Is not so simple as leading them out. Yes, to protect them from danger. But even more, he makes the sheep lie down.
You can only do that if you don't if you don't have fear about being eaten by wolves or other predators.
The shepherd is ready to protect and comfort is she. That is why the psalmist refers to making them lie down in green pastors.
He's cared for David and he cares for us. We need those sweet, green pastures of comfort in our own life.
We need to be comforted by a great shepherd that is concerned for all of us in our troubles.
They're good times for all of us in the Lord's care. He leads us beside the still waters, the way there's war.
A good shepherd leads sheep to water, but not just any water, but good water that is still.
That means that the sheep are able to rest. The shepherd knows the sheep, he's still gently flowing water.
The drink. He refreshes them by letting them drink all that they want.
He does not lead them to rapids or flash fast flowing waters that could choke them or even frighten them.
And while every human needs water, What we really need is the calm flowing spiritual water. This is the water that began at our salvation.
Let's bring a water that gushes up in our own lives. The water that keeps nourishing us in the truth of the Bible and that sustains us through periods of calm and troubled times in our lives.
The Lord can do this. He is our shepherd. 1st 3 says he restores myself.
A reference from 1st Peter 2 verse 5 says it says that Jesus is our shepherd and overseer.
He is our overseer of our souls. They restores me. He leaves me the path of righteousness for his namesake.
One commentator says it like this. He leads us. His own in his righteousness of rich righteousness.
These paths do not lead to one uptake. One obtaining righteousness, righteousness here, signifies in the most basic sense.
That which is right, specifically the paths here. That bring the sheep most directly to their destination.
This is in contrast to crooked paths. His paths are straight. He does not unnecessarily tire out his sheep.
He knows what lies ahead. 1st 4, yay though it walks through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.
Here the point David is making is that Even though the right path to bring the sheep through the valley of the shadow of death There is no need to fear.
It's that in fact if God may be seen when we were under persecution or when we were being tempted or feeling unable to be there up under the pressures of life.
They're dangerous present. His presence and grace will always be more than enough to get us through life.
And he roused Jap. We are told that Jesus himself fighting the weight of the cross. Upon him.
Granted for help to the only one who could rescue him.
And his prayer was heard because of his, because of his godliness. He was strengthened in the midst of the enormous pressure.
1st floor continues. You were with me. Derad and your staff, they comfort me. The shepherd has 2 tools and it's just, to work with.
The shepherd's staff and the shepherd's rod.
According to a dictionary, Shepherd's staff is a long sturdy stick with the hook at the end, often with the point flared outwards.
Used by Shepherd to manage and sometimes catch sheep. A staff helps in defending against attack by predators.
When travelling through rough terrain. A staff helps shepherd balance. Shepherds use, may use curved part of a step to help thick undergrowth when searching for lost sheep or potential predators.
The Staps hook also helps recovering fallen animals by grabbing them by the neck or the leg. For this reason, the staff has been used as a religious symbol of care, particularly in difficult circumstances.
On the other hand, the shepherd's rod is a short.
Club like stick that has been used to beat off predators. Like David did when he saw a bear or wolf tried to attack him and grab off the sheep.
In 1st Samuel, 17 verse 34, he says, When David is, convincing Saul that he, that he can defeat Goliath, he says this.
But David said to Saul, your servant used to keep his father's sheep. And little line or bear game and took the lamb out of the flock.
I went out after it and struck it and delivered the lion, the lamb from its mouth. And when did a rose against me?
I heard it. I took it by the beard. And I struck it and killed it. Your servant has killed both lion and bear and this uncircumcised Philistine will be like, will be like one of them.
Defiled the enemies of the living God. Hello, moreover, David said, Lord who has delivered me from the PA of the lion and from the PA of the bear, he will deliver me from the hand of his villain.
So both tools are used by the experience and confident shepherd to protect his sheep. Continuing to verse 5.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You annoy my head with oil. My cop runs over.
One commentator says, it like this. Lord is a host and a banquet prepared for his kid.
The tables loaded with food and drink. Before entering into the banquet hall, the host would annoy the honored guests with oil.
The oil is used by adding perfumes to olive oil. The Cobb symbolizes the gracious and generous manner.
Of entertainment. The overflowing picture is of God of the Lord giving it the best to a shall.
It symbolizes the provisions and of God like that are stated in verse 2 or green pastures and quiet waters as mentioned.
And then the psalmist says, the Lord justifies his servant in the presence of my enemies.
This expresses both the difficulties of life as well as God's demonstration of his love towards his own.
And the presence of God, the presence of oils and the generosities of, of his provisions, the cup.
Make one forget troubles and tears. His is the cup of salvation mentioned in S. 1 16. That relates to both body and spirit.
Moving on to the last verse. Surely goodness and mercy she'll follow me all the days of my life.
And I will dwell in the house of Lord forever. In view of this picture. David realized that the Lord's good loyal love would go with him wherever he goes.
Throughout all of his life. God's blessing on his people remain with them no matter what the circumstance may be.
So we can close with this. I will dwell in the House of Lord forever. The House of Lord refers to the Sanctuary Tavern alcohol.
And for the rest of his life, length of days. You wouldn't join, enjoy full communion with Lord.
In fact, the Hebrew verb I will dwell Conveys the idea of returning. And the same verb is translated, he restores in verse 3.
It could be that David was in some way separated from the sanctuary. And then full enjoyment of its spiritual benefits.
And he wanted to return to life before it was. Disrupted. If in fact the song was written by David, On the when he was on the run from Absalom, David might have been meditating on the Lord's leading and his provisions.
And this might have prompted to remember the times of his past past fellowship. With Lord in his presence in the sanctuary.
As I head for tonight, I urge you to keep meditating on God's goodness and faithfulness.
As Jesus said in John 10, well speaking. Themselves as a good shepherd. Beginning of verse 9 he says I am the door and if anyone enters by me he will be saved.
And I will go in and find pasture. The thief does not come and accept to steal, kill or destroy.
I've come that they may have life. And then they may have it more abundantly. I am the good chef.
The Good Shepherd gives us light for the sheet.
Let's praise him for the good work he has done in saving us, keeping us, and ultimately providing an eternal home for us is she.
Let's close in prayer. Dear Lord, we ask you to look at everything we've done in our lives.
You took of Dave, you took care of David a long time ago. You look caret, take care of us.
You refresh us by feeding us on your word. And you fellowship. And we enjoy with other Christians.
It is true you would dwell with us forever as you promised and let us meditate on your truths that you have comforted.
Us with their rod and your staff. Amen.