December 4, 2024 THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD
From Psalm 23
“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 the 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 for ever.”
This is no doubt the most popular of the 150 Psalms; it is certainly a comforting psalm. This psalm reveals the love that God has for His people. The first five words are a great beginning; “The Lord is my Shepherd.” He is the good shepherd who cares for and who watches over his sheep-and we are His sheep who were bought with a great price. As His seep, we are secure, provided for, and led to rest in good places. This Psalm is not a promise that all will be good all the time; it is a promise that God is with us, caring for us no matter the circumstances. Even in the most difficult times we have provision and rest in Him. When we are downtrodden and discouraged, He restores our soul. There are times when we feel that we are in the ‘valley of death,’ without hope. Note that we do not camp out in the valley of death; we walk through it. There are a lot of things that can cause us to fear; BUT we do not have to give into fear because He is with us-and that is enough. Our good Shepherd leads us to ‘still waters’ and to the ‘paths of righteousness;’ He does not lead us to what is harmful, but to what is right and good. Even when others come against us, our Shepherd provides for us, making us secure. And here is my favorite part of this Psalm: ‘surely goodness and mercy shall follow me.’ ‘Follow’ is not a good word here; the original word for follow is ‘to pursue, to chase after.’ Think about it; the goodness and mercy of God pursues us all of our lives! Someone refered to this goodness and mercy as the ‘hounds of heaven.’ We have the Spirit of God now and we will be with Him forever! Nothing or no one can change that fact. Because the Lord is our Shepherd, we do not want. He satisfies our deepest longings and meets every need. How freeing it is to live full lives-free of want. This Psalm is a call to truly know the Lord. This Psalm is true whether we understand it or not or whether we experience it or not. Even if a believer is living contrary to the ways of God, God is using circumstances and difficult situations to draw him to Himself-He is the good Shepherd to all believers. I have heard that if one of the sheep keeps going astray, the shepherd would break his leg so that he would not wander away for the fold. (I do not know if that is true or not-but it makes a good point that our Shepherd is committed to our well-being.) So, let us spend some time meditating on the fact that the Lord is our Shepherd.
John 10:9-11 “I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”
Blessings, Buddy
From Psalm 23
“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 the 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 for ever.”
This is no doubt the most popular of the 150 Psalms; it is certainly a comforting psalm. This psalm reveals the love that God has for His people. The first five words are a great beginning; “The Lord is my Shepherd.” He is the good shepherd who cares for and who watches over his sheep-and we are His sheep who were bought with a great price. As His seep, we are secure, provided for, and led to rest in good places. This Psalm is not a promise that all will be good all the time; it is a promise that God is with us, caring for us no matter the circumstances. Even in the most difficult times we have provision and rest in Him. When we are downtrodden and discouraged, He restores our soul. There are times when we feel that we are in the ‘valley of death,’ without hope. Note that we do not camp out in the valley of death; we walk through it. There are a lot of things that can cause us to fear; BUT we do not have to give into fear because He is with us-and that is enough. Our good Shepherd leads us to ‘still waters’ and to the ‘paths of righteousness;’ He does not lead us to what is harmful, but to what is right and good. Even when others come against us, our Shepherd provides for us, making us secure. And here is my favorite part of this Psalm: ‘surely goodness and mercy shall follow me.’ ‘Follow’ is not a good word here; the original word for follow is ‘to pursue, to chase after.’ Think about it; the goodness and mercy of God pursues us all of our lives! Someone refered to this goodness and mercy as the ‘hounds of heaven.’ We have the Spirit of God now and we will be with Him forever! Nothing or no one can change that fact. Because the Lord is our Shepherd, we do not want. He satisfies our deepest longings and meets every need. How freeing it is to live full lives-free of want. This Psalm is a call to truly know the Lord. This Psalm is true whether we understand it or not or whether we experience it or not. Even if a believer is living contrary to the ways of God, God is using circumstances and difficult situations to draw him to Himself-He is the good Shepherd to all believers. I have heard that if one of the sheep keeps going astray, the shepherd would break his leg so that he would not wander away for the fold. (I do not know if that is true or not-but it makes a good point that our Shepherd is committed to our well-being.) So, let us spend some time meditating on the fact that the Lord is our Shepherd.
John 10:9-11 “I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd; the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”
Blessings, Buddy
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