SURELY GOODNESS AND MERCY SHALL FOLLOW ME Follow the Shepherd Part 4 Luke 15:1-7; Psalm 23:1-6

Transcription

1 SURELY GOODNESS AND MERCY SHALL FOLLOW ME Follow the Shepherd Part 4 Luke 15:1-7; Psalm 23:1-6 June 26, 2016 Pastor Bob Sanders 1

2 Luke 15:1-7 (NIV) Now the tax collectors and sinners were all gathering around to hear Jesus. But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, This man welcomes sinners and eats with them. Then Jesus told them this parable: Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep and loses one of them. Doesn t he leave the ninety-nine in the open country and go after the lost sheep until he finds it? And when he finds it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders and goes home. Then he calls his friends and neighbors together and says, Rejoice with me; I have found my lost sheep. I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent. 2

3 SURELY GOODNESS AND MERCY SHALL FOLLOW ME Follow the Shepherd Part 4 Luke 15:1-7; Psalm 23:1-6 In a couple weeks our daughter, Becca, and son-in-law, Dave, will be here for a visit, along with our grandchildren, Eleanor and Ben (ages 4 and 1). We re going to spend a week together at Sunriver, followed by a week of recuperation for Nana and Papa (that s Debbie and me). Ben wants to be on the go and into everything, while Eleanor loves to be read to. She ll latch on to a particular book and want one of us to read it aloud not once, not twice, but four or five times a day. Last time her favorite was Richard Scary s book about Pig Will and Pig Won t. Anybody remember that one? Thing is, Eleanor has it memorized from cover to cover. She knows it by heart, and if you try to skip a page or even a paragraph, be advised: you will be caught and made to explain yourself before an indignant child who doesn t cut corners where books are concerned. 3

4 Which brings us to this final message in our four-part series on the 23 rd Psalm. We ve been trying to do with this psalm what Eleanor does so well read it slowly and carefully, pay attention to the details, and if possible commit it to memory. So I invite you to recite it with me once again as much of it as you can from memory or, if you prefer, read it as printed on the screen. Psalm 23:1-6 (NKJV) The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name s sake. Yea, 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; 4

5 My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever. Behind Us: The Shepherd Who Follows As we all know, the three most important things in a real estate deal are location, location, location. And the most important things in this psalm have to do with the location of the Good Shepherd in relation to his sheep. A couple weeks ago, we saw how sometimes he goes before them, how he gets out in front and leads the sheep beside still waters and in paths of righteousness. But that s not all. As we saw last week, sometimes the shepherd stands beside his sheep, putting courage into them with the promise he will be with us even though we walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Finally, in today s message, he s behind us. He s got our back. He pursues us when like sheep, we ve gone astray. And sheep go astray a lot. 5

6 Interesting fact about sheep: I m told they often nibble their way into lostness. They keep their heads down, munching away from one tuft of grass to another, sometimes through a gap in the fence or up the side of a steep hill. And after a while, they look up and discover they re hopelessly lost, or in grave danger. They don t know how they got there or how to get back. Sounds like many of us, doesn t it? We nibble along, bit by bit, not paying much attention until at some point, we look up and realize we ve wandered far from where we started far away from our goals, our closest relationships, our faith. That s when we need the Good Shepherd, who comes after us when we re lost, when we re prone to wander, prone to leave the God we love. Verse 6 is one of the most reassuring verses in the Bible. Listen again to how it reads in the New King James Version: Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Here s how it reads in some other translations: From the New English Bible: Goodness and love unfailing will follow me all the days of my life, 6

7 and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long. In Today s English Version it s I know that your goodness and love will be with me all my life; and your house will be my home forever. And my favorite is The Message: Your beauty and love chase after me every day of my life. I m back in the house of Yahweh for the rest of my life. This is one of those verses that needs to be read slowly and prayerfully. It s like opening a box of jewels each word, each image sparkles and begs to be carefully examined. Surely So let s take it one word at a time, starting with Surely. David didn t say, Maybe goodness and mercy shall follow me. Or, I have a hunch that goodness and mercy might follow me. Instead he says, Surely He believes in a God who is our sure foundation, a God who never gives up on us. Not maybe. Not depending on the stock market. But surely. 7

8 Our moods may shift, but our God does not. Our minds may change, but God changes not. Our devotion may falter, but not our God. Even if we are faithless, he remains faithful. He is a sure God, a trustworthy God, a God who keeps his promises. And because of that, because he is faithful we can say with confidence: Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me. Goodness and Mercy Which brings us to goodness and mercy. If the Lord is the good shepherd who goes before the sheep to lead them, then goodness and mercy are the two sheepdogs that go behind, to go after the sheep that have strayed. A couple weeks ago, I mentioned the time I has hiking in Wales and wound up following a shepherd as he led his flock to safe pasture. I left out part of the story. I didn t mention the two sheepdogs that did most of the work. The shepherd would lead the sheep to a pasture but the sheep would hesitate to go through the gate and start 8

9 wandering off. But then the shepherd would shout a certain command, and the dogs would round up all the strays and get the entire flock into the pasture while I watched in amazement. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me not some days, not most days but all the days of my life. Shall Follow Me Then comes my favorite image in this favorite psalm: he follows me. We re used to a God who remains fixed in one place, who sits enthroned in the heavens. But David envisions an active God, an on-the-move God, a God who comes after us. A God whose goodness and mercy follow us all the days of our lives. This is the God we see in the Bible: the God who seeks us, the God who comes after us. Go back to Genesis and look at Adam and Eve hiding in the bushes to cover their nakedness and shame. Does God wait for them to get their act together and come to him? No, God makes the first move and calls out to them (and to us): Where are you? (Gen.3:9). 9

10 Or take Moses. He was forty years in the desert when he looked over his shoulder and saw a bush burning. God had followed him into the wilderness. Or Jonah. He was a fugitive on a boat out at sea when he looked over his shoulder and saw the storm clouds brewing and realized God had followed him out onto the ocean. The disciples of Jesus knew the same thing. They were rain soaked and shivering when they looked over their shoulders and saw Jesus walking toward them. God had followed them into the storm. An unnamed Samaritan woman knew it as well. She was alone at the well when she looked over her shoulder and heard the Messiah speaking. God had followed her through her loneliness. Peter had denied his Lord and gone back to fishing when he heard his name and looked over his shoulder and saw Jesus cooking breakfast. God had followed him in spite of his failure. He is the God who follows. I wonder: have you sensed him following you? Have you heard his 10

11 voice? Felt his grace reaching out to you? Maybe in a time of worship. Maybe through the prayers of a friend, or the love of a child, a parent, a spouse. Through a word well-spoken or a hug well-timed. And you knew it. He was there the God who follows and finds us and then, as Jesus says, brings us home with joy. The Hound of Heaven Francis Thompson was an English poet in the late nineteenth century. Despite his great talent, he wandered off into darkness until he wound up a homeless derelict and drug addict, selling matches by day and sleeping in the gutters of London by night. And it was there, when he was hopelessly lost, when everyone had given up on him, that the God who pursues us found him. Later, Thompson would describe this God who came after him as the Hound of Heaven. Listen to the opening lines of his famous poem: I fled Him, down the nights and down the days; I fled Him, down the arches of the years; I fled Him, down the labyrinthine ways 11

12 Of my ow mind; and in the midst of tears, I hid from Him From those strong feet that followed, followed after. 1 For the rest of the poem, the author runs as fast as he can to get away from the Hound of Heaven, who follows in steady, relentless pursuit. At the end, when the poet can run no longer, he turns to face the God who has chased him for so long. And to his amazement, he finds a God not out to hurt him but a God who is out to heal him. Rise, says God, clasp My hand, and come! And when the poet holds back in fear, God says, Ah, fondest, blindest, weakest, I am He Whom thou seekest. Could that be true? Could it be the God we ve been seeking is the same God who s been seeking us? Could it be that this God is searching for that loved one that child or spouse or close friend who seems so lost? Could it be that the Hound of Heaven is pursuing some of us even now? 1 To read the poem in its entirety, go to 12

13 You can never wander outside the reach of his grace. You can run if you want to, but you can never run far enough or fast enough to make him give up on you. Why not stop running from the One who is you need? Why not let the Good Shepherd find you this very morning? Know the Shepherd The story is told of two men who were asked to repeat the 23 rd Psalm at a church service. One was a great actor and he repeated the psalm with polished eloquence. The people listened attentively, for his voice was beautiful and when he finished they applauded him loudly. The other speaker was an older pastor who slowly made his way on to the platform, and then began to recite the words not just from memory but from his heart, from a lifetime of experience. At times, his voice trembled as if overcome by the wonders of this psalm. When he finished, no one applauded. Most of the audience brushed away tears. Many sat with bowed heads. The Good Shepherd had become very real to them as the pastor spoke. 13

14 Sensing what had happened, the actor stood and placed his hand on the pastor s shoulder, and said, My friends, I know the Shepherd Psalm. But this man knows the Shepherd. Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd. Many of us have memorized the words of his psalm. But do we know him, do we know the Shepherd? Multnomah Presbyterian: what is your greatest need, your deepest concern as a congregation and as individuals this day? Do you need someone to lead you like a shepherd in the days to come? Do you need someone to stand beside you right now and put courage into you? Do you need him to come after someone you love who has wandered off? I have good news: The Good Shepherd is all of these, and more. If you know your need this morning, then I invite you to join me as we respond to him right now in prayer. Surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. 14