God the Shepherd PSALM 23
PSALM 23:1-6 The Lord is my shepherd; I have what I need. He lets me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters. He renews my life; he leads me along the right paths for his name s sake.
PSALM 23:1-6 Even when I go through the darkest valley, I fear no danger, 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;
PSALM 23:1-6 you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Only goodness and faithful love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord as long as I live.
In the word shepherd, David use the most comprehensive and intimate metaphor yet encountered in the Psalms, preferring usually the more distant king or deliverer,
or the impersonal rock, shield, etc.; whereas the shepherd lives with his flock and is everything to it: guide, physician, and protector. Derek Kidner
1 SAMUEL 17:33-37 But Saul replied, You can t go fight this Philistine. You re just a youth, and he s been a warrior since he was young. David answered Saul: Your servant has been tending his father s sheep.
1 SAMUEL 17:33-37 Whenever a lion or a bear came and carried off a lamb from the flock, I went after it, struck it down, and rescued the lamb from its mouth. If it reared up against me, I would grab it by its fur,
1 SAMUEL 17:33-37 strike it down, and kill it. Your servant has killed lions and bears; this uncircumcised Philistine will be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.
1 SAMUEL 17:33-37 Then David said, The Lord who rescued me from the paw of the lion and the paw of the bear will rescue me from the hand of this Philistine.
If you re a human, you desperately need God s shepherding.
TWO QUESTIONS: 1. Why do sheep need a shepherd? 2. What does it mean for God to be your Shepherd?
1. Why do sheep need a shepherd?
(sheep) require, more than any other class of livestock, endless attention and meticulous care.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SHEEP: Sheep are incredibly easily frightened and panicked.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SHEEP: Sheep will blindly follow other sheep.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SHEEP: Sheep are extreme creatures of habit, most of which are selfdestructive.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SHEEP: Sheep will drink from any water source without any inhibition.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SHEEP: Sheep are very susceptible to disease and parasites.
CHARACTERISTICS OF SHEEP: Sheep are susceptible to being cast down.
ISAIAH 53:6 We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way.
Just as sheep will blindly, habitually, stupidly follow one another along the same little trails until they become ruts that erode into gigantic gullies, so we humans cling to the same habits that we have seen ruin other lives.
Turning to my own way simply means doing what I want. It implies that I feel free to assert my own wishes and carry out my own ideas. And this I do in spite of every warning.
PROVERBS 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.
How does the Shepherd care for the sheep?
1. The Shepherd provides contentment.
PSALM 23:1-2 The Lord is my shepherd; I have what I need. He lets me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters.
PROVERBS 27:20 Just as Death and Destruction are never satisfied, so human desire is never satisfied.
He let s me lie down = Picture of contentment
REQUIREMENTS TO LIE DOWN: Free from fear Free from friction Free from hunger Free from harmful pests and parasites
THINGS THAT CONTENT PEOPLE UNDERSTAND: a. Your natural desires lie to you.
EPHESIANS 1:20-24 But that is not how you came to know Christ, assuming you heard about him and were taught by him, as the truth is in Jesus, to take off your former way of life, the old self
EPHESIANS 1:20-24 that is corrupted by deceitful desires, to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, the one created according to God s likeness in righteousness and purity of the truth.
THINGS THAT CONTENT PEOPLE UNDERSTAND: b. Your natural desires promise contentment but can t deliver.
JAMES 1:14-15 But each person is tempted when he is drawn away and enticed by his own evil desire. Then after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is fully grown, it gives birth to death.
COLOSSIANS 3:1-4 So if you have been raised with Christ, seek the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on earthly things.
COLOSSIANS 3:1-4 For you died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ, who is your life, appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.
2. The Shepherd provides comfort.
PSALM 23:3-4 He renews my life; he leads me along the right paths for his name s sake. Even when I go through the darkest valley, I fear no danger, for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me.
PSALM 42:5 Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation.
PSALM 23:4 Even when I go through the darkest valley, I fear no danger, for you are with me; your rod and your staff they comfort me.
Why would God lead people through a dark valley?
VALLEYS: Best food and water run through the valleys.
VALLEYS: Best food and water run through the valleys. Best shelter from the heat of summer is in the valleys.
VALLEYS: Best path through the mountains is in the valleys.
VALLEYS: Fastest/easiest way to the top of the mountain is through the valleys.
ROMANS 5:4-5 We also rejoice in our afflictions, because we know that affliction produces endurance, endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope.
ROMANS 5:4-5 This hope will not disappoint us, because God s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
Rod: Used to protect and correct the sheep
HEBREWS 12:5-11 My son, do not take the Lord s discipline lightly or lose heart when you are reproved by him, for the Lord disciplines the one he loves and punishes every son he receives.
HEBREWS 12:5-11 Endure suffering as discipline: God is dealing with you as sons. For what son is there that a father does not discipline? But if you are without discipline which all receive then you are illegitimate children and not sons.
HEBREWS 12:5-11 Furthermore, we had human fathers discipline us, and we respected them. Shouldn t we submit even more to the Father of spirits and live?
HEBREWS 12:5-11 For they disciplined us for a short time based on what seemed good to them, but he does it for our benefit, so that we can share his holiness. No discipline seems enjoyable at the time, but painful.
HEBREWS 12:5-11 Later on, however, it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
2. What does it mean for God to be your Shepherd?
GOD AS SHEPHERD: 1. God is your owner.
GOD AS SHEPHERD: 1. God is your owner. God created you and gave you life.
GOD AS SHEPHERD: 1. God is your owner. God purchased you with the blood of His Son, Jesus.
ACTS 20:28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock of which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as overseers, to shepherd the church of God, which he purchased with his own blood.
JOHN 10:11 I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
GOD AS SHEPHERD: 1. God is your owner. If you re a Christian, Christ is constantly caring for you, interceding for you, and guiding you through His Spirit.
MARK 8:34-35 Calling the crowd along with his disciples, he said to them, If anyone wants to follow after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.
MARK 8:34-35 For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life because of me and the gospel will save it.
GOD AS SHEPHERD: 1. God is your owner. You exist to serve His purposes.
PSALM 23:1-3 The Lord is my shepherd; I have what I need. He lets me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside quiet waters. He renews my life; he leads me along the right paths for his name s sake.
GALATIANS 5:24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
APPLICATION 1. Know that your natural desires are liars.
APPLICATION 2. Submit to the ownership of God.