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Scripture for the day: Psalm 23:1-6 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 your ware 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 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.
Thought for the day: Yesterday we spent some time looking at the 23rd Psalm and the gifts the Shepherd gives the sheep of his pasture. I want to finish that thought today before I lose it completely. One of the things I’ve noticed the Good Shepherd has not given me thus far is a good memory (actually that’s not quite true; I have an excellent memory – it’s just very short).
Yesterday we said that the Good Shepherd gives satisfaction for “I shall not want.” The Good Shepherd gives serenity as “he leads me beside still waters.” And the Good Shepherd gives strength as “he restores my soul.” If those three great gifts were all we could expect, our lives would be blessed beyond our ability to measure. But they’re not; He has promised, and provided so much more.
Fourth, the Good Shepherd gives us Safety. “I will fear no evil, for you are with me.” The shepherd carried two vital instruments with him at all times in David’s time. He carried a short club two to three feet long with which he fought off predators that threatened the lives of the sheep. He also carried a long staff, often about eight feet in length, with which he would guide the sheep and help them out of crevices into which they may have fallen. What little I’ve read and observed of shepherding leads me to believe there’s a lot more to it than sitting on a hillside in the warm sun while the sheep grazed peacefully in the pasture below. The shepherd must maintain a constant watch on each and every member of the flock in order to bring them to the fold unharmed.
And that’s just the promise we have from the Good Shepherd. He has not promised we would face no trials, never get stuck in some crevice of life, or be attacked by the predators all around us. He has, however, promised his protection until we are safely in the sheepfold called heaven.
Fifth, the Good Shepherd gives us Sustenance. “You prepare a table before me.” In the area where David kept sheep for his family, the pastures were sometimes dangerous to the sheep. Poisonous plants grew alongside the sweet grass. Before he would bring the sheep to a new pasture the shepherd would go throughout the entire field, digging out the poisonous plants and putting them in heaps in the middle of the field, literally preparing a table for his sheep. Only when he was sure the danger had been removed would the shepherd bring the flock to pasture.
And how like that shepherd is the Good Shepherd. So often we look around us and know the enemy of our souls is everywhere. Wherever we may venture today, the enemy is there. Whatever we may be called upon to do, the enemy will be working just as hard to ensure our failure. The battle is real; the enemy is real. The wounds we sometimes receive are real. But the Good Shepherd provides safety in the midst of our enemies (not necessarily away from them) and healing for the wounds we receive.
Sixth, and last, the Good Shepherd gives us Security. “I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” Without a sense of security, the sheep are nervous, unable to eat or to rest. They are tired, anxious, and often out of control. Without security there is no peace. The sheep of His pasture know that peace because they know the security that comes from being under his watch-care. The wandering sheep has no sense of security. The lost sheep knows he is in danger and that the only answer is to return to the fold.
Jesus promised that he was “preparing a place for you so that where I am you may be also.” And John told the churches, “These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.” And what were “these things”? Walk in the light. Rely on Jesus as your advocate with the Father. Do not love the world. Hold on to your relationship as a child of God. Love as God loves. Hold fast to that which is of God and keep his commandments, each of which is wrapped up in the admonition that each one “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your mind and with all your strength. And love your neighbor as yourself.”
Now go take on your world. - Bill