Psalm 23 | Who is Your Shepherd?
Levi Stuckey
Easter | The Transformative Power of Belonging • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 35:23
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· 21 viewsIF God is your Shepherd and you travel with His flock, you’ll have all you need to live a good life.
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The Context of Psalm 23 Video…
In a minute we’re going to open and read perhaps one of the most known passages of scripture in all the Bible, but I wanted to start by showing you the geography and context of where this Psalm was written as David takes the perspective of his sheep and goats that were in his care out there in the Judean wilderness.
I really love this little video and before we dive into the text, I wanted to unpack a phrase from it quickly. Mr. Jack Beck said in there that David, as he takes the perspective of his sheep and goats, he knows that what they need is not naturally here within the wilderness area of Judah.
Now, typically when we think of sheep and shepherds, I don’t know about you, but usually I think we picture a Scottish or English farm with the gentle rolling hills of green grass. Right, something super picturesque, but that is not the setting of Psalm 23. No, the setting of Psalm 23 is the Judean wilderness, again as Beck points out, is a place that lacks everything. It’s a barren wilderness where the things that the sheep and goats need, they aren’t naturally there.
Now, for me to talk about our situation as a wilderness experience perhaps seems a bit ignorant. For instance, we are looking to send some of our people and resources over there this summer to our brothers and sisters in Christ in Malawi Africa at New Life Church and to those Malawians, if I were to speak of our experience in America as a wilderness experience, honestly I think it would be quite offensive to them. Because they know genuine lack. Part of the plan while we go over there is to help them build desks and chairs for their school because right now, their kids sit on the floor the whole day. They are severely under resourced. At the beginning of the year, our Church sent 5,000 dollars over there to help New Life Church and Pastor Robert buy food for his community. Malawi has been in a pretty terrible drought and hunger and starvation are a very real problem for them. They know what it’s like perhaps more than we do to live in the wilderness, but while we may have more amenities and creature comforts than them, I want to suggest to you all, that while we are confronted with destitution, we too live in a wilderness here in America. What I mean by that is that as Beck points out, we live in an area where the things we need, they don’t naturally exist.
Hear me out, I’m not talking about food and comfort and security. Those things exist in abundance and we need them and we should be thankful and content with them, but how many of us are? How many of us are content?
Right, we all understand why folks in an impoverished economy like Malawi, we can understand why they would struggle with contentment, but why do we? We have abundantly more than we need here. We don’t live in a wilderness or barren place. Rather we live in one of the most powerful economies in the world with access to pretty much anything anyone could ever want, and most of us have a lot. Even those on the lower end of the economic ladder in America have more than some of the wealthier people across the impoverished world, and yet it seems we’re constantly on the hunt for more.
The next thing, the next purchase. And this too is understandable. The marketers in America are quite good at their job. Every commercial we see online and on the TV, shows us a picture of how our lives are some how less than and would be improved if we just had this or that thing.
Right we are constantly bombarded with another ad promising that if you buy this thing, go to this place, cross this item off your bucket list, well then you shall no longer be in want because once you get this belonging, then you’ll have the full life and be fulfilled in life.
And here’s what I want you to see, if our focus is on our belongings or lack there of, we will always be in want, but if we learn to focus not on our belongings, but rather if we learn focus on the one to whom we belong, well then Psalm 23 promises that we shall never be in want.
Think about that for a second, can you imagine living your life from a place of contentment like this, to never be in want? Think about how much time you and I spend on wanting something. An experience, a vacation, a new tool or trinket. We scroll for it. We plan for it. We work over time to get the money to get it. Imagine how much anxiety, pressure and rest would come into our lives if we truly wanted for nothing?
It’s possible Church. This is the power if belonging to God and His flock. Here’s the big idea I want to show you from our text this morning: If God is your Shepherd and you travel with His flock, you'll have all you need to live a good life.
Our world wants us to believe that our next belonging is going to give us the fix and fulfillment our hearts crave, but this Psalm begs to differ. The world says if you buy this thing or go on this trip or experience this or that then you will not be in want, but Psalm 23 teaches us that our hearts will continue to be restless until they find their rest in the good Shepherd. It is only when we belong to the Lord that we shall experience a lack of want. And why is this? Well, lets read it and find out.
Psalm 23 (ESV)
A Psalm of David. 1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. 3 He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4 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. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
In preparation for this message, Wes challenged me to make a list of what is our action and what is God’s action. I’d never looked at the Psalm is this way before and it was incredibly insightful. And so that’s what I want to do you you all this morning.
The Psalmist starts and ends with our activity and I want you to notice that the activity we are doing, are less states of action and more states of being.
In v. 1 we’re told that if God is our shepherd, if we belong to Him, well then we will no want.
The NIV says we will lack nothing. Which is sort of mind blowing if you stop to meditate on that for a minute isn’t it. If you belong to God as a sheep, which implies that we belong to a flock as well. Any shepherd or sheep farmer knows that birds of a feather flock together. I’m not sure they’d put it that way necessarily, but you get my point. Sheep travel in flocks. A wandering sheep is a sheep that’s gonna get killed. In the longer version of the video I showed to you old Jack Beck pointed this out. As a few in the herd or flock moved, the entire flock moved because they all know there is safety in the flock and wolves eat those who straggle behind or wander off by themselves.
For this reason, I think we can say that if God is our shepherd and we travel in His flock, then we will not be in want.
Again, this is a state of being more than it is an action we do. Which is interesting. The Psalm begins with this and ends with something similar.
Again, it’s another state of being more than it is something that we do.
If the Lord is my Shepherd [and I travel with His flock] I shall not be in want and v. 6b
Psalm 23:6b (ESV)
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
I shall not be in want because I belong to God and dwell in His house with His people.
Do not miss this Church, does this sound like a person who is striving to measure up or fit in? Does this sound like someone anxiously trying to work out their salvation? Does this sound like someone on the rat race of good works trying to find the good life? No it doesn’t does it.
This person isn’t anxious or fretting. This person isn’t wringing their hands or spending sleepless nights, killing them selves to get a head in life or with God.
You see most of us live our lives like this guy, but if God is our shepherd, here’s the invitation, you and I can all look like this guy.
And already, because our hearts are so broken, we’re trying to work out in our head how we can make it so. Right, good grief, who in here doesn’t want to be more contented and rested? Who in here wouldn’t like to less busy and less hurried in life? Who in here isn’t searching for how to find rest and the good life of peace and prosperity?
This is what we’re all slaving away at, anxious about, loosing sleep over! The cares of this life and the worries of this world! The constant hunt to find the next thing that might for a minute let us come up for air and experience a minute of rest and joy? This is what all of us are working so incredibly hard to achieve is it not? And Here’s what I want you to see little lamb… this is not your work!
At least not according to Psalm 23 and if we want to pull in Jesus and the New Testament, John 6 and John 15. The world God has for you and I is not an endless striving to produce, nope, He simply invites us to belong, to believe, to abide in Him! And if we do this, we shall not want. We will not lack a thing.
Why?
Because of what the rest of Psalm 23 explains that God will do for us and His flock!
He will make us rest. He will lead us to places of calm and nourishment. Green pastures upon which we can feed. Still waters where we can get our cups refilled.
He will give us the ability to sleep by reassuring us with the truth that our Good Shepherd never does!
He will lead us. It’s exhausting trying to lead yourself isn’t? Trying to find purpose and follow that fickle heart of ours, it’s exhausting. As soon as we get the thing our heart wanted so badly, we discover, it’s on to the next thing!
Well, if God’s your good shepherd, if you belong to Him and His flock, you can get off that treadmill, Church. You can stop following that fickle heart of yours and God says He’ll lead us to good places where we can find rest and restoration for our souls!
I joked with Rachel this past week, that I’m not tired from an energy standpoint, but I told her I felt like my soul was tired. There’s been a lot of heavy stuff recently in ministry and as we grow here as a Church, I’m struggle to keep up with what God is doing here and when I forget that God is my good shepherd and start to take over His work from Him, believing that all this depends upon me, well then my soul starts to get really really overwhelmed! But if I would preach the gospel to my heart and remind it from Psalm 23 what my work is and what God’s work is, I would find restoration for my soul!
God says he’ll make us rest, He’ll nourish our hearts and souls and He’ll led us in right paths.
Have you ever struggled to know what’s best next at work, for your kids, in a major purchase? Who hasn’t? Well, it’s not our work to come up with that right path. God says if you stick close to Him as your shepherd He’ll lead you in paths of righteousness, or paths of rightness.
Here’s what this means Church, you don’t have to figure our what your purpose in life is, God says He’ll supply it for you! He will give you purpose and not a weak and limited purposes that’s all about you or what you can do. No the purpose He leads His sheep in will be eternal because the paths of rightness he Leads us down won’t be about us, but rather they will be about Him! He leads us for His name sake!
To people that don’t know God, this doesn’t sound like a bless, but those of us who do, we know the truth. Living for God’s name sake is the most fulfilling, rewarding and purposeful thing we can ever be apart of! God is forever and when we live with Him and for Him so are we. God leads us into eternal purpose over and above earthly purposes and when you experience it, Church there’s nothing better!
Now, I love how real this Psalm is, as we’re talking about the goodness and sweetness of what God will do in our lives as we belong to HIm and His flock, if we’re not careful we can start to paint a picture of Christian victory that is devoid of any cross! Rainbows and Unicorns, but Psalm 23 will not let us live there long.
Look at v. 4
Psalm 23:4 (ESV)
4 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.
Even with God as our Good Shepherd, death will still cast its shadow over our lives. Evil will crouch in upon us. Fear even, but God says we don’t have to worry when we face down these dark things, because we will not face them alone! He will be there and so will His flock. There is safety in His herd. Because He is there too, we do not have to worry about keeping ourselves. No He will keep us. He will protect us and comfort us ultimately and eternally.
In vv. 2-4 we see God acting as a sherpherd providing for us the necessities of life in a wilderness where the things we need are not natrually present and that would be enough, but in the worlds of the late grate Billy Mays, But wait there’s more!
Not only is God a good shepherd he’s also an insanely generous host!
vv. 5-6 show us that God does not provided for His sheep in a meager fashion but rather he does so in abundance.
He prepares a feast for us in the presence of our enemies. This could mean 1 or 2 things and honestly I think both are meant by the text. The first is this, as we go through life and pick up enemies, God promises to remind those who would be against us who’s side he’s on! Here we see God as our great host is our vindicator!
If you’ve ever been wronged, sinned against, lied about or slandered. Here we see that it’s not our work to defend ourselves but rather that’s another work God promises to do on our behalf! Vengeance is the Lords and He will have His justice for Himself and for us!
But along with that, we could also take this as God bringing enemies to the table with us. You see as we learnt to walk in the forgiveness of God, His forgiveness begins to flow through us out to others as well and this great host is not only our vindicator but he is also the great reconciler as well! He can bring those who were once enemies together to feast at the same table with one another!
And as we learn to live in the beauty of God’s work, our cups will overflow!
Goodness and mercy will follow us all the days of our lives and because God is doing all His works in and through our lives, we can focus on ours, dwelling with Him, staying close to Him! Belonging to Him and His flock!
If God is your Shepherd and you travel with His flock, you'll have all you need to live a good life.
In closing, I want to say a word to those who were baptized today. I’m gonna speak to them, but the rest of you can listen in. Today, you put a flag in the ground. This is what your baptism is. It did not save you, the faith God gave you did that. But today you put a flag in the ground publicly and you let all of us know, you belong to the Good Shepherd and you Belong to this flock!
There are going to be days in your journey where you question the truth of whether or not you belong to God or His people and when that day comes here’s what I want you to do, remember this day and the flag that was planted. You belong to God and whatever thing you think you should be doing to come back from wandering away or make up for some sin you committed remember this, your work, your only work is to come back and stay close to the good shepherd. He will do the rest. No matter what happens remember this day and because of the faith that is represented by the flag you planted know this, you belong, you are a child of the King and nothing can ever change that!
Live from this truth friend. Live from it!
I don’t know if anyone of you watched the masters this last week, but I did and I got to watch my favorite player win it again. Scottie Scheffler. I read an article on cbs this past week about it that’s fitting to share.
Scottie was speaking about the pressures of competing in such a high stakes tournament and of how badly he desired to win as a competitor. He was speaking about the stress and restlessness that he was struggling with the night and morning berfore last Sunday and Scottie is a believer of Jesus who belongs to the Good Shepherd and his flock.
Scottie recounted these emotions to the journalist. Feeling pressure, stress and feelings over overwhelm. Which I realize none of us are professional golfers competing for millions of dollars, but that said, I think all of us can understand what it feels like to be under the gun and to feel like it all depends upon us to provide for our family to be a good husband or wife or mom or dad or employee or christian. We all feel these pressures, we don’t like how much our care fills us with anxiety and worry. We don’t like the stress and pressure but we all feel the weight of the world from time to time.
Scottie said he woke up Sunday morning last week feeling this way. And he shared these feelings with the flock of God. He’s got some buddies on tour with him who love Jesus too and I want you to hear what they told him.
As Scottie was wrestling with the work He thought He need to accomplish, hear what his fellow sheep, his flock told him.
Scottie they said, your victory has already been secured on the cross!
Pressure off! Loved one if you question whether or not the good shepherd can go to work in your life and do all that’s promised here, I want you to remember that this same good shepherd did not even withhold his life to do the work necessary for you! He went to the cross for us to accomplish the work you and I never could!
And when you realize this, our victory has already been secured on the cross, we will not want! It’s finished, what more is there to be done but to rest in the truth and cling to this Good Shepherd?
Let’s pray.