O GOD, COMFORT ME!

GOD IS NOT SURPRISED BY OUR STATE

PSALM 23

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 our journey through Psalm 23 so far, we have seen the great privilege it is, to become sheep of the Shepherd. Our needs are met, as He leads us to necessary nourishment. We come broken, needing the specific and wise care the Shepherd provides for us, and as we daily live in a difficult world, He protects and guides us.

This caring intervention in our lives provides us with the comfort we need. In English, ‘comfort’ means to soothe in times of affliction or distress. In the Hebrew, this word includes the idea that this comfort is motivated by compassion.

Could you imagine God as a Good Shepherd, without the reality of His compassion for us?

We must not forget why we have a relationship with the Shepherd, at all. He saw us without direction, incapable of making sense of our lives, under the weight of our sin, condemned to a Christless eternity, sheep with broken lives, living in a broken world. But He prepared for our need, before He even created the world: the Good Shepherd would give His life for the sake of His sheep.

God is not surprised by our state; He is not distracted by other events, but is meticulously working in our lives to prepare us for His presence.

Ephesians 5:25-27

…as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

Do you ever stop and think about the higher purposes that God has for you? He is cleansing you through the Word. As life’s difficulties expose parts of our lives that are still broken, God wants the truth of the His Word to transform us. God wants us without spot or wrinkle, that is holy, set apart, without blemish, without sin. We are being prepared with unmatched care, to live in His glorious presence eternally.

The Holy Spirit is the One who is our Comforter; He is our Helper.

John 14:16-17, 25-27

“If you love me, you will keep my commandments. And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Helper, to be with you forever, even the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees him nor knows him. You know him, for he dwells with you and will be in you.

“These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.

Jesus reminded us that we can certainly be encouraged, because He has overcome the world.

John 16:33

I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world.”

Paul prayed that the believers who were being persecuted in Rome and Thessalonica would abound in hope.

Romans 15:13

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.

2 Thessalonians 2:16, 17

16 Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father, who loved us and gave us eternal comfort and good hope through grace,17 comfort your hearts and establish them in every good work and word.

God knows that we need to be comforted in our daily struggles and needs, when we lose sight of God’s presence and His eternal purposes. He has given us His Word and has sent the Holy Spirit to dwell in us so that we would be comforted with what is eternal, even as we live in this world.

Are you discouraged? Are you depressed? Are you lonely? Are you feeling overwhelmed? The devil would love for you to take your eyes off the Shepherd and focus only on yourself, dwelling in your misery.

When Satan asked God to come against Job, his premise was that men worship God only when things go well.

Job 1:9-11

Then Satan answered the Lord and said, “Does Job fear God for no reason? Have you not put a hedge around him and his house and all that he has, on every side? You have blessed the work of his hands, and his possessions have increased in the land. But stretch out your hand and touch all that he has, and he will curse you to your face.”

Dear friend, God is close to His sheep. He is carefully at work in you and in me. His presence, His character, His strength, His wisdom, and His love are our comfort. Where else would you ever go?

John 6:66-69

After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. So Jesus said to the Twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?”  Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”

How are you answering the same question today?

GRATEFUL THE DAY AFTER!

And my God will supply every need of yours
according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.
To our God and Father be glory forever and ever. Amen. 

Philippians 4:19-20

We are so grateful for our relationship with our Father through Jesus Christ. Our life has been eternally changed through the gift of eternal life. We are blessed with no merit of our own. We didn’t do anything to invite God’s wonderful gift. We lived as rebels in a crooked and perverse world. We could not do anything to earn or repay such a gift.

Our gratefulness should produce in our lives so many results.

JOY – True joy is not based on circumstances, but on our awareness of the incredibly rich relationship with our Savior Jesus Christ.

COMPASSION – Our hearts should be filled with compassion for men and women who live their lives without hope and without the knowledge of true love.

LOVE – Our love for those around us should be astonishing for them. We should love our enemies, we should speak well of those who speak evil of us, and we should give without expecting anything in return. We love because He first loved us.

FORGIVENESS – Our hearts should be willing to forgive always as we remember that we have been forgiven of much greater sins.

SERVICE – Our service for the Lord should be continuous and selfless. We should be willing to serve as slaves of our Master Jesus Christ.

WORSHIP – Our worship should be driven by our amazement for the glory of God as we live in awe of His splendor and majesty.

WITNESSING – We should be so overwhelmed by our new position in Christ that we should desire everyone we know to enjoy the same privilege we have.

PEACE – We know Who holds our present and has secured our future. We know God sends us only good gifts and has carefully planned our life from birth to the day He will call us to Himself.

PATIENCE – God is forging us into image of His son Jesus Christ. Our trials are only God’s way to produce in us what we should all desire.

This is not an exhaustive list, just a way to jump-start our day, our month, our lives.

GOD IS NEAR US THROUGH OUR DARKEST MOMENTS!

SEVEN REASONS GOD IS AT WORK DURING OUR TRIALS

PSALM 23

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.

Although we are blessed to become sheep of the Shepherd and enjoy His care for us, we soon realize that life is still hard. We come to the Shepherd broken, in need of being restored. And that He does, through the Scriptures, as He prepares us for the trials of life.

We all know about the reality of the valley of the shadow of death. The early readers of this psalm were well aware of the dangers of these kinds of valleys: narrow places where the path wound between mountains and where enemies or robbers would attack, for there was no place to escape from them.

You probably can remember or are going through a valley of death, and as you look around, there seems to be no way to escape. During these times, we are tempted to feel hopeless and alone. Ideally, we then stop and pray, asking God to come to our rescue.

David exclaims that even in such a valley, he has no reason to fear evil. He is not afraid, nor does he feel helpless or without hope!

This verse assures us of something important to remember: God does not need to come to our rescue, for He is already there! David’s rest and assurance lies in the fact he knows the Lord is there; in fact, He is the One leading him through that valley.

There will be a big difference in our attitudes, if we realize that God is the One who has taken us through that valley. The valley of shadow of death is part of God’s loving, providential plan for us:

Through the valley, God is testing us.

1 Peter 1:6-9

In this you rejoice, though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved by various trials,  so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.  Though you have not seen him, you love him. Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice with joy that is inexpressible and filled with glory,  obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls.

Through the valley, God is shining through us.

2 Corinthians 4:7-10

But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.  We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair;  persecuted, but not forsaken; struck down, but not destroyed;  always carrying in the body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our bodies.

Through that valley, God is maturing us.

James 1:2-4

Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.

Through the valley, God can be disciplining us.

Hebrews 12:5, 6

 “My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,

nor be weary when reproved by him.

For the Lord disciplines the one he loves,

and chastises every son whom he receives.”

Through that valley, God is preparing us for ministry.

2 Corinthians 1:3-4

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort,  who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.

Through the valley, God is loosening us from the grip of the world.

2 Corinthians 4:17, 18

For this light momentary affliction is preparing for us an eternal weight of glory beyond all comparison, as we look not to the things that are seen but to the things that are unseen. For the things that are seen are transient, but the things that are unseen are eternal.

Through the valley, God is causing us to live in hope.

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18

But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope. For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.  For this we declare to you by a word from the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.  Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.

The valley is a blessing for a believer! Our Shepherd is there, and He has a perfect purpose for each valley. He is armed, both to protect us and to come to our rescue. In His hand there is a staff used to care for the sheep, and at His side, there is a rod, used as a weapon to fight against any dangerous animal or enemy.

We are not at the mercy of our circumstances. We are under God’s care. God knows when we need to be rescued and brought back to Him, and when we need to be protected; in all cases, He is there, leading us.

Don’t get discouraged! Don’t lose sight of the work of God! Don’t become bitter! Don’t become stubbornly disobedient! Don’t lose sight of the presence of God! Don’t look for another shepherd! Don’t forget that God has eternal purposes for this valley!

The shadows are real, death is real, and God is not surprised by our propensity to fear. But He wants us to remember that He is, for His own dear sheep, our loving Shepherd, close by for our care and protection.

I AM BROKEN, AND I NEED A SHEPHERD!

GOD’S WORK IN OUR LIVES IS NECESSARY FOR OUR SANCTIFICATION

PSALM 23

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.

As we started our journey through this psalm, we saw that only God’s sheep can call the Lord their shepherd. It is an amazing gift to know that the Good Shepherd has promised to provide all the needs of His sheep.

The sheep will never want, because God Himself leads them to the provision they need. What a privilege to know that the right food, in the adequate amount, will always be provided. It is also a blessing that the circumstances in which the sheep are fed are conducive to their necessary nourishment.

Lest one forgets the condition in which the sheep come to the shepherd, David in

reminds us:

3 He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness

for his name's sake.

The Shepherd feeds the sheep because they need to be restored. Every sheep who comes to the Lord comes broken, needing to be fixed. The Word of God is not given to us just to inform us, but because we are spiritually destitute.

Jesus said that to find blessing, we must understand our condition.

Matthew 5:3

“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

To be ‘poor is spirit’ means to be completely humbled before God, unable to offer anything, aware of one’s complete inability to do anything good.

Yet, Jesus invited those who recognize their desperate condition to come to Him.

Matthew 11:28

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

The Lord needs to completely renew our way of thinking, our goals, our perspectives; everything that we are needs to be transformed.

2 Corinthians 5:17

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

The work that God has to do is radical and necessary. We come laden with sin, with the scars of its consequences, and God begins to change us, as we submit to His word.

Romans 12:2

Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

God is transforming us and thus is guiding us in paths of righteousness.

When sheep are sick, they don’t know how to cure themselves; it is the Shepherd Who takes care of them. It is very encouraging, that God is not surprised by the fact that we are broken. He did not choose us because we were less broken than others, but because it pleased Him to do so. Jesus Christ came to save that which was lost.

Mark 2:17

And when Jesus heard it, he said to them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.”

We cannot come to God pretending to be healthy, but humbly aware of our lost state, willing to be submissive to His leading, and eager to be transformed by His Word.

David writes that the shepherd leads the sheep. Being led implies a few things. First of all, that our status quo is not acceptable, and secondly, that there will therefore be changes necessary. True sheep not only have made a commitment to become God’s sheep, but they have also committed to follow Him. This journey is not a brief one, for it is an ongoing progression that the Bible calls ‘sanctification’.

This spiritual progress should be visible to others.

Philippians 3:12-14

12 Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect, but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own. 13 Brothers, I do not consider that I have made it my own. But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

God is working in us so that our lives will progress toward spiritual maturity. He does it for His name’s sake. He is leading us toward holiness, for His intention is that we be conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ.

Jesus said that the true sheep will not follow other shepherds.

John 10:3-5

3…The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. 5 A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers.”

Why would the Lord do all this? To bring glory to His name and to protect His reputation. God caringly shepherds those who are truly His, so that they will walk according to His righteousness. We are not talking about perfection, but certainly about progress.

Paul said it clearly, when he said that he was not perfect, that he had not arrived, but that he was pressing on to the goal of God’s calling in Christ Jesus.

The sheep cannot become His sheep on their own. They cannot find the pastures where can they be fed, nor can they go in the right direction if they are not led.

We are so blessed, to know that we are led by a careful and loving Shepherd. Life is not easy, and we will see how necessary our Shepherd is, to lead us through its difficulties. What is He looking for? Sheep who will follow Him, because they are broken and want to be fixed!

TRUE SHEEP ARE WILLING TO BE LED!

WE MUST LEARN TO TRUST AND BE SATISFIED WHITH HIS PROVISION

Psalm 23

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. 

The journey of life for a spiritual sheep begins with an awareness of need for a Shepherd. This relationship with the Shepherd has its roots, not so much in finding provision for needs, but a source of true life.

What is especially amazing is the reality that the relationship begins because the Shepherd, Himself, wants a relationship with us unworthy, uninterested, ungodly sheep. The Bible describes what kind of direction we are all taking without a Shepherd.

Ephesians 2:1-3

And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.

All of us were followers. We followed the crowds; we followed the devil and his servants, as well as our own sinful desires. Moved by eternal, particular, faithful, immense, transforming, and unending love, the Creator of the universe looked down in compassion on us, who deserved His wrath, and offered His mercy instead.

His tender care begins with the shocking promise that we will not want. We will never lack what we really need!

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

When we become His sheep, we learn to trust and be satisfied with His provision. God is telling us, ‘I know how to provide rest; I know where there is nourishment and what kind you need, and I know how to lead you there.’ Are you reminded of the times you have complained, or questioned the ability of the Shepherd to provide for you? How far back do you have to think, to remember the last time that you rebelled or decided for yourself what God’s care for you should really look like?

I struggle with a propensity to discontent every time I forget that I am a sheep. I forget that I am unable to really know what my needs are, and furthermore, to provide for them.

Sheep, as animals, are prone to be afraid; they do not have the ability to provide food for themselves. If they are scared, they cannot eat and digest their food. Sheep are ruminants, meaning that after eating their food, they need to regurgitate their food and chew it again. For this process to happen, they need to rest and be calm. It is the shepherd’s job to provide an environment where this process can happen unhindered, so that the sheep can benefit from the nutrients it needs.

Sheep, because they are easily frightened, need still, calm waters to drink. The shepherd knows this and leads them to a place where they will have the water necessary to hydrate them.

The sheep, most of all, need to learn to trust in their shepherd. They need to be assured that he is taking care of them and that he is protecting them.

Does this sound familiar? Isn’t this what we also need? We need to know that our needs are provided for, and that we can trust the provision to be sufficient and adequate.

The shepherd never asks the sheep what time they want to eat or what kind of food they want. He is in charge because he knows best.

We know very well that God has left us His Word to feed us. There is no other place where we can learn about the character of our Shepherd. There is no other place where our hearts’ needs can be met. There is no other place where we can find wisdom to know how to live in this world. There is no other place where our fears can be dispelled. There is no other place where we can find spiritual nourishment.

It’s time to stop and look at our lives. When and how are we being fed? Are we malnourished? Are we spending more time being fed by other sources?

Remember where we were finding our sources for nourishment before we met the good Shepherd? Was it not in the opinions of the world, in the leadership of the devil, and by satisfying our own lusts and desires?

When the Word of God is not prominent in our priorities, we will quickly, and even perhaps unknowingly, revert to feeding in the same places where we used to be fed.

We wonder why we are fearful, why we are bitter, why we so easily lose our peace and fall into sin. The answer is not hard: we are malnourished or feeding in the wrong places.

The Apostle Paul reminds the Philippian believers that what they think about can produce peace, or lack of it.

Philippians 4:8-9

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.  What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me—practice these things, and the God of peace will be with you.

There is no doubt that the world, the devil, or our lust can inform our mind, and provide direction for our behavior. Instead, we would be wise to listen to, meditate on, learn, and apply the Word of God to our lives.

John 10:27

My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.

Jesus had no doubt that His sheep knew His voice and that they listened carefully and obeyed.

As we journey through this psalm, we will see that there can be no provision for our needs, if we do not allow God to define them and guide us to the ways He wants to meet them. Many of us want to rush to the solution, when God is telling us that it is time to sit at His feet, resting in the awareness that He knows best. If we submit to His guidance, we will ultimately be walking each day according to His Word.

Are you committed to taking the time to read and meditate upon God’s Word? Are you faithful in attending a church where the Word of God is taught, rather than just human opinions? Do you have godly people in your life who faithfully guide you to biblical truth?

May we be faithful in our journey as true sheep who follow the only Good Shepherd!

I AM A SHEEP, I NEED THE GOOD SHEPHERD!

 THE PRIVILEGE OF A PERSONAL AND LOVING RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD!

PSALM 23

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.

This is, without doubt, the most known, most loved psalm in the Bible. It has been the comfort of those who know God; it has been used to encourage the sick and the dying. It has been clung to by those going through difficulties, as they dealt with their foes; it has brought great encouragement to all who have read it.

As we start our meditation about this psalm, I want you to notice that the psalm is describing the journey of a life lived under the protection of the omnipotent God.

The first verse begins with a tender image: a shepherd and his sheep. This is not a general relationship, but it speaks clearly of the relationship of one sheep with his shepherd.

The LORD is the shepherd. The self-existing God, creator of all, and sustainer of the universe, is the shepherd. The very fact that the psalmist speaks of “my” shepherd requires our reflection about who can claim to belong to God.

The Bible is clear that not all enjoy this relationship with the Shepherd. When God inspired David to write this psalm, He did not write, ‘The LORD is the shepherd of the world”. When Jesus looked at the crowds, He saw the people as ‘sheep without a shepherd’.

Matthew 9:35-38

And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction.  When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.  Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few;  therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” 

These verses not only show us that sheep need to become God’s sheep, but also their immense need for a shepherd.

People, without the LORD as their shepherd, are helpless and harassed. When we observe actual sheep, we can tell that sheep need a shepherd, since they are not capable of taking care of themselves or protecting themselves.

Isaiah reminds us of our state as sheep:

Isaiah 53:6

All we like sheep have gone astray;

we have turned—every one—to his own way;

and the Lord has laid on him

the iniquity of us all.

 As helpless sheep, not only are we incapable of taking care of ourselves, but we also have rebelliously presumed that we could manage by following our own thoughts and goals. Because of this rebellion, Jesus had to die so that we could come to the true and good Shepherd.

John 14:5-6
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.

John 10:11
I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.

We needed a shepherd who would give His life for the sheep, and then we needed to understand, by God’s grace, that there was no access to the LORD apart from faith in the saving work of Christ. There are no alternative ways of becoming His sheep.

Why should we, His sheep, take the time to reflect on these truths? Remembering our state before we met the Shepherd should produce immense gratitude. Realizing the grace-driven relationship this implies should produce humble, thankful dependence and submission.

The verse ends with the words, ‘I shall not want’. God has promised to take care of His own and this promise is a certainty, but we must trust His care, without greedy or presumptuous expectations.

Philippians 4:19

And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus. 

There is no lack of supply. Our God, our shepherd, will supply our every need. Why, then, are we ever unhappy and fearful? We tend to quickly forget our inability to take care of ourselves.  We were lost, without direction and hope, and we were found by the Good Shepherd!

I do not possess the LORD, I am His possession. Too often, in our prayers and expectations, we tend to reverse the roles. All of a sudden, we forget Who is wise, Who is perfect, Who is powerful, Who knows the future, Who knows our real needs, and we come to wrong conclusions about what is good for us.

Being a sheep of the Shepherd requires submission. This should not be hard, if we don’t gloss over the first statement in this verse and then read “I shall not want’, without understanding that David was speaking of his needs, not his ‘wants’.

As we look around at all the lost sheep, we need to invite others to learn about our Shepherd. Our lives must reflect our humble and grateful dependence on Him. As we continue to reflect upon this beloved psalm, what joy and assurance it will bring to all of the ‘sheep’ whom the Good Shepherd has called to Himself! What a privilege to be one of His flock!

GOD IS CLOSE; DON’T TRUST YOUR FEELINGS!

WE MUST REMEMBER THE COST OF OUR SALVATION

Psalm 22: 11-21

11 Be not far from me,

for trouble is near,

and there is none to help.

12 Many bulls encompass me;

strong bulls of Bashan surround me;

13 they open wide their mouths at me,

like a ravening and roaring lion.

14 I am poured out like water,

and all my bones are out of joint;

my heart is like wax;

it is melted within my breast;

15 my strength is dried up like a potsherd,

and my tongue sticks to my jaws;

you lay me in the dust of death.

16 For dogs encompass me;

a company of evildoers encircles me;

they have pierced my hands and feet—

17 I can count all my bones—

they stare and gloat over me;

18 they divide my garments among them,

and for my clothing they cast lots.

19 But you, O Lord, do not be far off!

O you my help, come quickly to my aid!

20 Deliver my soul from the sword,

my precious life from the power of the dog!

21 Save me from the mouth of the lion!

You have rescued me from the horns of the wild oxen!

Psalm 22 continues with David requesting God to stay close to him: “Be not far from me”. David knows that trouble is very close, and he certainly wants his God to be even closer.

He has learned that in all circumstances, there is only one avenue of help. Ultimately, whatever strength or help has only one Source. When we stop and think, these are things we know, that we have experienced, but that we often tend   to forget.

God, alone, has the power and ability to come to our aid. And if He doesn’t, it’s according to His loving choice. We cannot presume to understand the purposes of God, but we certainly should trust in Him.

The foes whom we can encounter are indeed evil, and they can therefore produce much pain and distress in our lives. David is not superficially overlooking the reality of the enemies or the danger he is in, but he is resolved to seek the closeness of his God.

The reference to our wonderful Savior and His agony on the cross is quite evident in these verses. The cruel death of crucifixion would sap out the life from the condemned person. As one lost his strength, the ability to stand would escape him, and he would die of suffocation. Dehydration and total exhaustion were the slow agony that this brutal method inflicted upon its victims. When the executioner finally decided that the suffering of the condemned had been sufficient, the bones of his legs would be broken to expedite his certain death.

When Jesus was crucified, as this psalm predicted, His bones were not broken.  After He watched the soldiers cast lots for His garment and met the stares of those gloating over His death, it was Jesus who laid down His own life. His hands, feet, and side pierced for our transgressions.

Isaiah 53:5

But he was pierced for our transgressions;

he was crushed for our iniquities;

upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,

and with his wounds we are healed. 

As Jesus died for our transgressions, He did it so that God could come close to us. The gulf of separation was bridged for us by the very cross that separated the Father from the Son. His sacrifice, done once for all time, was providing the only acceptable payment for the sins of all who would stop trusting in themselves, recognize their utterly helpless and sinful state, and trust the finished work on the cross by the only perfect Son of God.

Here we are, two thousand years later, asking the Holy God to come close and rescue us, and we can only do that because of the willing submission of Christ to the Father.

By possibly questioning God’s willingness to be close to us, we would be overlooking the cost to Him of re-establishing the possibility of relationship with us. What should we be doing in our trials?

Hebrews 12:1-3

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.

Jesus, as our example, is teaching us to look beyond the trial, the pain, the struggle, the humiliation, to the end result. For Jesus, in the midst of His suffering, had satisfaction in knowing that we could be reconciled with the Father and enjoy the forgiven relationship we could never have had, apart from His sacrifice.

We might not know the purposes that God has for us, but they certainly include these three: our spiritual sanctification, our service in promoting growth in other believers, and our reaching out to the world with the Gospel, thus ultimately bringing glory to the Father, in the process.

The danger of growing weary and fainthearted is always present. If we allow these feelings to overwhelm us or persist, they will produce sinful results. We must guard our hearts as this Psalm instructs us to do. We must desire to stay close to God and trust that He is close to us in our trials.

May the Lord be our focal point at all times!

GOD, WHERE ARE YOU?

ARE WE TOO SMALL FOR GOD TO REMEMBER US?

PSALM 22

1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

Why are you so far from saving me, from the words of my groaning?

2 O my God, I cry by day, but you do not answer,

and by night, but I find no rest.

3 Yet you are holy,

enthroned on the praises of Israel.

4 In you our fathers trusted;

they trusted, and you delivered them.

5 To you they cried and were rescued;

in you they trusted and were not put to shame.

6 But I am a worm and not a man,

scorned by mankind and despised by the people.

7 All who see me mock me;

they make mouths at me; they wag their heads;

8 “He trusts in the Lord; let him deliver him;

let him rescue him, for he delights in him!”

9 Yet you are he who took me from the womb;

you made me trust you at my mother's breasts.

10 On you was I cast from my birth,

and from my mother's womb you have been my God.

In this psalm, we see David’s progression from desperate plea to dependent prayer, and finally, to devoted praise.  Although the psalm has many messianic references, it also deals with David’s real feelings when he was experiencing very hard times.

At the height of David’s desperation, he cries out to God, asking if he has been forgotten. This is not a plea to a random god, but the outcry of a man who had placed his trust in the true God. David had dedicated his life to Him and had committed his ways to Him. At this time of desperation, though, David feels that his God is far, far away from him. When David uses the term ‘forsaken’, he is expressing his feeling of total abandonment.

Even though David is in such a desperate state, he does not lose sight of who God is. God is holy, set apart, without sin or any wrong-doing. He has been praised by Israel and He has proven to be trustworthy, as He has rescued them in their times of need. In fact, Israel had never had cause to be ashamed of their trust in God. David knew that although he was not seeing an answer to his personal plea, God had proven Himself faithful throughout Israel’s history.

At this time, though, David is looking at his own circumstances and is overwhelmed by the scorn of his enemies. He is being scorned and despised; in fact, he compares himself to a defenseless, worthless worm. As he looks around, and all he can see is the mocking disdain of the people.

Rehearsing his relationship to God through his people, he then reminds God of his personal dependence on Him, from his youth.

David remembers that even his birth was not by chance, for it was God who had brought him from the womb and ordained that he was raised in a faithful family where he had learned to trust God. He can’t remember a time when God had not been his God!

These verses may remind us of times when we have felt this way, too: abandoned, too small to even receive attention from God, forsaken after years of dependence and trust.

From our perspective, the references to Christ’s treatment during His crucifixion and the agony of His separation from God are very obvious to us. We realize, however, that as David wrote, he had no such point of reference, but only his bewildered trust in God and the fact that God, Himself, was inspiring what he wrote.

Matthew 27:46

And about the ninth hour Jesus cried out with a loud voice, saying,” Eli, Eli, lema sabachthani?” that is, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”

When Jesus cried David’s same words from the cross, they were totally true for Him. God had to turn away from Him, as He poured out His wrath upon His Son, who was carrying the deadly weight of our sins. Jesus the Messiah had, from eternity past, lived in perfect and holy communion with God the Father, so now their separation was inexpressibly devastating to Him.

Jesus’ prayer and agony in the garden of Gethsemane proves that He knew very well the horrific consequence of bearing our sin. Jesus, God of very God, the sinless Son of Man, experienced the Father’s abandonment so that we could be reconciled to Him, and never forsaken.

He bore the weight of utter humiliation, knowing that only a perfect Lamb of God could provide the acceptable sacrifice that would achieve forgiveness of our sins and allow believing people to be declared righteous, and thereby able to enjoy true relationship with His holy Father.

As Jesus approached the cross, He experienced the reality of being scorned like no one else ever has.

Luke 23:35-37

And the people stood by, watching, but the rulers scoffed at him, saying, “He saved others; let him save himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One!”  The soldiers also mocked him, coming up and offering him sour wine and saying, “If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself!”

Isaiah 53:3

He was despised and rejected by men;

a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;

and as one from whom men hide their faces

he was despised, and we esteemed him not.

Jesus gave up His position with the Father so that WE would not be forsaken, as we deserved.

Philippians 2:5-8

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus,  who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped,  but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men.  And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

Is it possible that God, who sent His Son to die for our sins, would ever abandon us? As we are reminded of these truths, what is happening to our cries of abandonment? Is it possible that He would allow us to be crushed because He doesn’t care? Our answer is surely obvious.

Yes, there are times we feel utterly abandoned and totally crushed by people, but does God understand? Does Jesus care?

Hebrews 4:15, 16

For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.  Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

As we will see, David did not lose heart and we should not either. His trust and prayers did not waver.

There is a danger, during our trials, that we may become so self-focused that we lose sight of God! So, instead, we must turn our focus to the Scriptures, which are filled with His perfections, in order to renew our delight and trust in God.