Psalm 23
When we become His sheep,
we need 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.’
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 rather 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
1 And you were dead
in the trespasses and sins 2 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—3 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, and followed
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 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 need 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 have 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 source 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 maybe 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
8 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. 9 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, meditate, 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 they listened carefully and they 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!
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