The Lord Is My ...

The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures.

He leads me beside still waters.

He restores my soul.

He leads me in paths of righteousness for His names sake.

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.

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil, my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and

I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Psalm 23 esv

This may be the most well known Psalm of all time. I would think that most people have heard it at a funeral or in relation to someone facing the threat of death. It is understandable that Psalm 23 would be used in this way given the line mentioning “the shadow of death” but it is not what this song is all about. This is a bragging psalm! David is in essence saying, Hey everybody, my God is amazing! He loves me and cares for all my needs. He protects me and is always there for me. The former herdsman knew the bond of a good shepherd to his sheep, having sacrificed his safety for the well being of his own flock.

In this next passage David is persuading Saul of his ability to fight Goliath. His confidence is in the Lord and what he learned about God while being a shepherd.

"But David said to Saul, "Your servant used to keep sheep for his father. And when there came a lion, or a bear, and took a lamb from the flock, I went after him and struck him and delivered it out of his mouth. And if he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and struck him and killed him. Your servant has struck down both lions and bears, and this uncircumcised Philistine shall be like one of them, for he has defied the armies of the living God.” And David said,"The LORD who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine."And Saul said to David, "Go, and the LORD be with you!"1 Samuel 17:34-37 esv

David killed bears and lions bent on devouring his flock. He stood guard and watched with great love and care for them. He is saying that the Lord watches over His own in much the same way. He is not only comparing the Lord to a shepherd but himself to a sheep, which he knew to be helpless.

One of my favorite books is “a shepherd looks at Psalm 23” by Phillip Keller. If you want a better understanding of this psalm and the care that our Shepherd extends to us I highly recommend this book. Mr. Keller has personal insight as he owned a sheep ranch and was a shepherd in an area much like the area where David cared for his sheep.

Throughout my lifetime the Lord has used this psalm to comfort, convict, teach, and lead me to praise. I have argued with Him when I failed to understand what “want” means. I told Him recently that I didn't have any desire to eat in the presence of my enemies. Not that I don't want to eat,I just don't want enemies around when I do. I have questioned His steadfast love and longed to have the feeling of being cared for when I didn't feel it at the time. I have prayed these verses for friends with cancer. They have been a comfort in watching loved ones die. Too often I read this psalm for what it has for me in this present world instead of looking to see Him. It is after all about Him, though it does include how He relates to and what He does for me. Still it will benefit me most if my eyes are on Him and not myself. What He longs to give me is Himself. He is the best thing! He is the greatest reward!

When I wrote above that David's confidence was in God because of what he learned about the Lord while he was a shepherd, it brought another person to mind. Matthew gives account of a centurion who came to Jesus in Capernaum asking for healing for a beloved servant. Jesus turned to accompany him but the centurion said:

"Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me. And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it." Matthew 8:8-9 esv

(To find out what happened read the rest of this short story in the following verses of Matthew 8)

The centurion joins David, Phillip Keller, myself, and many, many others in learning something about God because of positions we ourselves have occupied. The centurion realized just as he, himself had authority because he was under someone with even greater authority, Jesus had authority of even greater measure because He was acting in obedience to God the Father. (Jesus said: "Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works."John 14:10esv)

David and Mr. Keller learned about the shepherd-like care that God gives to His children and how much we are like helpless sheep. I have gained a greater understanding about God being a good and loving Father since I had children of my own. God has used the many places, occupations, and relationships in my life to teach me about Himself and my relationship to Him.

My question then, for myself and for you is this: What is it that the Lord wants us to learn right now where He has placed us? How is He trying to show us a bigger picture of Himself and draw us ever closer to Himself? Also, what is it that He wants us to know about Him and about ourselves as we read and look deeper into this 23^rd Psalm?