Songs of Summer 1 | Which Way to Blessing?

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 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 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.

David looks back over a life of provision and protection and finds the way to blessing in five words: "The Lord is my shepherd."

The Lord Is My Pastor

Everybody loves good music, though everybody has a different opinion about what good music is — and your kids probably differ with you. This summer at Cross Connection we're looking at some of the "top 10 hits" of the Psalms. We've already considered Psalm 1 and Psalm 19, and you can't go through the best of the Psalms without Psalm 23. Even people who have never opened a Bible have heard portions of it, because it shows up constantly in pop culture — in music, in TV, in movies, in the news.

The English word pastor comes from the Latin pastorum, meaning to lead into pasture, to cause to graze. So when we read the opening words of Psalm 23, "The Lord is my shepherd," we could read it, "The Lord is my pastor." Though you may call me or Pastor Mark or Pastor Jason "pastor," it is exceedingly important that we recognize that first and foremost the Lord is our pastor. He must be the one who is ultimately our shepherd.

David Knew the Work of Shepherding

Psalm 23 begins, "A Psalm of David." David authored some 75 Psalms, and many consider this his greatest. He lived 3,000 years ago and began his life as a shepherd. Shepherding was not merely an intellectual concept to him — he understood it experientially. Had God's call to be king never come, shepherding would have been his life and livelihood all his days.

Many, including myself, believe this Psalm was written later in David's life. Sitting back and reflecting, he would remember his early days tending the flock of his father Jesse, the youngest of seven older brothers, living near Bethlehem. He then became a soldier under King Saul, slew giants, rose to be a general, and ultimately was anointed king — though Saul pursued him for years to kill him. Upon Saul's death, David rose to the throne. Now, late in life, perhaps breathing the cool spring air near where he once tended his father's sheep, he looked back at how he had been led, provided for, and protected, and he said, "The Lord is my shepherd."

David Knew God Personally

Notice how David opens: "the Lord." In your Bibles it appears in small capitals — LORD — indicating the Hebrew word Yehovah, the name of God. David refers to God in a very familial, close, relational sense. Point one: David knew God personally. He did not know God only as the distant creator whose heavens declare His glory. He knew God relationally.

This should cause us to ask: do I know God personally, or is God just Creator to me? Many people acknowledge God's existence. Some call Him "the man upstairs." Some picture Him as a codgy old grandpa always telling you to get off his lawn. But not David. It is one thing to know about God — many people know lots of things about God — but the question is, do you know God?

This is why evangelical Christians often say, "I don't have religion, I have a relationship." Through the work Jesus came to do — dying on the cross for our sins, rising from the dead in victory over sin and death — He has made it possible to have a restored relationship with the God who made us. In Ephesians and elsewhere it's described as a father-son, father-daughter relationship. David had that kind of relationship; he is called a man after God's own heart, even a friend of God. Do you know God personally in that way?

Is the Lord Your Shepherd?

David did not write, "The Lord is a shepherd," though that would be true — God who created all things also sustains and tends them, even the birds of the air. He did not write, "the shepherd," though that too is true. He did not even write, "our shepherd." David personalizes it: "The Lord is my shepherd." At every stage of his life he could see God's provision, protection, and care.

Point two: is the Lord *your* shepherd? It is one thing to acknowledge that He is the provider and protector; it is another to know Him as your provider and protector. Have you acknowledged God's protection, provision, and care for you? Whether or not you think He has protected you, He has. Or are you still without a shepherd — scattered, wayward? If you're a wayward sheep today, perhaps brought by a friend or family member, I want you to know that you should want God to be your shepherd.

The Good Shepherd

Why should you want Him? In John chapter 10, verse 11, Jesus said:

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees... I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own... and I lay down My life for the sheep. And other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd.

There are many things people say about Jesus — some true, some exaggerated, some outright wrong. It's important to ask what Jesus said about Himself. He says, "I am the good shepherd." You should want Him as your shepherd because, first, He is the good shepherd. Second, He is not a hireling — not a contracted worker managing another's flock. He is the owner. When danger comes, the hireling flees to save himself, but the good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.

In Matthew chapter 9, as multitudes followed Jesus, He beheld them and was moved with compassion, for they were like sheep scattered without a shepherd. So how do you move from being scattered and alone to coming under His care? Jesus answers in John 10: "My sheep hear My voice... and they follow Me." The Lord is calling you to come under His provision and care. All you have to do is respond and acknowledge Him as your shepherd.

David wrote the same in Psalm 95, verse 6: "Oh come, let us worship and bow down... for He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His hand. Today, if you will hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion." If you hear His voice calling you, do not harden your heart — respond, because He is the good shepherd who gives His life for the sheep.

"I Shall Not Want"

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want." That sounds wonderful, but what does it mean? Does it mean I will lack absolutely nothing I desire, that everything I want will be mine? Some teach exactly that — name it, claim it, and it's yours. But that teaching has problems.

First, a practical problem: if Christians were guaranteed everything they desire, why is that plainly not the case for the overwhelming majority of believers? Those who teach it usually evade the question by qualifying — "this is for the true Christian," or "the spirit-filled Christian," or "the one without sin."

Second, a biblical problem found right in Psalm 23 itself. David says, "I shall not want," then a few verses later speaks of walking "through the valley of the shadow of death" and of "enemies." I never desire valleys, suffering, death, or enemies — and neither did David. So "I shall not want" cannot mean you will have everything you desire.

The New Living Translation is helpful: "The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need." The sheep in the Lord's fold is not wanton — not wandering and looking for satisfaction elsewhere. He is satisfied. He has all he needs and isn't looking for other pastures or another shepherd. As Psalm 34 says, "Those who seek the Lord shall not lack any good thing." Psalm 84: "No good thing will He withhold from those who walk uprightly." Psalm 85: "The Lord will give what is good."

God Withholds What Is Not Good

This brings us to something important: some things we pray for are not good. Be honest — how many of you have prayed for things you later realized were not good? The good shepherd discerns for us what would not be good. There are prayers God should say no to, prayers that if you knew what God knows, you'd never even ask.

There's a country song that says, "Thank God for unanswered prayers." Years later you look back and say, "Thank God You didn't say yes to that." God knows what is good. No good thing will He withhold; He will give what is good. So if you're praying for something and God hasn't answered, it may be that He says it's not good for you, or not good right now, so He says wait.

Jesus said in Matthew 6:33, "Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you." Often our prayers seek first the things and not the kingdom. Philippians 4:19 reminds us, "My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus." The sheep in the Lord's fold lacks nothing of need.

He Leads — For His Name's Sake

"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." Underline those last four words — for His name's sake. It's easy to miss them. He does all this for His glory, His fame, that His sheep would be cared for and satisfied, not wandering after other pastures or other shepherds.

Point three: God lovingly cares for His own. All humanity abides under what theologians call the common grace of God — sunshine and rain for everyone's crops. But those in the fold of the Lord, who have heard His voice and acknowledged His shepherding, He cares for as His own.

Even When I Walk Through the Valley

"Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me." That word "yea" isn't part of our everyday speech. Some translations render it "even when I walk through the valley of the shadow of death" — and I like that. Just as we won't always have everything we desire, we also know practically that in a fallen world we will go through valleys.

In a group this size, many are being led into green pastures with joy, but more than a few are silently walking through a valley right now. This week I sat for hours with a brother in our church whose two adult sons were killed in an accident on Highway 76. He came last Sunday, and very few knew. After this morning's first service, I saw a couple in the front with tears streaming down — their 33-year-old son died of a heart attack yesterday morning. They walked in with smiles, but they are in the valley of the shadow of death.

David says, "I will fear no evil." Why? Because it is the shadow of death, not the substance of death. And then notice the shift in language: in verses 1–3 David speaks of God in the third person — "He makes me, He leads me, He restores me." In verse 4 he shifts to the second person — "You are with me. Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me."

From Knowing About God to Knowing God

What happened? In the valley, the follower of God moves from knowing about God to experiencing Him personally. He moves from intellectual, theological truth about who God is to personally experiencing His care, provision, and protection.

Why does God allow us to go through valleys? Why doesn't He just stop them? When I sat with that grieving father last Sunday, I said, "I can't even imagine what you're going through, but I do know this — you will know the presence of God like you never have before." When he came back Tuesday, he said, "God has been with me." Even in the valley, when everything seems to indicate that God is gone — God is now here. He's there.

We live in a fallen world where death and sin are the result of the fall. But in the valley God reveals Himself as He walks us through. Paul wrote in Philippians 3:10, "that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection." But you cannot know the power of the resurrection without first knowing the fellowship of His sufferings. It was the death that brought the resurrection, the suffering that led to the death. God allows us through difficult things to know Him and the power of His resurrection.

Notice it is a path through the valley — the valley is not the destination. He is taking us somewhere. Sometimes the paths of righteousness meander through dark valleys, but He's taking us through to greener pastures and stiller waters. The common denominator among believers who suffer great loss is that they have come to know the presence of God to a greater capacity than they ever thought possible. The presence of God is often more sweet and tangible in the oncology infusion lab than it is sometimes in a sanctuary on a Sunday morning.

You Prepare a Table

David shifts the metaphor from shepherd to host: "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over." Who wouldn't want God to prepare a feast in their honor? But "in the presence of my enemies"? I think it means the one who has the Lord as shepherd and host, though surrounded by enemies, is at absolute peace and safety because He is with them. No good thing will He withhold; His rod and staff comfort; He is the protector. Though surrounded by enemies, what does it matter if you have Him? There is nothing to fear.

"You anoint my head with oil" was a host's greeting in welcoming a guest. Jesus alludes to this in Luke 7 with Simon the Pharisee: "You did not anoint My head with oil." Here the Creator of all things is the host welcoming you as the guest of honor. "My cup runs over" — like a diner where you order one cup of coffee and they keep filling it until you've somehow had eighty-five cups. That's the picture: the Lord heaping abundance upon you.

Point four: the good shepherd leads His sheep into and through dark valleys — which are not the ultimate destination — and in the midst of them, surrounded by enemies, there is protection from the Lord.

Goodness and Mercy Forever

"Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life." Surely — certainly, absolutely, without a doubt. Even in the valley, even surrounded by enemies, goodness and mercy pursue to overtake me all my days. One commentator pictures us escorted with the shepherd in front and these twin angels, goodness and mercy, behind. At a recent pastor's conference, Mike Macintosh walked in front of me with Pastor Jason on one side and Pastor Mark on the other, and I thought, this is what it's like to have bodyguards. Goodness and mercy are your bodyguards as the shepherd leads you on.

But where is the destination? "And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." Circle, highlight, star that word — forever. It's not temporary. The valleys of this life are temporary. The enemy is temporal. The house of the Lord is enduring. Surely I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

Point five: the surety of God's blessing remains upon the life and path of His followers forever. This is the promise to those who have the Lord as their shepherd — a promise we would do well to memorize and call to mind, because a day of dark valleys will come for every one of us.

Closing Prayer

Father God, thank You for Your word. I pray for those who are undoubtedly in our midst in the midst of a trial, walking through a valley. Encourage their hearts and minds with the reality of Your presence, that they would come to experience Your presence like they never have before. Help them to see the temporal nature of the valley, that the death of the valley is just a shadow and not the very substance, because Jesus, You took on death, the substance of it. Help us to be reminded that we will dwell with You in Your house forever. No good thing will You withhold. Help us to trust Your provision, protection, and care as the good shepherd, and the blessing of You as our host. We praise You and thank You in Jesus' name. Amen.