Psalm 23. Psalm 23. We've looked at this so many times, and I've said so many times that one way to know the gospel is gospel to you. You hear it, you love it, you lean upon it, and it never goes over. It's all good news. It's always news.

Let me ask some of you, did any of you drink any hot chocolate this, this, during the, did you, the older people? Margaret? Did you drink any hot chocolate? Anybody? I didn't. Nobody? Somebody? Somebody? Probably. There you go. There's an older woman. Hot chocolate. Did you drink that when you were five years old? You still drink it? You still like it? Still want it? What about yourself? See, that's how you know you're a sheep.

This psalm, this message, gives great glory to the Great Shepherd. Like all the book that's written of him, great comfort to sheep. Great comfort. John said this in his epistle, he said, these false preachers, they preach out the world, and the world hears them. But he said, they that are of God speak God's word, and God's people hear them. If you're a sheeher, you want to hear about your shepherd. You understand? You know it's so. Sheep never get tired of the shepherd. I want to hear about the shepherd. If you're a sheep, you have a shepherd. It's just so. You have a shepherd. You must have a shepherd.

I know you've heard this before. I have too. But I read this and studied it and I think it's the first time. This is wonderful. This is my hope, my salvation, that I have a shepherd. And if I have a shepherd, if I need a shepherd, I must have a shepherd, then I'm going to get a sheep. That's what I want to know. Because in the end, he's going to gather his sheep on his right hand and goats on his left hand. Separate the sheep from the goats. And this is what's in it. The gospel. All right? Now, if you're a sheep, and you've heard this thing before. But, it's good news. If you're a sheep, you're owned. Don't not wild sheep. There may be some of them, but no type perfect. Generally speaking, sheep are owned by somebody. Didn't our Lord say, my own sheep, there in Jonathan, they're mine. Where did he get them? God gave them to him. The Father gave them to Him. He chose them and gave them to Christ. Elect, yes, elect of the Father. Chosen by the Father. Given to Christ. Owned by Him. Do you like that? Owned. He said, my own sheep. They hear my voice. He said, I lay down my life for my sheep. They're mine.

In the psalmist's heart, can you say that? I am my beloved's and He is mine. I hope this shepherd, if you can say it, the Lord is my shepherd. In Ezekiel 34 it said, they're my sheep and they'll know that I am their God. This is their God. It's a sign of that.

It reminds me of a wonderful story. I was a young boy. He and his father made a kite, this kite, and this boy loved this kite, he was flying this kite, and like kites do, I had a kite, and it'd get hung up in a tree or fly away, the string breaks and it'd fly away and it'd get lost, get lost. So this boy lost that kite that he and his father made.

Well, one day the little boy was walking down the street and looked into the window of a storefront window and there was his kite. The child had found that kite and had made hope of it and took it in and was selling it. So this boy went in there and said to the owner of it, that's my kite. I made it. The man said, no, that's mine. I found it, and now it's mine. He said, that's my kite. The man said, no, it's my kite. In order to redeem this kite, you're going to have to buy it and pay the price. And so the boy did. He got his money, and he went, and he paid the money to redeem this kite. from this man who killed it. And then on the way home, the boy said to that guy, you're mine. You're twice mine. I made you, and I bought you.

Now that's the redeeming of the Lord. That's the sheep of our Lord. His people have I formed for myself, but they got lost. But he found them, and he redeems them. How? One price, one price. So, if a sheep, you're not your own, you bother about it. Sheep are gregarious. I know that's a big word, and I learned it too. That's where you get the word congregation. Gregarious. Gathered. They must gather together. That's the nature of sheep. Goats are not. Brady Floyd is with us over the weekend and he has goats. And we were talking about goats, how goats will eat about anything. They're the best bush hogs you can own. And she put one goat by itself and he's just fine. On the mountainside, it'll just clear everything. But sheep are gregarious, they've got to flock together and they must have a shepherd. They must. Why? Because they're prey. Easy prey. They're weak. They're helpless. They're poor. They're needy. They're ignorant. They're so ignorant, they are prone to wander. Making the grasses greater? No, it's not. Because the shepherd always needs him to bring it back to him. And they're prone to wander. And they become prey to every predator around. And they need food. They need green pastures. They need grass.

Sheep have a shepherd. They must have a shepherd. They need a shepherd. Well, the Lord is the shepherd of the sheep. He is. Dr. Gladden is only one. In scripture now, this is the introduction. Okay. There's a good one in it. Who am I talking about? You know, he's talking about the shepherd, you've got to talk about the sheep. You've got to talk about the sheep, you've got to talk about the shepherd. Shepherd. Their name is right there in his name. Sheepherder. A shepherd. Alright? Scripture calls him a good shepherd. The Great Shepherd, Christ said, I am the Good Shepherd. The Great Shepherd, Peter said, was the Great Shepherd of the sheep, shall I tell you. The Cheap Shepherd. Our Lord is the Good Shepherd. He's good in His person. He's good. He's holy. He's just. He's righteous. He's true. He's faithful. He's merciful. He's loving. He's kind. There's none gooder, better. Oh, He makes all His goodness pass before us. That's Exodus 33. What is it in this pen? It's in the person. The Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, He's good in His person. He's good in His work. He's good. He never loses a sheep. He's good at what He does. He never loses a sheep. He goes after every single wandering lost sheep until he finds them. He puts them all on his shoulder and carries them all the way home. He does it all. He's a good shepherd. Yeah, he's a great shepherd. Great in his person. Great in his glory. Great in his legacy. Great in his humility. None meek more meek or lowly when he came, none more humble. That's great, isn't it? Humility, as well as majesty. Oh my, he's the richest, he's the wisest, he's the most powerful yet, he's almighty, he's great in his person. Isn't this a great message? Why? Because it's about him. Great in his work. So great salvation, as Scripture said. He's great.

David was a good shepherd, wasn't he? David was a good shepherd. What was David doing before he became king? He didn't cheat. Look, none recognized him. None recognized him. He came in. That's just a boy. That's just a young man. He's just a shepherd. No, no, this is the king of Israel. Arise! Well, he was keeping a sheep. And one time, one sheep, the scriptures makes it sound like, one sheep was taken by both a bear and a lion. Now, what if they had said, thy servant, thyself, thy servant went and got that sheep from the bear and the lion. My, my, what a great man. What a powerful man. Our Lord is the great shepherd of the sheep. He said, of all the cacophony of the lamb, I've lost nothing. He delivers them from the bear and the lion, the little wolf. He's great. His person, his work, he's the chief. There are many chiefs. He owes many chiefs. Like the cattle on a thousand hills? That's not a thousand cattle on a hill. That's the cattle on a thousand hills, all the gold and the silver. But all souls are His, but His sheep are His, and He has a sheep which no man can number. As the stars in the sky can number, as the sands in the sea can number. That's a lot of sheep there.

Where is our Lord Jesus Christ on that? He's right there at the right hand of the magistrate, reigning and ruling, directing, ordering, ruling, reigning, everything. He's in a potter. There's a man in gold sitting at the right hand of the potter, whom we cannot see. But we see him, right, we see the potter. Alright? He's still the great shepherd. However, he puts under-shepherds. They're called pastors. He said, I'll give them pastors after my own heart. They won't. Peter, Simon, let us now lay it upon thee. Yea, Lord, thou knowest. Feed my lambs, feed my flock. And they do. They're called under-shepherds. Under-shepherds. But he's the chief shepherd. He's a chief. They take their orders from him. And how do you know that they are his shepherd, his undershepherds are? They speak of him. They speak like him, of him. They take the things of him and show them to you. He's the chief shepherd. They're not the chief. They're just servants, and he's the chief shepherd. Okay? That was my introduction. Is it worth hearing? This is not him. He's worthy to preach, and he's worthy to be heard.

So is a sheep. You have, you need, and you love a shepherd. And you worship, and you hear his voice, and you sing psalms unto him. And none speaks more gloriously than Psalm 23. Psalm 23. Don't you love this psalm? I told men that they're going to look at Psalm 23 and say, oh good. Can you say that? That's good. Look at Psalm 23, Be Lord. Psalm 23, Be Lord. Who? Who is the Lord? That's what prayer is. Who is God? Who is the Lord that I should obey? Well, you're going to find out who we have. The Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. This God is our God. God of Israel. The God of Jacob is our God. The Lord Jesus Christ is our God. He's our Lord and our God. Can you say that? This Lord is God. They accuse us of idolatry for worshiping Jesus Christ. Guilty. And those that don't, I'm here to tell you. I'm here to tell you, if you don't worship Him as God, you're guilty of idolatry. But if you worship Him, all men should honor the Son, that's the honor of the Baptist. I know a lot of men who worship Him. Why? Because He's equal to the Baptist. The Lord God, did you notice, because you hear His voice, you know His Word, you know His truth. Read in Ezekiel 34, He said, I will seek my sheep. Well then in John 10, the Lord said, I will seek my sheep. Well who is it? Is it Jehovah? Didn't I seek His sheep? Yes. Or is it Jesus? Yes, everyone. That's what he said to those pharisees in Hades. Before Moses, before Abraham, well, I am that. I am father of one. We love that. This Lord is my Lord.

is my shepherd, the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The same Lord that wrestled with Jacob wrestled with me, wrestled with Matthew, same Lord, same Lord, on the cross, is my shepherd. As I quoted Psalm 2.16, I am thy beloved, and he is mine. Who is this that cometh from the mountains, leaning on her beloved? Well, that's your God. That's who I lean on, and He is. The Lord is my shepherd.

Verse 21 says, I shall not want. I shall not want. I've had it told, and I'm so shocked that I can't hear my own voice. And that's wonderful. I shall not want. Now, in the Scriptures, want means lack. Shall not lack, shall not need anything. Shall not be without. Be without all things needful. You won't get everything you want or desire unless your desire is what you want. David said, one thing I desire and that's what I seek after. What is it? The dwelling in the house of the Lord. Isn't that the last verse? Isn't that what it's going to be? My pastor wrote this and I've had it in the bulletin many, many times. You read it again? It's worth it. We all want to read it. The refrigerator article. That's what Deborah told me this morning. I'm going to put this on the refrigerator for the 15th time.

We shall not offer rest. It makes us lie down. We shall not want for peace, still water. We shall not want for forgiveness, He restores our souls. For holiness, He impairs our righteousness. For fellowship, for companionship, He's with us. For comfort, as Robin said. For provision, He prepares a table for us. For anything in this world and the world to come, surely goodness and mercy shall find us. And where are you going to be in the end? With Him in His house with us. You shall not lack.

Our Lord said to his disciples one time after he set them out without any money and without any second pair of shoes and all that. He said, when I set you out, did you lack anything? I said, nothing, Lord. What about you? You ever miss the meal? You ever been naked? The Lord is our shepherd, so we shall not want, shall not lack for those things we need, and He is the one we need.

Verse 2, He maketh me to lie down in green pasture. He maketh me. He made me. He's the potter and the clay. He formed His people for Himself. He maketh, and what He makes, He owns, doesn't He? He owns. He maketh His sheep to be sheep, and He owns them. And He maketh us, bless the Lord, He maketh us to do His will.

You know, I'll jot it down a few things here. You can't make anybody do anything here. You can't make anybody do anything. We try. We try to make our children do things. We try to make them come and sit and listen and bring them to hear the gospel. But you can't make them hear it either. You can't make them believe. You can't make them repent. You can't do it. He can. He does. He must. If he doesn't, then won't. You're not sure if he can make it yet. But the Lord can. The Lord must. The Lord shall. And this is our hope.

for those that we have abandoned, our children, our grandchildren, our lost spouses and parents and so forth, that the Lord, like he did to us, will make them to hear his voice. He'll make them to come. They won't come unless He calls them to make them sit. When you get a dog, and I've seen some of your dogs, to this day you still can't make them lie down. But you get a dog and you make them sit, you make them lie down, you feed them, you do all these things. If you're a good trainer. But our Lord makes all these people willing. When? He makes them willing. When? In the day of His power, what day is that? What is His power? The gospel is His power, John said. There's a day, and if it's along the hill, there's a coming of day, and this is the day. It's coming today, when they're going to come, they're going to sit at his feet, and they're going to hear his voice, the gospel, through a man, yes, another shepherd, but it's going to be the voice of the chief shepherd. They're going to hear his voice, and he maketh them to repent, he maketh them to believe, he maketh them to lie down, to rest in Christ's blood, he maketh them, he maketh them to touch and beg the Lord and make Him.

When you were a kid, did you ever say in defiance, you can't make me do that. Do this, do that. You can't make me. You ever do that? Sure you did. Saul of Tarsus. I'm going to go put this Jesus out of business. Oh, are you now? He was here, and by the Lord made him to lie down at his feet. And hear his voice. And willing.

The Lord is my shepherd. How do I know He's my shepherd? He made me one day to lie down at His feet. He made me to lie down. Greek verse 2 that says, He leadeth me. Now, green pastures are His word, aren't they? New, living, fresh, green. He leadeth me. Beside the still waters, don't you love that song? He leadeth me, O blessed thought, O words of heaven and comfort, fraught, full, wherever I be, whatever I do, whatever I be, it's my God that leadeth me. Aren't you glad? Aren't you glad he must? The sheep are so prone to wander. He leadeth me. Where? Beside the still waters. What's that? That's the waters of His Word. Still, souls still in waters. What is one of the first things you hear when He leads you and makes you lie down in these green passages of His Word? Here's a man preach the gospel. What's one of the first things He says to you that you hear? What was it that all of Israel heard at the Red Sea? One thing, all heard one thing. Be still. Stand still! Let's see what's happening. Soul still in the waters. Be still, don't act out. Be still, don't do anything. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ. Isn't that still, your soul? Raging within, still waters, quiet waters.

Listen to Psalm 84, verse 4. Blessed are they that dwell in thy house. They will be still. Praise God. They'll be still after all these years. You're not doing it though. Why? You're not calling on Him to do that. You're called to come and sit and listen and praise His name. You know what? Still. Be still. Stand still. He makes me in. He leads me beside the still waters.

Verse 3, He restoreth my soul. He restoreth my soul. They were restoring something. You take an old house that's run down, an old house that's in disrepair, me and I were coming back from Kingsport, and on the right side is a big mansion that's in decay. In decay, it's rotting. It's literally rotting from the inside out. It's falling down. It's a total ruin. It's ruined. Why is that house, why is it that a house gets in decay and ruin and will fall down and just be nothing but dust? Why is that? Because nobody lives there. There's no life there. If a house is lived in, there's love, there's laughter, there's life. It's full of life. Christ said, I have come that they might have life. You have to quit and live. We're dead. He restores my soul. body of death. He restores it by giving life. He restores my soul.

Notice all of these verbs are present tense. You know what I said? Remember Psalm 146? Present tense. He maketh He keeps making us come. If He doesn't, you won't keep coming. He keeps making us repent. He keeps making us believe. He keeps making us to lie there. He keeps leading us beside the still water. He keeps telling us the same thing over and over. He keeps reminding us. He keeps restoring us. Doesn't He? There's a gospel. I hope so. I got nothing else to do, people. I got nothing else to say. This is it. This is as good as it gets. I'm sorry. No, I'm not sorry. This is as good as it gets. Does this keep restoring yourself? Do you need restoring daily? Do you need to be told to come again? Don't tell me what to do. This is what I ask the Lord all the time. Tell me what to do! If you don't tell me to come, I won't come. Show me, lead me, guide me, direct me, teach me. Make me! Don't make me old. Make me. Make me. If you don't, nobody can, nobody will. I can't. Make me. Make me. Restore us. Restore us. I need restoration every day of my life. Bless God, His mercies are new. How often? Every morning. He restored it. He leadeth, verse 3, in paths of righteousness for His name's sake. What did the paths of the Lord lead? Where do all the paths of the Lord lead? All mercy and truth, such as keep or lay hold of His covenant, which is the government. Where do all the paths of the Lord, every single jot and tittle and line and phrase and word in this book, lead to? One thing, Christ. How righteous. He leads men paths of righteousness for His name's sake. That's His name. He's the leader, he's the keeper of history. His name says it. He's our shepherd, chief. He's our redeemer. That's his name, isn't it? Why? Because that's what he did. He's our savior. Why? Because that's what he did. That's what he came to do. And it's not he did it, he doth it. He shall never do it. He's always saying this. He's always saying this.

As I began this, sheep are told to do pretty much one thing, one thing. What's a shepherd do? That's his name. He does it for his namesake. His namesake. Verse 4. Do I walk through the valley of the shadow of death? Now you ought to have said by now, yay and amen to everything. But all the promises of God are where? In Jesus Christ. And what are they? Yay! You say that and something excites you or something you agree with or something you love to hear about. Yay! Well, that's what this means. Yes, it means yes, but it also means yay! Amen! That's the way it is, and that's the way I want it, and that's the way I have it, and I'm so glad it is. Yay! The Lord is my shepherd. Yay! I shall not want people to make it, but yay! He restored my soul. Yay! Yes! Amen to that! He leadeth me. Yay! I can't leave myself. Here I'm called to lead you. I can't even lead myself. But he said, I'll lead you. Yay! And go on. He tried. Hmm. But he didn't make it. No, I walked through the valley of the shadow of death. All around us is death. Our Lord came to deliver them, who all their lifetime were subject to the bondage, the bondage of fear of death. That's what makes every single human being afraid. Every single animal that has a soul lives in fear of one thing, death. And the shadow, it casts a shadow over all the land. It's everywhere, over every walk and every thing. But I'm here to tell you, yes, they and Adam all died. I better hear out of him here. Get at him, all the way to the eye. He said, he that liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Do you believe this? If you do, say Amen. Yay! You'll never die. Yay! Amen. That's a promise of our Lord Jesus Christ.

It's just a shadow. Are you afraid of the shadows? Yes, you are. If you're honest. I remember Brother Bruce saying that in a message one time, you know. He said, at the time, I guess he was maybe, I don't know, my age. He said, I'd be elsewhere. Sometimes it's dark, my grandchildren are there, something's going on, a noise, and they expect me to go out there and deal with it. He said, I'm afraid of the dark. A grown man? Well, you're a leader of men. I'm just a little child that comes right into it.

David, who faced Goliath one day, he said, What kind of man are you? I trusted him. The shadow, we shouldn't be afraid of the shadow, but we are. And all these clouds that hang over our heads that seem like a dark shadow, a dark cloud. Sister, there are no dark clouds hanging over your head. Every single one is filled with mercy and shall break with blessings upon your head. The sun is always shining. You just can't see it.

Shining on who? His death. Shadow of death. Why should we fear no evil? Because thou art with me. Thou art with me. Does anybody like Psalm 46? Anybody? Anybody? Listen to this. God is our refuge. A very present help in trouble. God is in the midst of this trouble. She shall not be moved. God shall help her in that right hour. Well, you know, I said, well, listen, the Lord of Hosts is with us. The God of Jacob is our refuge. The Lord of Hosts is with us. He says it again. The God of Jacob is our refuge. Oh, my, fear no evil.

Didn't Christ keep telling His disciples, fear not, fear not, fear not. Read on with me. Thou art with me. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. I've had this for years, had this in my study. Like that man, that great man of my study, Constantine, constant reminder to me, I need to remember, we all need object listening. The Lord gives us something, sun that shines every morning, ought to remind us of the sun of righteousness. The trees, don't you love the trees? Ought to remind us of the tree of righteousness, the tree of God's righteousness.

The shepherd's rod looks something like this, so I'm calling it a shepherd's crook. This is the rod, this is the staff. The rod, in the scriptures, talks about the scepter of his righteousness. He reigns and rules with the scepter of his righteousness. Our Lord Jesus Christ reigns and rules over all. Yes he does. He is the rod, isn't He? He is the rod. He reigns and rules. And with His rod, He also wards off the enemy. If a wolf comes along, the Lord's got a sharp sword that goes out of His mouth, able to slay them. And He's got a rod that He He protects his sheep.

What is your protection against the wolf, against the sheep? His word is your rod. It's a rod. It's a rod. And by staff, they comfort you. The rod of correction. If a sheep gets out of line, you spare the rod and it holds you. If a sheep gets out of line, what do you do? Oh, that's severe, that's cruel. It's love. Scripture says if you don't, if you spray the rod, you don't love each other. You take that rod, the sheep shepherd, that loves that sheep, and if it's going to spray it, you keep back in line. Doesn't it? Is that proof? Don't do that for goats. Go on then. And I say that the This is not a true shepherd's crook, because most of them are about that tall. You know that? And they're huge. They've got a crook. It doesn't matter how big the sheep. If it's a big old ram with a bull neck and a stiff neck, he's able. And his arm's not short. He's able to, to the uttermost, no matter how far they hit.

I remember my dog used to think that, I read a dog trainer one time, and some of you don't think this is wrong? I don't care. But this woman had trained $7,000 And she said, if that dog is doing something and it's too far up and he doesn't grab a hold of it, get a rock. And hit that dog with it. And what that dog thinks is, their arms are a hundred feet long. If they go get it, it'll run away. If I can't get it too far away, then they can't get a hold of it.

His arm's not short. His rod, His staff, doesn't it comfort you to know that no matter how far off you get, that He's able to get you. I'll bring you back. Remember how big a sinner you are? Huh? That staff will fit you in there. I'll bring you right back. How about how deep? Can you get in a pit so far, so deep, that you can't get out? Yep, that you can't get out, but not one He can't get you out. Huh? He's right. Does that help with you? Look at that.

Verse 5. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemy. A table in the presence of my enemy. I was going to have you turn to Luke 21. The Lord is telling them that you're going to hear wars and rumors of war. He said, you're going to be hated of all men, and they're going to lay hold of you and put you in jail. And he said, they're going to kill you. And he said, a man's foes are going to be doing his own household. There's going to be turmoil and strife and enemies. He said, you're going to be in the midst of trouble and wars and turmoil and all this thing. He said, but in your patience, possess your soul, possess your soul. Patience what? Wait in the Lord, believe Him and trust in Him.

And then right after that, he had them sit down. Well, first he had them go and find the upper room, remember, to prepare the Passover. He said, you'll find a man with a pitcher of water, that's the preacher, follow him in there, we'll get the Passover. The Lord said, we're going to sit down together and have this Passover. He just told them, your enemies are out to get you, they're going to get you, and they're out to get Christ. They can't get them without getting Him. They're out to get Him. While He was feeding them, they were plotting His death. Are you with me?

Thou preparest me a table in the presence of my enemy. This world is not your friend. And out there through many dangerous toils and snares I have already come. But it's grace that brought me there, Satan thus far, and grace will lead me home. He prepares us a table. Where is that? Right here. Anybody get anything to eat yet? A table. What have we been feeding on? Christ. In the midst of our youth.

Thou anointest my head with oil. Who is your head? Our Lord Jesus Christ is the head of the body of the church. Listen to Psalm 133. It says of this, of our head, Psalm 133, one of the shortest. How good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. United by Christ, union with him, and what a good man. It's like the precious orb upon the head, that rained down upon the beard, even the high priest's beard, went down to the skirts of his garment. It's like the dune of Hermon, descended on the mountains inside. Then he's saying, he's equal to thirty-four feet on a high mountain. There the Lord commended the blessing. That's it. Praise the Lord.

Has He anointed your head this morning with oil? The oil of the Spirit? My cup runneth over. My cup. My cup.

Brothers and sisters, do you not look at your life and think, The Lord has done so much for me. His mercies. You know, we use the word, I just can't believe it. I can't think of any other word. I can't believe how merciful the Lord has been to me. I can't believe how much the Lord has blessed me. I can't believe how long-suffering the Lord has been to me. I can't believe how gracious He's been to me. I can't believe about all He's done for me. And keeps doing it. And will keep doing it. My cup is just spilling over. It's yours.

Why? Because He emptied Himself. Because He took the cup of wrath that was due to God's people, that I deserve, and drank it dry. There is therefore now no condemnation, no right, for them there ain't right. Why? Because he took that cup and tried to drive. Didn't he son, the cup that my father gave him, that shall not drink it. Yes he did. So that we won't have to. And then he fills us. of His fullness, the emptiness of Him, that fills our midst of His fullness. And I'll receive grace for grace. And it keeps flowing, Sister Sam. It keeps flowing. It's never going to be empty. But, Bonnie, that barrel is never going to run dry. Don't you hear what the Lord said? He's going to keep reaching out. That's right there. You've got to get Shirley. Shirley. Shirley.

Now what follows, it must Shirley happen. Because of who he is. Right? This blessed promise. David says, Shirley. Goodness and mercy shall follow thee all the days of my life.

You think about your sin. You think about your past. Think about where the Lord found you, where the Lord brought you, the pit from which you dug in. Think about all your sins since then. Isn't it true where sin abounded? Surely. Why? Because that's his name. Our surely. Surely goodness. Whatever it is, no matter how bad, you meant it for evil. What's God meant it for? All that you have to take, surely, it's going to turn out good. Yes it is, it doesn't matter how bad it is, surely. That's his name, surely, goodness and mercy. Surely, like he keepeth, he leadeth, he delivereth, he restoreth.

You know what it says about his mercy? In it, derivative. Why? Because he's a saint. Not, he was, he shall be, he said, I am. That's why. Because it's him. He's the surety. Surety. Goodness and mercy shall follow me. Shall follow everything. All the days of my life, no matter how evil. I fear no evil. Our Lord said in Psalm 91, no evil shall befall you. All things work together for good, surely. It's going to turn out good. And it'll be mercy. And all the paths of the Lord are mercy and truth.

Surely goodness, and I'd like to hear someone once say, and we've been repeating it ever since, but this surely, this goodness and mercy are like the Lord and two sheepdogs. Two sheepdogs, they're watching these border collies, the sheepdogs around the field, they're amazed at it. Who did that? The Lord did that. They're amazed. They're all that and one other guy. And they like the Lord's sheepdogs, okay? Surely, goodness, he's got two sheepdogs. And they follow the sheep everywhere. And if one of them strays and goes off, No matter how bad it is, he says, goodness, go get him. And he's a bad one, you don't mean goodness! See that's the Lord's goodness! You're bad, that's right, but he's good. Goodness! And it's the Lord's, the goodness of the Lord that leads us to repentance. Not just in the beginning, but always.

Goodness, go get him. Amen. Show him just how good I've been to him and how bad he's been to me. Show him. Bring him back. Bring him back.

But he's gone far off. He's too far off. Mercy! Oh, he's abandoned all right. He's done it now. He sends away the dead. Mercy! Go get him.

That's it. Fetching that, where does the sheepdog bring the wandering sheep to? Back to the shepherd.

And he said, so he said, And I'm here to tell you, that surely, if the Lord is your shepherd, if you're a shepherd, surely, goodness and mercy will follow you. And if yours has been on the hill, they're going to follow them and bring them back.

Is that good enough? Does that give you some hope? There is no hope anywhere else. And you know where you're going to dwell? In the big house. Not a barn. The prodigal son, I'll just sleep in the barn. No, you won't. Bring the best rope. Kill the pilot cat. Bring that prodigal into the house, and he's going to dwell with me for a while.

Right. I can hear him. Because there's not a better sheep than a shepherd. He's the good, the great, and the chief.

Okay. Let's close by saying a number. Two ninety-three.