For His Names' Sake

Good morning. Good morning. Turn with me, if you would, to the book of Ezekiel, the book of Ezekiel. We'll read here in chapter 16. Ezekiel chapter 16, we'll start in the first verse. Again, the word of the Lord came unto me saying, son of man, cause Jerusalem to know her abominations and say, thus saith the Lord God unto Jerusalem, thy birth and thy nativity is of the land of Canaan.

Thy father was an Amorite and thy mother and Hittite. And as for thy nativity in the day that was born, Thy navel was not cut, neither was thou washed in water to supple thee. Thou wast not salted at all, nor swaddled at all. None eye pitieth thee to do any of these unto thee, to have compassion upon thee. But thou wast cast out in the open field to the loathing of thy person in the day that thou wast born. And when I passed by thee and saw thee polluted in thine own blood, I said unto thee, when thou wast in thine own blood, Live, yea, I said unto thee, when thou wast in thy blood, live.

I've caused thee to multiply as the bud of the field. And thou hast increased and waxen great. And thou art come to excellent ornaments. Thy breasts are fashioned. Thine hair is grown, whereas thou wast naked and bare. Now when I passed by thee and looked upon thee, behold, thy time was the time of love. And I spread my skirt over thee and covered thy nakedness, yea, I swear unto thee and entered into a covenant with thee, saith the Lord God. Thou becamest mine.

Then washed I thee with water, yea, I throughly washed away thy blood from thee, and I anointed thee with oil. I clothed thee also with broidered work, and shod thee with badger skin, and girded thee about with fine linen, and I covered thee with silk. I decked thee also with ornaments, And I put bracelets upon thy hands, and a chain on thy neck. And I put a jewel on thy forehead, and earrings in thine ears, and a beautiful crown upon thine head. Thus wast thou decked with gold and silver, and thy raiment was of fine linen, and silk, embroidered work.

Thou didst eat fine flour, and honey, and oil. And thou wast exceeding beautiful, and thou didst prosper into a kingdom. And thy renown went forth among the heathen for thy beauty, For it was perfect through my comeliness, which I had put upon thee, saith the Lord God.

And we'll end our reading there. If you'd stand together while Chris leads us in our call to worship. Dear Lord, to us assemble here. Reveal thy glorious face. While we by faith, with love and fear, approach thy throne of grace. Thy house is called the house of prayer, a solemn sacred place. Oh, let us now thy presence share while at thy throne of grace. ♪ With holy boldness may we come ♪ ♪ Through of a sinful race ♪ ♪ Thankful to find in Christ there's room ♪ ♪ Before thy throne of grace ♪ We bless Thee for Thy love and grace. We bless Thee for Thy peace. ♪ And we do bless thee, Lord, because ♪ There is a throne of grace Okay, you can be seated now. And if you would, take your hymnal and turn it to page 349.

There shall be showers of blessings, 349. There shall be showers of blessings. This is the promise of love. There shall be seasons refreshing, sent from the Savior above. Showers of blessings, showers of blessings we need. Mercy drops round us are falling, but for the showers we plead. There shall be showers of blessing, precious reviving again. Over the hills and the valleys, sound of abundance of rain, showers of blessings, showers of blessings we need. Mercy drops round us are falling, but for the showers we plead. There shall be showers of blessing.

Send them upon us, O Lord. Grant to us now a refreshing. Come and now honor thy word. Showers of blessing. Showers of blessing we need. Mercy drops round us are falling, but for the showers we plead. There shall be showers of blessing, O that today they might fall. Now as to God we're confessing, Now as on Jesus we call. Showers of blessings, showers of blessings we need. Mercy drops round us are falling, but for the showers we plead. We're thankful to have with us this morning our brother Kevin Thacker and his family.

I feel like I say this every time, but if you weren't able to be here for Sunday school, be sure to get that recording. Be sure to go listen. I heard Rex Bartley one time say, and it was such a comfort to me, he said, well, if that ain't the gospel, I don't know it. If that ain't the gospel, I don't know it.

I appreciate you, brother, and I thank God that he's blessed you with a word from his heart to yours and then to ours. We're thankful. It's no less a miracle, no less a miracle than if we were standing right there watching the Red Sea part, then we hear a word from our father that he would see fit to communicate to us sinful people through a sinful man. We have much to be thankful for, don't we?

Let's pray together and then, Kevin, you come preach for us. Our Lord, our Heavenly Father, I pray that you be with us this morning and be with our brother Kevin and continue to bless him and strengthen him that your name get all the glory. We think of those of our congregation that aren't able to be here this morning. We think of many, Father, that are undergoing various physical ailments, trials, that because of your goodness, we recognize are from your hand. And Father, we pray that you remember that we're dust.

Strengthen them. Give them a comforting word from yourself. Heal according to your will. Restore them to us when it's time according to your will. Most importantly, be with them that the trial work which you'd have it to work. that you would prove yourself to them, make them a comfort to others, and bring glory to your name. We pray that you be with them. And wherever your word is being declared this morning, we pray together that you bless your word according to your will.

We thank you that we can come to a throne of justice and mercy in Christ our Savior, where there is full remission of sin, and the throne of mercy, and where there is life. We thank you. We pray this thankfully in Christ named for his sake. Amen. Okay, brother.

Scripture say that the angels want to look into these things. preaching the gospel and that always just as if they had a day off and on their day off they'd want to go listen to the gospel preach. I thought, what in the world would they want to hear me say? But if I had a day off, I'd want to hear one of y'all preach. I'd want to go hear Todd in Lakeston. That's what I do on my days off.

I want to hear the gospel preached. All right, brother, if you will, turn to 1 Samuel 17. It'll be a while before I get to my text, and I hope you'll bear with me, but we're going to end up in Psalm 23, but I want to start in 1 Samuel 17. Jehovah Rea, Lord our shepherd. David penned in Psalm 23, the Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. What's a shepherd?

They take care of sheep. They're responsible for the sheep. They look after them. They care for them and treat them if they're sick. They protect them. If they're wounded, they treat that and make sure brush is out of the way. They're not supposed to be eaten and just a myriad of everything. They see to everything for those sheep.

What does David know about that? You know, he was a shepherd. That's what he was doing before he was king. He was tending sheep. Here in 1 Samuel 17, They had a problem with this Goliath fella. The Philistines were coming, and he's going to be a problem. And so David said, I'll take care of it. Who's that uncircumcised Philistine that blasphemes God?

Pretty bold for a 17, 18-year-old boy, isn't it? But it takes those kind. And you think how strong and how faithful and trusting of God he was. I want to be like that. And years later, he played. pretended to be insane, had spittle run down his beard so it didn't hurt him. I will be like that. But here in 1 Samuel 17 verse 31.

And when the words were heard which David spake, they rehearsed them before Saul, and he sent for him. And David said to Saul, let no man's heart fail because of him, because of this Goliath. Thy servant will go and fight with this Philistine. I'll go whoop him. And Saul said to David, thou art not able to go against this Philistine to fight with him, for thou art but a youth. He's a man of war from his youth. He's a seasoned man now, and he's a giant, literally, and you're a boy.

No offense. That's the facts. Verse 34, and David said unto Saul, thy servant kept his father's sheep. I keep sheep. I've been to war. I'd laugh a little shepherd boy too. What's that got to do with anything, David? Those are sheep. They can't bite you. And there came a lion. Oh, it ain't just the sheep, is it? It's the problems that come with it. There came a lion and a bear and took a lamb out of the flock. A lion and a bear?

We'll see. And I went out after him. and smoked him and delivered it out of his mouth. And when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard and smoked him and slew him. Thy servant slew both the lion and the bear. And this uncircumcised Philistine shall be as one of them, seeing he hath defiled the armies of the living God." He whooped a bear and a lion that was fighting over a lamb. Did that happen? I earnestly, in my bones, believe it happened. Why? Well, it represents something. This isn't just this great boy that can whip a lion and a bear at the same time. That bear represents the law.

We are no match for that. We've never kept the law. We can't keep the law. You ain't never going to keep the law. Christ did. Our shepherd did. We're just lamb getting torn to shreds by it. And that lion, is one that seeketh whom he may devour." That great serpent, we are no match. People say, I'm going to resist the devil. You ain't nothing to stop. Run and hide. You are not equipped. You are a sheep in the mouth of a lion. We need a shepherd. David knew something about when he said, the Lord's my shepherd. Not the Lord's a shepherd, or he's the shepherd.

He's mine, and I need him. When trouble comes, I run to him. Not to the trouble to fight it. I run to him. David knew what he was talking about. He kept sheep. He kept sheep. I'm not fighting no lion and no bear. That's another thing I think how great our shepherd is. We'll see in a minute. A good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. I'll do everything I can to protect my sheep. But if there's a mountain lion out there, I guess he's going to have a good dinner. I'm not. I ain't going out there.

Verse 37, David said, the moreover, the Lord that delivered me out of the paw of the lion, and out of the paw, how could you do that, David? God was with me. God kept that lion from killing me. He kept that bear from killing me. He's speaking as a child of God here, right? He will deliver me out of the hand of this Philistine. He goes, I ain't gonna have to whoop Goliath. The Lord's gonna do it. I'm just the tool that he's using. I'm the rock that's gonna hit him in the head. The Lord's gonna do this. And Saul said unto David, Go, and the Lord be with thee. And David said, The Lord is my shepherd.

He said, I know what a shepherd is. I know what the, this isn't just a word or just a title or position. That's the defender of the sheep against the serpent. That's the defender of the sheep against the law that's stacked against us. He's the one that will fulfill that. He said, I understand those things.

And he said, the Lord's my shepherd, I shall not want. You know, that word means lack or fail. I won't fail. I won't be found lacking. We use the word, I want a new boat. I may want a new boat till I die. I'd never get one. I don't know. I want an old boat. I may want those things, but with my shepherd over me. I will never be found lacking in the eyes of the Father. I will never fail what's required of me, because He's my provision. He's the shepherd. Let's look at Matthew 6. Matthew chapter 6, verse 25. Matthew 6, 25. The Lord's speaking here and He says, Therefore I say unto you, take no thought for your life, what you shall eat, what you shall drink, nor yet for your body, what you shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?

Behold the fowls of the air, for they sow not, they're not out there planting fields, neither do they reap, nor gather in the barns. Yet your heavenly Father feedeth them, are you not much better than they? Which of you, by taking thought, can add one cubit to his stature?

Who can just concentrate really hard and grow four inches? I'm going to turn my hair red. Hold on. You'd laugh because it's impossible. You can't do that. And why can you take thought of your raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow. They toil not, neither do they spin. Yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. He said, go look at a beautiful flower. You can stand there just in awe. And the Lord made that in a field. Wherefore, God so clothed the grass of the field, which is today and tomorrow is cast in the oven.

It's just going to be cut or burned up. Shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? Therefore, take no thought, saying, what shall we eat? What shall we drink? Or wherewithal shall we be clothed? And in the absurdity of man, they say, well, I guess we don't eat, we don't drink, and we walk around naked. Obviously not. The Lord says don't dwell on those things. Just don't be consumed with your thoughts. That's your first cause. What am I going to eat? What am I going to drink? What am I going to wear? Where are we going to live?

Set your mind on things above. For after all these things do the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knoweth that ye have need of all these things. But seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these shall be added to you. Seek him first.

That's what David's reminding us. I'm not going to want, but the righteousness of Christ that God requires has been laid on us. We've been made his righteousness. He provided his son a lamb. And he forsook his own son on that cross The whole world went dark. My God, my God, why has thou forsaken me for us?

And he's accepting and there's no more condemnation. There's a woman. The Lord ain't mad at his people. There's nothing to be mad about. We have a righteousness is the act of a holy nature. We have the righteousness of Christ, his life, his his thoughts, his needs, everything. And we're made just like him where his seed is in us.

What are you going to lack? Do you think he can swing a water bill? You think we'll have groceries next week? What if we starve to death? Good. We'll be with him. That'd be the best thing that ever happened to me. He's right. Later on, he asked him in Luke 22, he said, when I sent you without purse and script and shoes, I said, go preach. He said, you lacked anything? Did you want? Were you found lacking? Did you fail? And they said one thing, nothing. Nothing. Not any of it.

Just saying that about a boat. I'm fascinated by sailboats. I got on one one time. They said, hey, you can go on this. That's neat. I'd like to know how that works. It's interesting. And I got addicted. They just captivate me. And I've always wanted a sailboat. I got a sail on a sailboat in Hawaii. Kimberly's cousin has one. We're out there in Maui.

And he said, you want to drive it? He said, we'll go have a drink or something. Do whatever you want. Go around. I was out there with them lines. And I guess I looked mad. This kid looked like he was having the time of his life. Leave him alone. Don't pay attention to his face. He just looks that way.

And I thought it was great fun. Have I liked anything? Nothing. And that lord gave me a boat to go sail on. He said, here, you can have you want to. I have everything I need. And boy he's kind to us and generous to us. That's just physically. What have we lacked spiritually in the Lord our shepherd? Nothing.

He's everything. He's everything. But of him, of the Father, are ye in Christ, of who God is made unto us, made unto us, tailor fit wisdom, He's all of our wisdom. Righteousness, all those acts of a holy nature that the Father requires. He's every bit of it. Sanctification, set apart, made holy, that cannot fail. If I buy a car, it's going to degrade. Someday it's going to break down if I get the best one ever. What the Lord has cannot fail. If it's His, it can't break down over time. Set apart, made holy. and redemption, bought with a price of double honor.

How did Jehovah-Raya, the Lord my shepherd, give us such things? He was made like his people. He was made bone of our bone, flesh of our flesh, came to this earth, was born under his law that he made. Talking about knowing how to fulfill the law, he knows what's required of it, he wrote it, it's his. and bore all the trials and troubles and nonsense that we have to bear the whole time.

Just imperfect, face set like a flint. It must be about my father's business. He's the good shepherd. Lord said in John 10, I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. He said, I have sheep the father gave me. He calls them heathens in Psalm 2. I'll give you the heathen for your inheritance. They're ornery sheep.

But there he is. And he said, I give willingly. A kinsman, a redeemer. He's able, he's related, he's made bone of our bones, and he's willing to redeem us. He said, I lay down, I will giveth my life for the sheep. That's a good shepherd. He's the great shepherd. Hebrews 13, it says, now the God of peace that brought again from the dead, Our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you perfect in every good work to do his will. Working in you, that which is well-pleasing in his sight. He is working in his people what's well-pleasing to him.

People say, well, I walk by faith. We are to walk by faith. The scripture says, the Lord says, I will walk in them. How we walk by faith? He's walking his faith in us. Well-pleasing his sight through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever. Amen. That's a great shepherd. A great shepherd. We need to be well-pleasing to God. He says, all right, I'll work in him to be well-pleasing to me. He does it. He's the chief shepherd.

1 Peter 5, the elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder and a witness of the sufferings of Christ and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed. Feed the flock of God, which is among you. The elders, the ones that preach, that's what it means. Feed God's flock, which is among you.

Take the oversight thereof. They don't know what to do. Take charge. Everybody's going to be trying to take charge. They can give it to you. You've got to take the oversight to do it. Not by constraint, not because you have to, but willingly. Not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind. Neither being as lords over God's heritage, but being examples to the flock. Be a good example to them. And when the chief shepherd shall appear, or under shepherds, when the chief shepherd shall appear, when the Lord comes, and he's coming, he shall receive the crown of glory that fadeth not away. Does that mean that preachers get a better crown?

No, we get him. It's the same thing all the children get. We all get the same If we was all going to go eat a potluck supper in Odd Road, I just happen to be the one driving. The front seat's going the same place the back seat's going, mom always told me. It don't make a difference. We're going to the same place. He's our crown of glory. Fadeth not away. Look in Isaiah 53. I always think of Philip coming up to the Ethiopian eunuch. He's reading Isaiah 53. Isaiah 53 verse six. All we like sheep have gone astray. We have turned everyone to his own way. And the Lord has laid on him on his Christ, our king. the iniquity of us all.

He was oppressed and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth. He was brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is done, so he opened not his mouth. Willingly he took it, he bore that guilt. He was taken from prison and from judgment, and who shall declare his generation? For he was cut off out of the land of the living, for the transgression of my people was he stricken. And he made his grave with the wicked. and with the rich in his death. Because he had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth.

Yet it pleased the Lord to bruise him. He hath put him to grief. When thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin, he shall see his seed and prolong his days. And the pledge of the Lord shall prosper in his hand. He shall see the travail of his soul and be satisfied.

By his knowledge, I know a whole lot. It don't matter what I know. Talk about knowledge, it's his knowledge. By his knowledge shall my righteous servant justify many, for he shall bear their iniquities. Therefore, I will divide him a portion with the great, and he shall divide the spoiled with the strong, because he hath poured out his soul unto death, And he was numbered with the transgressors. And he bare the sins of many and made intercession for the transgressors. That's a shepherd. That's a good shepherd. That's the great shepherd. That's the chief shepherd. David says, the Lord, Jehovah, is my shepherd. That's my shepherd. Who's looking out for me? God Almighty on his throne. The successful savior, king of kings. And I'm not going to like anything. I'm not going to be found wanting. I'm not going to fail because he can't fail.

That's my shepherd. Now Psalm 23, this will be my text. I always like his messages to Henry. He'd preach for 25, 26 minutes sometimes. He'd say, now turn to my text. I'd look at my watch, you know, when I was a kid. How long is it going to be? I'll go quick. He said, I don't mind a fellow, Henry said, I don't mind a fellow looking at his watch, but if he shakes it and listens to it, then I kind of.

Psalm 23. Now, I tried to labor there what a shepherd is, Jehovah Raya. It's not just an occupation. That's a person. And boy, he's something. To be worshipped. Worthy to be worshipped. Worthy to receive glory. It's more than that. You know the names of the Lord. We're going to see all of them right here in Psalm 23. This is who it is. It's the shepherd. Here's all of his other attributes, or several of them. It's beautiful.

Psalm 23, verse 1. The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want, I shall not be found lacking. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. He makes me. The Lord bless thee and keep thee. The Lord make his face shine upon thee. The word bless means kneel. The Lord kneel you. Oh, you bow the knee to him.

That's a good place to be in. And he has to make, he'll make, I don't think I can, I don't think I'd submit. You wouldn't and I wouldn't either. He'll make it. It's fine. The Lord make me to lie down in green pastures. Lie down there is two different translations, two meanings to that phrase, lie down. It means to crouch. and to recline. If I'm crouching, I'm submitting. I'm bowing my head. Lord comes in, oh, you crouch down. And then to recline. You're a sheep. Sheep eat green pastures. Lay down. It's fine. Rest. Where's rest found? In submitting to the Lord and bowing to the Lord. That's where our rest is. He makes me lie down in green pastures, and he leads me beside the still waters.

I said, sheep eat grass. The best advice I got of keeping sheep, they said, you need to be a good farmer of grass. And I thought, I mean, I get it. They have to have grass to eat. We know a lot more about grass now than we did last year, didn't we? I'm out there looking. I'm looking at that grass when I'm looking at them sheep. What kind of good stuff's there? What kind of bad stuff's there?

The Lord lays us down in green pastures. completely good thing. He didn't lay us down thorns. He didn't lay us down a mess of weeds and thistles and green pastures. And he leads us beside still waters. Sheep are scared to death of water, especially if it's moving. They don't- though he eats up to it and drink it if it's still, but we can't- we got a creek on our property and we like to never- we had to wait for a drought to get them things to cross it. They want to be able to- still waters. Still waters is where he leads us, where we can drink in peace and comfort.

We rest there. Makes us lie down. We recline. We have good food. We have good water. Everything's fine. It's rest. That's Jehovah's Shalom. The Lord our rest. Verse 3. He restoreth my soul. The Lord that healeth thee. Jehovah Rapha. The Restorer. The Soul Restorer. He restores my soul. He leadeth me in paths of righteousness. Jehovah's Sick Kingdom. He leads me in. He is the way. What's that path of righteousness? Christ. He's the way. He's our righteousness. The Lord our righteousness.

And that's so precious to me there in Jeremiah. Here's the name where he shall be called. Why does a woman take a man's name when they get married? I don't know if anybody's getting married, but I'll throw that out there. You ought to take the man's name. Why? Why?

It's what the Lord did. He gave us his name. This is the name whereby he shall be called the Lord Our Righteousness, Jehovah's Acknowledgement. A couple chapters later, here's the name where she shall be called, his bride, the Lord Our Righteousness. He's gonna give us his name? Where he is, where his bride?

And now, why would he do all that? Because I'm so special for his namesake. For his glory, because he wants to, to honor his son. There's a lot of different angles you could play that to. It's for the sake of his name. I'm named after my grandfather, so I'm his namesake. Every time he'd see me, he'd go, there's my namesake. It's for his son, who bears his name. For his namesake.

Boy, that's such a comfort. People can chew on this if they want to, but it's so, If the Lord's word's not true, I have everything to lose. More importantly, if he loses me, he loses infinitely more than I do. And I don't matter. His name is at stake. The glory of the triune God. That comforts me. He's doing it for himself. That means, you talk about seeing to it, he's gonna get it done. Period. You think he's gonna fail? We know better. We know better. If you know Him, you know better.

Thirty times in the Scriptures, He says, namesake. From 1 Samuel 12 to Ezekiel 36, it's 19 times. And it's all the promises of what He's going to do for His people. For my namesake, for my namesake, for my namesake. And in Matthew through Revelation, it's 11 times. And every time but twice, the Lord's speaking and He says, for my namesake. I'm doing this for me. It's for you, but I'm doing it because of me, for my name's sake.

And what God has promised of old, he brought to pass. All this, the Old Testament, I said this last hour, I think. The Old Testament is Christ is coming, the Messiah's coming. And the Gospels are he's here. This is what he did, this is what he said. And the epistles is he's coming again. He will come. And there hasn't been a belief, do you think it's gonna be soon? You walk around town, you turn on the news, you look in the mirror. It's got it. The Lord's coming soon. I just know it.

You know Eve thought that? Every believer throughout time, the Lord said, I'm going to send my seed to you. I'm going to crush the serpent's head. And she had canes. She said, I have the man for the Lord. Here he is. It's over. She was mistaken. She was wrong. But that's who she was looking for. We seek his coming. Even so, Lord, come. Therefore, because of what he is now, has now been accomplished. And mankind knows it, and that's why they get mad. His sheep are going to be hated. They're going to be killed. They're going to be persecuted. Hands are going to be laid on us. We're going to be made to suffer.

And it's all for his namesake, and it's good. They're in the beatitudes. The blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. And I had to experience, I knew it, but I had, the Lord had given me understanding. Blessed are they, the very next beatitude is blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness sake. For theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

If you're a peacemaker, you're gonna be persecuted. Go tell people, well I made my peace with God. You can't make peace with God. God's the peacemaker. That's me being a peacemaker. Bow to him. Throw all your care on the Lord Jesus Christ. Come to him. He's the great king of peace. If you tell people that, He does everything. He's the shepherd. We're just sheep caught in a line in a bear's mouth. He's the shepherd.

You're going to be persecuted for righteousness sake. That comes next. And he says, blessed are ye when men shall revile you and persecute you and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely. They'll make up all kinds of lies about you for my sake. That's for his name's sake. I've had people make up things falsely against me.

And it hurts, and I want to defend myself, but that's for the Lord's sake. I can exhale. I don't hold all that tension in my shoulders up like this. Okay. He's on His throne. He sent death. This is His doing. It's okay. It's okay. Twice, John refers to His namesake. There in 1 John and 3 John. And it's that our sins are forgiven for His namesake, and it's our reasonable service in the Church of God towards one another. to be kind to one another for his name's sake. We have the same father, we have the same husband, no? That's right. Verse four.

Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me, thy rod and thy staff, they cover me. We're in the valley, down low, the shadow of death. You know, everybody wants a mountain high moment, mountain top moment. You know what grows on mountains above 10,000 feet? Nothing. Nothing. Nothing grows over it. Old brother Fortner said, just thin air and dizzy minds. When you cut all those nutrients run down with the rain on it, where's the fertile ground? Where's that good grass grow? Where's nutrition come from?

Down low. Down in that valley. That's a good place to be. Sheep are at peace in the valley of the shadow of death. That's this world. That's this body. This body that if I'm alone on a desert island, this is true. We can fear not, because the Shepherd's with us. Jehovah Shema, the Lord is present. He's with us. I can't remember the man's name, but he was in a nursing home, and Paul Mahan went to go visit him, and I think Henry's with him. He said, how you doing, brother? They said, y'all by yourself? He said, no, the Lord's with me. He is. He said, I'll be with you. Lo, I'm with you always. How long, Lord? Till the end of the earth. His rod and his staff, they comfort me.

Whom the Lord loveth, he chastens us, and he scourges every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons. For what son is he whom the Father chastens not? If he loves you, he's going to chasten you, not punish you.

It's very clear to some people, well, they're getting that because they did something wrong. No, no. All punishment's been handled. That condemnation's gone. But the Lord chastens us. Lord's chasing us out of love. He straightens us. What about Jehovah Nissi, the Lord our banner?

I always liked that one. In the military, they carry a guide on. It's just a pole, a stick. And there's a little flag about that big on top of it. And in old times, they would stick it up, and they could tell you which way to go and give you some orders. But when trouble come, you run to that flag.

You knew where to rally. That's the Lord our banner. He's who we rally to. He's who we take direction from, but he's who we run to. Verse 5, Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies. That war is raging. Where are we going to run? The table that he's prepared before us. If there's a war raging, sit down and eat. Maurice used to say, get you a ham sandwich. You'll be fine. Get underneath the shade tree.

He's prepared a table for me in the presence of mine enemies. Thou anointest my head with oil, and my cup runneth over." That table. I thought, boy, could we get a crumb from the master's table? If all he would give us is, I'm just going to give you this little crumb. That's enough. If I could just touch the hem of his garment. And she low crawled through a people thronged against him that's pushed up on him. And think of her hands getting stepped on. She went through a lot of trouble for that, didn't she? It hurt. God touch him. If I can touch him, if I can get a crumb, that's it, boy.

And this is a great table, a great feast he's giving us. A crumb's a feast of it. What's that table set before us, before the sheep? He said, this is my body, broken for you. Take, eat. This is my blood, shed for you. Take, drink. Drink it. People say, well, I have to receive Christ. What's that mean? That glass receives water if I put water in it. It just takes it. Another example, it's on the negative side. When I was a small child, I received some spankings that I decide to, I think I will accept this spanking, Father. No, I received a busting. That's what I received. I got it.

What a table he set before us of himself. That daily bread, Christ our daily bread, gets us through. Our heads are anointed with oil. Our shepherd has done this for us. Thou anointest my head with oil. When the Lord, he was telling Moses how to make that anointing oil and what to put it on. And he said, anything you put this oil on, it's mine. It's sanctified. It's set apart for my use. It's holy. You say, well, that's just a candlestick. That's the Lord's candlestick. It's holy. Why? He said so. Don't touch it. Leave it alone.

And the Lord gave him his command and what he was going to do. And he told him in Exodus 30, he said, whoever compoundeth any like it. Somebody's going to try to make up this oil, this anointing oil, by the way I've told you. He said, whoever puts it on a stranger, they'll be cut off from his people.

This is the Lord's doing. He commands this only. And David said, He's anointed my head. He's saved my soul, but it's through my head. I know Him. I see Him. How are our heads anointed with what we consider things above? We're called into remembrance. Like I said, I had that sheep with thorns on its head, dry, stocky stuff on its head. I remembered Him. I remember the Lord.

You've done that. You've been at work or throughout your day and you see something, you plant a seed and some beans grow. That seed has to go in the ground. It brings forth much fruit. The Lord talked to fishermen about fishing. He talked to farmers about farming. He speaks to us in ways we understand. And we remember Him throughout the day.

Do you know that's not common? I had a man one time, I said, I was working on a refrigerator, ice machine, and I dropped a little screw. It was easy to get to. And I said, Lord, thank you for letting that screw be easy to get to. I appreciate it. He said, you think about the Lord while you're at work? And I said, you don't? Yeah, I do. Who gave me that job?

He said, well, I don't see anything. I said, I don't see air, but I breathe it. It's not a common thing. He anoints our head. Is that my doing? I'm just more disciplined. I give 15 minutes to the Lord every morning. He anoints my head. He's done that. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. Thou anointest my head with oil. My cup runs over. What bad stuff is going to get in there? Ain't nothing going to get in there. It's an overflowing cup. I heard a heretic one time give the best... I broke clocks right twice a day.

But he gave the best description that clicked in my head of a soul. He said, it's like a cup. He was only talking about one, I guess, in nature, if you will. And he said, it's like a cup, and the Lord put stuff in it. He didn't know what he was saying, but I thought I was, my head's anointed with oil, so I thought of what the Lord said. And David said, my cup runneth over. And I said, there's an old man that's just empty.

Anything can go in there. The Lord gave me a new cup. And it's just, Christ, those living waters are bubbling out. What are you going to put back? You can't. Water's coming out. It's overflowing. It's coming. The Lord looked at Peter one time, who had that new cup, that overflowing cup. And he said, get behind me, Satan. There's that old man. I don't want nothing to do with that old man. The Lord makes my cup run over. That cup he's given me, it overflows. My cup runneth over. How does our cup run over?

Suffer a sinner whose heart overflows, loving his Savior to tell what he knows. Once more tell that would I embrace. I'm only a sinner saved by grace. Broad is that road that leads to destruction. Everybody's on that one. Narrow is the way. How narrow is it? There's just sinners on it. I'm just a weak, helpless lamb. I've sinned against God. I've warred against Him. been drunk on pride and looking out for me, what hope do I have?

He's my shepherd. Is he your shepherd? Has he made you cup pronto? You'll tell people. Well, you did a good job. No, I didn't. The Lord did it. No, the Lord's my shepherd. Not just the shepherd, not just a shepherd. The Lord's my shepherd. I'm persuaded of something and I pray you are too. The same thing David was. Verse 6, surely, I'm persuaded. Here's the outcome. It has to be. Just take it to the bank. Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. That's just why you love. Goodness and mercy will follow me all the days. It don't look like it. It looks like the valley of the shadow of death. It is.

But that doesn't mean goodness and mercy ain't following me. Spurgeon said this, he said, goodness and mercy are the child of God's bodyguards. Goodness rides in front, providing all things according to the will of our great shepherd. And mercy rides close behind, blotting out all transgressions. Like you're in a little train. Everything's took care of in front of us and everything's covered up behind. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.

That's how it's been before the Lord revealed himself to me. He's took care of me. That's how it's been when he revealed to this day and forevermore, because he's the faithful. He's the faithful shepherd. That's good, isn't it? This shepherd, these are all the attributes of him. These are his names. That's the Jehovah M. Kedesh, the Lord that sanctifies you. That's his name. That's what he does. And David goes on. We know him. He takes care of us right now. It gets better. Surely, goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. His life will be over.

And it's a vapor. I'm pretty sure about 15 minutes ago, I started working at Subway down there. On 60, Frank gave me the recommendation when I was 60. That's 30 years ago. That building's still standing. That fast. It's going to be that fast, and I'll be four score and 10, which is a good life. I'll be 70. I may not even make it till this evening. I don't know.

But at the end of this life, which the Lord's been so gracious and such a good shepherd, he's right. It's good. I will dwell in his house forever. Forever. That's a good shepherd. I'm thankful for them. You are too, ain't you? Well, I hope that's a blessing to you. Thank y'all for having us. Always a pleasure seeing you. And Lord be with you.

We pray for you. So, thank you. In Luke, the apostles, they said one to another, did not our heart burn within us while he talked with us, by the way, while he opened us the scriptures? Did our hearts burn within us this morning? We're very thankful. Thank you all. Thank you for your travels and your study and coming to be here with us and worship together. Thank you.

Let's close in prayer before Chris comes and leads us in our final song. Our Heavenly Father, thank you for prayers answered that you saw fit to be with us this morning and bless your word. Pray that you continue to bless our brother and his family. Give them traveling mercies as they travel back home. Continue to be with them. We pray for ourselves that you continue to be with us and give us the wisdom and direction and comfort that's only found in you. Pray that you be with us.

We pray this thankfully in Christ's name. Amen. All right, in closing, if we would, take your hymnal and turn it to page 125. Jesus paid it all. And we'll be standing as we close, please. I hear the Savior say, Thy strength indeed is small, Child of weakness, watch and pray. Find in me thy all in all. Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe.

Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow. Lord now indeed I find thy power and thine alone can change the leper's spot. to and melt the heart of stone. Jesus paid it all, all to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow For nothing good have I Whereby thy grace to claim I, oh, wash my garments white in the blood of Calvary's Lamb. Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow. And when before the throne I stand in Him complete. Jesus died my soul to save. My lips shall still repeat. Jesus paid it all. All to him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain. He washed it white as snow.

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For His Names' Sake

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