Psalm 23

Q: What does the Bible say about the Lord as my shepherd?

Psalm 23 emphasizes that the Lord provides comfort, guidance, and sustenance for His followers. Psalm 23 describes the Lord as a shepherd who cares deeply for His flock, ensuring they have everything they need. The passage illustrates how He leads His people to green pastures and still waters, symbolizing peace and provision. This is a personal declaration by David, affirming his trust in God's guiding presence, showing that with the Lord as our shepherd, we lack nothing essential for spiritual and physical wellbeing. The implications are profound for believers, as it speaks not only to God's assurance but also to His active role in our lives, leading us through trials and providing comfort.

Q: Why is it important to understand Jesus as our shepherd?

Understanding Jesus as our shepherd is crucial because it reinforces His role as our Savior and protector. Recognizing Jesus as our shepherd is essential in the Christian faith because it encapsulates the depth of His love and commitment to our wellbeing. As the Good Shepherd, He lays down His life for the sheep, demonstrating that He is deeply invested in our salvation and growth. This understanding provides us with reassurance amidst life's uncertainties, knowing that our paths are under His guidance and care. Moreover, it emphasizes the personal relationship we have with Him, where we can fully trust His leadership and provision, illustrating the comfort and security that comes from being in His fold.

Q: How do we know God's grace is sufficient for us?

God's grace is sufficient as it meets our every need, especially during trials and tribulations. In times of tribulation, Christians can find solace in the assurance that God's grace is sufficient. This is not just a theoretical statement; it is rooted in experiential faith as believers encounter life's difficulties. Paul, for instance, was promised by the Lord that His grace would be sufficient for him, indicating that God's provision is tailored to our specific weaknesses and challenges. This grace is not only redemptive but transformative, enabling us to face trials with a sense of peace and purpose. Understanding this sufficiency propels us to rely on God more profoundly and encourages us to seek Him actively in our struggles, affirming that His grace sustains every aspect of our lives.

Q: What does it mean to walk through the valley of the shadow of death?

Walking through the valley of the shadow of death signifies the ongoing struggles and dangers of life, yet we need not fear. The phrase 'walking through the valley of the shadow of death' in Psalm 23 highlights the reality of life's tribulations and the ever-present threat of death in our world. For believers, this is more than just a metaphor for physical death; it encapsulates the daily challenges and fears we face. However, David reassures us that we need not fear evil because God is with us. His presence provides comfort and confidence even in the face of life's darkest moments. This understanding encourages Christians to perceive life’s adversities through the lens of faith, knowing Christ has vanquished the finality of death and offers us eternal life. Thus, the 'shadow' symbolizes the presence of trials without the ultimate power to harm us.

The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not walk. He maketh me
to lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside still waters. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth
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 thou art with me. thy rod and thy staff, they comfort
me. Thou preparest a table for me
in the presence of mine enemies. Thou naughtest my head with oil,
my cup runneth 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." Now, some people have tried to determine
when David wrote the 23rd Psalm. Some believe that he wrote this
Psalm when he was in the caves and in the forest, fleeing from
Saul, King Saul, when he feared for his life. And he was comforted
that he would not be in want, that he need not fear, that his
life would not be destroyed, since the Lord is his shepherd. Maybe that's true. Maybe that's
when he wrote this Psalm. I do not know, and I do not believe
anyone else knows for sure. But some say that he wrote this
psalm after he became king of Israel, after he was peacefully
settled on Israel's throne. The trumpet of war, they say,
had given way to the quiet waters of peace and the beautiful fields
of green pasture. Well, that may be so. It sounds
good, but I'm not sure that we know that either. And then some
say that this Psalm 23 was written toward the end of David's life
when he was an old, old man, about the time when he said that
God had made with him an everlasting covenant, ordered in all things
and sure, and although his house be not so with God, this covenant
was his salvation and his desire. Well, it may be so, may be so.
Maybe David was contemplating the valley of death. the day
when his life would be taken and he would graduate to the
house of God forever. That may be when he wrote this
psalm, I do not know. But I'm sure of this. I'm confident
of this. I really know this. One thing
is worthy of notice concerning when David wrote the 23rd psalm. This blessed 23rd psalm follows
the 22nd psalm. You say, well, anybody knows
that. I know. what the 22nd Psalm is about. The 22nd Psalm is the
Psalm of the Cross. Now you read it. It begins, My
God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? I cry in the daytime, I cry
in the night season. I can tell all my bones. The
people walk around the cross and shoot out their lips and
say, let's see if God will have him. They cast lots for my arraignment,
for my vesture. This Psalm 22 is almost a full
and is a beautiful description of what took place at Calvary.
And David wrote the 23rd Psalm after he wrote the Psalm of the
Cross. And it's only after we come to
a knowledge of my God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me that
we can really enter into the Lord is my shepherd. You don't
know the shepherd until you know how he bought you and how you
became his sheep. The Lord Jesus Christ must purchase
the sheep before he can say, I am their shepherd. They've
got to be bought. They were given to him by the Father. But he
had to purchase them. He said, I lay down my life for
my sheep. Other sheep I have. Where did
he get them? He bought them too. And them
I must bring, and there shall be one foal and one shepherd.
The 23rd psalm, that beautiful, beautiful, God-honoring, heart-warming
psalm was written after Psalm 22, the psalm of the cross. We
must come to the cross before we can call him our shepherd,
before we can be his sheep, that's for sure. Some well-meaning believers
are also a trouble because they cannot at all times feel the
joys and the comforts of Psalm 23. But you know it's interesting
to note, and we ought to remember, that David lived a long time.
And David wrote much. But David only wrote one twenty-third
psalm. He wrote many psalms of praise.
One twenty-third psalm. He wrote many psalms of conviction. He wrote many psalms of grief
over his sin. How long, O Lord, wilt thou hide
thy face from me? How long wilt thou not hear me
when I call? I wet my pillow with tears at
night, weeping for my God. I seek the Lord, grieving, mourning,
seeking, praying, but only one twenty-third psalm. One powerful
the Lord is my shepherd. Psalm of assurance, psalm of
confidence, psalm of comfort. Let's look at it together. Take
your Bible there and let's look and ask the Holy Spirit to be
our guide and our teacher in this hour, and let's look at
the twenty-third psalm. Maybe by God's grace it'll come
to mean more to you. Maybe the Holy Spirit will make
some of you say, I wish I could say, the Lord is my shepherd.
I wish the Lord would be my shepherd. The Lord is my shepherd. Now
you could dwell on these five words for the entire program.
Let's look at these five words. You never exhaust this one phrase,
the Lord is my shepherd. The Lord is my shepherd. The Lord. Not a God. Not some
God. Not any God. but the living God. Christ said this is eternal life,
that they might know the only true and living God. There is
but one God, and one mediator between God and men. David said,
As the heart panteth for the waterbrook, so my soul panteth
for the living God. And this living God is, there's
no if here, there's no maybe, there's no perhaps, the Lord
is my shepherd. And you know who my shepherd
is? It's Jehovah. You know, somebody said one time,
I want nothing to do with an absolute God. I want nothing
to do with God in His justice, and God in His holiness, and
God in His righteousness. I want to deal with God in mercy,
and in grace, and in love. And that's what this word Lord
is here. Jehovah. Savior. God my Savior. Not Elohim. God my Savior. The Savior God is Now, I don't
know about others, but he's my shepherd. You know, Joshua said,
I can't speak for other houses, but I can sure speak for my house. As for me and my house, we'll
serve the Lord. He's my shepherd. He's my shepherd. And then the Lord is my shepherd.
He's my shepherd. He is the chief shepherd, ordained
of God, anointed of the Father. He is the chief shepherd, and
he is the great shepherd. He is the great Shepherd, and
He is the good Shepherd. Both the office of Shepherd and
the sheep were given Him by the Father. He is ordained of the
living God to be my Shepherd, my Redeemer, my Savior. The Lord
is my Shepherd. Now watch this next phrase. I
shall not want. I shall not want for any good
thing. Now if Jesus Christ was not my Shepherd, Well, I'd be
in poverty, I'd be in the poverty of sin, I'd be in the poverty
of fear, I'd be in the poverty of darkness, but he is my shepherd
and he's able and he's willing to meet all my needs. Belshazzar
trembled as the handwriting on the wall said, you are weighed
in the balances, you're weighed in God's balances, you're weighed
in God's scales of holiness, you're weighed in God's scales
of righteousness. You're weighed in God's scales
of immaculate purity, and you're found wanting. You're found wanting. No wonder that man's knees smoked
against one. No wonder his loins were loose.
No wonder he couldn't catch his breath. No wonder he nearly died
of a heart attack. God said, you're weighed. You're
weighed. Not in the scales of human opinion.
Not in the scales of your own opinion. Not in the scales of
reputation. You're weighed in my scales.
My scales of holiness and righteousness, and you're found wanting. And
brother, I'll tell you this, you are to always sin and come
short of God's glory. You might compare yourself to
folks around you and come up looking pretty good, and you
might compare yourself to some of the worst characters in history,
and you might come up looking pretty good, but God says you're
weighing my scales. God weighs men with the scales
of perfect holiness, and we come up short. But the Lord is my
shepherd. And I shall not come up wanting. I shall not want. I shall not want. And then Paul
prayed, how he prayed about that thorn in the flesh, how it grieved
him and how it troubled him, and how he prayed about it. And
the Lord came to him and said, Paul, now you're not going to
want for anything. My grace is sufficient for you. Jesus Christ
has made to me wisdom and righteousness and sanctification and redemption.
He's all I need. I don't want for any good thing. I may want for some things that
I don't think I have, or maybe I think I'd like to have, but
by God's loving providence, I don't need them. If I needed them,
he'd give them to me. That's right. If I needed them,
he'd give them to me, because the Lord is my shepherd, and
I shall not want. The Lord's a good shepherd. He's
a good shepherd. And he'll take care of his sheep.
He's not going to leave them too close to the cliff. He's not
going to leave them in pastures of poison. He's going to leave
them in green pastures. I shall not want. He's able.
Able to save me to the uttermost. Able to keep me from falling.
Able to change my vile body that it might be like his glorious
body. Look at the next line. Because the Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down. in
green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still
waters." Now, you need this right here. Will you listen a moment?
Our lives are made up of two parts, what we think and what
we do. Thoughts and deeds. Meditation
and activity, two parts. Blessed is that person, oh, how
blessed is that man or woman, who can say that in both these
parts, in thought and deed meditation and activity. The Lord is my
shepherd. The Lord is my guide. The Lord
is my leader. And he being my shepherd maketh
me to lie down, to lie down. I can lie down in peace. I have
no reason to fear. I don't have to always stand
and be ready to defend myself. He's my defender. I don't have
to always be ready to stand and flee from my enemy. He'll protect
me. I can lie down. And I can rest. Our Lord said, come to me, I'll
give you rest. You don't need to be uneasy and
anxious. I'll give you rest. Be still. My peace I give unto
you. And he makes me to lie down in
green pastures. What are these green pastures
in which we find our comfort and our assurance and quietness
of spirit? The green pastures are his word.
That's right. His word. I can feed in peace
on his word, on his covenant, on his promises. They're called
precious promises. That's what we feed upon. Now,
the sheep are led out there in the green pastures, and they
lie down with plenty to eat, plenty to nourish them and satisfy
them and all that they need. And our shepherd leads us through
the green pastures of his word. And we can lie down in peace
and rest and blessed quietness and tranquility. Because we have
all we need. I have meat, he said, to eat
of you know nothing about. And then he leadeth me beside
the still waters. Now we not only think, but we
act. We're not always lying down.
We're walking through a wilderness. We're walking through. He leads
us. And the trials of life are pictured as deep water. That's
right. They do business in deep water.
The trials of life are pictured as trouble waters, waves of the
sea. You remember that time when the
disciples with the Lord were out on the sea and the wind was
blowing, there was a storm about, and the waves were dashing that
little vessel all about, just tearing it apart, and the Lord
was lying back there in the back asleep. The disciples came back
and woke him up, and they said, Lord, don't you care if we perish?
And our Lord arose and stood on the bow of that little boat.
and raised his hand, and he said, Peace be still. He calmed the
waters, the troubled waters, the deep troubled waters, the
waves of the sea. And that's what our Lord does
for us during time of trial and troubled waters, and when we
walk through the deep waters of affliction and sorrow, he
makes us lie down beside the still waters. Now, two reasons
why we can find peace in time of trial. First of all, because
He leads us there. He leads us there. It's in His
providence that you're passing through that trial you're going
through right now. It's in His providence. It'll be for your
good. So He brings us into trials for our good, for His glory.
He leads us there. And then He leads us by the still
waters. He calms them. And you know how
He calms them? We remember His promise. All things work together
for good. The eternal good. not the temporal
good, but the eternal good of those who love God, who are called
according to his purpose. He restoreth my soul. See that?
He restoreth my soul. He restores my soul to life,
for in Adam I died. He restores my soul to purity,
for in sin I was born. He restores my soul to God, for
I was a lost soul. This my son was lost, but now
he's found. I was a lost sheep, but now I'm
found. He restores my soul daily, for
I am weak and I'm sinful. Adam lost the way to God. Adam
lost the truth of God. Adam lost the life of God. And all of this was restored
in Christ. I'll never lose the way again,
because Christ is the way. I'll never lose the truth again,
because he said, I am the truth. And I'll never lose the life
of God, because Christ is that life. I'm the way, the truth,
and the life. He restoreth my soul, no man
cometh to the Father, but by me. Look at the next line. He
leadeth me in paths of righteousness. You know what Solomon said? Solomon
said in Proverbs 8, 20, I walk in the way of righteousness,
not my righteousness. That's filthy rags. You know
it, I know it. That's the fig leaf apron of
filthy rags. It won't do. I walk in the righteousness
of God's dear Son. The perfect obedience of Christ
the Lord. Having not my righteousness,
Paul said, but the righteousness which is of God in Jesus Christ
our Lord. It is His righteousness in which
I stand. And the hymn writer put it this
way. With His spotless garments on,
I am as holy as God's own Son. He leads me to walk in paths
of righteousness, not only imputed, but imparted, and I do walk with
Him in paths of righteousness. Now watch this. This will be
a blessing to you. Listen to me for a few moments.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for thou art with me. Now I may say some things
right now that are different from what you have always heard.
I know that nearly everyone who reads this portion of scripture
applies it to the day of death. Though I someday will walk through
a valley of the shadow of death, at that moment I won't be afraid
because God's with me. And that's true. Our Lord has
already died on the cross. He tasted death for me. He took
the sting out of death. But listen to this. David is
not just referring to the day of his death. Though I walk,
though I walk, this is my life, it's a walk. I'm walking through
a valley of the shadow of death. He's talking about the whole
journey of life. He's talking about the entire
sojourn here on this earth. We are walking through a valley
of death all the time. It's death all about us. It is
the valley of death. This whole world is a valley
of death. Our whole life experience is
through a valley of death. Everything about us is death.
We're right in the summertime now, but in a few months those
trees are going to be dead. The grass is going to be dead.
The flowers are going to be dead. The vegetables in the garden
that you went out there picking corn and tomatoes and beans,
they're going to be dead. All withered and dried up and brown,
dead. Someday you're going to be dead.
And those children about you are going to be dead. Everything
in this world, the fall of Adam, put the stamp of death on everything
and everybody. In Adam, all die. Everything
dies. There isn't anything, your eyes
behold, that is not marked for death. Death. I'm walking through
a valley of death. I'm walking, walking, walking
through a valley of death. But thank God I'm walking through
it. It's not my home. I'm a pilgrim, I'm a sojourner,
I'm a stranger, this is not my home, I'm walking through. I'm
walking through. Here's a word maybe you never
really looked at real good. Let's look at it a moment. He
said, Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. Why'd he say that? I'll tell
you why he said it. He said it because death in its substance
and death in its steam has been removed for the believer. Christ
has taken the sting out of death. Christ said, he that believeth
on me shall never die. Death is but a shadow for the
believer. That's why Christ has taken the
sting out of it. The power is no longer there.
The substance is no longer there. The sting is no longer there.
I need not fear. It's just a shadow. The shadow
of a dog won't bite you. The shadow of a gun can't kill
you. The shadow of death cannot destroy you. Oh, these shadows
are all about us. These shadows, we see them. They're
real. The shadows are there. They're obvious. But Christ is
our life, and they are but shadows. I don't need to be afraid. It's
like a man walking his little boy down the street, and it's
nighttime, and the moon's shining, and an awful, grotesque tree
is casting an ugly shadow across the path, and the little boy
jumps back in fear, and the daddy says, son, you don't need to
be afraid. That's just a shadow. It can't hurt you. And the same
thing is true of everything I encounter through this valley of death.
It's a valley of the shadow of death, and I don't need to be
afraid. It can't hurt me, because he
is my shepherd. because he's with me. I will
fear no evil, though I walk through a valley of the shadow of death.
Death, a thousand fall at thy right hand, and ten thousand
at thy left hand, but it shall not come nigh unto thee." I don't
need to be afraid. I'll fear no evil. Now, notice
this. The psalmist does not say, though
I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, there will
be no evil. There is plenty of evil. And
there's also the evil one. There's evil all about us, and
too I regret there's still evil. in us. But he says we don't need
to fear evil, and we don't need to fear the evil one. Why? Because
I'm with you. I'm with you. Now, I want to
be honest with you, with my heroes, when I'm preaching the word of
God, the gospel of Christ. Let's be totally honest. The
man who promises you, if you trust Christ, and if you come
to the Lord, and if you become a believer, the man who promises
you an easy road who promises you health and wealth and prosperity
is a deceiver. I'm saying that in all candid
honesty, because our Lord doesn't promise his people an easy road.
The disciples didn't have an easy road. Christ said, my brethren,
marvel not if the world hate you. It hated me before they
hated you. They'll cast you out of the synagogue.
They'll cast your name out as evil. The day will come when
men who kill you will think they're doing God a favor. That's And
a man's enemies will be people of his own household. That's
right. You'll go through heavy trial.
The apostle wrote and said, don't be amazed if you go through heavy
trial. God is trying your faith. You're
going to have infirmities and afflictions. You're going to
have trouble. You're going to have sorrow. But you learn from
these things. Tribulation works with patience.
Patience, hope, and patience, experience, and experience, hope,
and hope makes us not ashamed. The man who promises you if you
come to Christ that from then on your problems will be solved,
oh no, oh no, that's not so. They who will live godly in Christ
Jesus shall suffer persecution. And it is given unto us not only
to believe on him but to suffer for his sake. And I'm saying
that if you come to Christ, if Christ is pleased to reveal himself
to you, God may let you be one of those who shall go through
great sorrow and great agony and great suffering for his glory,
that you might be a blessing to someone else. God may put
you in a sickbed in order to make you a blessing to somebody
down the street. God may put you, like he did
John Bunyan, in prison for twelve years, that you might write Pilgrim's
Progress. God Almighty might send you to
India to bury your family like Judson. that you might preach
his glorious gospel. Wouldn't it be wonderful to be
counted worthy to suffer for his sake? Wouldn't that be wonderful?
Wouldn't that be something? But these fellows out here preaching,
now trust the Savior and you'll prosper. Give your tithes and
you'll get rich. God wants you to have everything
here on this earth. That's a lie. There's not a word
of truth in it. That man's deceiving your souls.
That's right. The Word of God says you're going
to suffer. But oh, what a blessing to be
counted worthy to suffer for his sake. Plenty of evil about
us, and we regret to say, in us, but we don't fear evil, because
he's with us. He's with us. And thy rod and
thy staff, they comfort me. What's the rod used for? To number
the sheep. Shepherd holds his rod out like this, and his sheep,
you couldn't get a stray in there, save your life, his sheep pass
under the rod. If you ever passed under the
rod and been numbered, you know the prophet said, I'm numbered
with the redeemed. The hairs of my head are numbered.
Thy rod and thy staff. And then the rod and staff are
used for correction. That's right. A little sheep
for guidance and leadership. A little sheep begins to run
out there and the shepherd takes that crook and hauls him back
here. Lookie here, fella. You're going
the wrong way. Reach out and get that sheep
that's traced. But keep him in line. Keep him in line. Chastening,
correction, guidance. Thou preparest a table before
me in the presence of my enemies." Now, the believer is not without
his enemies, both without and within, but he wouldn't be like
his Lord if he didn't have some enemies. He loves his enemies.
He doesn't hate them and he doesn't seek vengeance upon them, but
he has them. And God prepares a table of good
things, and even in the face of our enemies, we sit down with
peace and joy and assurance. and thou anointest my head with
oil, my cup runneth over, it overflows with the blessings
of God, my sins are forgiven, Christ is my Redeemer, he's my
intercessor, I have fellowship with God, my hope is secure,
my inheritance waits, my cup runneth over with God's mercy,
surely, goodness and mercy. They will and they have, will
follow me all the days of my life by his grace, and I will
dwell in the house of the Lord forever." And David said, can
you say it, Psalm 27, verse 4, "...one thing have I desired
of the Lord, and that will I seek after, that I may dwell in the
house of the Lord all the days of my life, to behold the beauty
of the Lord, and to meditate, and to meditate upon his grace."
This tape, this sermon, the 23rd Psalm, is available on cassette
tape. The charge is three dollars for
two messages. You write. We'll be happy to
hear from you. Until next week at the same time, Henry Mahan
bidding you a very pleasant good day.

Psalm 23

What does the Bible say about the Lord as my shepherd?

Why is it important to understand Jesus as our shepherd?

How do we know God's grace is sufficient for us?

What does it mean to walk through the valley of the shadow of death?

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Psalm 23

What does the Bible say about the Lord as my shepherd?

Why is it important to understand Jesus as our shepherd?

How do we know God's grace is sufficient for us?

What does it mean to walk through the valley of the shadow of death?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

Comments

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