hymns when I surveyed the wondrous
cross. If you will, let's open our Bibles
today to Psalm 23. 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. He restoreth my soul. He leadeth
me in the path 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 before
me in the presence of mine enemies. Thou anointest 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. One of the most peaceful drawings,
paintings, pictures that we ever look at are those paintings which
picture a shepherd with his staff and his sheep in green pastures. The Lord Jesus Christ is presented
to us in the Word of God in so many different ways. His relationship
to his people. If you're one of his children
today, his relationship to you is brought to us in many different
ways. He's our Redeemer. He's our brother. He's our advocate. He's our surety. He's our husband. He's our friend. Christ is all, as the Apostle
Paul wrote. And yes, in this psalm, he is
his people's shepherd. The Lord is my shepherd. If you look at the verse, you
see the title, the name Lord is all in capital letters, and
that tells us that the translators translated this name of God with
capital letters so we would all recognize it as God's name, Jehovah. The name that he gave unto Moses
when he called him at the burning bush, and it is explained as
I am. Not I was, not I shall be, but
I am. God Almighty who is eternal,
who changes not. And this is his name, especially
connected with his covenant His covenant with His people. In
the I Am passages in the Gospel of John, there are several of
those passages where the Lord Jesus Christ, in speaking to
the Jews of His day, He said, I am. And when He said, I am,
I am the way, I am the life, I am the truth. I am the bread,
all of these various I am passages, those who heard him. Now, to
an audience like us here today, maybe we wouldn't realize what
he was saying to them, but they certainly did. They knew exactly
what he was confessing to be, and that is God. I am, and this
is one of those passages, I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd
giveth his life for the sheep. Now David, we know God used,
he inspired to write this song. And when David was first anointed
to be king, that's the way the prophet found him. He was a shepherd. He was out tending his father's
sheep. So David knew something about
sheep. In fact, he knew a great deal
about sheep. And this morning, I want to mention
six truths that David surely knew about a shepherd. Six truths
that he surely knew about a shepherd. They're all true of the Lord
Jesus Christ, the good shepherd. And I pray this morning that
you will give me your ear, that you will listen, and that God
Almighty will bless these truths to your heart if you're one of
his sheep. The first thing I want to point
out about a shepherd is a shepherd owns his sheep. He owns his sheep. Now there
are several ways a man might own a sheep, and all of these
ways are true about the Lord Jesus Christ. A man might inherit
a sheep, and it would be his. And we know that his people are
his inheritance. A man might buy a sheep, and
it would be his. And we know that he has bought
us, that is, he has bought his people with his precious blood.
But one of the ways that a man, a shepherd, might own his sheep
is by gift, by gift. Someone gives him his sheep and
they're his, he owns them. And that's the way I'd like for
us to consider this this morning about the Lord Jesus Christ.
He owns his sheep. He owns them because they were
given to him in his high priestly prayer in John chapter 17. Part
of the prayer, six times over, he mentions the fact that he
is praying for those that the Father gave him. They were thine, he said. They
were thine, and thou gavest them me. If you're one of his children
this morning, doesn't that thrill you? To know that you were given
by God the Father, to the Good Shepherd, the Chief Shepherd,
the Great Shepherd, and that you were given unto him as one
of his sheep, yea, even before the world began. I want you to
keep your places here, but turn with me to John chapter 10. This is where we find one of
the I Am passages where the Lord says, I am the good shepherd.
But let's begin our reading this morning in verse 24. John chapter
10 and verse 24. Then came the Jews round about
him and said unto him, how long dost thou make us to doubt? If
thou be the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you,
and you believe not. The works that I do in my Father's
name, they bear witness of me. The miracles that the Lord Jesus
Christ wrought. Nicodemus, you know, when he
came to the Lord by night, he said, no man could do these miracles
except God be with him. But in this case, it isn't God
with him, it is he is God. The works that he did. Here's
a body of a man who died four days ago laying in the grave
and the Lord Jesus Christ says, Lazarus, come forth. And immediately he comes out
of that grave. The works, which the father gave
me to do, they bear witness of him. He said, they bear witness
of me. They said, how long do you make
us to doubt if you are the Christ and tell us plainly, I've told
you, and you don't believe me. You don't believe me. The works
that, that the father gave me to do, they bear witness of me. They show. Beyond any shadow
of doubt, yes, I am the Christ, the son of the living God. The
Jews answered him. Or the Lord went on to say, but
you believe not. Now notice, because you are not
of my sheep. As I said unto you, my sheep
hear my voice and I know them and they follow me. And I give
unto them eternal life, and they shall never perish, neither shall
any man pluck them out of my hand. Now here it is, my father
which gave them me. His sheep, the good shepherd,
the Lord is my shepherd. A shepherd owns his sheep. And
the Lord Jesus Christ here testifies that he was given his sheep.
My father which gave them me is greater than all and no man
is able to pluck them out of my father's hand. I and my father are one. And notice above that in that
same chapter in verse 15. He said, as the Father knoweth
me, even so know I the Father. The Lord is one with the Father
and His eternal Son is one with the Father and the Holy Spirit. And yes, He knows the Father
and the Father knows Him because they are one. Three persons,
yes, one God. But the eternal Son of God came
into this world as a man to be the shepherd of the sheep, of
God's sheep. And the Father gave him these
sheep. As the Father knoweth me, even
so know I the Father, and I lay down my life for the sheep. Now
here's the point. Other sheep I have. Notice that,
I have. That's present tense, isn't it?
other sheep I have." They were already his. They were given
unto him in that everlasting covenant of grace. Now they had
not yet been called. Notice he said, and other sheep
I have which are not of this fold, them also I must bring
and they shall hear my voice and there shall be one fold and
one shepherd. When he said other sheep I have
which are not of this fold, he's speaking about his elect among
the Gentiles, his sheep among the Gentiles. Our Lord himself
was sent especially to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. Remember he told that to that
Syrophoenician woman who came crying for help and he said,
I'm not sent. but to the lost sheep of the
house of Israel. His ministry, his preaching was
primarily to the lost sheep of the house of Israel, to the nation
of Israel. But now he sent out his messengers
into all the world, preaching the gospel, going to all the
world, preaching the gospel. And as we preach the gospel,
the Lord finds, he finds, he apprehends his sheep. And his
sheep believe in him, believe on him. And why do they believe
on him? Because they are his sheep. Goats
will never believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. No, but his sheep,
they do. So that's the first thing about
a shepherd. He owns his sheep. Second, a
shepherd knows his sheep. The Lord said this, shepherd
knows his sheep. Now, today there are ranches,
sheep ranches that have thousands of sheep, but in the setting
in which the psalmist wrote this psalm, a man, a shepherd would
have 10, 15, 20 sheep maybe, maybe a few more, maybe many
times less. And he would know every one of
his sheep. Now a person just looking at
the shepherd and his sheep, he would think they all look the
same. He wouldn't know one from the other. But that's not true
of the shepherd. The shepherd knows his sheep. The Lord Jesus Christ said that
in that verse we read in John 10. He said, I am the good shepherd
and know my sheep. His eye is always upon his sheep. Always. He knows his sheep. When the Lord Jesus Christ began
his earthly ministry, he was calling the 12 disciples. The one he called was named Philip.
And Philip, we read, ran and found his brother, Nathanael. And he brought Nathanael to the
Lord. And one of the things that the
Lord told him was, before Philip called thee, before Philip called
thee, when thou was under the fig tree, I saw thee. I saw thee. His eye is always
upon his sheep. He knows his sheep. His sheep, we know, have lived
throughout the centuries on different continents all over the world,
speaking various languages, but the Lord knows each and every
one of them. David, in one of the Psalms,
he said, Thou knowest my down setting and mine uprising. He
knows his sheep. He knows everything about his
sheep. Job, in the midst of all his suffering, was able to say,
he, that is the Lord, the shepherd, he knoweth the way that I take. Long before, listen, long before
the sheep see him. How does his sheep see him? By
faith. By faith, we see him. But long
before his sheep see him, with the eye of faith, His eye of
love is upon his sheep, so much so that he says, yea, I have
loved thee with an everlasting love. And this knowledge, when
he says, I know my sheep, this knowledge means protection, protection. He said, I will never leave thee
nor forsake thee. We have a shepherd who knows
us, if we're his children today, knows all about us, his eyes
always upon us. He's always watching over and
providing for his sheep. You know that verse in Isaiah,
when God asked this question, can a woman forget her sucking
child? Here's a mother who feeds her
child and, uh, God asked the question, would that be possible
that a mother could forget her nursing baby? That she should
not have compassion on the son of her womb? And then he answered,
didn't he? Yeah. Yes, that is possible. That is possible. And I'm sure
not only is it possible, it has happened. It has happened. They may forget. This is the Lord speaking. This
is a good shepherd speaking to his sheep. A nursing mother might
forget her child, yes, so much so that she wouldn't have compassion
on him, but I will not forget thee. I will not forget thee. He knows his sheep. Third, a shepherd feeds his sheep. A shepherd would lead his sheep
in the Bible setting, a shepherd would lead his sheep out in the
morning to where the pasture would be right, where the pasture
would be right for the sheep to graze. He would make sure,
because there's poisonous plants that grow in that part of the
world, and their animals also, and their thorns. And the shepherd
would make sure when he led his sheep out that he was leading
them to pasture where they could feed. He fed his sheep. The Lord's sheep need to be fed. And he has provided two ways
in which he feeds his sheep. First of all, the word of God.
You notice in the Psalm, David pointed that out when he said,
he maketh me to lie down in green pastures. And in the margin we
see pastures of tender grass. The green pastures for God's
sheep, the word of God. He maketh me to lie down in green
pastures. He feeds us with his word. Private Bible reading. We're
so blessed. I think sometimes we have a tendency
to forget. Remember, the printing press
was invented in the 15th century. And before that time, very, very,
very few people had copies of the Word of God. That's just
been, what, 500 years ago. You say, that's a long time.
Not really. Not really. When you remember
that for 1,500 years, Most of the people, average people
like you and I, who were saved, they might have had a page out
of the scriptures, a page. I remember reading one man, a
farmer, he traded a whole wagon load of hay for one page of the
epistle of James. They didn't have the word of
God. When Martin Luther was alive, you remember there was a copy
of the Bible chained in that monastery. That was the only
copy that they had. All of the priests in that monastery,
if they wanted to read the scripture, there was one Bible. How we've
been blessed. You can buy a Bible today for
so little, really. What, $5 or $6? Probably. I'm
not sure about that. A good Bible will cost you more. I understand that. But, oh, to
have a Bible. Have a Bible in our house and
never read it, never open it. For together, dust. That'd be awful, wouldn't it?
This is the way the shepherd feeds his sheep. And I like for
you to bring your Bibles to church. I know most of you do, and I'm
thankful for that. You bring your Bibles and you
follow with me in the scriptures, and that's good. Remember what
the book of Acts tells us about the Bereans. They were more noble. than the Thessalonians, why?
Because they listened to Paul preach, but they didn't just
take Paul's word, they searched the scriptures to see if what
he was telling them was true, if it was so. Your soul, your soul, your everlasting
soul depends upon the truth, and the truth is here in God's
word. This is the way God feeds his
sheep. That's number one, but number
two, he's also given preachers or gifts, it's called in Ephesians
chapter four, given gifts unto the church, pastors and teachers
who teach the word of God. And that's what we try to do
every week here when we come is to hear the word of God. What are we doing? We're feeding
the sheep. I'm not here to entertain people. We don't bring in people
that are big sports figures and musicians and things like that
to attract the crowds. That's not the way God feeds
his people. He feeds his sheep with the word
of God by men that he has put into the ministry. A fourth thing about a shepherd
is a shepherd protects his sheep. David had some experience in
that because we know that the Lord delivered him from the pawl,
he said, from the pawl of the lion and from the pawl of the
bear. In other words, a bear or a lion
at one time came and snatched one of the lambs. David didn't
just say, well, let it go, we've got others, oh no. No, he went
after that lion, he went after that bear. And he, by the help
of God Almighty, and he confesses that, he rescued, he protects
the sheep. The good shepherd protects his
sheep by shielding them from harm. Look back to Psalm 5 just
a moment. In Psalm chapter 5. And verses
11 and 12. Psalm 5, verse 11. But let all those that put their
trust in thee rejoice. Let them ever shout for joy,
because here's the reason his sheep should shout for joy. Why? Because the Lord defends them. He defends them. Let them also that love thy name
be joyful in thee. Notice, rejoice in the Lord,
be joyful in thee. For thou, Lord, wilt bless the
righteous. With favor wilt thou compass
him as with a shield. The shepherd protects his sheep. The Lord warned about wolves
who come in among the flock. They don't come in like a wolf. They come in dressed in sheep's
clothing. He warns about these things. We have an enemy, the sheep of
Christ. We have a powerful arch enemy,
that is Satan. But try, listen, try as he will,
He can never, he can never take one of the Lord's sheep out of
his hand. That's what our Lord said, isn't
it? It's amazing, isn't it, that people stand in pulpits, men,
and they tell people, well, you're saved today, but you could be
lost tomorrow. Well, whose hand are they in?
They're not in the shepherd's hand. They're not in the Lord
Jesus Christ's hand, who's in the father's hand, because no
one can snatch one of his sheep out of his hand. I give unto
them eternal life, he said. That doesn't mean life that's
eternal today and tomorrow. It's whatever. No. When he saves a sinner, he gives
that man, that woman, eternal life. They shall never die. That's
what he told Martha, wasn't it? Martha, Martha, whosoever believeth
in me shall never die. He said, I am the resurrection. She said, I know my brother will
rise in the resurrection, Martha. I am the resurrection and the
life. Whosoever liveth and believeth
in me shall never die. Oh, this body, this temple, this
tabernacle will die and turn back to the dust, but the real
person, the soul, the you will never die. He gives his sheep
eternal life and he protects us. He keeps us. Does that mean
that God's sheep are to be presumptuous, put themselves in harm's way? No, of course not. We're given armor, and we are
responsible to put that armor on. Read about it in Ephesians
chapter 6. Put on, therefore, the armor
of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day. Yes, the shepherd protects his
sheep. And fifth, a shepherd restores
his sheep. Notice that David confessed that
in this Psalm, he restoreth my soul. The word restore means
to turn back to, to turn back to. A sheep would wander off
or stray, And the shepherd would restore it. It would turn that
sheep back to the shepherd, back to himself. Now there are five
things about sheep that we know from the word of God. Sheep sometimes
are scattered. They're scattered. Sometimes
they're stubborn. Sometimes they're sickly. Sometimes
they just stray off. And then sometimes they're what
is called a sagging sheep. A sagging sheep. And then these
sagging sheep are called cast, C-A-S-T, cast sheep. Now, this was a sheep that ended
up on its back. We have that saying, flat on
his back. You know that came from the sheep. Person, we might say, he's flat
on his back, he's just down and out. But that came from sheep. When a sheep, for whatever reason,
sometimes because their wool got so heavy and so matted and
so much trash in there, they would lie down and try to find
a place that was wallowed out somewhat. and get comfortable,
and before long, the sheep is on its back with its legs sticking
straight up. And it cannot help itself. It cannot right itself. Sometimes we, as the Lord's sheep,
We get down and we get discouraged and David wrote about that too
in one of the Psalms. He said, speaking to himself,
why? Why art thou cast down, O my
soul? And why art thou disquieted within
me? We get cast down, don't we sometimes? And we get that sinking feeling
and like frustration and everything's not going right. which means
everything's not going the way we thought it should go. It's
all going right. May not be going the way we thought
was right. But God's work, God's plan, it's
being worked out just as God has determined from before the
foundation of the world. But we get to being like a sheep
on its back. A good shepherd restores his
sheep. And how does he restore his sheep?
He uses, of course, his word and God the Holy Spirit. And
that's what is meant here in this psalm when David says, Thou
anointest my head with oil. And the last thing, the sixth
thing about a shepherd, a shepherd enfolds his sheep. and folds his sheep. Before it
would get dark, sheep and the shepherd have been
out grazing during the day. But before it would get dark
and the sheep would then be exposed to much danger, the shepherd
would have them all in an enclosed place, a place of protection. One of the old writers commented,
the church, the church, this local church, is the present
fold of Jesus' flock. The good shepherd enfolds his
sheep. In Acts chapter 2 and verse 47,
we read, the Lord added to the church daily such as should be
saved. It's in the church as a flock
that we, the Savior enfolds us. A sheep that's out by itself
is sickly or lost, but when the Lord enfolds his sheep, he adds
us to a local church. That's a great blessing to be
a part of a local church. Here we're housed, here we, gathered
together waiting for the dawn of that perfect day. And we have
under shepherds. That's what I am, an under shepherd. And we watch. We watch for the
sheep. We watch for the enemy. And the
storms come. There's no doubt about that.
But the sheep are not to be exposed. We may hear the howling of the
hungry wolf. But the sheep cannot be reached. Why? Because they are enfolded
in God's house. This fold, this church today, it's just a prelude. That's what
it is, a prelude to our endless home. When the Lord enfolds us
into the Father's house, when we're gathered home, into that
place he described as having many mansions. And every mansion
will be filled. There's not going to be any empty
mansions in heaven. Every mansion will be filled
for all the sheep. All the sheep who were given
to the good shepherd by the father, not one shall be lost. All his sheep. will be safely
forever enfolded. Listen to his words in John 6
when he said, this is the Father's will. Sometimes people ask, well, I
don't know God's will, or I'm looking for God's will. Well,
here it is. Here it is. John chapter 6 and verse 39. This is the Father's will. which
hath sent me, these are the words of Christ, this is the Father's
will which hath sent me, that of all, that of all which the
Father hath given me, I should lose nothing, nothing, but should
raise it up again at the last day. Now, the psalmist, when
he wrote this psalm, he was able to say, the Lord is my shepherd. Can you say that this morning? I'm not asking if you can say
the Lord is a shepherd, but can you this morning in sincerity
and truthfulness say, the Lord is my shepherd, my shepherd. Well, you say, how do you know
if you're one of his sheep? Well, his sheep hear his voice. I'm not talking about hearing
his voice in an audible way. You know that. But his sheep
hear his voice. When they hear the gospel, when
they hear the word of God preached, they recognize that. That's the
truth. That's so. Like Peter. But our Lord looked
at his 12 disciples and he said, will you also go away? A large
number had gone away. Will you also go away? Lord,
to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal
life. We believe and are sure that
thou art the Christ, the Son of God. And you say that this morning,
the Lord is my shepherd. If you can, and you could also
say the rest of that verse, I shall not want. No, I shall not want. His sheep are never going to
want. Why? Because he is a good shepherd. You say, well, I wanted a new
car. I'm not talking about those kinds
of wants. He'll give you what you have
need of. Aren't you thankful for the Good
Shepherd? Amen. I am. Oh, to be one of his sheep. We used to have a hymn book that
had that hymn in it, My sheep know my voice, and they come
at my call. We don't have that hymn in our
book we use now, but that was a good hymn, wasn't it? We'll have to print it in the
bulletin so we can sing it again. My sheep know my voice, and they
come at my call. Amen. We're going to stand.