Comfort And Courage Sermon I: The Miracle Of God's Presence Series

Comforted by the Miracle of God’s Presence

The need we all have for being comforted is expressed by one of my poetic prayers for God’s guidance in times of trouble: “Let this be our prayer when we lose our way, or shadows fill our day: Oh Lord, lead us to a place, guide us with your grace, and renew our faith, so we’ll be safe.”

Six Psalms of David speak to our need for God’s comfort as prophesied by Isaiah: “Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Shout for joy, o heavens, rejoice, o earth, for the Lord comforts his people . . . Prepare ye the way of the Lord”, and fulfilled by the tidings of great joy announced by the angels: “for unto you is born this day in the City of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.”

What better psalm to begin with than the best-known and best- loved of them all? Psalm 23 . . . (1) “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.”

Very interesting: King David rejected the title “Shepherd King” ascribed to him by the people in favor of ascribing it to the Lord his God!

You’d have to “be one to know one”, wouldn’t you? Since shepherding is not an occupation we are familiar with, we rely on second-hand information to understand why David thought of God as his Shepherd.

What I learned from a shepherd in Scotland was: the lot of a sheep depends on the type of man who owns it. Under one keeper, the sheep might struggle and be fearful, while under another they might thrive and be content.

Like David, when we say “The Lord is my Shepherd”, we are saying that we are content . . . because our Shepherd chose us, bought us, calls us by name, makes us his own, and delights in taking care of us!

You might say that we’re like the little girl who raised her hand in class and volunteered to recite the 23rd Psalm at the invitation of the teacher. She proudly stood before the class and said: “The Lord is my shepherd, that’s all I want.”

Like a good shepherd, our Lord loves us . . . went to a great deal of trouble to provide for us . . . shelters us from the storms of life . . . protects from enemies that would discourage us and deny us security.

My awareness that “God is watching over me” comforts me! Yet, to my heart and mind there comes an even greater measure of comfort when I remember the words of my Lord and Savior: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep.” (John 10:11). He gave His life for me! What a comfort!

(2) “He maketh me lie down in green pastures. He leadeth me beside still waters.” What I learned was: a strange thing about sheep is that they will refuse to lie down unless four conditions are met: no fear . . . no tension . . . no aggravation . . . no hunger.

Compare the emotions of a sheep with your own. They and we may be easily frightened but nothing quiets our fears like knowing our Shepherd is near.

When plagued by the parasites of uncertainty and the unknown, we can be sure that our Lord is with us. He “has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” (I Timothy 1:7). Claim it! Our Shepherd provides us with spiritual vitality that keeps us free from fear . . . tension . . . aggravation . . . hunger. We can lie down unafraid.

Furthermore, the sheep avoids drinking from noisy, turbulent water but, to survive, the sheep satisfies its thirst by drinking from a slow-flowing, quiet stream. We who belong to the Great Shepherd have learned to come apart from the noisy turbulence of the “outside” world into the safe haven of Christ who told us, “If any man thirsts, let him come to me and drink.” (John 7:37).

(3) “He restoreth my soul. He leadeth me in paths of righteousness for His Name’s sake.” What I learned was that shepherds use the term “cast” sheep in reference to a sheep that has turned over on its back and can’t get back up; it happens often, and, if the shepherd does not arrive within a short time, the sheep could die – one reason why a shepherd always looks over his flock, counting them to make sure they are all on their feet. If one is missing, he thinks, “One of my sheep is cast and I’ve got to find it.”

When we find ourselves “on our backs” - helpless and in need of being restored - in his love and in his pity our Lord reassuringly speaks to our hearts and gently but patiently prods us into remembering who He is and what He has done for us. He helps us regain our spiritual perspective and to rely on His promise of a safe place!