The Shepherd is my Lord
By Dr. Franklin L. Kirksey
INTRODUCTION
Psalm 23 is a perennial source of encouragement. It has been recited by little ones and researched by learned ones. This Psalm provides a telling look into the heart of David, whom God described as “a man after My own heart, who will do all My will” (Acts 13:22b). However, the focus of the psalm is on the LORD.
Look at the text and notice first of all,
I. What he explains about the LORD (vv. 1-3)
“The LORD is my shepherd; / I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; / He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; / He leads me in the paths of righteousness / For His name’s sake” (Psalm 23:1-3).
The psalmist begins writing in the present tense as he declares several things about the LORD. He writes “The LORD is” not “the LORD was”. David explains what the LORD does in the present, not just what He has done in the past. For example, “He makes, He restores, He leads. . .” These are images related to the Good Shepherd and the care of His sheep.
The text also reveals,
II. What he expresses to the LORD (vv.4-5)
“Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, / I will fear no evil; / For You are with me; / Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; / You anoint my head with oil; / My cup runs over” (Psalm 23:4-5).
Suddenly David begins to address the LORD directly. Please note the pronouns change from “He” and “His” (vv. 1-3) to “You” and “Yours” (vv. 4-5).
Possibly one reason this psalm is so beloved is because it moves seamlessly from speaking about God to speaking to God. This psalm also moves steadfastly from the known to the unknown without hesitation. David faces death and looks into eternity with a faith that is courageous and contagious.
Lastly we see,
III. What he expects from the LORD (v. 6)
“Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me / All the days of my life; / And I will dwell in the house of the LORD / Forever” (Psalm 23:6).
The confidence that the psalmist expresses in the LORD is encouraging. Hope is a powerful commodity. Here David boldly speaks of his endless relationship and eternal fellowship with the LORD. “Forever” is a word that speaks of permanence. Honestly, our finite minds cannot conceive of something that actually lasts forever, because things on earth are passing.
CONCLUSION
The Bible has much to say about sheep. For example in Isaiah 53:6 we read: “All we like sheep have gone astray; / We have turned, every one, to his own way; / And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed and He was afflicted, / Yet He opened not His mouth; / He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, / And as a sheep before its shearers is silent, / So He opened not His mouth. 8 He was taken from prison and from judgment, / And who will declare His generation? / For He was cut off from the land of the living; / For the transgressions of My people He was stricken. 9 And they made His grave with the wicked— But with the rich at His death, / Because He had done no violence, / Nor was any deceit in His mouth. 10 Yet it pleased the LORD to bruise Him; / He has put Him to grief. When You make His soul an offering for sin, / He shall see His seed, He shall prolong His days, / And the pleasure of the LORD shall prosper in His hand. 11 He shall see the labor of His soul, and be satisfied. By His knowledge My righteous Servant shall justify many, / For He shall bear their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will divide Him a portion with the great, And He shall divide the spoil with the strong, / Because He poured out His soul unto death, / And He was numbered with the transgressors, / And He bore the sin of many, / And made intercession for the transgressors” (Isaiah 53:6-12).
Also, Peter explains: “For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that you should follow His steps: 22 “Who committed no sin, /Nor was deceit found in His mouth”; 23 who, when He was reviled, did not revile in return; when He suffered, He did not threaten, but committed Himself to Him who judges righteously; 24 who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed. 25 For you were like sheep going astray, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls”(1 Peter 2:21-25).
Dr. Paul W. Powell writes in "Jump Starting Dead Churches": “The church must accept part of the responsibility for the moral meltdown of our society. We have become a self-seeking church in a feel-good society. Out of fear of being labeled old fashioned, prudes, or holier-than-thou, we have developed a cavalier attitude toward sin. One well-known television preacher put it this way, ‘I never use the word sin in my sermons. That’s negative and there’s too much negative in the world already.’ We have often sacrificed revelation for relevance. The result is we have turned God’s sheepfold into a zoo.”
This familiar psalm teaches that the flock of believers moves from the field of earth to the fold of heaven. It is one thing to say; “the LORD is my shepherd” it is even better to declare, “The Shepherd is my LORD.”
ENDNOTE:
Paul W. Powell, "Jump Starting Dead Churches" (Dallas: Annuity Board of the Southern Baptist Convention, 1995), pp. 112-113.
By Dr. Franklin L. Kirksey, pastor
First Baptist Church of Spanish Fort 30775 Jay Drive Spanish Fort, Alabama 36527
Author of Sound Biblical Preaching: Giving the Bible a Voice
http://www.webspawner.com/users/franklinlkirksey
Available on Amazon.com and WORDsearchbible.com
fkirksey@bellsouth.net (251) 626-6210 / ©November 28, 2007 All Rights Reserved
