When we were living outside the United States, we’d sometimes make a trip into the big city to go to Costco. The prices tended to be outrageous for items from the States, but we would just start craving something familiar, and Costco was one of the places we’d go to find things like Frosted Flakes, Mountain Dew, cheddar cheese… You know… all the healthy American stuff.
During one of our trips to Costco, the guy who was at the register struck up a conversation with us while he was scanning our items. We were obviously not from around there, so he asked if we were American… Yes… And then he asked if we were missionaries… Why, Yes we are!… Then he started telling us about his church, and he taught us a short phrase that they would use at the end of their church service as a kind of blessing… In Mandarin it is pronounced “ping an” … which roughly translates as “Peace to You”... which is the title of today's message.
With everything happening in our country and around the world… I just felt we should pause this morning and experience “ping an” or "peace" from the Lord, which led me to our passage today of the 23rd Psalm. For many of us, these verses have become so familiar that we tend to read over them quickly... like we're on auto-pilot. But in the life of a Christian, these verses are very special and can bring you comfort and peace when you crave it the most.
Psalm 23 is a beautiful description of our relationship with God… It promises comfort and protection and provision and blessing to those who follow and remain close to Jesus. Let’s stand and read it together…
1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
4 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.
5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over.
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.
Let’s PRAY… thank you, you may be seated.
This Psalm was written by King David… and in this Psalm, David starts by saying, “The Lord is my Shepherd.” Since God is his Shepherd, guess what David is? That's right... He’s picturing himself as a sheep.
King David spent many years as a shepherd when he was growing up… Being a shepherd back in David’s time was very difficult and dangerous work. He would lead the sheep to the fields where they could graze… and to water, usually wells that had been dug… the shepherd would have to pull the water up from the well for his sheep.
He watched over the sheep all day to protect them from other animals, like lions and bears. The shepherd would gather the sheep at night into a fenced area… if the herd was far from home, he needed to make his own fence out of branches and thorns. As the sheep gathered in the pen, he would count them to make sure none were missing. If any were missing, he would search and search and search until he found it and would bring it back to safety.
At night, he would often lay across the doorway so that he would know if one of the sheep tried to wander off, or if another animal or a thief would try to come in and take one of his sheep. Even as a young boy, David would watch over and take care of his father’s sheep. David knew a lot about being a shepherd. Picturing God as the Good Shepherd in this Psalm makes a lot of sense... David understood first-hand what kind of loving attention and sacrifice it took to be a good shepherd.
But why did David want to picture himself as a sheep? We see this in more parts of the Bible than just Psalm 23. For example, Psalm 95:7 says… “For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His hand.” David knew a lot about sheep… he spent a lot of time watching sheep and understanding their behavior… This guy was an expert… And he realized that people are a lot like sheep in many ways.
First, he knows that sheep are very STUBBORN.
My mom raises sheep on small acreage in Oklahoma. When we go over to visit, we help her take care of the sheep… and I can tell you from experience that sheep are very stubborn. They want to go their own way and do whatever they want to do. If they want to wander off, they will wander off. We have to be careful to keep the gates closed so the sheep don’t get out.
Like sheep, we humans also tend to go our own direction instead of following the Good Shepherd’s plan.
Isaiah 53:6 says… “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.”
But like a loving Shepherd, God searches and searches to find the lost sheep… Isaiah 53:6 is also a prophecy about the Messiah who would come… about Jesus Christ… and how the Lord placed all of our sins (our iniquity) upon Jesus so that we could be saved.
In Luke 19:10, Jesus says… “For the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost.”
Jesus is calling out to those who have lost their way… Those people who have wandered far away from God… Jesus wants to have a personal relationship with us! He loves His sheep more than anything! He wants us to join the safety of His flock. We need the protection of the Good Shepherd… “because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour.” (1 Peter 5:8)
Just like David protected his sheep from lions and bears, Jesus wants to protect us from Satan. Sheep are defenseless… If a lion finds a sheep all alone… far away from the protection of its shepherd… that sheep is going to be torn apart and eaten by the lion… only the shepherd can save and protect that sheep.
Jesus says in John 10:9-11…
9 I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture.
10 The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.
11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.
Jesus gave His life so that we could be saved… so that we could be called His own… and then, a few verses later, Jesus says in verse 14… “I am the Good Shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.” (John 10:14)
“I know My sheep” … Out on my mom’s farm… she has named every sheep… even the little newborn lambs get a name… and those sheep know her… they trust her… When she is standing there, talking to them, calling out their name… you can tell those sheep are at peace… they are unafraid… their shepherd is there watching over them… protecting them… caring for them… loving them even though they STINK.
Don’t miss this! I have a *personal* relationship with Jesus. I’m not some random sheep hiding out in the middle of a large herd… Jesus knows every one of His sheep personally… by name.
John 4:27-28 says…
27 My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.
I know my Shepherd… I trust Him… Jesus is standing over me, singing over me, calling out my name… I am at peace… unafraid… because my Shepherd is there watching over me… protecting me… caring for me… loving me even though I stink with sin.
Let me tell you something else about sheep… Sheep are not only stubborn and stinky, but they’re also SELFISH! At my mom’s farm, we’ll put some food out for the sheep… and the sheep all come running… they push each other, run over each other, shove each other, butt heads with each other trying to get all the food for themselves. They will leave the food right in front of them to go take the food from another sheep. When it is feeding time, if she has any young lambs, my mom will keep them in their own private section away from the other sheep… so when they get fed, they don’t have to fight for their food... and so the lambs won’t get run over.
It’s almost like the sheep are so consumed with their own desire for food and making sure they get as much as they possibly can that they cannot see that their shepherd is providing plenty for everyone... A good and loving shepherd provides enough food so that every sheep can get its fill. Even if one of the younger, smaller sheep gets shoved out of the way and doesn’t get much food, my mom goes over and personally feeds that sheep by hand. All the sheep get their fill… but sheep are so blinded by their own selfishness that they can’t see how good and faithful their shepherd is to always provide for them.
Doesn’t that sound like us? People can become so consumed with the idea of getting more and more. If you've ever gone shopping on Black Friday right after Thanksgiving, you've probably seen what I mean. Just like greedy sheep, we are never satisfied… But the first verse of Psalm 23 said, “The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want”
We can get ourselves all worked up into a frenzy… anxious, worried, stressed out… We become blind to the fact that we are completely dependent on the Good Shepherd to take care of us. We think that we need to be in control… but this is why we are never satisfied… Just like those sheep running from one bucket of food to another… we fail to place our trust in the Good Shepherd and to surrender our lives to Him.
Now, this isn't a message about giving, but I want to mention the "T" word for just a minute... Yes, I'm mean "Tithing"... Are you fully trusting the Good Shepherd to be your provider? If you are, then you're being generous and cheerful in giving a proportional amount of your income back to the Lord instead of hoarding it for your own selfish desires! You may have heard the phrase, "Baptism is an outward expression of an inward change"... In my mind, I see tithing as an outward expression of our inward trust in our Good Shepherd.
Sheep can be selfish... I know I can be selfish... but look at what Jesus says in Luke 12:32… “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
How can we have peace in this troubled world? Our life can be messy; our families and relationships can be messy; we’re worried about how to pay our bills; we’re worried about getting a good education... getting a good job... finding a spouse; we’re worried about talks of war… We’re saturated and bombarded 24x7 with news that intentionally plays to our fears and anxieties… We compare ourselves with everyone else’s “perfect” lives on social media… We build our sense of self-worth on how many likes and followers we get... We’re jealous of how other people look, or by what they have... We’re never satisfied... It's no wonder we struggle to find peace!
If you have accepted the call of Jesus Christ… If you have been named as one of His sheep… you were once lost, but now you have been found… then you are part of His flock… and He says, “Do not fear, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom”… What an amazing inheritance!!! IT'S HIS GOOD PLEASURE TO GIVE YOU THE KINGDOM! What an amazing Father!!! What could He give me that is greater than what He's already given me? What do I have to fear? What do I have to worry about? Why do I stubbornly walk away from His goodness and His lovingkindness? Why do I selfishly hoard the temporary treasures of this world when I have the unimaginable wealth of my Father and King awaiting me?
Indulge me one last time as I bring this to a close… I’d like everyone to close your eyes just to block out any distractions for a minute… If you are feeling anxious or tense, slowly take a deep breath and try to relax for just a minute… Don't think about your lunch plans or what time it is... God has given us Psalm 23, and I want you to truly soak it in as I read it to you one last time this morning... Really think about each phrase... each promise... Don't let its familiarity cause you to miss the message...
We may all be like stubborn, stinky, selfish sheep… But God... But God... God loves you so much more than you can possibly imagine in spite of all that… He is speaking to you through Psalm 23, and He's telling you:
1 The Lord is (your) shepherd; (you) shall not want.
2 He makes (you) to lie down in green pastures; He leads (you) beside the still waters.
3 He restores (your) soul; He leads (you) in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
4 Yea, though (you) walk through the valley of the shadow of death, (You) will fear no evil; for (God is) with (you); (His) rod and (His) staff, they comfort (you).
5 (He) prepares a table before (you) in the (very) presence of (your) enemies; (He) anoints your head with oil; (Oh, how your) cup runs over.(!)
6 Surely (His) goodness and (His) mercy shall follow (you) all the days of (your) life;
And (we) will dwell (together) in the house of the Lord
Forever.(!)
Ping an… Peace to You... May the Lord’s peace be abundantly yours!
Let's PRAY...
