Psalm 23 Holds The Secret To Beating Loneliness? - Psalm 23:5-6 Series

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4 Even 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 overflows. 6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Introduction: Loneliness

In Psalm 25 David cries out to God in desperation, and one of the things he says is this:

Psalm 25:16 Turn to me and be gracious to me, for I am lonely

Lonely? You would think a guy like David could handle something like loneliness. This is a man whose whole life was brutal, hand to hand combat. He had seen his close friends killed right in front of him on the battlefield. He had been the object of a nation-wide manhunt. Attacked by wild animals, fought a giant, captured by the Philistines and put on death row – this is a man who spent his whole life dealing with problems 100 times the size of the worst problems most of us ever face in a lifetime. And he always seemed to be able to come out on top. This is a rugged, tough, unbreakable, powerhouse of a man. And yet this hard, tough, rough, walking war machine of a man comes to a point of utter desperation, crying out to God for help, because he’s … lonely? When you are not lonely, the problem of loneliness just does not seem like it would be a very big deal. But losing loved ones, being rejected by friends, not having the warmth of family to go home to at night – that can be one of the most crushing, agonizing, painful trials a person can endure.

Today is the final message in our study of the 23rd Psalm, which is arguably the most comforting and encouraging song ever written in the history of the world. It is just six short verses – a two- year-old can memorize it, and yet the imagery explodes with so much richness of meaning that thousands of years of study still has not exhausted the riches of this psalm. It is a list of benefits that you get if you have a sheep/shepherd kind of relationship with God. Only a tiny percentage of people have that kind of relationship with God, but anyone who is willing can, and if you do, these are some of the benefits: You get the Lord as your shepherd in life. He supplies absolutely everything you need. He gives you rest, He gives you sustenance, He gives you pleasure and satisfaction of soul, He restores and refreshes and renews your soul, He gives you guidance, and He gives you protection and hope and direction and comfort in the dark valley. All of that is in verses 1-4. Now, in the last two verses, the benefits come even faster. He has covered about seven benefits so far, then he crams five more in these last two verses rapid fire. In verses 5-6, he drops the sheep metaphor altogether, because he wants to show us some things that are too wonderful to be described by that metaphor. Most commentators say that in verse 5 he switches from picturing God as a shepherd to picturing God as a gracious host, who has you over for a meal. I don’t agree with that. I don’t think God is being pictured here as a host of a meal, and I’ll tell you why a little later. For now, let’s look at verse 5.

You Accept Me by Giving Joy

Fellowship and Food

Psalm 23:5 You prepare a table before me

Lying down in green pastures already gave us the idea of pleasure and satisfaction of appetites back in verse 2. But there is another level of joy that cannot be described by that sheep metaphor because it is beyond what animals can experience. It goes beyond just food and drink. The kinds of pleasures we enjoy at a meal with family and friends is a level of enjoyment that can only be experienced by someone who bears the image of God. There is a reason why eating together and close relationships are connected. When a couple goes out on a date, what do they do? So often, they have dinner, or coffee, or ice cream – some form of eating or drinking to go along with their enjoyment of each other. We do that with close friends. We do it with family. That is how we celebrate holidays. It is interesting – when people are alone for a big holiday, they usually don’t have a giant, fancy meal. Most people, when they are alone, just eat ordinary food – even if it’s Thanksgiving Day. There is something about the combination of pleasures – conversation, delicious, pleasing, pleasurable tastes, laughter, satisfying hunger pangs and cravings, personal interactions – all of it mixed together just makes the food taste better and makes the friendships and love relationships progress to deeper levels.