Rest For Your Soul - Psalm 23:1-2a Series

A psalm of David.

1The 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

About 3000 years ago a man is in his daily routine of praying, and he decided to do what he often did – write out some of his prayer. He didn’t write much – just six verses. Fifty-seven Hebrew words. Then he gets up and goes about his day – never dreaming that those 57 words would become some of the most beloved and memorized and most often recited words ever penned. We call it the 23rd Psalm. The message is very simple - nothing complex or especially ground-breaking. And yet how many millions of people have been carried through times of crushing sorrow by this little prayer? On that day God looked forward into the future and saw the army of shattered, broken people whose hearts would be warmed and soothed by these 57 words, millions of people still in shock by becoming widowed, orphaned, injured, whose souls very often nothing could comfort but the words of this prayer. God knew it would become His people’s favorite psalm. You know how you feel when you get someone a really, really nice gift that you know they will just absolutely love, and they are just about to unwrap it? What joy must have coursed through God’s great heart as His Spirit set David’s pen in motion that blessed day, knowing how much comfort and peace and joy He would pour out on His people through those 57 words! Even the world has latched on to these words, reading them at funerals, imagining in their fantasies that God is their Shepherd too. He is not.

My Shepherd

David begins with these words:

1 The LORD is my shepherd

Not everyone can say that. God is everyone’s Creator, and He is everyone’s Judge; but He is not everyone’s Shepherd. This psalm promises some wonderful things:

• rest and nourishment (v.2)

• restoration and guidance (v.3)

• protection and comfort (v.4)

• vindication and joy (v.5)

• goodness, love, and eternal life (v.6)

God provides those things, but not for everyone. He only provides them for His sheep.

John 10:26 but you do not believe because you are not my sheep. 27 My sheep listen to my voice; I know them, and they follow me. 28 I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish

In recent weeks we have talked about how much following Jesus Christ will cost you. Following Him means giving up your way. And sometimes you don’t realize how attached your heart is to certain things about your way until you try to give them up. Sometimes following Christ will cost you your friends. It might cost you your family. It might cost you a lot of money, or your job. Bottom line – following Jesus’ way costs you the whole world, because following Him means preferring Him above every other treasure in this world – including your own life. That is the cost. What kind of reward would make it worth that much cost? If the cost is that you have to give up the whole world – what is the benefit that you get in return? What is it like to have a shepherd/sheep type of relationship with God? That is what this psalm is about, so it is a great psalm for us to study – whether you are a believer or unbeliever. If you are not really following Christ in your life right now, this will help persuade your soul that it is worth whatever it costs you to follow Him. And if you are following Him, it will help move your soul to follow Him all the more. Because let’s face it – all of us, like sheep, have gone astray. Even the true sheep who listen to His voice and have it as their greatest ambition in life to follow Him – even they are prone to stray and wander. All of us are, so we need to be reminded about what a wonderful thing His shepherding really is.

Personal – MY Shepherd

1 The LORD is my shepherd