Tag Archives: Shepherd

Singing with the King (90) – My Shepherd

The LORD is my Shepherd. (Psalm 23:1)

Good Shepherd2 Years ago, I heard a preacher—I don’t know if it was live or on the radio— who talked about the choices we make and the paths we take. So there you are, walking along with God, side by side, fellowshipping with Him, following Him, just being WITH Him. And then you decide to take a right turn, and go off in your direction. Now this is not without biblical precedence.

Note what He has done for us:

He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on Him, and by His wounds we are healed. (Isa 53: 4-5)

And what do we do after all this?

We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way. (v.6a)

So yeah, wandering off is in our nature. Now, back to the sermon. This preacher talks about us wandering off, to go down our own path, probably to do something sinful, something selfish, something displeasing to God. And the picture he painted was that God remained on the chosen path, while we trotted off on our own. And when we finally come to our senses, like the prodigal son did, we then turn around and go back to the path, and find God patiently waiting there for us.

THAT IS WRONG! And here’s why.

Does a shepherd just let his sheep wander off? Or does he go get them? He goes and gets them, because He knows we are too stupid, or too lost, to find our way home. Now granted, we may be off on this little tangent, this little side trip, and be totally unaware that He is with us—but He is. Because The LORD is our Shepherd. (Who by the way, laid down His life for us – John 10:11)

Also consider His nature.

Where could I go to escape from you? Where could I get away from your presence? If I went up to heaven, you would be there; if I lay down in the world of the dead, you would be there. If I flew away beyond the east or lived in the farthest place in the west, you would be there to lead me, you would be there to help me. I could ask the darkness to hide me or the light around me to turn into night, but even darkness is not dark for you, and the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are the same to you. (Psalm 139:7-12) With the exception of Hell, the is no place He is not.

Omnipresence is pretty tough to escape.

So, a role He willingly embraces, and a divine characteristic which is tough to get by (pun intended). God is not waiting at the beginning of your detour with arms crossed and foot tapping. He is with you. Now, you may not know that He is with you, because you’re trying to avoid Him, or ignore Him, or forget Him. But He is with you, and He always will be.

Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you. (Hebrew 13:5)

For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38-39)

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Singing with the King (36) – Vulnerable

He makes me lie down in green pastures… Psalm 23:2a

When you look up the Hebrew word for lie down, it has a sense of comfort attached to it; it means to stretch out. Now that position although comfortable, is also very vulnerable. Are you willing to be that vulnerable before the Lord?

Vulnerability is the appropriate condition for us to be in; He is after all omniscient—nothing escapes His gaze. Thus, whether we choose to be vulnerable or not, is a moot point, since He sees all. So thinking you can escape His all-seeing gaze is delusional, a waste of time, futile, and perilous.

Now why would I say perilous? Consider the following verses:

They say, “How does God know? And is their knowledge with the Most High?” (Psalm 73:11)

He says to himself, “God has forgotten; He has hidden His face; He will never see it.” (Psalm 10:11)

They have said, “The LORD does not see, nor does the God of Jacob pay heed.” (Psalm 94:7)

“You say, ‘What does God know? Can he judge through the thick darkness?’” (Job 22:13)

Even the darkness is not dark to You, and the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are like to You. (Psalm 139:11)

And they do not consider in their hearts that I remember all their wickedness. Now their deeds are all around them; they are before My face. (Hosea 7:2)

Take no part in the worthless deeds of evil and darkness; instead, expose them. It is shameful even to talk about the things that ungodly people do in secret. But their evil intentions will be exposed when the light shines on them, for the light makes everything visible. (Ephesians 5:11-14)

And actually is not just a matter of omniscience, it’s also a matter of omnipresence. There is no place you can go that He is not. Now, you can try to hide from Him, deny his existence, or outright reject Him, and curse His existence. But that changes nothing. You are being foolish, and you will die without Him. And that’s why it’s perilous.

Finally, don’t forget the context. The LORD is your shepherd. Why not accept Him as such? You are vulnerable to Him whether you admit it or not; so why not be vulnerable because of your relationship to Him as your shepherd, rather than as your judge.

Singing with the King (35) – All That I Want

Needs vs. Wants – Psalm 23:1

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.
I’ve pretty much been taught my entire life that God will supply all my needs, but NOT my wants. And there is a very famous passage which everybody quotes to prove that point: And this same God who takes care of me will supply all your needs from his glorious riches, which have been given to us in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:19) See? Needs.

But don’t forget the other phrase from that first line; and consider what the LORD, your shepherd has done for you:
He makes me lie down in green pastures
He leads me beside quiet waters
He restores my soul
He guides me in paths of righteousness
Your rod and your staff, they comfort me
You prepare a table before me
You anoint my head with oil
My cup overflows
Goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life
I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever

This is far from an exhaustive list, but note, He has even ushered you into eternity. Now if the LORD has done all those things for you, what else do you want? And speaking of want, the Hebrew word has several close relatives as translations. They are empty, some form of lack, and decreased. All those translations work in this verse. With the LORD as my Shepherd, I shall not be empty; I shall not lack; and I shall not decrease.

So many times we’ve had to compared the thought of God supplying our needs vs. God supplying our wants. But here it says wants, not needs. And that particular word is here, because it answers that very fundamental question: What do you want? And the answer is… the LORD. My favorite Psalm is Psalm 73, which sadly is not one of David’s, but it is still my favorite. And the one verse that ties directly into Psalm 23:1 is verse 25—Whom have I in heaven but You? And besides You, I desire nothing on earth. So you can see why David has no other wants— he has the Lord. Can you say the same? I hope so.