The LORD is My Shepherd

Every word of God is pure, and there is great significance in all God has written.  We may not always understand the meaning or personal application of a passage, but we can know the truth conveyed by the word of God is immutable and powerful like He is to transform us and our perspective.

This morning I landed on one of the most familiar passages of the Bible, one often reserved for funerals and memorial services:  Psalm 23.  The beauty of the lyrics to this psalm of praise to God are best appreciated and comprehended by those for whom Jesus Christ is our Good Shepherd (John 10:11, 14).  Every word was instructive to me and is packed with significance as I considered the opening sentence which reads, "The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want."  This is solid ground of faith which remains unshakable forever, thus a fitting passage to read in regards to all who placed their trust in God during their pilgrimage on earth.

The:  a definite article that denotes a particular thing that is already known, in this case "refers to things or people when only one exists at any one time."

LORD:  yhwh, the proper name of the God of Israel, the eternal, living, almighty God and Creator of all things.

Is:  a verb the expresses existence or state of being.  It speaks of something that is presently true.

My:  a personal pronoun that indicates possession of something.

Shepherd:  a person who leads, tends, protects and provides for the needs of sheep.  In ancient Israel shepherds guided their sheep to find pasture where they could eat, drink and rest.

I shall:  "shall" is a verb in the future tense that expresses confident intent and expectations.

not want:  to "want" is to lack, decrease or be empty.  David expressed the opposite of being in want, having all needs presently and for all time supplied by God.

In this introduction the psalmist David has all confidence today and into the future because God was his shepherd.  By faith in the almighty God David and all who trust in Jesus Christ have everything we need for an abundant life now and for all eternity.  I encourage you, dear reader, to consider the implications of each word and the awesome truth revealed that Jesus Christ is the Good Shepherd who knows His sheep.  There are many who have been called "lord," "my lord," and those who have worked as shepherds, but there is only one LORD God, the Good Shepherd who provides rest for those who trust in Him today and always.  In Jesus we find provided all things that pertain to life and godliness.

I leave you with the words of Jesus in John 10:11-14:  "I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. ¹² But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. ¹³ The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. ¹⁴ I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own."  Since there is no one good but God, Jesus is right to identify Himself as the good shepherd being the only begotten Son of God.  By faith in Jesus we have rest for our souls, for He is ours and we are His.

Having Come In

"Now in the sixth month the angel Gabriel was sent by God to a city of Galilee named Nazareth, ²⁷ to a virgin betrothed to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David. The virgin's name was Mary. ²⁸ And having come in, the angel said to her, "Rejoice, highly favored one, the Lord is with you; blessed are you among women!"

Luke 1:26-28

Here is a picture which is both awe-inspiring and slightly humorous:  God sent the angel Gabriel with glad tidings to Mary (a virgin at this stage) that she would conceive by the Holy Spirit and give birth to the Messiah.  This obviously was not in the plans of Mary who was betrothed to Joseph, and the possibility had never entered into her mind until she heard the message spoken by Gabriel, having come in.  It is a funny thought to have an angel just walk into your house.  I have heard people talk about "what the cat dragged in" but it is amazing to consider God sending an angel to deliver a message without knocking first.  I imagine the angel did not hesitantly ask, "Hello?" as he peeked around the corner.  Gabriel walked in like he owned the place because he was right where he was supposed to be, for the almighty God had sent him.

God is the LORD and does what He pleases.  Jesus described Himself to the church of Laodicea as standing at the door and knocking, and God who directed Gabriel to enter the house unannounced and without permission of the one living there comes to us exactly as He pleases.  It is a marvelous thing that Gabriel revealed what God would do after "having come in."  This is also true concerning the insight provided by God's grace when a soul is born again through faith in Jesus.  On the night Jesus was betrayed He alluded to this grand entrance in John 14:23:  "Jesus answered and said to him, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him."  In scripture God sent angelic and human messengers unsolicited by those to whom they spoke, Jesus waits until we willingly open our hearts to receive Him in faith before He comes in and fill us with the Holy Spirit.  With the exceptions of unique cases of John the Baptist who was filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb and Jesus who is the only begotten Son of God, God stands outside until we choose to receive Him by faith.

Isn't it wonderful how through the power of the Gospel God comes in, forgives us of sin, transforms our hearts and provides a revelation of Himself in this world and through His word?  See what Paul prayed for followers of Jesus in Ephesians 3:14-19, "For this reason I bow my knees to the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, ¹⁵ from whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, ¹⁶ that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with might through His Spirit in the inner man, ¹⁷ that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith; that you, being rooted and grounded in love, ¹⁸ may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the width and length and depth and height--¹⁹ to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God."  Gabriel came in and revealed facts about Mary's future, that she would be with child and would bear a son named JESUS.  Through faith in Jesus God has even revealed more than this to us, for He dwells within us, strengthens us, grounds us in His love, gives us the capacity to know God's love and "be filled with all the fullness of God."  No sire or pregnant woman--even Mary who carried Jesus in her womb--could make such audacious claims that are the birthright graciously given to all Christians.

Praise the LORD forever, who loves those who love Him, comes to us and makes His abode in us according to the riches of His glory!  May we never lose sight of the goodness of God to afford us such an intimate and life-giving relationship we have with Him by faith in Jesus.  The wise will wonder over the love of God now and forever, for it is infinite and eternal.  How great is the LORD, having come into us by grace, who reveals Himself continually as faithful, worthy and wonderful.  An angelic visitation is a very small thing indeed when compared to the revelation of God through Jesus Christ within us.

Risen and Standing

This morning after I heard news of an old friend of mine had passed into eternity, I read Psalm 20:6-8:  "Now I know that the LORD saves His anointed; He will answer him from His holy heaven with the saving strength of His right hand. ⁷ Some trust in chariots, and some in horses; but we will remember the name of the LORD our God. ⁸ They have bowed down and fallen; but we have risen and stand upright."  The hearts of believers can be at rest knowing all who trust in Jesus Christ have a Saviour who gives eternal life.  The eyes of a Christian that close due to the death of the body will wake and arise in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD answers the prayer of His anointed with salvation.

At the command of Pharaoh the Hebrews departed Egypt, and later the hard-headed Pharaoh regretted his decision.  He summoned his chariots and horses to pursue his former slaves who walked on foot as they lead their children, flocks and were burdened with household goods.  Pharaoh knew the Hebrews were no match against the speed of his chariots and horses, yet he did not take into account the power of the God of Israel who recently plagued Egypt with mighty signs and wonders.  As the chariots and horses plunged into the Red Sea which was parted by God's power, the wheels came loose from their chariots.  What they trusted to recover their work force became a death-trap:  the walls of water crashed down upon chariots, horses and riders who all perished whilst God's people were saved.

How good it is in times of prosperity, grief and loss to remember the name of the LORD our God who hears the cries of His people and answers from heaven with a mighty hand.  The strong, fit bodies of young men and women fail, and the minds of the elderly grow forgetful and confused.  Some place their trust in their own strength, wisdom, power and wealth, but none of these can save a soul from death.  Jesus said it is of no value for a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul.  It is the one who loses his life for Christ's sake that finds it.  The strongest among us will fall never again to rise, but by faith in God "we have risen and stand upright."  We can have confidence our Saviour can do for us what He demonstrated by His own resurrection, that Jesus grants righteousness by faith in Him and eternal life to all who receive the Gospel.  He enables us to stand by His grace now and forever.

Oh, to be risen and stand upright in the presence of our glorious Saviour!  Abiding in the presence of the LORD is a place full of love, peace and joy without a single regret.  To be caught up from a lifeless body into the nail-pierced hands of a sovereign Saviour will be a satisfying delight for eternity!  Gone are the cares of this life and divine pleasures forevermore are prepared to be discovered by redeemed souls clothed with immortality who know God as they are known.  Drink it in my friend, and enjoy the presence of the LORD whose love you received and in whose presence you delighted while you walked this earth and led others in worship and praise on bass guitar.  Join in with the angels and saints in His worship as voices in heaven and earth unite to sing His adoration.  In the presence of Christ all sadness morphs to joy, for my friend has never been better than he is now and shall always be.  

From Death to Life

God is able to do exceedingly beyond what we can ask or think, and He often operates in ways unexpected by man.  On one such occasion Elisha met with the sons of the prophets during a season of famine.  During their meeting, they filled a large pot with various herbs and wild gourds they found growing on a vine nearby.  Though the variety was unknown to them, the gourds certainly looked edible and good enough to eat.  I'm sure they thanked God for His provision as they cut up the gourds to make a stew.

2 Kings 4:40-41 tells us the miraculous event that followed:  "Then they served it to the men to eat. Now it happened, as they were eating the stew, that they cried out and said, "Man of God, there is death in the pot!" And they could not eat it. ⁴¹ So he said, "Then bring some flour." And he put it into the pot, and said, "Serve it to the people, that they may eat." And there was nothing harmful in the pot."  It turned out the wild gourds were poisonous, that there was death in the pot!  One would think all the contents of the pot were dangerous for human consumption and the poison from the gourds.  Picking them out would not render the pottage safe.  But Elisha did something unexpected:  he told them to bring some flour, pour it into the pot, and miraculously the stew was rendered safe to eat.

There is an element of faith required in these events, to obey Elisha to bring the flour and to eat the stew with the poison still within.  By faith in God and obedience to Him the prophets were preserved and nourished even in the midst of a famine.  This is not the only time something like this happened.  When the Hebrews came to the bitter waters of Mara that were undrinkable, Moses cried out to the LORD who showed him a tree.  He threw the tree into the water and the water was made sweet (Exodus 15:25).  On another occasion after the people murmured against the LORD He sent serpents among them that bit the people and many died.  They confessed their sin and begged for Him to remove the snakes.  Instead God directed Moses to fashion a serpent of brass, to place it on a pole in the midst of the camp, and everyone who looked upon it would be healed (Numbers 21:9).  The men of Jericho must have been shocked when Elisha threw salt into the bitter waters of Jericho that previously caused barrenness and they were healed (2 Kings 2:21).

Instead of removing what was deemed dangerous, in these cases something more was added according to the word of God Who overruled the poisonous contents of a pot, bitter waters and venomous bites.  It was those who believed in God who received the benefits of God's miraculous power to nourish, heal, refresh and save.  It is God who gives life, and His word is living and powerful.  Even when there is a famine of hearing God's word He can direct people to receive eternal life in Himself by faith in Jesus.  Jesus, the Living Bread come from heaven, came into a world full of sin He allowed to remain so people could see their need for forgiveness and salvation found only in He Who gives everlasting rest for our souls.  How wise is God to place the church in this world steeped in sin so we might be the salt of the earth who, by His grace, can share the Gospel with all and make disciples of Jesus.