Psalm 23 (1)

Psalm 23
Introduction (Part One)

Has the 23rd Psalm been a great help to you through the years? Many would say that it has. It is consistently used in funeral services of believers and unbelievers alike, usually in the form of the famous hymn to the tune Crimond.
Years ago many people could recite it from memory. Can you find anyone today?
Just the thought that the Lord is our Shepherd is mind-boggling. It is no wonder Ps 23 is so popular.
I want to link the Psalm to John Chapter 10:

John 10:11&14
"I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.
I know My sheep, and am known by My own.”

Perhaps one of the reasons Psalm 23 is so powerful is because David was a man filled with the same kind of conflicting passions and bewildering problems that all of us face.
He had many great victories in life:
His defeat of Goliath.
He was clearly a very talented musician and poet.
He became a very good king. The name David was ever remembered by the Israelites.
But he had many tough times too:
He was for many years a fugitive from King Saul, who was so jealous of him he sought to kill him.
His adultery with Bathsheba and subsequent murder of Uriah greatly displeased the Lord. David was then to experience the death of their baby.
All of his reign as king enemies were ready to attack, particularly the Philistines.
From the beginning of his reign to his death he had constant critics amongst his own people.
His own children raped and killed each other, and his own son turned against him wanting to kill him for the throne.
Great victories, great joys, a man after God’s own heart…yet experiencing tough times, times of darkness, tragedy and deep failure.
In the 23rd psalm we get a glimpse of David's view of God that sustained him in the tough times of life.
The Lord is my Shepherd…..look at the promises in Psalm 23. We have a Shepherd that wants to meet every need of our life. Psalm 23 tells us to go to the Shepherd instead of to this world:
In life God provides for our every need.
In death God provides His comforting presence.
In eternity God provides a place to dwell together.

Psalm 23 is such a blessing to us because it gives hope. Real hope.
Our life is full of difficulties that can lead to a life of bitterness and resentment. All of us experience difficulties caused by broken relationships, broken promises and broken expectations.
Knowing the Shepherd is the key to surviving life's hurts. David saw that so clearly.
The psalm was written in a different time and place than we live in (thousands of years ago) but it is still so up to date and so relevant.

Part Two

We will look at Ps 23 over a number of sermons. Today I want us to focus on those 5 words. The Lord is my shepherd.

First:
To what extent are we like sheep? OK so David was a shepherd and he knew everything there was to know about sheep. So lets think about how sheep for a moment.
If someone asked you what kind of an animal you wanted to be I doubt many of us would choose to be a sheep.
What’s that kid’s song? ‘I just want to be a sheep.’ ???? No I don’t! A lion, a wolf, an eagle maybe. But a sheep….no thanks!

Sheep are smelly. Sheep do nothing to cleanse themselves. They do not get into water, roll, scrape or lick. They remain filthy until the shepherd finds a way to clean them. …And we can’t rid ourselves of sin, we remain filthy, until we have come to know the Saviour.

Sheep are stupid.
Have you ever asked yourself, "How could I have been so stupid?"
We must realise and admit how limited our intelligence and our wisdom really is. We only do what makes sense to us or that we know we can do in our own power. Sheep need to be taken to food and water. They will eat anything so they must be protected from poisonous plants.
Have you ever seen a trained sheep?
Even Jesus’s disciples, who had been with Him for 3 years, did some remarkably stupid things. And are we any different? I suggest not. In this age when we’re supposed to be self confident and assertive, it does not come easy to recognise the truth about ourselves, does it?

Sheep are defenseless.
Their arsenal is very limited. They have no fangs, stingers, claws and they cannot run fast, fly or swim.
No professional sports teams are called ‘sheep’.
Sheep are not used for protection. There are no guard sheep.

Sheep are stubborn and go astray. Sheep can easily get lost because they tend to go their own way. Sheep regularly wander and stray because, as many mistakes as they have already made they still think they know what is best. Like sheep, we have a tendency to go our own direction rather than follow the Good Shepherd.


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.Isaiah 53:6
That takes our focus back to the Shepherd:

I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.John 10:11

Someone once suggested that our view of who God is in relation to us affects our Christian walk more than anything else. Is God a cosmic administrator that has no clue who you are? Is He the Gestapo commandant, waiting for you to step out of line, or sadistically making you suffer anyway? Is He apt to be impatient, even vindictive? Does He ignore you? When things go wrong does He refuse to get involved? Or what sort of a God is He?
This is really important, more important than you may realise.
How does God view you when you mess up? When you’re down, going through what John of the Cross calls ‘the dark night of the soul’? When you’re lost and so alone? When your life is in utter turmoil? When you are suffering loss, whether bereavement or other painful sense of loss?
You know, David had been there and his answer is:
The Lord is my shepherd.

Note: The hired hand cares nothing for the sheep.
The thief comes to steal and kill and destroy.
The hired hand stands for a counterfeit Christianity. Leaders who appear fine, but actually are serving their own agenda.
The thief is the devil.
Satan is powerful and clever, you see, and would lead us away from the shepherd. But the Good Shepherd is always looking out for us, and He is more powerful!

We have a God who loves us, gives us abundant life, and lays down Hs life for us.
He not only takes care of us in the valley, but even prepares a feast for us right in front of our enemies. Have you ever tried to eat when you’re nervous… you can’t do it ! But we are called to exercise the kind of trust in God that would enable us to sit down and eat when someone is pointing a gun at us!

I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
Here at the cross, the weak, stupid, stubborn, filthy, and defenceless find real hope… ransomed, healed, restored, forgiven. Only sinners may apply. Some of you need to hear that this morning, and come home to the Shepherd.
You may or may not feel as though you’re lost. But the Bible says ‘All have sinned and fall short’. ‘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.’ There is a Shepherd who puts everything on hold to focus on one thing……to find you ! And when He finds you, what joy!(Then he goes home, calls his friends and neighbors together, and says to them, 'Rejoice with me, because I've found my lost sheep!'Luke 15:6)

We all need to hear this: The Lord is my shepherd

Next: I shall not be in want