23 The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
2 He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
3 He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake...."
The Holy Spirit loves to portray Jesus in so many different ways throughout the Bible. Sometimes as an Eagle. At others, as a mother hen. He is often the Master of servants or the Master Workman with His vineyard helpers. But of all the types, offices and pictures, by far His favorite, throughout both Testaments, is that of The Good Shepherd of the sheep.
Sheep are pictured as dumb, unlike goats which are headstrong and proud. Sheep are definitely not proud and, though they may be dumb, at least they know their Shepherd and know enough to follow Him.
You'll find that when you see Jesus as your Shepherd everything else becomes so much easier: healing, answers, provision, whatever you need. When you say, "The LORD is MY Shepherd, I SHALL NOT WANT" you demonstrate the boldness and confidence that Our Father loves!
What does a shepherd do? First of all, He LEADS the sheep. He walks in front of them. He leads; they follow willingly.
Then David says, "He MAKES ME LIE DOWN in green pastures." That's right. He has to MAKE me lie down and rest by STILL WATERS. I don't even know how to relax.
Humans find rest to be hard work. It's quite possible to be lying down with all the appearance of resting on the outside but inwardly be restless, fearful, and stressed, your mind was racing. Oh yes, many times Jesus must MAKE me lie down.
The shepherd feeds, waters, guards and guides the sheep. Cattlemen, conversely, have to herd and prod from behind with cattle calls, cattle prods (OUCH) and barking dogs to scare and threaten the herd.
How do we know we're going where He is leading us, what to do, where to turn, or what to believe? Jesus leads us through rest. If the waters are STILL, Go. If they are TROUBLED, "Do No go."
A good pastor must function in the same way. If he is turned facing the sheep telling them what to do--herding--as if he is speaking FOR God TO to the people, he is taking the position of a prophet, not a shepherd. The priests of old faced away from the people TOWARD God. He represented the people TO God. The modern-day equivalent must do likewise. It is his job to unveil Jesus' glory, beauty, majesty and His great love for us! To point TO Jesus.
Pastors, you could do yourselves a HUGE FAVOR by simply unveiling more and more of Jesus' glory and beauty to your people. That's what gives the Holy Spirit the necessary raw materials He needs to transform the sheep of your flock to be more like Jesus. He's the only one who can do that.
Make sure you get filled and fed first, however. Then--and only then--do you have something to offer your people. You pour out what He first poured in.
Daddy has made it so simple for us, hasn't He? Of course, simple doesn't necessarily mean easy. We have to allow The Holy Spirit to lead and guide the flock into all truth. We just concentrate on FEEDING them more and more of Jesus!
Don't try to do the Holy Spirit's work. It will backfire. You'll find yourself beating instead feeding your people. This has the unfortunate and unintended consequence of discouraging, demoralizing and stunting their spiritual growth. It creates LAWLESSNESS and licentiousness instead of what you want: To help them live more HOLY lives. Eventually, will it affect their physical health and well-being. They will die before their time.
Feed them some real food, not milk; in other words, the law. Only the Bread Of Life, Jesus, produces growth and maturity. This produces effortless holy living! We are transformed by beholding, not scolding.
Any members of your congregation need to be corrected? The pulpit DEFINITELY is not the place from which to do so. Why whack a whole lot of folks who are there to worship and see Jesus just to get at one or two? It is a blatant and cowardly abuse of the privilege. The erring one (or ones) need to be taken aside privately. The "diseased" must have their "leprosy," inspected, away from prying eyes. According to Leviticus, this should be done at intervals to determine the exact nature of the sin and whether or not it is warranted that the "leperous one" be put out of the "camp," i.e. barred from fellowship so as not to infect the rest of the flock.
All kinds of sheep know Jesus' voice when they hear it, saved and unsaved. It's just like an infant or young baby that knows his mother's voice. No one has to teach him to hear her voice. He just knows it. He can pick her voice out of a crowd. In the same way, sheep instinctively know Jesus' voice when they hear Him.....and they know when He is not speaking.
If you happen to be in a church where "religion," meaning Law, is being preached, your "waters" are probably troubled....a lot. You feel unsettled, guilty, condemned, uncertain. Sometimes you're up; sometimes you're down. But when the REAL gospel is preached the "waters" are still. You feel at peace; Fed, watered, loved, secure. Even the unsaved can tell the difference between The Good Shepherd's voice and an imposter. Though they may not (yet) be sheep of His pasture, they are sheep nonetheless.
Remember when Jesus walked this earth? Multitudes followed Him because The REAL Gospel attracts people.....IN DROVES! Religion repels. It is repugnant. Why do you think so many people today are leaving the church? They're not hearing The Good Shepherd's voice.
"He restores my soul."
The word in Hebrew for soul is "nephesh." It paints the picture of breathing back life! The shepherd breaths life into his flock!
As you know, Israel is very rocky with lots of hills. Shepherds must feed their flock on hillsides. They start at the bottom and take their flock around and around the same hill, going higher and higher each time. This creates rows or terraces as in the picture below. These rows are referred to as "the paths of righteousness."
That's what Jesus does; He leads us in the "paths of righteousness." It is not of our own doing; it's a gift. He starts at the bottom, laying a good foundation. Then gradually, precept upon precept, He leads His sheep up to the very top of the hill, called, "Tikvah-hope," in Hebrew. He leads the flock around and around the same hill until they are well-fed and understand all sides of the particular truth He is teaching. And when Jesus is leading you will always come out on top! You will have hope: A confident expectation of good! Pretty cool word pictures he painted!
John 10:8-10
"All who ever came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly."
Who are the thieves? Jesus was referring to the Pharisees and religious leaders, who are are still with us unfortunately. They were, and are, the ones who rob the people. The devil works through them to steal health, finances and peace from the sheep.
The devil, of course, LOVES this. HE IS TERRIFIED of a church that believes Jesus is SHEPHERD. The gates of hell CANNOT PREVAIL against a church that believes JESUS IS THE CHRIST, THE GOOD SHEPHERD.
Our Good Shepherd doesn't steal! Jesus came that we might have life, and have it more ABUNDANTLY. He doesn't merely answer prayers; he OVER ANSWERS PRAYERS, far above all we can ask or think. Think big; think REALLY BIG, 'cause we have a REALLY BIG GOD Who wants to do exceedingly above!
Ever notice that all the the greatest leaders in the Old Testament were shepherds first? David, Joseph, Abraham, Moses for instance. They were good shepherds because they knew how first to be good sheep. They were good leaders because they were good shepherds. That is how they were able to lead God's people so well.
4 "Yea, 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;
"Yea though 'I' walk." Uh oh. Now I get myself into trouble. I got my focus off Jesus and go my own way. Wanna know the truth? The valley of the shadow is "OPTIONAL." We don't have to go there. It is only when "I walk," that "I" go astray; I get off the path.
But when "I" look beside me, Jesus is still there! He has His rod and staff to defend me against any enemies. He will leave the 99 and come find me; then throw a party for me so that "I" won't feel guilty that "I" went astray. He even prepares a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
Who are my enemies? Sickness, pain, disease, fear, lack, hunger.....you fill in the blanks. What a Savior! He redeems me out of all my trouble, even if it's of my own making!
"You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over."
Flies are a BIG problem for sheep. They love to swarm around them, crawl into their eyes, ears, nose, mouth, anywhere they can to lay their eggs there to grow into maggots. (Ewww! Yuk!) They cause all kinds of problems and disease.
The devil is called "Beelzebub-lord of the flies." No wonder they are a typology of evil spirits.
But the Good Shepherd anoints my head with the oil of the Holy Spirit. Ya know what annoys and repels flies? Yep: OIL! Our Jesus doesn't just anoint us with oil, however: OUR CUP RUNS OVER WITH ABUNDANCE OF OIL! He is not only in us, which happens when you are born again; He rests ON us in power when we are emersed, or "baptized" in the Holy Spirit. That's where the REAL POWER lies.
6 "Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
All the days of my life;
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord
Forever."
The Hebrew word for "follow" is "radaph," which means "pursue." When you see Jesus, not as Lord or Teacher or Master, though He is, but see Him instead as your SHEPHERD, His mercies and goodness will hunt you down and overtake you!
And where is our Shepherd? He's out in front, leading the sheep, of course! As long a Jesus is in front of me, goodness and mercy will hunt me down. I don't need to turn around and look behind me at my problems. All I need to do is keep on looking at Jesus. By keeping Him in front of me, then it is that "No weapon formed against me: Disease, sickness, lack, fear or poverty...will prosper.
In the triumphant words of Psalm 27:2
"When the wicked came against me
To eat up my flesh, {sickness, disease, lack}
My enemies and foes,
They stumbled and fell."
Even though an army is camped against me, I will not fear for the Lord is my Rock and Fortress.
And Verse 5:
"For in the time of trouble
He shall hide me in His pavilion;
In the secret place of His tabernacle
He shall hide me;
He shall set me high upon a rock."
Verse 14:
"Wait on the Lord;
Be of good courage,
And He shall strengthen your heart;"
Hebrews 13:20-21
20 Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, 21 make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever.
Amen.
I am SO glad The LORD is MY Shepherd. AMEN!
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