Embracing Life's Journey: Trusting the Good Shepherd

The psalm gives us these two contrasting scenes I wonder if you notice them we saw last week scene one these beautiful Hills Rolling Green Meadows the sheep in pasture places of Plenty quiet streams in the second part of the psalm there's another scene isn't there there's a scene of a dark Valley David describes this dark Valley and for the audience at the time who would have heard this song sung or or sung this song themselves they knew of the dangers of the Valley. [00:01:02]

I would suggest that a lot of Christians have got a really good uh Green Meadows theology uh they know the Christian life and they enjoy the Christian Life when life is going well when they're in seasons of Plenty when there's Green Pastures quiet dreams when there's peacefulness and yet then we have times in our life where it's more like a dark Valley and I think some of us miss that um understanding of the way that life is. [00:02:10]

In this world you will have trouble but take heart I have overcome the world so Jesus says to them trouble will come but in me you'll find peace back in Psalm 23 it's easy to overlook that in Verses 1:3 that David is talking about the shepherd but when he gets to verse four he speaks to the shepherd you see in those uh times of Green Hills Green Pastures the shepherd is out the front it's leading and guiding the flock. [00:03:21]

But in the dark Valley or as David talks about the Valley of the shadow of death David can say I'll feel fear no evil for you the shepherd are with me so here in the valley the image is not of the shepherd out in front of the sheep the images of the shepherd who is alongside the Sheep protecting them David knew about the protection of a Shepherd. [00:04:00]

David gives us this stunning image of God inviting us to a table not in the presence of friends but instead in the presence of enemies I wonder if you reflected on who your enemies are what you would say maybe you could name someone but for many of us we probably wouldn't name someone but we might say that our enemies are things like fear or doubt or illness. [00:05:45]

God says come to the table and focus on me come to the feasting table and focus on me and David talks about what happens at this table he says you anoint my head with oil now oil uh being washed over someone after a long journey was a a step of refreshment it was kind of like instead of having a shower you would wash your with oil and wash away the dirt. [00:06:12]

David also describes that at the table his cup overflow it's this image of God's abundance you see in the ancient world the um greater the feast the more wine there was the more wine there was the more generous the host was and David speaks of God's abundance knowing no bounds he doesn't say you fill up my cup he says my cup overflows. [00:07:24]

Surely goodness and mercy shall fall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever David proclaims that two things goodness and mercy will follow him all the days of his life I wonder if you've seen a sheep dog at work uh sheep dogs are incredible these well-trained animals who are are are shepherding uh getting in and and directing sheep. [00:08:26]

This is how David describes God's goodness and his Mercy in in the Hebrew he uses his word the hessed of God it's the same hod that Joseph unjustly imprisoned in Genesis 39 it says that he experience God's goodness and his Mercy Naomi in the Book of Ruth she prays that God's hessed his his Mercy would would be there for her daughter daughters-in-law who was suffering the grief from the death of her sons. [00:09:09]

Perhaps today you're facing Injustice like Joseph God's hessed brings Mercy that sustains you for those grieving like Naomi God's hessed offers comfort and hope for those enduring physical or emotional pain like job God's Hess strengthens you to keep going for those who are burdened by guilt or regret God's hessed comes to you as well forgiving you and restoring. [00:10:10]

Jesus uses this metaphor of the shepherd and the sheep and he says to them this in verse N I am the gate whoever enters through me will be saved they will come in and go out and find pasture the thief comes only to steal kill and destroy I have come that they may have life and have it to the full you see back in those times uh as evening approached a Shepherd would get the sheep and would bring them in from the the paddocks from the Meadows. [00:11:33]

I'd encourage you today to put your trust in the Good Shepherd just as David writes this Psalm and describes the way that God is this good and perfect Shepherd I encourage you to put your trust in him to know that when you do that he promises you not a life that is easy and free of trouble but actually he promises you a life where you can have peace and you can have abundance and you can have goodness even in the midst of trouble. [00:13:23]