Lesson 245 - Senior
Memory Verse
"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou preparest" a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever" (Psalm 23:
1 -6).
Cross References
I The Shepherd Psalm
1. God's loving care for His people is likened unto a shepherd's watchful care over his sheep, [PS:23:1]; [ISA:40:11]; [JHN:10:11-16]; [HEB:13:20]; [1PE:2:25].
2. The Good Shepherd leads His sheep to bountiful provision, peace, and well-being, [PS:23:2-3], [ISA:49:10]; [EZE:34:22-31].
3. The Shepherd's strength and presence defeat the power and terror of death and calamity, [PS:23:4]; [PS:72:12-17]; [PS:91:1-14]; [HEB:2:14-15].
4. God serves His people with love and divine care despite the enemies that beset them, [PS:23:5]; [PS:31:19-24]; [JOB:36:15-16].
5. God gives the cup of blessing, in full measure and running over, to those He loves, [PS:23:5]; [PS:45:7]; [PS:92:10]; [MAL:3:10].
6. Eternal life is the possession of the sheep of God's pasture, [PS:23:6]; [PS:16:11]; [2CO:5:1]; [REV:21:3-4].
II A Psalm of David
1. David's confidence in God's salvation is strong and sure, [PS:27:1-3]; [EXO:15:2]; [PS:46:2].
2. David desired to dwell in the House of God forever, for therein was eternal life, [PS:27:4-6]; [PS:31:19-20]; [JHN:14:2-3]; [HEB:12:22].
3. David prayed for God's help to be continued in his life, [PS:27:7-9], [PS:27:11-12]; [DEU:4:31]; [PS:50:15].
4. David testified with confidence of God's mercy and salvation, [PS:27:10], [PS:27:13-14]; [NUM:14:8]; [PS:3:5-6]; [ISA:12:2].
Notes
The Good Shepherd
The Twenty-third Psalm is one of the most widely known and best loved portions of all the Scripture. Its words of love and beauty have comforted unnumbered hosts of many generations, through every kind of difficulty, trial, and even death. Its simplicity has ever endeared it to the hearts of men.
"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want" is a comprehensive statement that explains the meaning of the entire Twenty-third Psalm. God is the Shepherd of the righteous, and His people are His sheep. Men are in desperate need of a guiding hand all through life; and God is all that, and more, to the soul who will look to Him for guidance, love, and protection.
The safety and protection of his flock is the shepherd's responsibility, because his sheep are not capable of properly seeking pasture and drink for themselves. Neither are the sheep capable of defending themselves from the wild beasts, or the perils that beset them in the hardships of the road. It is the shepherd's duty safely to guide his sheep around all obstacles that threaten to harm and injure his flock. He is the one who will defend his flock with his life from all attacks of evil beasts, marauders, thieves, or murderers.
A wonderful discourse is given to us in the New Testament wherein Jesus tells the people that He is the Shepherd of the sheep. He said of Himself, "I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep" [JHN:10:11]). That was exactly what Jesus did for His people -- the sheep of His pasture. He gave His life for them, that they might escape the terrible hazards of sin and its ultimate penalty -- eternal death! Jesus' Blood, shed on Calvary's cross, is the propitiation for our sins, and we have received eternal life by believing in the efficacy of that cleansing Stream.
Bountiful Pasture
We are taught here that we shall not suffer want, nor lack any good thing if we look to God for His provision. As the shepherd leads his flocks to still waters, and green pastures where the sheep are fed and watered in abundance, so God leads His people to the source of an everlasting supply of good; namely, the Fountain of Living Waters, Jesus Christ. "The upright shall have good things in possession" [PRO:28:10]); and "He hath filled the hungry with good things" [LUK:1:53]). Isaiah said of the Shepherd of Israel: "They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the heat nor sun smite them: for he that hath mercy on them shall lead them, even by the springs of water shall he guide them" [ISA:49:10]). Jesus said to the thirsty, "If any man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink" [JHN:7:37]).
The promises of God are pertinent not only to this present world for the needs of body and soul during our pilgrimage upon earth, but are for our well-being and enjoyment in the great eternal ages with God. John the Apostle was given a vision of the great City of God that we might know a little of the bliss the saints of God will inherit. He wrote: "I heard a great voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be with them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away" [REV:21:3-4]). It is little wonder then, in view of such things that the Psalmist, as he wrote the Twenty-seventh Psalm, summed up his desire thus: "One thing have I desired of the LORD, that will I seek after; that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to behold the beauty of the LORD, and to inquire in his temple" [PS:27:4]).
David desired to dwell in the Temple of God -- the New Jerusalem -- with God through all eternity. His desire, for the time spent in this present world, was that he might meditate on the beauty and perfection of God through prayer and worship. It is the right and privilege of the child of God to inquire of God in His holy Temple through the medium of worship and praise to God. He who has tasted and seen that God is good loses all earthly desire for the possessions of this world and desires only that he might dwell with God forever. Perhaps the Psalmist had such in mind when he wrote, "O taste and see that the LORD is good: blessed is the man that trusteth in him" [PS:34:8]).
Comforting Presence
In Psalms 23 and 27 the great confidence possessed by the Psalmist is shown. He fears no evil that might come against him. The climax of his emphasis is reached when he says: "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me."
Death has lost its terrors and its sting for the redeemed because of the victorious resurrection of Christ. He conquered death, hell, and the grave in that resurrection. At the time of death, the sky of life may be darkened, and pain may be suffered momentarily, but the fears and terrors of death are gone for the Christian because he is looking to the great Shepherd of the sheep to guide him.
"The LORD is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? the LORD is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?" There is no answer to such questions, for there is none greater than the King of kings, and Lord of lords. "If God be for us, who can be against us?" [ROM:8:31]). "For neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord'' [ROM:8:38-39]).
Cup of Blessing
David thought of the hazards of his past life, of the many enemies that had striven to kill him; and he praised God for the great deliverances God had wrought in his behalf. God had literally set a table of blessing and protection for him, in the presence of his enemies. It seemed that the worse his predicament became the more God's presence dwelt with him. David compared God's great love and devotion for His sheep to a cup that runneth over because of its fullness. Much of this same theme is presented in the Twenty-seventh Psalm where the Psalmist says, "When my father and my mother forsake me, then the LORD will take me up." Parental affection is from God; and of all the human bonds, these parental ties and affections are the hardest to sever. But the Psalmist said that even though such calamity should come upon him -- that his own parents should forsake him -- yet God would console him and keep him.
The Twenty-seventh Psalm continues the theme of God's protection insomuch that God will hide His own in His Tabernacle and in His presence. This Scriptural passage emphasizes the great personal interest God has in His own, and brings to mind the incident and lesson when Jesus compared the protecting interest of God over His people with a hen gathering her chicks under her wings. Jesus said, at that time, "How often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!" [MAT:23:37]). In the Psalms we find the same thought, for there it is written, "He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust" [PS:91:4]).
Goodness of the Lord
Psalms 23 and 27 end with a confident note of God's goodness and mercy that is the portion of His people. David's confidence that goodness and mercy should follow him all the days of his life was justified, because he who lives for the glory of God receives God's rewards. These rewards include joy, peace, and everlasting life -- all made possible through the goodness and mercy of Almighty God. God's promise is: "Forget not my law; but let thine heart keep my commandments: for length of days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee" [PRO:3:1-2]).
David had ample opportunity to prove the saving power and infinite grace of God in his life, because his soul and his life had been in jeopardy many times in the past. Of such times he said, "I had fainted, unless I had believed to see the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living" [PS:27:13]). Here is a strong indictment and testimony against all sluggards who continually put on their rightful service to God. The day of trouble will arrive; and having no Saviour, those who put on their duty to God shall perish like the flower of the field. But not so with David. His trust had been in the living God, and he advised those less confident of God's salvation to "wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD" [PS:27:14]).
Questions
1. Who is the Shepherd of the sheep?
2. What is the responsibility of a shepherd?
3. Why do the sheep need a shepherd?
4. Why did David desire to dwell in the House of the Lord forever?
5. How does the Twenty-seventh Psalm emphasize God's personal interest in His people?
6. How does parental love compare with God's love?