Our Good Shepherd Provides All We Need Here :: Psalm 23

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Hallelujah! He is Risen! ... ... In Jesus’ name. Amen

1. The LORD is my shepherd. I shall not want.

I cannot imagine that there are more famous words in Scripture than these. Psalm 23 is read at gravesides. It is spoken in hospital rooms. It is embroidered on pillows. It provides deep comfort and intimacy. It assures us of YHWH’s constant care. It resonates across all generations. It addresses our need for security and provision. It reminds us that we don’t have a distant, abstract God. ... We have a personal God ... a God who is with us constantly. He provides all we need ... all the time ... preserving this body and soul even when we are confronted with death. The LORD is my shepherd. I will not lack [anything]. 

Sadly, in our modern, busy lives ... all too often ... we treat this psalm only in sentimental terms. The green pastures and still waters become a metaphor for vacation. However, to sheep, these are not a state of mind. They are a physical necessity. Green pastures and still waters are not found in the chaotic, wolf-infested wilderness of the world. They are found right here. 

Brothers and sisters in Christ, the 23rd Psalm is a psalm of Divine Service. It is a psalm that describes when and where the Shepherd feeds us, and gives us rest, and restores us, and gives us peace. It is a vibrant, daily confession of faith. In fact, when taken along with our Gospel reading from John 10, it reminds us of why the Divine Service is so important to our week. 

THE LORD REMINDS US IN PSALM 23 THAT WE WON’T LACK ANYTHING UNDER HIS CARE

2. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters.

Or maybe we should say, he causes me to stretch out and recline in what looks like a wheat field in April, tender and brilliant green. He provides us with a place of rest and relaxation. The water here is not stagnant and muddy. It’s living water, swelling up to eternal life. It is a place of nourishment and protection, a place the Lord has called us to and a place he has gathered us in to enlighten us with what truly is good. 

David was one of many shepherds in scripture. He knew this image as well as any shepherd in Scripture ... you know, Abel and Abraham and his nephew Lot ... Isaac and Jacob ... Rachel and her father Laban ... all of the sons of Israel, notably Joseph ... Moses and Amos. And let’s not forget the men who heard the Gospel of angels on Christmas. They all knew that sheep cannot recline to rest unless they are free from fear ... free from hunger ... free from pests. In fact, they knew we sheep are rather skittish and nervous ... that we have a stronger sense of flight instead of fight ... and are highly sensitive to change that we don’t think we need ... that we prefer to look for greener pastures while wandering unnecessarily. The plague of sin and guilt and the constant demand for more ... to do more ... ultimately leads us only to dying grass in the pastures that don’t feed the soul ... that deprive us of peace.

But thanks be to God, we have a Good Shepherd who is constantly calling and gathering. He leads us back to his Divine Service ... unlike those who flee when challenged. He lays aside everything to protect you here. This is not the place where we do something for him. This is the place and the time where he does everything for us. He gives us reason to gather in his sanctuary, in his resting place, in his presence. He provides us with the nourishment our souls desperately need ... his body and blood for the forgiveness of sins ... his means of peace. He speaks his Word and announces his absolution that though we were lost, now we are found. 

And then he celebrates that you have come home. He reminds you of who he is ... and who has made us to be ... of what he has done and continues to do for you. 

3. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for the sake of his name. 

He doesn’t do that by just telling us how to be happy ... how to live the good life ... that if you just follow your heart, and return to your ways, you will prosper. Instead, he leads us on the narrow path he walked. 

First, he washes and cleanses you here in your daily return to Holy Baptism, which gives you peace. Black sheep become white sheep ... sanctified for the sake of his name. Then he feeds you his Supper so that you will have life and salvation. 

In a world full of raging and turbulent worldly opinion, we literally find peace here in the Divine Service. Our Good Shepherd says ... Come to me all who are weary and heavy laden. I will give you rest. ... I AM the bread of life. ... I AM the Gate. ... If anyone enters through me, he will be saved and will come in and find pasture. ... I AM the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. 

Is it any wonder we have nothing to fear? 

As Peter teaches us ... Christ suffered for you. ... He committed no sin, neither was deceit found in his mouth. When he was reviled, he did not revile in return. When he suffered, he did not threaten, but he continued entrusting himself to him who judges justly. He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree so that we might die to sin and life to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed (1 Pt 2:21-24).

Therefore, there is nothing left to fear. Because Hallelujah! He is risen! ... He took your death from you and has given you his life. He has robed you in his righteousness ... fed you his very body and blood for the forgiveness of sins ... all so that you have peace. 

This is why David then says ...

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 staff, they comfort me.

Providing comfort for his people is the great action of the Lord, who led his people through the waterless wilderness of death and decay into the promised land of milk and honey. You can think of that rod he wields to be a small Louisville slugger that he uses to beat off the attacks of the world. His staff, meanwhile, is a long, lightweight pole with a curved end that helps him move, count, and examine us as we return to the fold ... spotless. 

But the ultimate protection and sustaining power of his rod and staff are in his means of grace. They bring us comfort today, because as David says ...

5. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows.

YHWH’s blessing for the good life is described as a banquet ... a never-ending feast of forgiveness. Unlike the Israelites in the wilderness who doubted YHWH would do this, who doubted his presence, who doubted his eternal care, who doubted YHWH would provide ... King David teaches us to have confidence in the Lord’s Supper. Here, He shows us that he is actually with us ... and not just spiritually ... but physically ... with his body and blood. He has anointed us with his Spirit to have faith in this. As he did with the first shepherd, Abel, he had regard for us. So his goodness and steadfast, covenantal love follows us all the days of our life. And He unites us ... even with those who vex us. Thanks be to God.

6 Surely goodness and mercy ... or steadfast covenantal love ... will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.

Is it any wonder Psalm 23 is the most quoted and most memorized of the psalms?

It gives us a simple but striking and unforgettable image of God’s lavish gifts on us, who have no other obligation than to receive his care. So do that. There is no word of repayment for righteous behavior, of calling on the Lord, of being poor or miserable, or even of trust in him. So receive that. It expresses the simply wonderful truth that everything about our salvation is God’s work.

Yes, the LORD is my shepherd. And he is yours. And we will never be lacking again because Hallelujah! He is Risen! ... In Jesus’ name. Amen.

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