WATCHWORD:
7 for he is our God. We are the people he watches over, the flock under his care. If only you would listen to his voice today! Psalm 95:7
32 “So don’t be afraid, little flock. For it gives your Father great happiness to give you the Kingdom. Luke 12:32
28 “So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock—his church, purchased with his own blood[a]—over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as leaders.[b] 29 I know that false teachers, like vicious wolves, will come in among you after I leave, not sparing the flock. Acts 20:28-29
Meditation:
Psalm 23. Part #3
Charles Spurgeon, on the power of Psalm 23 — “We have all things and abound; not because I have a good store of money in the bank, not because I have skill and wit with which to win my bread, but because the Lord is my shepherd.” And so, we begin the final four stanzas of the Psalm of David:
Thy rod and staff they comfort me. These were the essential tools of a Good Shepherd. The rod was used as a means of discipline for the sheep and protection for both flock and shepherd. Usually hand-carved by the shepherd, the rod was about the length and weight of a baseball bat. The shepherd practiced for hours with the rod so that he was skilled in using it for protection, but also could throw it with great accuracy. It is interesting how the word ‘rod’ has evolved in modern times to be slang for a gun, in many cases serving the same purpose.
Staff, on the other hand, was long, slender and had the shepherd’s hook, or crook, at the end. This implement was also hand-carved with care and shaped to suit the shepherd’s personal use. It was a comfort to the man, in his lonely vigil of watching over the sheep, leaning on his staff. It was to him a most important and precious help in his duties.
The symbolism should not be lost on us. Like sheep, we have gone astray, for many of our difficulties are of our own making. Then, in tenderness and compassion, our Good Shepherd comes, and by His Spirit, his staff, he lifts us out of the difficulty. What patience God has for us, wayward beings!
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies. What comes to mind with the words prepares a table? My thought was the dinner table, outfitted with lots of food. However, table here is in reference to high mountain country, where lush, level summer ranges were always the goal of the Shepard for the flock. This table, or mesa, were often remote and hard to reach, and yet the sheep owner made preliminary survey trips into this area, keeping in mind what was best for his flock in preparation for the coming season. The enemies were predators, and certain species of vegetation, such as white cammas, which were a deadly menace to the sheep.
Do we fully understand, when we come to the Table of Communion, and partake of the Body and Blood, what it cost Him to prepare this table for us? Jesus tells us that He had come that we might have life and have it more abundantly. Can you imagine how pleased He is when He see us walking in the way of holiness, compassion and love, the true Good Shepherd.
Thou anointest my head with oil. In ancient times, a gracious host would anoint his guest by applying a soothing and pleasant-smelling oil to the guest’s head. A good shepherd would use oil to treat his sheep’s wounds or to guard against fleas and nose flys. These are very bothersome insects that buzz around the sheep’s head, attempting to deposit their eggs in the membranes of the sheep’s nose. Infestations of these flys have been known to stampede an entire flock of sheep, or lead to blindness or death in a sheep.
We, who have surrendered our lives to Christ, believe and know and except and thank Him for coming, or anointing, our lives so that by simple faith and confidence in that same Christ we believe and know and except his gracious spirit. And as you and I both know, having done this, we simply do our best to proceed to live and act and think as He, through the Holy Spirit, would directs us.
Surely Goodness and mercy shall follow me and the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the House of the Lord forever. Yes, the presence of our Lord and Savior in our lives, transforms us. The promise of eternal life with Him lifts us from the darkness to His Light. “The joy of the Lord is my strength.” Not only my strength, but the source of peace and contentment. So be it.
Closing Prayer:
Psalm 23 — King James Version
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: He leadeth me beside the still waters. 3 He restoreth my soul: He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. 4 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. 5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: Thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. 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. Amen.
