INTRODUCTION...

Psalm 23 is such a familiar psalm. As a Pastor, it is most commonly used when I do funerals or pray with people in the hospital. It is a wonderful song that brings peace in the midst of difficulty and for many people it has brought comfort.

Quote: (Henry Ward Beecher, cited in Charles Spurgeon)
“It has charmed more griefs to rest than all the philosophy of the world. It has remanded to their dungeon more felon thoughts, more black doubts, more thieving sorrows, than there are sands on the sea-shore. It has comforted the noble host of the poor. It has sung courage to the army of the disappointed. It has poured balm and consolation into the heart of the sick, of captives in dungeons, of widows in their pinching griefs, of orphans in their loneliness. Dying soldiers have died easier as it was read to them; ghastly hospitals have been illuminated; it has visited the prisoner, and broken his chains, and, like Peter’s angel, led him forth in imagination, and sung him back to his home again…”

-- Psalm 23 is a really personal song that David wrote and I think it is way more applicable to our lives than bringing comfort at funerals and illnesses. In our everyday life it speaks to a depth of care and an intimate relationship with God that we all long for.

-- I’d like to read the whole psalm together, out loud [new version CSB]. The CSB reads a little differently than the traditional, more popular rendering, but in its freshness I pray it connects with your soul. It is only 6 verses long but it is packed with goodness…

-- [read ps 23 in entirety out loud with congregation]

-- I have a few observations…

1. [THE FORM] IT IS VERY PERSONAL…

[READING IS ENCOUNTERING]
THERE IS BEAUTY IN JUST READING THIS PSALM…
- To read it is also to experience it. The psalm itself is green pasture, the psalm itself is still water, the psalm itself restores our souls. This is the power of God’s word, it is the encounter with God.

[GRAMMAR MATTERS]
- It is an overflow of David's personal experience with God. One of the reasons it has such an attraction for us is that we all hunger for such an authentic experience with God.

HE…In verses 1-3 David refers to God as "he": "The Lord is my shepherd . . . he makes me lie down . . . he leads me . . . he restores my soul."
YOU…Then in verses 4 and 5 David switches and refers to God as "you": "I will not fear, for you are with me; your rod and staff comfort me; you prepare a table before me; you anoint my head with oil."
LORD…Then in verse 6 he switches back to the third person: "I shall dwell in the house of the Lord."

[THEOLOGY AND PRAYER]
TALKING ABOUT GOD LEADS TO TALKING TO GOD…
- It is good to talk about God, but it should lead us to talk to him…We should interweave our understanding of God (talking about him…Theology) with our relationship with God (talking to him…prayer). We should regularly interrupt our talking about God by talking to God. The theological sentence, "God is generous," should quickly be followed by the prayerful sentence, "Thank you, God.” We see David model this to us and it is a good practice to follow in our own relationship with God through his Word.

[VALLEYS ARE GOOD]
Q: ”Why does David switch from 'he' to 'you' precisely at verse 4? Why didn't he just go on to say, “4 Even when I go through the darkest valley, I fear no danger, HE IS with me; HIS rod and HIS staff—they comfort me…”
- I think the switch to the more personal "precisely when he enters the valley of the shadow of death is a universal experience among God's people, really everyone in one form or another. The valley crises of life draws us closer to God.

—> We are more prone to talk about God when we are in the green pasture and more prone to cry out to God when we enter some fearful ravine.

- It is the valleys of life that draw us close to God. And we can respond to valleys in different ways…hopefully we can learn that…
1. Just as there is a danger in the valley that we might get angry at God and reject him,
2. There is an even greater danger in the green pasture that we might become satisfied with the grass and forget the shepherd.
3. In the dark we hug his knee;
4. In the light we are prone to wander off [in all directions].

- Therefore, as [James 1:2] says, "2 Consider it a great joy, my brothers and sisters, whenever you experience various trials,”

The FORM of Psalm 23 gives us some really great things to consider…

2. “I HAVE WHAT I NEED…” || EVERYTHING THAT IS GOOD FOR ME


Q: When David said “I have what I need’ did he mean we would never lack anything? That we would never be in need of anything?

— We don't have to go outside the psalm to answer that question…we absolutely do lack things. For example…when the sheep is walking through the dark valley…it lacks light and probably is lacking the green pasture and the even the quiet waters in that moment.
— Sheer common sense tells us that no matter how well things are going, you always lack something.
— So what does David mean when he says “I HAVE WHAT I NEED”? I think he is saying that God's sheep never lack anything that the Shepherd thinks is good for them(and that is not everybody, but only those who trust him, His actual sheep). We see evidence of this when we try to understand verse 4 when it says “Even when I go through the darkest valley”. The picture here is of a situation with extreme danger or hardship that could take the sheep's life if the shepherd weren't there to protect and guide with his rod and staff. But you might ask…

Q: But why would a sheep be going through such a place, such a dangerous, difficult and dark valley?
- I don’t think this is talking about a dark place of sin that we might wander off to; I don’t believe that is the point here, because the shepherd is pictured as going with the sheep, not snatching him back to the pasture he left behind.
- The reason the sheep is going through the darkest valley is because the shepherd is leading the sheep there. The connection between verses 3 and 4 prove this. It says… "He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake; even when I walk through the valley you are with me."
- The path through the valley is also one of the paths of righteousness in which God leads.

Q: But why would a shepherd lead a sheep into a valley filled with danger, darkness and death?
- The only possible answer is that he is leading us "To get to some better place"
1. “I have what I need” means, “All my needs are supplied by the LORD, my shepherd.”
2. “I have what I need” means, “I decide to not desire more than what the LORD, my shepherd gives.”

- So from verse 4 we can learn that I might lack many things in following the Shepherd, but I will never lack anything that the Shepherd thinks is good for me.
- As Psalm 84:11 says, "he does not withhold the good from those who live with integrity.."
- Or as Paul says in Philippians 4:19, "And my God will supply all your needs according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus.”

3. “HE RENEWS MY LIFE…” || THERE IS COMFORT FOR MY LIFE

- The last phrase that I want to focus on that has been a great source of strength to me is the phrase, "He renews my life."
- The same phrase occurs in Lamentations 1:16, which says, “I weep because of these things; my eyes flow with tears. For there is no one nearby to comfort me…”
- The idea of comfort also occurs here in verse 4, “…your rod and your staff—they comfort me." || they comfort because these items are instruments of protection.
- We need comfort because we will experience difficulty, pain, fear, and when these things begin to break us down, we need the comfort of God, our Shepherd. Every believer has known these times. I sure have.

I have tried to analyze what I need in those times. I think I can sum it up in three things.
1. I need a sense of release from the anxious cares that have made me feel hopeless. When these anxieties and worries in life begin to squeeze us and choke us, we need the super natural power of God, as our Shepherd, to comfort and care for us.
2. I need to see some beauty. I don’t know about you, but sometimes just getting outside and experiencing God in all of his beauty and grandeur gives me comfort. I often will take time once a week to drive out to a spot near hatcher, park my truck by the little Su, roll my window down and listen to the water flow, the wind blowing in the trees, the sunshine and birds to just reset me and remind me of God’s goodness. In Michigan and in Texas I found peace sitting at a beautiful cemetery. I need to see some of that, it helps me with perspective (tombstones) and helps to remind me of God’s beauty and gives me peace.
3. I need to feel the reality of a supernatural power outside myself flowing into me. This usually happens as I experience God healing me, restoring me, in ways that I can’t explain with natural things. As much as I love nature, my family, my closest friends…none of those things ultimately can satisfy the deepest places in my life. It is a “God Shaped Hole” and it is reserved for him alone. And most of those supernatural times happen when I am reading and studying God’s Word. Back to how I started this talk, reading the word of God IS THE ENCOUNTER…For Psalm 19:7 says, "The instruction of the Lord is perfect, renewing one’s life; the testimony of the Lord is trustworthy, making the inexperienced wise.." Nothing, not even nature, can cut the suffocating bands of anxiety from our soul, except one thing, the promises of God. We need to hear God say, " 5b … Be satisfied with what you have, for he himself has said, I will never leave you or abandon you. 6 Therefore, we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can man do to me?'"(Hebrews 13:5b—6, PS 56).

CLOSE…

Well, that is some of what I have learned from Psalm 23.

1. From its FORM...that we ought not speak too long about God with our minds before we turn and speak to God from our heart. And also from the FORM: it is the crises of life that draw us closer to God and helps turn our “theological statements and beliefs” about God's mercy into urgent cries to Him for His help.

2. From the words, "I HAVE WHAT I NEED…" I have learned to trust God not for every possible pleasure but for everything that would be good for me: Psalm 84:11 says, "he does not withhold the good from those who live with integrity.." Even the darkest valleys are only pathways to greener pastures.

3. From the words, "HE RENEWS MY LIFE…" I have learned to wait for God in my times of depression and lifelessness, and to look for hope and beauty and power in his creation, and in his Word.

RESPOND, REFLECT & COMMUNION

I would like to give you a chance to respond to God…
—> LETS TAKE A MINUTE TO THANK HIM, RESPOND TO HIM…
—> WHAT IS JESUS SAYING TO YOU TODAY?
—> WHAT IS JESUS ASKING YOU TO DO?