[0:00] Would you stand with me as we honor the reading of God's Word together?
[0:18] ! Again, reading from Psalm 23. Psalm 23.
[0:51] May God add a blessing to the reading of His Word. Would you please be seated?
[1:14] Shepherding is not an easy job. In Bible times, families depended on sheep for food. They sold their wool for income. Sheep were so valuable that shepherds stayed with the flock. A shepherd would stay with the flock all day long.
[1:34] The shepherd's job was to protect the flock from predators and thieves and guide them to good pastures and slow-moving sources of water.
[1:45] If the sheep's food was of a poor quality, they would get malnourished. If the sources of water moved too quickly, the sheep would be afraid to drink it because sheep are really dumb animals.
[1:59] Sheep are utterly defenseless creatures. Totally dependent on their shepherd to guide them, protect them, feed them, and heal them when they're injured.
[2:13] Sheep need constant supervision. Rushing water down the valley from heavy rain could sweep them away. Again, thieves would try to steal them. Wolves wanted to eat them.
[2:29] Sheep needed protection from themselves too because of their propensity to wander away from the flock. So a shepherd's day was long. It was lonely as he worked patiently to protect and provide for the sheep.
[2:50] A shepherd's job was difficult. It was dirty, it was dangerous, and it was undesirable. Shepherding was not a prestigious job, though many prestigious men in the Bible worked for a time as shepherds.
[3:02] Abel was a shepherd. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were shepherds. Moses was a shepherd, as was David, the human author of this divinely inspired psalm.
[3:18] When God rejected Saul as the king of his people, he sent Samuel, his prophet, to a man named Jesse, living in the region of a little town called Bethlehem.
[3:31] 1 Samuel 16, 1 tells us that the Lord said to Samuel, How long will you grieve over Saul since I have rejected him from being king over Israel?
[3:42] Fill your horn with oil and go. I will send you to Jesse, the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons. When Samuel arrived, he invited Jesse to bring his sons to a sacrifice during which time God would reveal the identity of the new king that he had chosen for his people.
[4:07] 1 Samuel 16, 6-7 record that. Or 6-13. When they came, he looked on Eliab, and he thought, Surely the Lord's anointed is before me.
[4:20] But the Lord said to Samuel, Do not look on his appearance or on his height or his stature, because I have rejected him. For the Lord sees not as man sees. Man looks on the outward appearance, but the Lord looks on the heart.
[4:32] And then 10-13. And Jesse made seven of his sons pass before Samuel. And Samuel said to Jesse, The Lord has not chosen these. Then Samuel said to Jesse, Are all your sons here?
[4:46] And he said, There remains yet the youngest, but behold, he is keeping the sheep. And Samuel said to Jesse, Send and get him, for we will not sit down until he comes here.
[4:57] And he sent and he brought him. Now he was ruddy. That was a nice way of saying he was really dirty. And had beautiful eyes and was handsome. And the Lord said, Arise, anoint him, for this is he.
[5:11] Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah. David here experiences a meteoric rise.
[5:25] One minute he's the youngest son, a simple shepherd boy. And the next he's anointed king of Israel.
[5:36] David went from shepherding his father's sheep to one day shepherding the people of his heavenly father. David knew a lot about shepherding and he knew a lot about sheep.
[5:48] He knew a lot about himself also. He knew that he was a sheep in need of shepherding. And he understood that the Lord was his shepherd.
[6:00] In Psalm 23, David praises the Lord, expressing his gratitude for all the ways that he's revealed himself as a good shepherd.
[6:12] The main idea of this morning's sermon, the main idea that Psalm 23, I believe, communicates is this. The Lord shepherds his sheep to the place where God's promises are realized.
[6:22] The Lord shepherds his sheep to the place where God's promises are realized. David was Israel's king. And as their king, the people understood that his kingship had a shepherding function.
[6:38] When David was officially made Israel's king, 2 Samuel 5 tells us, Then all the tribes of Israel came to David at Hebron and they said, Behold, we are your bone and flesh.
[6:52] In time past when Saul was king over us, it was you who led out and brought in Israel. And the Lord said to you, You shall be shepherd of my people Israel and you shall be prince over Israel.
[7:05] So David was both in the literal and figurative sense a shepherd. But in Psalm 23, he acknowledges who the true shepherd is.
[7:22] It's God. He's the true shepherd who cares for his people. He is a shepherd who guides his sheep to the place where all of his promises are realized.
[7:35] The Bible tells us that the ultimate fulfillment of God's promises find their yes and amen in Jesus Christ, God's Son. 2 Corinthians 1.20 Who came as the Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world.
[7:49] John 1.29 And in John 10, Jesus identified himself as the good shepherd. Let's read that. John 10.7-15 So Jesus again said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep.
[8:08] All who came before me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.
[8:19] The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.
[8:30] He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd who does not own the sheep sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees. And the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep.
[8:44] I am the good shepherd. I know my own. And my own know me. Just as the Father knows me and I know the Father and I lay down my life for the sheep.
[8:55] Jesus is the eternal word of God. The son of God who added a human nature to his divine nature becoming the lamb of God.
[9:06] Sacrificed in our place for our sins that by faith in him we become the people of God. The sheep of God clothed in the righteousness of Christ. And dwelt by the spirit of God as our good shepherd guides us through this life to the place that he's prepared for us.
[9:24] Where all of God's promises to us will be fully realized in heaven our eternal home. Psalm 23 is one of the most recognized and quoted poems in all of literature.
[9:40] Whether it's sung or recited, its charm is recurrent and its message is comforting. Unfortunately, I think many people have taken a false comfort in Psalm 23 because they don't realize or maybe they don't acknowledge who it's truly about and who it's truly for.
[10:01] The Bible says that God's promises are fulfilled in Jesus. Jesus said that he is the good shepherd who lays down his life for his sheep. But he also said not all sheep belong to him.
[10:16] After Jesus revealed himself as God's son and the good shepherd in John 10, 1 through 21, he was confronted by people who did not believe that he was the Messiah.
[10:28] In John 10, 24 through 30, they gathered around him. They said to him, how long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly. Jesus answered them, I told you and you do not believe.
[10:41] The works that I do in my father's name bear witness about me, but you do not believe me because you are not among my sheep. My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me.
[10:54] I give them eternal life and they will never perish and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My father who has given them to me is greater than all and no one is able to snatch them out of the father's hand.
[11:06] I and the father are one. If you are not in Christ, if you are not in Christ, God is not your shepherd.
[11:22] You might think he is, but Jesus said it plainly. My sheep hear my voice. My sheep follow me. Friend, do you listen to his voice?
[11:36] Do you follow? Do you obey what he says? That's how you know if Jesus is truly your shepherd. And if he is, however imperfectly you do those things, this psalm is for you.
[11:51] It has good news for you. The Lord is your shepherd. He will shepherd you to the place where all of God's promises are fully realized.
[12:03] But if he's not your shepherd, there's good news for you today too. God has brought you here to hear his voice in Psalm 23.
[12:14] He's calling you today to enter through the door of his fold. He's calling you to become a member of his flock. He wants to be your shepherd and will be.
[12:28] Placing your faith in him. That he'll take you to the place where all of his promises, all of his wonderful promises are fully and totally realized.
[12:42] As we explore Psalm 23, I pray that God reveals to us all the goodness of the good shepherd. The Lord guides his sheep to the place where all of his promises are fully realized.
[12:55] How does he do this? Well, David tells us, he outlines three ways that our good shepherd leads us, guides us, takes us to the place where all of God's promises are fully realized.
[13:09] The first way he does this in verses 1 through 3. The Lord is a shepherd who provides for his sheep. He provides for his sheep. Psalm 23 begins with God shepherding his sheep in the field.
[13:22] And it ends with God taking his sheep to his house. The chiastic structure of this psalm communicates how the Lord shepherds his sheep in the field as he leads them, as he guides them home.
[13:35] But the first thing that we just need to stop and think about and praise God for is what David says at the very beginning. The Lord is my shepherd.
[13:45] Again, shepherding was difficult, dirty, dangerous work. 24 hours a day spent alone with stupid, stubborn sheep.
[13:57] So let's stop and just thank God that the King of kings, the creator of all things, the Lord of lords, was willing to humble himself, lower himself in love to serve you as your shepherd.
[14:16] Not only is he our shepherd in the collective sense of those whom he's saved, but David says he is my shepherd. He knows him personally in the personal sense.
[14:30] My shepherd, the Lord of all, the King of kings, the God and creator of the universe, he knows me. Not only does he know me, he cares about me.
[14:43] And thus he says in the rest of verse 1, I shall not want. Some people misinterpret this to mean that God gives everything that we desire if we just have enough faith, that he will give us everything that we ask for.
[14:56] When I was a kid and I didn't get what I wanted, I would say to my parents or to myself, when I have kids, I'm going to give them whatever they want.
[15:09] Did you say that? Candy, cake, Coke, ice cream, every meal, all the time, as much as you want. But then I have kids.
[15:21] I had kids and I have kids. And I love them. And because I love them, I don't give them everything that they want. I don't give them everything that they ask for because the things that we often want, the things that we often ask for, are asked from the flesh.
[15:41] It's our flesh, he cravings, our sinful nature, wanting these things that aren't good for us. God loves his sheep. He cares for us by giving us what we truly need.
[15:54] And what we most need is salvation. What we most need is to be saved from our sins committed against our holy God.
[16:05] And in his love, grace, and mercy, God provided what we could not provide for ourselves, his lamb, the lamb of God, to atone for our sins, to wash our sins away, to make us white as snow, giving us his righteousness, his spirit to indwell us as he guides us in this life, in these fields, in the paths of righteousness for the glory of his great name.
[16:35] If you have the good shepherd, then understand this, you have what you most need. And you should not want. But not only that, God in his goodness and his grace has given us his word to nourish our souls, to satisfy the longings of our hearts.
[16:57] As a shepherd, he lives in us and he lives with us. In verses 2 through 3, David elaborates on the provision that the good shepherd provides.
[17:09] In verse 2, he says, He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. Philip Keller spent eight years working as a shepherd and he wrote a book called A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23.
[17:23] And he said this, It is almost impossible for sheep to be made to lie down unless four requirements are met. Owning to their timidity, they refuse to lie down unless they are free of all fear.
[17:38] Because of their social behavior within a flock, sheep will not lie down unless they are free from friction with others of their kind. If tormented by flies or parasites, sheep will not lie down.
[17:50] Only when free of these pests can they relax. Lastly, sheep will not lie down as long as they feel in need of finding food. They must be free from the fear of hunger.
[18:03] So for sheep to lie down, the shepherd must put them in a place where they are free from the fear of friction, flies, and famishment.
[18:14] As the good shepherd, Jesus provides relief for all of these fears. In Luke 12, Jesus addressed all the things in this life that cause us to feel anxious.
[18:26] And then he told his followers in Luke 12, 29 through 32, And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.
[18:41] Instead, seek his kingdom. And these things will be added to you. Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom.
[18:52] Fear, worry, anxiety, they are not fruits of the Spirit. Those feelings communicate a lack of trust in the shepherd.
[19:05] A lack of trust in the Lord. When you worry, what you are doing is you are acting as if God won't get it right.
[19:17] You stay up when you have good reason to lay down. Now, I think sometimes God will keep you awake because you got it wrong.
[19:28] And he won't let you rest until you submit yourself to him to make things right. Whatever the case, we can rest in the truth that God works all things together for the good of those who love him.
[19:43] Romans 8, 28. And as the good shepherd, Jesus told us how to relieve ourselves from the fear of friction with other sheep in the flock. In Matthew chapter 18, verses 15 through 17, When sinned against, he said, Go to your brother or your sister and seek restoration.
[20:03] If they love the Lord, they should love you. And they should desire to live in peace with you. And if you obey that command, you won't have that fear.
[20:14] As the good shepherd, Jesus, he also relieves us from the fear of flies and parasites. The nuisances of this world that try to rob us or distract us from the peace that we have in him.
[20:27] In John 16, 33, Jesus said, I have said these things to you that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart. I have overcome the world.
[20:40] God has not left us alone to fend for ourselves. He's given us his word. He's given us his spirit. He's given us his son through whom we have peace with God because he's defeated.
[20:52] And we have peace in this life because he's defeated our greatest enemies. Sin, Satan, and death. As the good shepherd, Jesus also relieves us of the fear of famine.
[21:03] In John 6, 35 through 40, Jesus said to them, I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me shall not hunger and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.
[21:15] But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe. All that the Father gives me will come to me and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven not to do my own will but the will of him who sent me.
[21:27] And this is the will of him who sent me that I should lose nothing of all that he has given to me but raise it up on the last day. For this is the will of my Father that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him should have eternal life.
[21:39] And I will raise him up on the last day. Jesus nourishes his sheep. He provides all that we need to lay down.
[21:52] But that's not all. Verse 3 says he restores my soul. The Hebrew word translated as restores is the same word translated as reviving in Psalm 19, 7 where we were at last week.
[22:06] If you remember from last week, that word means to repent, convert, or to turn around. As the good shepherd, Jesus sought us when we were lost.
[22:20] As the good shepherd, he finds us when we stray from him. Luke 15, 4 through 7. Jesus said, What man of you having a hundred sheep if he lost one of them does not leave the 99 to the open country and go after the one that is lost until he finds it?
[22:38] And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors saying to them, Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.
[22:51] Just so I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over 99 righteous persons who need no repentance. The good shepherd seeks.
[23:03] The good shepherd finds. The good shepherd restores his sheep. Instead of getting tired of them, you ran off again.
[23:17] Instead of getting annoyed with them, he seeks them. Instead of cutting his losses, he finds them. He keeps them.
[23:29] And he brings them back to the place where they shouldn't have wandered from. As verse 4 says, He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake. As the good shepherd, the Lord, shows his goodness in keeping his word to us.
[23:45] He will not leave us. He will not forsake us. He will not quit on us. He will not give up on us. We follow in his righteous path knowing that our shepherd's ways are better than our ways.
[24:01] Because Jesus has been so good to us. Seeking us. Finding us. Restoring us. We should want to live in ways that reflect his goodness.
[24:13] And live in ways that honor his good name. Years ago, I had an English bulldog named Chuck. I love Chuck.
[24:27] I always wanted to have an English bulldog. I got him. And I loved him. I have his picture downstairs in my office still today. But like most bulldogs, and this is part of what I loved about him, is he was slow and he was lazy.
[24:41] He slept almost all day long. But he was strong. He was very strong. And there were some things that would set him off.
[24:54] Weird things like windshield wipers. I couldn't take him in the car anywhere when it was raining because he would try to attack the windshield wipers. He also hated wheels.
[25:06] Anything that just rotated, he hated. And so I remember a time, Danny and I, there was a parade in the little community where I was a youth pastor and we decided to take Chuck to the parade.
[25:18] There was too many wheels for Chuck to remain patient. And if you've had a bulldog, they start doing this nervous whine.
[25:29] This high pitch like, ah. And so he was doing that. And I was thinking, I got to get him out of here or he's going to do something embarrassing.
[25:40] And he did something embarrassing before I could take him away. So what he would do is he would put his paws on the ground and he would stop walking with us. And he'd pull back and pull back and pull back until he got out of his leash.
[25:53] So I put that thing on tight for this parade. And he was trying to do that. He was so strong that he snapped the leash in half. And he ran out into the middle of the parade.
[26:08] And at that moment, I wanted to be like, whose dog is this? I don't know. I have a dog like, kind of, that's not my dog. Somebody needs to get that dog.
[26:19] But I didn't. I knew it was going to be embarrassing. And so in the middle of this parade, I'm running around. I love chasing my bulldog, picking him up, calming him down, laying on top of him.
[26:38] I snatched him up. I carried him back to the car. I was embarrassed. But he was my dog. And I loved him.
[26:53] If I would look like a fool for a dog who went astray, friend, how much more does God love his sheep and his children?
[27:06] How much more foolish is he willing to look to save us? And that's exactly what he did. Jesus emptied himself. He endured the humiliation of dying on a cross because he knew it was necessary to redeem his sheep, to save his sheep, to keep his sheep at the price of shedding his own blood.
[27:39] If Jesus is your shepherd and you strayed from him, he brought you here today to hear this truth that you would come back.
[27:51] He wants to lead you back to the place where you shouldn't have strayed to begin with. Don't starve in the wilderness when you can feast in his green pastures. And if you don't know him as your shepherd, hear his call.
[28:07] Matthew 11, 28 through 30. Come to me. Come to me. All who labor and are heavy laden and I'll give you rest.
[28:23] Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and lowly in heart and you will find rest for your souls. My yoke is easy. My burden is light because our shepherd did it all.
[28:36] He's done all the work to bring us peace. He's made the provision. Turn to him and stop running. Would you run from a shepherd who laid down his life to save yours?
[28:51] If the Lord is your good shepherd, then why can't you lay down? What are you worried about? Why are you so anxious? Why can't you trust in his provision?
[29:03] Sheep aren't smart. They don't know better than the shepherd. They may not know where the shepherd is leading them exactly, but the shepherd always knows. He knows. And he leads them in straight paths.
[29:16] He leads them in the right direction. And we can trust in his provision. Even when that path takes us through the valley of the shadow of death.
[29:28] The second way we see. The Lord is a shepherd who protects his sheep. He provides for the sheep. The Lord is a shepherd who protects his sheep.
[29:39] Verse 4. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. Valleys were extremely dangerous places in Israel.
[29:51] Thieves used to hide in that high vantage point, and they would descend quickly to overtake travelers. The path the good shepherd takes to bring his sheep home means walking through the valley of the shadow of death.
[30:09] But David says the sheep find comfort in the shepherd's presence, knowing that he is a shepherd with tools armed to protect them. A staff was a shepherd's staff, used to keep sheep from straying or wandering, and sometimes it was used to crush the head of a serpent on the path.
[30:28] The rod was a cudgel, a club worn at the belt. Sometimes the club had nails driven through it to inflict the sheep's enemies with critical wounds.
[30:40] Our good shepherd bears arms. He's packing. He's strapped. That makes me feel good when I go through dark times, hard times.
[30:56] But the valley pictured here isn't a picture of hard things that we go through in life. It's a picture of death. Death. The final leg in the journey before arriving at home.
[31:12] I've shared the story of the salvation of my good friend Melvin Lynn with you many times, but I can't help but just keep thinking about this when I think about somebody who was close to dying and surviving and then somebody who was close to dying after being saved.
[31:29] Melvin was a member of my church in Leavenworth. He was in the hospital. He'd never gone to church. His wife would come alone. The rest of his family was in church. Melvin never went to church.
[31:41] He was in the Navy. He was an auto mechanic. He was a boxer in the Navy. This guy was tough as nails and I would hear all kinds of stories from his grandson about how tough he was and I would hear from the family he'll never come to church.
[31:54] He's in the hospital. He had to have some of his colon taken out and his wife, it was a long way away and she didn't want to drive all that way by herself and so I said that I would take her. When we got there, she invited me to come up into Melvin's hospital room.
[32:08] And I went up and I don't really remember much of that first conversation besides I just talked to him and I know that I prayed for him. And then I left and I went home.
[32:20] After he got out of the hospital, I got a phone call from Melvin's wife at the church and she said, Melvin is asking for you to come over. And so I got to their house.
[32:33] We sat down at his dining room table and he said that, you know, I went to church when I was a kid. I was going to get baptized but my parents wouldn't come.
[32:46] And I thought, if my parents don't believe in any of this, why should I? And so he said, that was probably the last time I ever went to church. But while I was in the hospital, you know, the room is dark, I'm by myself and I got to thinking.
[33:04] This tough man said to me, I'm afraid to die. I'm not ready to die. We talked and he asked questions.
[33:17] He cried. God saved him. He was in his 70s and he came to our church and he was baptized. And for every Sunday that he was physically able, he was in our church sitting next to his wife and he became one of my best friends.
[33:41] About five years later, his cancer came back. And the last time I saw him alive, he was in hospice care. He was back in the bedroom.
[33:51] And I went back to the bedroom and walked in the door and he was really a shell of himself.
[34:05] Skinny, hot. He couldn't stay cold. Blankets were off of him. He was hot. He was hurting. He was uncomfortable. But as soon as I entered the room, he greeted me with a big smile.
[34:20] He said, Hi, Pastor. I said, Melvin, are you ready to see Jesus? Are you ready to meet Jesus? And he said, with a big smile again, yes, I'm ready.
[34:37] He was walking through the valley of the shadow of death again. But this time, he knew that his shepherd was with him.
[34:51] And he knew that death was just the beginning of his eternal life through his Lord who saved him. And so I ask you, are you ready to walk through the valley?
[35:04] Are you certain that the shepherd is with you, will be with you as you walk through the valley of the shadow of death? Are you sure that you're going to go to his house? Or are you going to go to a place that's much darker than the valley of the shadow of death?
[35:23] A place Jesus described as outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. That place is called hell. And it's eternal separation from God forever.
[35:35] There is no seeking past that point. Third, the Lord is a shepherd who prepares a place for his sheep. In these verses, the imagery shifts from a shepherd and his sheep to a victory celebration.
[35:52] A feast where the host welcomes his guests or where a commander of an army celebrates a feast with his soldiers on the battlefield where they just won and they just won big.
[36:04] Verses 4 through 6, you prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
[36:19] We are dumb sheep who Jesus welcomes as his guests, his friends, his brothers, his sisters, his co-heirs in God's glorious heaven.
[36:33] He vindicates us. He lavishes us with a meal unlike any other in a celebration that never ends in our eternal home.
[36:47] I travel for conferences and for meetings sometimes. I've stayed in hotels and Airbnbs.
[36:57] The manager of the hotels, the owners of the house, they do their best to make you feel at home. They'll even write a nice little note, make yourself at home. But I never do.
[37:10] I never feel at home in those places. Home is where my family is. It's where my wife is. It's where my kids are.
[37:23] And when my wife and kids, for whatever reason, aren't in our house, our house doesn't feel like home to me. The joy of heaven isn't the streets of gold.
[37:36] It's not the mansions. It's not the dwelling places. It will be home. It will be home. And it will be awesome because Jesus, the good shepherd who walked with us through the valley of the shadow of death himself will be there with us.
[38:00] It will be home because Jesus who gave his life to give us life will be there. It will be home because all the enemies Jesus defeated, sin, Satan, and death, they won't be there.
[38:12] It will be home because Jesus is there. Jesus is the good shepherd who seeks us, finds us, guides us, provides for us, protects us, and brings us to the place he has prepared for us in his home, which is our true home.
[38:32] in John 14, 1 through 6, as Jesus was hours away from the cross, he met with his disciples and this is another amazing thing about Jesus.
[38:46] Instead of seeking their comfort, he comforts them. And one of the things he says to them in John 14, 1 through 6, where he's revealing to them this is about to happen, it's moments away, they're troubled, they don't understand, he says to them, let not your hearts be troubled.
[39:02] Believe in God. Believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you and if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and will take you to myself that where I am there you may be also.
[39:20] And you know the way to where I am going. And you gotta love Thomas. Thomas said to him, Lord, we don't know where you're going, how can we know the way? And you've gotta love Jesus' response here.
[39:31] We're clear, concise, full of truth. I'm the way, the truth, and the life.
[39:42] No one comes to the Father except through me. friend, there's one way to God's house.
[39:56] And there's only one house that is eternally glorious like his. All roads do not lead to heaven. There's one way and Jesus is that way. There's one path and Jesus is that path.
[40:10] And he's that way and he's that path because only he could make that way possible. God is absolutely, completely, utterly, holy, and without sin.
[40:24] And we all have sinned. And that creates a schism. There's a huge gulf there that no matter how much we try to work, no matter how much we would try to do, we can't earn his grace, which we need.
[40:38] Grace, by definition, cannot be earned. It has to be given. And God, thankfully, is a gracious God. And knowing that there was no hope for us to be with him because of our sin, he made a way for us to be with him through the sinless life, the sacrificial death, and the victorious resurrection of his son, Jesus Christ.
[40:59] He is the way. He is the truth. He is the life. He is the good shepherd who provides, who protects, and who brings his sheep to the place where all of God's promises are fully realized.
[41:15] And if you don't know him, he's calling you to know him today, to acknowledge your sin, to repent of it, and to turn to him and to trust, Jesus, I'm a sinner. I need you as my Savior. Save me.
[41:27] And he'll save you. How do we adjust based on what we've heard? I think it's this one way. Proclaim the goodness and the graciousness of the good shepherd.
[41:41] If you are one of his sheep, then spend your life proclaiming the goodness and the graciousness of the good shepherd. Jesus hasn't come back yet, which means that he has more sheep to add to his flock.
[41:58] In all that you do, wherever you go, proclaim his goodness and his graciousness.
[42:13] Be a light in the darkness. Don't be afraid. Don't live your life in fear. Your shepherd is with you.
[42:25] Your shepherd has caused his spirit to live inside of you. He is good. He is gracious. He's glorious. Let's pray.
[42:45] Lord, we are thankful for the truth that we've just reflected upon and the words that you've inspired in Psalm 23. Thankful to know, Lord, that you are the good shepherd.
[43:01] Thankful for the truth, Lord, that in your love you are willing to humble yourself to come down to this earth under the curse of sin and to break that curse for us through your sinless life, your sacrificial death, in your victorious resurrection, that by faith in you, Lord, not our good works, but by faith in you and you alone, we receive the righteousness of Christ.
[43:35] We are forgiven. We are restored. We are redeemed. We are brought into your flock. And, Lord, we're thankful to know that you are the good shepherd who has laid down his life for us, your sheep.
[43:51] Lord, we're thankful to know that as we journey through this life that you don't leave us to fend for ourselves, but, God, you provide. You protect.
[44:03] When we die, Lord, when we walk through the valley of the shadow of death, we have reason not to fear, but actually to celebrate, to look forward to what's beyond this life as we are with you in the eternal home that you've prepared for us.
[44:25] Lord, this is good news. This is the best news that there is, and you've called us to proclaim it. And so, God, I pray as your sheep, as your people in this world, that that is what we would spend our lives doing.
[44:38] Wherever you would have us go, whatever you would have us doing, that, Lord, we would live in ways and speak in ways that the goodness of our good shepherd would be heard in the hopes, Lord, that you would add more to your flock.
[44:55] So, God, we pray that we would trust in you, that we would not live our lives in fear because we know the good shepherd. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.
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