The Lord is my shepherd; I have all that I need.
Psalm 23:1 NLT
Much has been written about Psalm 23. It is preached regularly at funerals; it is often offered as comfort to those who are suffering. I want to explore an aspect of Psalm 23 that I myself don’t remember preachers or authors explaining. We can easily listen to David saying these words and explain why it fits him in the context of various areas or time periods of his life. And we can naturally discuss Jesus/God being the Shepherd and how God functions in these roles for David or us. But this morning I want to think about Jesus saying these words in His life about His Father.
Remember that I spoke in an earlier psalm about the complex nature of the believer being in Christ and Christ being in you as a child of God?
Jesus the man, who can do nothing by himself; he can do only what he sees his Father doing (John 5:19) Compare to verse one “The Lord is my shepherd v.1”
Jesus the man, who was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil (Matthew 4:1) Compare to “He guides me along right paths v.3”
Jesus the man, the man of sorrows and acquainted with grief (Isaiah 53:3) Compare to “Even when I walk through the darkest valley v.4”
Jesus the man, who learned obedience through suffering (Hebrews 5:8-9, Matthew 26:39) Compare to “Your rod and your staff protect v.4”
What does this Psalm mean when we consider that Jesus lives in you?
“If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.” Romans 8:10 (2 Corinthians 4:6-7, Galatians 1:15-16, Galatians 2:20, Galatians 4:19, Ephesians 3:17, Colossians 1:27, 2 Thessalonians 1:10)
And does it make any difference when we think about you living in Jesus? (Galatians 3:26, Ephesians 1:3, Ephesians 2:4-5, John 15:1-5, Romans 8:17, 2 Corinthians 5:17, Romans 8:1, Colossians 2:10)
MAIN POINT: Jesus the man experienced the Shepherding of God in his life and we experience that when we are His followers.
Jesus needed to be shepherded. So do I but I am not alone.
This difficult path of learning to follow has been walked by our Saviour and it was difficult for him too. It’s okay to struggle, even Jesus did: Matthew 26:39
Jesus had to ask God for things, Jesus had to pray, Jesus had to trust. What examples can you think of where in Jesus’ life he was dependent on the Father?
Jesus knew that God would supply all his needs. Matthew 6:32, Matthew 4:1-11; Luke 4:1-13
But Jesus did ask and request God to act. Consider even in raising Lazarus his friend from the dead, He asks His Father.
Jesus celebrated God’s answers to His requests
Jesus thanked the Father in these occasions of request and celebration of the kingdom of God. As in the last supper, the healing of Lazarus and the feeding miracles. (John 11:41-42, Matthew 26)
Conclusion:
I want to invite you to reread Psalm 23 thinking about how Jesus might have experienced being shepherded by God. Jesus the recipient of God’s blessing, leading, discipline and invitation.
Then I invite you to consider that when Jesus did this, you as his follower were there with him. As a child of God, believer in Jesus and follower of your Saviour, you are in Christ. In Christ on the cross and in Christ in the resurrection, you can be sure you are also in Christ in his being Shepherded and thus supplied for by God.
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