Psalm 23 (Elder Amy Cirigliano, 05/06/23)

Lord, let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight of Lord. Amen

So our text this morning is surely the goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever isn't that a wonderful promise

God's mercy and love is going to follow us all the days of our life

this story had to have happened a

Few years ago because we wouldn't do this today

I think most of us wouldn't do it today a little boy was in kindergarten

He wanted to walk himself to school and so his mom was trying to accommodate this

But she was worried about him and said we today we wouldn't do that. We would drive them

We would make sure we would insist on walking him

So he wanted to walk as he was big now right in kindergarten

So he started walking to school and his mom was worried

so she came up with a plan with her neighbor Shirley who had a little little girl and

Shirley said I'll tell you what he won't know we'll stay back behind him a ways and we'll follow him and make sure he gets to

school on time and safely so

That's what happened. Shirley would take her little girl and her name was Marcy and they'd hold their hands and they were

Standing back a ways so that first week of school went by and went well

But the little boy Timmy was walking with his little best friend who was another little girl in the class and she said to him

Why does that lady follow us? She's been following us all week long and

Timmy says well, I know why she's following us because every night my mom reads Psalms 23 to me and it says

Shirley goodness and her last name was goodness

Shirley goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life

So the little friend looked at him kind of confused and he said I guess I'm gonna have to get used to it

So kids they often don't quite hear it. Just right, right? That's a famous text, but he didn't hear it quite right and

We have to chuckle at their interpretations, right?

But we know that God's goodness and his mercy does follow us when we're walking with Jesus

He is there with us to write trusting him all the days of our life

Psalm 23 is what we're gonna look at today and that's the closing piece of Psalm 23

That surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life

Psalm 23 is read at more funerals. It's cited in times of distress is in

While our prisoners recite it soldiers recite it. It's read to the sick

There are all kinds of songs on Psalm 23, right? Remember Todd Beamer?

He was on flight 93 with 9-eleven his last conversation with an air phone supervisor was

Psalm 23 he had that they read that together said that together and

President George W. Bush he read some portions of Psalm 23 right after 9-eleven

The point is that this is a really important text

It's used so much in so many ways at one point

Protestant churches when they ordained their pastors would have all the ministers have a thorough knowledge of some of all the Psalms

Which isn't the case today? So I could go on and on with examples of how

Much we treasure Psalm 23. It's memorized and it's recognized by almost everyone whether they go to church or not, right?

So Psalm 23 must be important

It's this beautiful proclamation so we're gonna look at it

But before we go straight into Psalm 23, we kind of need to set the stage and kind of look at the big picture of it

Because Psalm 23 isn't a standalone piece

So first of all, I want to look at the book of Psalms

And I think I'm can yeah, I can see what you guys see. So Psalms is divided into five books

I have five sections. Those are the five right there

the Jewish community

Explains that these five divisions in their book are called the Midrash

Which they say as Moses gave five books of law

To Israel David gave five books of Psalms to Israel

So it's known these five books are well known to the Jewish

Folks now within those five books. There's a doxology for each of them

These are the doxologies the ending of each of those sections has a doxology

Another interesting thing about Psalms there are duplicates. So Psalms 14 is the same as Psalm 53 and you can see the other examples

It's interesting how these Psalms were composed and placed together

So people who have studied the Psalms and have looked at them and how they're all arranged

Came up with this really complicated way of saying something

So this is what they said those who study the arrangement of the Psalms conclude

That it was deliberately planned with theological and historical context in mind

I think that's a complicated way to say this what the Bible already said is that all scripture

Was given by the inspiration of God is not an accident how the Psalms were laid out and we're going to look at this

So theologians also say that they are inspired confessions the Psalms and they are complaints and they are praises and they are prayers

And they are thanksgiving and what I love about these Psalms is that they are inspired by the

Prayers and they are thanksgiving and what I love about that it gives you permission to express the feelings that you already have

That God already knows you can say them out loud right that was one of the beautiful things that came out of the Psalms I think

So that's a really short introduction to all of the Psalms

But we're going to go look at Psalm 23, but I said it's not a standalone Psalm

So it's placed between 22 and 24 obviously but it comes with that set 22 23 and 24

Psalm 22 is considered a messianic prophetic psalm so we know that David he was a shepherd boy we know that right and we know he was a military leader

We know he's a king and a poet and a musician and a writer but he was also a prophet

So the truth is the Psalms are filled with lots of messianic prophecies and Psalm 2 is the first one in the book of Psalms

That starts off with those messianic prophecies, but Psalm 22 which comes right before 23 was also prophetic

About the Messiah, so I want to glance at these really quickly

I don't want to go through all of it, so I just highlighted some of them to show you how it's prophetic

My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? Have you ever heard that before?

And then my words of my groaning and if you go down all of my bones are out of joint my heart is like wax

It has melted within me. Here's some other examples of Psalm 22

You've brought me to the dust of the death and then 16 for the dogs have surrounded me

The congregation of the wicked has enclosed me. They have pierced my hands and my feet

Look at 17. I can count all my bones. They look and they stare at me

They divide my garments among them and my clothing they cast lots

And at the end there it says help me right verse 20 of Psalm 22 says

Deliver me from the sword

And then going down to 24, but when he cried to him he heard and then 29 at the last verse last line

Shall bow before him if you want to go through it more depth you can read Psalm 22

But those are some highlights that illustrate how prophetic it was so 22 comes before 23

So then comes 23 and then 24, so I want to look at this really quickly, excuse me

22 is about the good shepherd who gave up his life for his sheep and a prophet who gave up his sheep

And it prophesies in detail about the Lord's death which we just saw

Then 23 comes it's the great shepherd in resurrection power that leads his flock today its present day

And then 24 is all about that chief shepherd returning in great glory

So I'm going to look at 24 just like 22 before we hit 23 so verse 3

If you look at it and glance and it says who may send into the hill of the Lord or who may stand in his holy place

Lift up your heads of gates and be lifted up you everlasting doors the king of glory shall come in

So you can tell it's talking about the Lord's return the great shepherd coming back

And then verse 8 and 9 is another example. Who is this king of glory the Lord strong and mighty the Lord mighty in battle

Lift up your heads. Oh you gates lift up your everlasting doors the king of glory

Shall come in it's a quick quick look at 24 but 23 is in the middle of these two

So to recap quick it is the good shepherd who gave up his life and it talks about it in detail

Psalm 22 23 is present day it's the shepherd leading us right here in resurrection power

And 24 is the great shepherd returning to take us home

It's a beautiful way to set these precious scriptures all up together

I'll never forget I went out to visit a family in their home they were homebound

I guess this is working you can hear me it's going out under my chin though

So I was out visiting them and when I go visit you know folks in their homes I like to read some scriptures

And there's some favorite ones I like to read including Psalm 23

So I said to the lady she's homebound I said could I read to you Psalm 23 she said to me I am not on my deathbed

And so I started laughing chuckling with her I said I know you're not dying but Psalm 23 is really good even for now

This isn't just for funerals I said I promise you'll be encouraged if I read you Psalm 23

So I read her Psalm 23 and she smiled at the end and she said Psalm 23 was really good

Psalm 23 is very good and it's not just for funerals it's for today it's present day

It's what the Lord has promised to us his goodness and his mercy and we're going to look at that now okay

So Psalm 23 we're going to go through the verses the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want isn't that beautiful

And what a metaphor to open up with this analogy dominates the first four verses of Psalm 23

We are the Lord's people of his pasture and the flock under his care

When you look at a herd of sheep now after before I did this sermon and prepared for it

This is how I used to look at the flock but now I know that there's a difference

I would look and just see a herd of sheep but when the shepherd looks at the sheep he knows them

Because every face is special and every face has a story and every sheep has a name

And if you look at some of these pictures you can tell I had to look when I was reading this

Those sheep all have unique faces and John 10 3 says it I don't know if you can see it

But it says the sheep hears his voice and he calls his own sheep by name and he leads them out

Shepherding was used in it's throughout all the scriptures right and it's because 80% of Jesus listeners made their living off of the land

So the metaphor that this scripture opens up with the Lord is my shepherd is a fantastic way for them to understand what

What is being shared here in the divine scriptures right?

So what about the line I shall not want?

Have you ever wanted something so badly because we all have had that thing we're just wishing for

Or are you on the other end of the spectrum and you're content and you're thankful for what God has blessed you with

When you're content in the Lord you know what you gain?

You gain this joy you gain this faith and you gain this peace and the assurance that everything will be taken care of

I shall not want is in that scripture because the Lord has covered it and David knew it when he wrote that

So then we go to verse 2

He makes me to lie down in green pastures and he leads me beside the still waters

So a good shepherd would regularly lead his sheep to what the green pastures

Which underscores the story of David's life where the Lord took care of him both physically and spiritually

But God meets the needs of each one of us as well

And in the process of taking care of us he leads us to the greenest pastures

And what about the still waters?

Well you know they say sheep aren't that smart have you ever heard anyone say that?

They aren't that smart so they will wander into running creeks where they're not supposed to go

And if that wool that they have is really heavy they can drown

But a good shepherd will lead them to the calm waters right?

And when they go to the waters it's a place to cleanse those wounds

And the shepherd checks them to clean out any dirty spots and wounds for soil

You know I had this scripture reminds me of a story that had happened to me

I had received some really hard news

It was discouraging and I was really down about it

And it happened to be that our family was on a small vacation over on the Gulf Coast

And you know the Gulf Coast is considered the calm coast versus the Atlantic right of Florida

So I got this call and I received this news and it was really kind of heartbreaking

And I remember what I did I got my low rise beach chair

And I just went and sat at the edge of the waves where they lapped up over me

And I probably sat there for a few hours contemplating and praying and just processing what I had heard

I needed some quiet time

See the Lord leads us by still waters for restoration right?

Because when you're by the still waters he will restore your soul

Which takes you to Psalm 23 verse 3

Psalms 23:3

It says he restores my soul and he leads me in paths of righteousness for his namesake

The good shepherd restores my soul it just means to turn you back and to restore you

In the Hebrew it can simply mean in this verb and this tense to repent or return

But David's words are general enough to mean that the Lord restored David to his proper spiritual and physical condition

By forgiving him and renewing him

And one of the best known scriptures that even that gives the great pictorial visual of it

Is the one lost sheep who needed to repent and right?

The Savior the shepherd comes after that one out of the 99

When the sheep there's a my favorite author in one of her books

Manuscripts in one of her manuscripts says this about about the sheep which I didn't realize this

When a sheep strays from the fold it can never find its way back I didn't know that

But the shepherd must seek after the strange sheep and bring it back in his arms

Rejoicing at every step that he has found that lost sheep

Don't you love it when God guides each one of us in the past that he has planned right

They are paths of righteousness that's the ones he plans for you for his namesake and I love that

So I'm so thankful when the Lord tells me don't turn here but turn here or go straight or wait or stop

I'm thankful when he redirects me from something that's a temptation or a disaster

And he keeps me on the path for his namesake

You know the point of this whole little piece right here is that the Lord if he's leading you in an unrighteous way

It's not his way the Lord would never lead you in an unrighteous way it isn't from the Lord

So he leads in the ways that are righteous which are the way home

Because his reputation is at stake which takes us to verse four

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 your strap they comfort me

So this verse is the proclamation of God's care and protection of his flock right

So in that hill country of Judah there were steep ravines and narrow little paths that were dangerous for the sheep

And I'm sure David's remembering this because it's home to wild beasts and robbers and it's where he remembers his own experiences

See sheep have no natural defense right they don't have the claws they don't have horns and they don't have fangs

They are completely hopeless so they would find themselves in those dangerous places and they would get out alive by God's grace right

Because God was with David and even though David had to walk in these places he did not fear harm or evil

Because the good shepherd was abiding with his flock the Lord would intervene and protect amen

The shepherd imagery the shepherd imagery continues with the rod and the staff in that section of verse four

So the staff and the rod were there to not hurt the sheep right they were there to support and nudge and redirect and gently prod

And to keep the sheep going in the right direction but they were also the rod and staff was also there to defend an assailant and smack him

David found that rod and that staff comforting because he feared no evil with that rod and staff there right

And so now as we go into this Psalm 23 this scene changes from the shepherding scene into the great great banquet table by the great great host verse five

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies and you anoint my head with oil and my cup it runneth over

So there's three sections in this verse and I'm looking at what you're seeing right here

There's three sections and we're going to go through each section of verse five so starting with you prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies

It simply means to put the food and the drink out on the table right it can be literal but it could also be spiritual

Some theologians believe this is a description of the great banquet that we're going to receive when we get to heaven when the Lord welcomes his guests

And according to the customs of the East honored guests were always saved when they sat down to eat at someone's table

So when they sat down to eat this was a break from if they were on the run or break and a thought of comfort

As they would be safe and secure you know I will never forget something that happened to me when I think of this verse

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies I worked at another place I won't name and I had someone coming in after me

And I would see them come in to talk to my boss and I knew every single time they came in they were trying to get me fired for things that weren't true

And first it really broke my heart and I was stressed out about it but I realized this was the pattern

I also didn't realize that they had done this to several of my co-workers and no one ever told me I always thought about that when it was going on

Why didn't anyone tell me this is normal not really normal but this is normal for them

So they would come in time and time again and every time they came in I always knew it was to try to get me in trouble with these false accusations

And so I finally I just got used to it and I knew nothing was coming from it because my boss didn't you know I would go ask him or he would tell me what the conversation was

So at some point while this was going on we had a golf tournament and the golf tournament was over and the gentleman that was coming in to try to get me in trouble played in this golf tournament

And so the tournament was over and we're at the awards meal you know in the golf the country club there of the golf course

And I sat down at this table that was right here and there was this other table beside me and I saw him come in and I saw my boss come in

And my boss sat down at this table over here I didn't really think much about it but then I noticed where he went and sat and he went and sat right by my boss

And I noticed where he was because I could see him out of the peripheral of my eye and I just had to say let it go because God's got me

But you know the Lord is so good to us he divinely orchestrates these smallest details in every situation

So I sat at this table with some of my co-workers and it just happened that I had this empty chair right here right beside me

And shortly after this gentleman that's coming after me and coming after me sits down beside my boss

I can see out of the corner of my eye that my boss picks up his plate pulls out his chair and he walks over and he sits down right beside me

I know that was divinely orchestrated that there be that chair open at that table and you know no words were ever spoken but a message was definitely sent

You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies and I have to say amen

This verse becomes alive to me when I reflect on that event and you know what nothing ever came of all the accusations

It moves my heart and my heart swells because I know God was taking care of me

So in verse six I'm sorry verse five the second section is you anoint my head with oil

So it was the custom and it was the duty of a gracious host in that area in that time to have perfumed oil to freshen up with right

I'd like to consider a comparison of it is to Bath and Body Works having some fresh scented stuff in the bathroom the guest bathroom when you come in right

It might have a little more meaning right here but it's something similar because a guest was expected to provide this this oil for them to freshen up with

Reminds you of that story in Luke 7 when the woman gives Jesus the oil on his on his feet and Jesus reminds the host you didn't give me water or oil

So the commentary shares this type of anointing wasn't intended to be the same as an anointing of a king but it was to connotate hospitality and festivity and joy and to have a sweet aroma

Hence Bath and Body Works right

So what about a sheep and oil now this verse isn't talking about it the sheep but the shepherd would often put oil on the head of a sheep as well

So in ancient Israel the shepherds use this oil to repel insects and to prevent sheep conflicts and for healing of the wounds

So the thing is bugs bug us right bugs bug people but they drive crazy and kill sheep because of a fly or a mosquito or some kind of a gnat gets in their nose

And it hatches it becomes this larva type of thing and it's actual torture to a sheep if any of you guys know about how sheep are

So once they deposit those eggs if they're successful and they don't have that oil on them

It can drive them insane this is agonizing annoyance and sheep have been known to hit their heads against rocks or trees or you know poles or whatever is there

Until they can get that out of their nose and some have even died shaking their head beating it against whatever it is they're hitting it on

So the oil prevents some of those things from getting in their nose and it can also help their wounds

So as a result a shepherd will regularly and often daily inspect and put oil on cuts abrasions and their head to keep away the bugs

So sheep aren't the only ones who need preventative care or who have wounds right this is us so whether your wound is physical emotional or spiritual

The first thing we do and it's right here in this the first thing we do is we go to the right person which is the good good shepherd

And to receive the healing we lower heads and we even bow down so that the Lord can put an oil on this right

And the thing is this is really a beautiful piece to it I think the sheep don't understand the why the oil repels the flies

And the sheep don't understand how the oil heals them in fact the only thing that the sheep knows is that when they are in the presence of the good shepherd

And that oil goes on them something happens right and that's all we really need to know too is that we need to go and bow before the Lord

So verse five goes to the overflowing cup right so in the Bible an overflowing cup represented the portion of your life

A symbol of the portion or your lot in life which could be good or bad we see the cup of fury in Isaiah or what Jesus asked the father at the cross

So it can be a hard thing it can be a bad thing but it can also be a good thing as seen right here is your cup running over

So I can testify in my family God has blessed us and my cup runneth over even when it seems like it's a little bit dry the cup runneth over

He has given me blessings that were just intended for me and my family but he's given blessings that are intended just for you and your family right

So it leads us to verse six we've gone through most of verse 23 of chapter 23 but it goes to our scripture reading

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever isn't that beautiful

It starts with the word surely so this marks a change from what's happened before and to what God is going to do when we walk with him

So it's important the words that were used in this text the concluding words are loyal love which is often translated to mercy

So mercy or loving kindness and with the addition of goodness with mercy is just a way of putting emphasis on what God's going to do all the days of David's life

And the word loyal love is a well-known covenant word that describes God's faithful love to his covenant promises that he has made to us

There is no other term that could more adequately describe the provisions the Lord's going to take care of and give to David

David had been pursued his entire life do you remember Saul coming after him numerous times

No man chased him more though than the Lord right the Lord was persistent and effective in pursuing him

So David declares that I am going to dwell in the house of the Lord forever and this is rich right here because all the days of his life

He's going to be in the house of the Lord which is the sanctuary right so Psalm 23 is actually a sanctuary song

And he's eager to be with that good shepherd and he longs to be with him

David desires to follow the Lord and come into close communion with the Lord for the rest of his days is this beautiful beautiful proclamation and promise

There was a dinner party going on in New York with a bunch of people and there was this famous play actor who was invited

But there was also a pastor somehow got invited to the dinner party so this famous play actor was there and people were you know enamored with him

And so they had him and asked him to recite different lines from famous plays he had been in and he was doing all that

But the pastor had come to kind of maybe get a break from what had happened that week for him and he had had a really hard week

And he needed some encouragement and so he asked the actor he said would you recite Psalm 23 for me

So the actress thought for a moment and he said yeah I'll recite it but you have to recite it after me so I'll do it and then you do it

The pastor said yeah he just needed some encouragement right just a little something

So the actor he recites Psalm 23 with all of the emphasis and you know how you can pronounce and project and he did it with great acting ability

And when he got done the whole table started clapping for him and it was moving

But then it was time for the pastor to recite Psalm 23 so the pastor took his turn

But he didn't give it with the same emphasis that the actor did it he did it with the meaning and the depth of what it meant to him

And reflecting with the week that he had had been through right and when he got done they didn't clap and cheer they cried

There wasn't a dry eye in the room one of the folks leaned over to the actor and he said why do you think when you recited Psalm 23

We all were clapping but when he recited Psalm 23 everyone was crying and the actor said well it's really simple

I know the reason is because I know Psalm 23 but he knows the shepherd amen

When you know the shepherd you trust him even in a really bad week right

You see Psalm 23 isn't just for funerals like a lot of people think it's for present day it's present tense

So when you proclaim Psalm 23 you do it with happiness and joy because you're eager to spend time with the Lord in communion with him

In a good week and in a bad week so I thought we could all say Psalm 23 together how about that

So you say it with me the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want he makes me to lie down in green pastures

He leads me beside the still waters he restores my soul he leads me in paths of righteousness for his name's sake

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 your staff they comfort me

And you prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies and you anoint my head with oil and my cup runneth over

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

I love Psalm 23 it's beautiful so my invitation to you this morning is to proclaim the goodness of God

And to long and to be eager and to desire to be in communion with him all the days of your life amen