The LORD is my Shepherd

All right, grab your Bible. If you open it right to the

middle, you'll be in the Psalms. We're going to be starting a new

series today. Series is entitled.

He shall be called. And the conviction behind this

comes out of Numbers chapter 6. You might be familiar with what

Numbers 6 · chapter mention

is called the Priestly Blessing. That's where Aaron is told by

Moses that he needs to bless the people.

You know, the Lord bless you, the Lord keep you, make his face

to shine upon you, Be gracious to you.

I don't know if that's familiar at all, but right at the very

end, there's an interesting line that jumped out of me.

It says there, when you do this, Moses is telling Aaron the

priest. He says when when the priests do

this of the people, essentially it says you will be putting

God's name on the people and by doing so, he will bless you.

And so that's what we want to do in the series.

We want to put the name of God on you and trust that He would

bless you, the name of God on your season, on your situation.

Your struggles, your fears, your future.

Your December your 2026 We want to highlight one of the names of

God, the nature and character of God, place it upon his people

and trust. That he'd be.

Faithful to the promise that he would bless us through his name.

So if you're in Psalms, head on over to Psalm 23 because this.

Is the name. That I want to put on you this

morning. The Lord is our shepherd.

So if Psalm 23 in its entirety, the Lord is my shepherd, I lack

nothing, or I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green

pastures. He leads me.

Besides still waters. And he restores my soul.

He guides me through the right paths for his name's sake and

even though I walk. Through the valley of the shadow

of death, or the darkest valley, I will.

Fear no evil. Because the.

Shepherd is with me. His rod and his staff.

They comfort me. He prepares a table before me in

the presence of my enemies, even anoints my head with oil, so

much so that my cup. Overflows surely?

His goodness and His mercy will follow me all the days of my.

Life and I will dwell in the House of the Lord forever.

It's a very familiar portion of Scripture, but we can often miss

what's the saying miss the forest for the trees?

So I just want to extrapolate one thing out of what it means

metaphorically, biblically. To be a shepherd because.

I don't know if there are any shepherds in the room here

today, but even if there were, what he's going after, what

David is going after, referencing God.

As his Shepherd. Is very unique.

Actually, there's there's many. You know, it's sort of cascades

in in many different ways, but there's one overarching phrase

every commentary. You read every.

Lexicon you look at in the Hebrew highlights this one

thing, and it's kind of strange. And essentially, it's this that

a shepherd tends to his. Sheep.

TENDS. He tends to a sheep.

Now that's not really a word that I often use in in English.

Maybe the tendapreneurs use it a little bit more, but to to tend

to the sheep, there's not that to tend to the sheep, according

to the Bible dictionary is the following.

And there's a staggering statement when he tends.

To his sheep he satisfies the soul's deepest.

Yearning to tend to you. The desire of the Shepherd.

Tending to a sheep. Is to satisfy your soul's.

Deepest yearning, that thing that you're searching for,

yearning for that emptiness that you have been carrying all your

life. Because notice it says there I

shall not once I lack nothing when he tends to our souls.

But the problem is it still doesn't quite land.

I was thinking, you know, if you've been here through

Ecclesiastes, essentially to tend to the sheep or to be

wading into our Hevel and turning it into Tov.

But even that sort of doesn't doesn't give the nuances that I

think David is after. So I think if we invert it, it's

kind of the opposite begins to make a little bit more sense.

And Charles Spurgeon says the following he.

Says a soul. Untended is a soul, insatiable a

soul. Untended is a soul.

Insatiable, be ready. To be impressed, the Afrikaans

word is on for. Sadhbar yo-yo yo.

Drop the mark on for Sadhbar, right?

Is where you. Cannot get enough?

You just want more and more. You need another pair of shoes

and another glass of wine. The attention of another woman

on for Sadhbar, right? Essentially, all our addictions

are born out of an untended soul.

Now, fortunately, we have none of that in the church, so we can

just move right along, right? I'm going to lean just a little

bit. Bear with me.

I read an article in the Newsweek a while back.

I was. Actually chatting to Mel.

I'm a bit of a maven. I'm always collecting stuff.

This was from about 2000. And 4-5 but the.

Thing was how to say no to your kids.

This is a. Secular article in Newsweek how

to say no to your kids. And it was basically going after

that. Yeah, but mom, everyone has one.

And they say the following. They say getting what they want.

Doesn't satisfy kids they. Only want more because we are

insatiable by nature. It goes on to say you want to be

their best friend, mom, dad. Make sure they get everything

they need or what they need is for their parents.

To be parents. And to say no.

And then they added this clang out, put it up on the screen.

Over indulged Children become adults.

With failed. Coping mechanisms, stigmatizing

entitlement, self-centered and self absorbed anxiety, panic

attacks, and depression. Now let's just pin that over

here. Scooch across to this side.

Gen. Z, Gen.

Z, but it just sounds cooler. Gen.

Z They are now 20 somethings starting to apply for their

first jobs, found a study that said 77% of these 20 somethings

brought one of their parents to the job interview, 40% of their

parents set in on the job interview and 27% of said

parents negotiated compensation and benefits for little Johnny.

Some are laughing, some are blushing.

It's like, oh gosh, how did you know?

Don't. Hear what I'm not saying, what

I'm trying to highlight. Is the Bible says.

Train up a child in the way they should go and they will not

depart from it. The reason why we have

insatiable children is because we as their parents do not know

how to lead them. To their shepherd, beautiful.

I wonder if we did some stats here, you know, passed around a

QR code and we had some Intel anonymous.

I wonder what the status show how many of us have?

Sat with our children and said this is.

How I follow my shepherd? This is how I read scripture.

I do my quiet time like this. This is how I discern the will

of my Heavenly Father, my Shepherd.

His good and perfect will. These are the books of the

Bible. I suggest you.

Read and this is the order because it will give to you the

mental narrative and this is how I have my Heavenly Father tend

to my soul. I wonder what those?

Stats would look like. We buy them the iPhone.

We don't teach them and lead them to the.

Shepherd of our souls. David says the Lord is my

shepherd. Can you say the same?

So what does it mean for the Shepherd to tend to us?

Well, if you brought your Bible. You tell me.

How many people OK? So both of you who brought

Bibles, the rest of you start. There you want to know how the

shepherd tends to your. Soul.

All right, OK, take a look. It says right there.

He makes me lie down in green pastures.

That's how he tends to our soul. He makes me lie down in green.

Pastures I discovered this. I love to.

Find rabbit holes. Maybe this was a sheep hole.

But I've discovered the fact. That sheep will not lie down.

This is, according to a guy named Philip Keller, no relation

relation to Tim. Sheep will not lie down unless.

The the. Fear in their lives have been

sorted, Conflict, irritation and hunger.

They will not lie down if there's fear.

They will not lie down if there's conflicts, if there's

any irritation, if they're hungry, they will not lie down.

And so the Shepherd begins there.

That's where he wants to tend to us.

He wants to go into your fears. What?

What are you? Fearing at the moment, I mean,

it might be as simple as fearing that Christmas, you know, lunch

with the family. Or your ex.

It might be finances, it might be storms.

You know, sheep are considered prey animals.

You know, when God thought let me create something, I'm going

to make it woolly pretty much to be eaten.

You know, we're going to make lions and humans and a lamb

loving Steven and his lamb chops and lamb Shanks and everything

in between. They are prey animals, you know,

and he calls us sheep. We are prey animals.

The enemy is out to finish us, and unless you're allowing the

Shepherd to tend to you, you're a sitting.

Duck sheep, you're a sitting sheep.

And so he says, I'll make you lie down in green pastures.

Which means that he wants to tend to the.

Fears in your life? He wants to tend to the conflict

in your life. Apparently sheep have a pecking

order. It's actually called a butting

order and if. There is a dominance.

Sort of overbearing. Sheep.

A weak sheep. Will not lie down.

Actually it will stand to the point of.

Exhaustion. I was reading this.

I'm busy walking a road with a friend of mine and I read some

and cynics. Leaders eat loss.

I actually. Stuck it into my notes for.

Today I'll pop it. Up on the screen.

He says the following. This is within a work context.

He says when staff have to manage dangers from inside the

organization, the organization itself becomes less capable of

facing the dangers from the outside.

Danger inside is controllable. It should.

Be the goal of leadership to set a.

Culture free of danger from each other, sheep against sheep.

One major sign of danger is when someone works to protect or

promote. Themselves.

And. That's up on the screen.

I've actually this isn't Simon Cynic I.

Wrote in the side of my book. The gospel goes directly.

Against all of these. Because Philip.

Keller says in his Shepherd's Handbook.

He says when the shepherd arrives, the dominant.

Sheep back down I. Don't know what's going on in

your family dynamic work? I.

Don't know what's going on in your heart, but where there's

conflict when the. Shepherd arrives.

Those who are dominating. Ezekiel 30. 4 Muddying the

waters, butting heads back down. But we don't let him.

We don't let him tend our. Souls, I got this.

And so instead. Like the weak?

Sheep. We stay standing, Thirdly.

Sheep do not lie down in green passes unless they are free from

irritation. I did a a.

Brand campaign for a company, I think it was.

AFRI vet or Coopers but it was all about the.

Dipping of sheep. And and the oils that you got to

put on the sprays and things like it.

And I can still remember so like burnt into my subconscious some

of the. Pictures of these little

sheepies. Ravaged by tiny little

parasites. One of them I don't know if.

It was a specific. Flyer a really small insect.

Would lay its eggs. In the sheep's nose.

My nose has been. Itchy.

All week long prepping for today.

Just think. Imagine you having like 20 or 30

eggs hatching in your nose. And you can't do like your two

year old and stick your finger up there and sort the problem

out. And so the sheep would literally

bang their heads against a tree because they they cannot handle

this thing that's going on inside.

There or a parasite? Would would worm into their.

Ears, I see all of you rubbing your noses.

The parasites. Worm their way into the ears.

Can you imagine day and night? Or they would.

Infect a. Wound and keep that.

Wound festering. And so it goes on to say you

anoint my. Head with oil because that's

what the shepherd would do. He would oil the sheep's head to

keep. Away these insects.

And the shepherd wants to do that.

Sometimes it's so small. It's this tiny little thing.

But it keeps. That wound.

Festering and the. Shepherd wants to tend.

To that. But it's by invitation only.

It doesn't beat you into submission.

He invites you so. Let me tend to that it.

Doesn't matter how small, how big.

And then lastly, hunger. This is what Philip Keller said.

He said a. Hungry sheep is.

Always on its. Feet.

How's your 2025? Always on your feet.

Another e-mail, another clients, another late nights.

Another working weekends, another distracted moments.

Can't just sit down and completely chill.

You're reading. You're trying to read your

Bible. Quiet time and your mind is.

Everywhere, always on your feet. And he wants to tend to even.

That, that's the sound. Of an untended soul and then

this. Is a quote from.

An Israeli shepherd, he. Says a sheep.

Our sheep will not close their eyes.

Unless. It sees the shepherd.

How beautiful is that? Sheep will not close the eyes

unless they. See the Shepherd.

How are you sleeping? How's the panic attack?

Anxiety, stress and pressure. It's all the.

Sign of an untended soul. So how does our.

Shepherd tend to us, He makes us lie.

Down in green pastures. And he?

Leads us beside still waters now I've.

Known this for quite some time. It's a similar.

Double checking a sheep will not.

Drink from rushing water. They're.

Terrified of rushing water. Yeah, I suppose in our mind it's

kind of like. Drinking from.

A waterfall, you know, you stand underneath there.

Plus they they. Glorified sponges.

You know, if you get yourself into the water, you.

Drown in seconds, but they will. Literally rather go without

water. They're the what's the dive

first? Then drink.

From rushing water. Plus you add to them.

The problem that. They apparently don't have the

best of smell or sights. They're a little dwarf, just

like us. And so they can walk right past

water and not drink and. Die as a result.

And So what? What is required?

There says he leads me besides still.

Waters in the. Hebrew.

It's the word mashka. He creates a mashka.

Which? Is which is a quiet pool.

That the sheep can come and drink from, and then he leads

them to that. So that they can find water.

Now I'm going to introduce you. To our dogs, I'll.

Ask my kids to give me a photo. Of our dogs.

And I'll. Show you the photo.

Any second now. I know I.

Do not be fooled, they found they found the picture when I

still. Like them?

So those are Italian grains. They are officially.

I'm going to get the certificate to prove it.

The dumbest. Animals ever to exist.

Ever. Seriously.

I've I've quoted Rodney Howard Brown, who often says like, how

dumb can you get and still breathe?

That's them actually I'm fully convinced if it's possible they

have a negative. IQ so they actually.

They drain intelligence out of a room.

Yeah. Oh.

My shimmy shimmers, You know, it's like.

I'm going to get. Stick for my kids tonight, true.

Story So anyway, they are Italian greys and so I love to.

Walk at Volvo. Sprites.

There's something cathartic. About those green spaces.

And so we decided, well, one day.

I think John. Leilani and Kath myself.

We took our pets. And we went walking and it was a

hot day. It was in the 30s.

And the dogs just decided that's it, we're done.

I'm like, what? Yeah, They're just not walking.

They're just standing there, tongues out.

They're dying of the. Heat, but they.

Will not move. I'm like.

There's no way. I'm carrying you, you will walk.

So there's me carrying the dogs. And Ted's like if.

They're hot, they need to drink. OK, fine, we go.

We're going to get them to drink, so we take them, I mean.

Vulva sprayed it's. Hundreds of millions of liters

of water just coming down beautifully.

But all these dogs drink, not a chance, you know, they just look

at you. So knowing a little bit about

sheep, I think, well, maybe it's because it's rushing water.

So I sort of try and make and that didn't work.

So I scoop. Out some water.

You know, there's me. Flipping dogs and blah so and

the dogs are like what kind of? Sorcery is this, you know, it's

like. You're trying to kill me.

I'm like, throw them in the river.

No, I didn't. They were witnesses.

I think if I was like it, just absolutely.

Drove me not. They would not drink.

They were dying of this. Now before you look down at your

nose at those two, look down your nose at verse 2.

Because it says. He makes me lie down in.

Green pastures, but he leads me. Besides, still waters, so you

just. Like Bear and Evie.

Just like the sheepies. Our Heavenly Father, our

heavenly Shepherd. Creates these pools of quiet

waters. Libraries and book shops.

Full of resources. We have the.

World. Of technology in our pockets, we

have. Every app, every Bible study

resource, we have AI. We no longer need to read.

The Bible The Bible will read itself to us.

And then we come on a Sunday and it's.

This beautiful. Sound recording Quality

Auditorium. With.

Carpeted climate controlled venue.

And we? Just won't drink.

He'll make me lie down in green passes, but he'll lead me.

Beside Stalwaters with this invitation.

A heavenly. Shepherd who says just come and

drink. So how does our shepherd tend to

tend to us as a sheep? He makes me lie down in green

passes. He leaves me.

Besides the waters. And he restores my.

Soul, he restores my. Soul, I don't know if.

Your Bible says he refreshes. My soul if it.

Does cross the? Dots and writes restores.

I know that. OK this is a way above my pay

grade, but if my Bible. Said refreshes.

A wet wipe refreshes. You know, says.

God is far weightier than refreshes.

He restores. You know this.

Word that Peppers. Throughout scripture to restore.

We find it in Isaiah 61 that says.

I will rebuild the. Ancient ruins.

I'll restore. Long.

Devastated places. I'll renew the ruined cities of

your lives that have been laid. Waste ravaged strip bare for.

Generations, you don't do that with a wet wipe, you do that

with Almighty God. Who?

Wades into the ruin of your. Life to restore, Joel too, says

I will restore to you the years the local.

Just has eaten generations and years of ruin.

He restores. He desires to restore I.

Mean what? A weighty word.

To restore your soul, your. Circumstances that which is.

Laid waste, Devastated. Lost years ruined.

Parts of your lives he restores now.

We had our. Family Christmas last night came

face to face. With generations of ruined.

Laid waste lives. And maybe you'll come face to

face with that yourself. Or maybe you're the one.

With these devastated places that.

Have been devastated for. Generations had a conversation

with a friend. Who's facing his very first

Christmas as a divorced? Man.

And he's tried to. Restore things with his.

Wife, but she. Said to him, Listen, can you

just give us some space for December and he's going to have.

To go through. All the festivities without

access to his kids without access to his ex, without.

Access to the family that he's known for years.

I said to him that there is. A God who restores.

There is a God who restores. And it might.

Take years of trusting. And leaning and clinging.

To but as. He makes you lie.

Down in green pastures. As he leads you, besides the

waters, he does all of that to restore your soul.

I've seen God restore. Disease he restores laid.

Waste. Medically impossible.

But she's fast. Asleep this morning completely.

Healed because he restores. He restores addictions.

Brokenness. Ruined relationships, that

which? Seems impossible and I've often

lent into moments where especially when I'm sitting

with. With couples about.

To get married, often lent into the.

Aspect of God where he is the God of.

Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and I'll lean in two.

Sides. Firstly, the fact that's to the

Jew. That do not consider.

The work of God. Or the blessing of God to truly

be. Blessing until it's reached the

third generation. So.

You can do incredibly well with your business, but as you know,

statistically the second generation almost wipe it all.

Out and the third. Generation, there's nothing.

Left. That's not blessing in a

biblical view. It's blessing when the God of

Abraham passes on that inheritance to Isaac, who passes

it on to Jacob. But also the facts that because.

God is a God of generations. It means that at any moment when

you. Give the shepherd access.

To those generations generational.

Curses. And bloodline whatever is

decimated through. The power of cross, because he

is the God who restores, and he will.

Sit and he'll watch generations of ruin, and he'll say, I want

to shepherd you, let me tend to. That.

Now we could spend all day. We could, actually.

Spend all this image just unpacking this, but maybe that's

homework. What I want to leave you with,

if you can pop up Psalm 23 up on the screen, I want you to see

something super. Important.

Who does it say is our? Shepherd.

Well then class, but notice how it's written.

Capital L. Capital O.

Capital R. Capital D.

Thanks. You can take it down in the

Bible in your Bible translations.

A lot of them will have Lord in caps.

And then Lord, where it's just capital L when is.

Lord, all letters. In caps.

It's referring to what? Is known as.

The Tetragrammaton. Which is an abbreviation of the

name of. God.

Yahweh. And it's not the full name.

It was only Y. HWH.

And they did that because they're considered.

Yahweh as the. Highest and holiest.

Name of God, and so an Orthodox Jew won't even read.

The Lord as my shepherd, He would say something like.

The name is my shepherd. Considers the name of God this

high and holy. Name of Yahweh to holy for

fallen. Lips when they were transcribing

or or copying scripture, what they would do back in the

ancient Near East. You know you got to Quill and

you scroll. What they would have had.

To have done with this one in. Particular was they would.

Write the. And then they put their quill

down and then they go to the cupboard and they get a brand

new quill. And they'd come across and they

wouldn't write the full name of God, They would just.

Write. YHWH.

And then they would take that and would it wouldn't write.

That's cool. Would not write anything else.

So. High and so holy is the name of

God and the reason. Why it is considered?

The name above all names. Is because.

It was the name God introduced himself as in the context of

covenant. Yahweh is the.

Covenant making and covenant keeping name of God.

And I labour this points because he's not saying a political

party is my shepherd, he's not saying a king is my shepherd.

He is saying the God who makes and keeps covenant is my

shepherd. And so.

Because he begins Psalm. 23 with.

The Lord. Yahweh is my shepherd.

That means that Psalm. 23. Is his.

Covenant commitment. To his sheep.

The whole. Of Psalm 23.

Is God's. Covenant commitment to his

people. The whole of Psalm 23.

Has his covenant commitment. To you covenant.

Unconditional. One sided made by.

God and God. Alone while Abraham slept.

He said I will. Covenant with you.

And if we? Were to say, well, what what are

the terms and conditions? He says there's no conditions,

but this is what I commit. To do as your Shepherd I.

Commit that you will lack nothing.

They'll make you lie down in green pastures.

He's saying I will commit. Covenantally.

To wade into your. Fears to fight, those battles to

deal. With that conflict.

Those irritations that festering.

Wound to make you lie down in green.

Pastures and to provide. Still waters.

I'll guide you along the right. Path.

For my namesake and even though you walk through the.

Valley of the Shadow of Death. You will fear.

No, it is my. Covenantal commitment.

To you. Because I will be with you.

My rod and my staff will comfort you.

I'll even prepare a table before you in the presence of your

enemies. And I'll anoint your head with

oil. So much so that your cup.

Overflows. You know what?

You can. Do with a covenant commitment as

you can, hold it before the guarantor and say listen, you

said. My cup would overflow.

Father, I need you to anoint my head with oil.

I need you to come and fight for me.

I need. You to settle these fears.

Actually, more than that, Father, can I?

Hold you to your. Covenant commitment over me, and

surely goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my

life and I'll dwell in the House of the Lord forever.

Nothing fancy, nothing flashy, I just want you to know that this

is the name. I want to bless you with today,

so if you feel. Comfortable, I'm going to ask

you just to open your hands and. We're going to do what number?

6 calls the priest. To do, I'm going to put the name

of God upon you and trust that He'd bless you.

So, Heavenly Father, as you have.

Commissioned your priest to do I just want to.

Bless your people. With your name.

As shepherd, bless your. People, a heavenly shepherd

bless them in a way. That they will say.

I lack nothing you have completely.

Satisfied our souls. Bless them by making them lie

down in green passes. Father, you have committed

covenantly to make us lie down in green passes, and so I'll.

Bring you every fear in this room.

Those moments that we are dreading having to face and

those discussions that we need to make, have, and those people

we need to forgive. We bring you those fears and we

pray make us lie down in green pastures.

Those irritations, father that. That's struggling, that conflict

where we are. Hungry.

Where it? Seems like our souls insatiable.

Would you lead us beside? Quiet waters and I pray holy.

Spirit that you stir. Within us, a desire to drink.

Restore our souls. Restore generations of ruin.

Guide us along the right paths. For your name's sake, Father.

I don't know what 2026 holds, but.

You do. There are decisions we need to

make and we. Pray shepherd, Shepherd your

people. Guide us.

Along the right paths, for your name's sake, and for those who

are walking through the valley of the shadow of death, May they

fear no evil because you are with us.

May we know? You are with us, would you?

Bless them with your rod and your staff that you'd comfort

us. And prepare a table.

Before us. In the presence of our enemies.

Lord, we are prey. Animals protect us, anoint our

head with oil, allow our cup to overflow.

May we this time next year look back over 2026 and say.

Surely your. Goodness and mercy.

Have followed us all. The days of 2026 and that we

have dwelt in the House of the Lord.

In Jesus name bless your people. Amen.