“THE LORD IS MY SHEPHERD – SERMON 4”
“He Leadeth Me Beside The Still Waters.”
Psalm 23:2
Introduction:
In vs. 1, David says that the LORD is his Shepherd and that he is
satisfied with Him. David knew what it was to be a shepherd. He,
too, had shepherded sheep. He knew that a good shepherd cared for,
provided for, and protected his flock. He also recognized that the
LORD cares for, is able to provide for and protect people better
than any earthly shepherd. David knew that his Shepherd (the
LORD) was the Best Shepherd in the world. Therefore, he said,
“…I shall not want.”
David must have thought, “As one of God’s sheep, I have all the
green grass that I need. Where? – in my Shepherd’s, my Owner’s,
my God’s Holy Word. I can eat my fill from and then lie down to
rest in the „green pastures‟ of His eternal Word.”
But let us think more broadly! As well as plenty of food and
necessary rest, if a flock of sheep are going to flourish, they must
also have plenty of water to drink. So, David quickly informs us,
“He leadeth me beside the still waters…”
To get God’s lesson for us this morning, let us separate this
phrase into three segments and study each in detail.
I. He leadeth.
A. The Lord will never force one to follow Him or to do His
will. For sheep to flourish, they must be led, not driven. The
Lord does not drive His sheep!
1. The Lord leads His sheep. He goes before His sheep to
direct them – Jn. 10:4, “And when he putteth forth his
own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow
him: for they know his voice.”
a. The Lord goes before His sheep to show that we
should always do the Father’s will – Jn. 8:29, “…I do
always those things that please him.”
Living for God should be our number one concern!
b. The Lord goes before His sheep to show that we
should follow Him in sacrificial living.
Jn. 19:17, “And he bearing his cross went forth into a
place called the place of a skull, which is called in the
Hebrew Golgotha:”
Rom. 5:8, “…Christ died for us.”
1 Thess. 5:10, “Who died for us…”
Tit. 2:14, “Who gave himself for us…”
1 Jn. 3:16, “…he laid down his life for us: and we
ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.”
Mt. 16:24, “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any
man will come after me, let him deny himself, and
take up his cross, and follow me.”
c. The Lord goes before His sheep to show them we
should be concerned for the salvation of others. No
sadder words have ever been penned than those found
in Ps. 142:4, “…no man cared for my soul.” Thank
God, Jesus cared for our souls and came to save us
from our sin. Amen? “For the Son of man is come to
seek and to save that which was lost.” – Lk. 19:10.
At the very moment one is saved, God implants the
desire into our hearts to see other souls saved –
Mt. 4:19, “And he saith unto them, Follow me, and
I will make you fishers of men.” The desire He gave
to Paul is the same desire that every sheep who
follows Him will experience, “Brethren, my heart's
desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might
be saved.” – Rom. 10:1.
d. The Lord goes before His sheep to show that we will,
one day, live in Heaven – Jn. 14:2-3, “In my Father's
house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would
have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I
go and prepare a place for you, I will come again,
and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there
ye may be also.”
When Jesus is leading us, there is only one reason why believers
do not grow, mature, and flourish as Christians. That reason is
that they refuse to follow Him.
II. He leadeth me. Our Shepherd leads His sheep by speaking to
them.
A. He spoke to Peter and Andrew – Mt. 4:18-20, “And Jesus,
walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon
called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the
sea: for they were fishers. And he saith unto them, Follow
me, and I will make you fishers of men. And they straightway
left their nets, and followed him.”
B. He speaks to us today – Jn. 10:3-4,16, “To him the porter
openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own
sheep by name, and leadeth them out. And when he putteth
forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep
follow him: for they know his voice…And other sheep I have,
which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they
shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one
shepherd.”
C. Are you listening for and to the voice of the Good Shepherd?
Are you following Him? Are you allowing Him to lead you?
Listen to Him as He speaks to you this morning, saying,
“Follow me!”
III. He leadeth me beside the still waters.
A. If you remember from the last Sunday morning’s message
that we had on this theme, David, the human penman of this
Psalm, was from Bethlehem, a semi-arid area in Israel.
B. Living in a semi-arid area was a problem for shepherds –
there was not an abundance of water.
C. It took a lot of hard work and effort on the shepherd’s part to
search out a pool of water. Sometimes the shepherd had to
dig a pool or well that would produce a sufficient amount of
water for his flock and to irrigate his pasture land.
1. For sheep to drink from a water-source, it has to be “still
waters.” The centre column reference in my Bible
describes these as “waters of quietness;” in other words,
without turbulence.
2. This water needs to be clean and pure, so that the sheep
will not get diseases and parasites.
D. A shepherd knows that if his sheep are going to flourish, they
need a good quantity of clean, pure water every day.
1. Like our bodies, a sheep’s body consists of at least 70%
water.
a. Water controls its normal body metabolism.
b. Water determines its vitality, strength, and vigor.
c. Water is essential to its health and well-being.
d. If sheep do not get the proper intake of water,
they dehydrate which causes weakness; the
animal becomes impoverished.
2. A shepherd knows that if his sheep are going to
flourish, they need daily refreshing. A good shepherd
will lead his flock to a watering-hole where the water
is calm, clean, and pure.
E. Our Shepherd has done a marvelous work for us –
providing pure, clean water for our soul. He now invites
all to come and drink of the water of life freely.
Rev. 22:17, “And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And
let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst
come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life
freely.”
Jn. 4:10,14, “Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou
knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee,
Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and
he would have given thee living water…But whosoever
drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never
thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a
well of water springing up into everlasting life.”
1. Our Lord’s well is the well of salvation.
Is. 12:2-3, “Behold, God is my salvation; I will trust,
and not be afraid: for the LORD JEHOVAH is my
strength and my song; he also is become my
salvation. Therefore with joy shall ye draw water out
of the wells of salvation.”
2. Once one drinks from our Lord’s well of salvation,
one will never again need another drink from that
spring. It satisfies one’s thirst forever.
Jn. 4:14, “But whosoever drinketh of the water that I
shall give him shall never thirst...”
Jn. 7:37-38, “…Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any
man thirst, let him come unto me, and drink. He that
believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his
belly shall flow rivers of living water.”
3. Of the Lord’s living water, there is enough for all;
there is no lack; and it is eternally satisfying.
Remember David’s words, “…I shall not want.”
Praise God for His supply! Amen?
F. Our Shepherd leads us daily to the places where our souls
can be refreshed; where our soul can flourish.
1. He does not lead us to the Devil’s watering-holes
where the drink is polluted and poisonous; i.e., the
pubs, the clubs, the bars; the liquor stores.
a. There is no perpetual satisfaction in the bottle.
b. Alcoholic drink poisons our bodies and causes
diseases, turbulence, trials, problems, etc. Our
Good Shepherd never leads the sheep of His
pasture to drink that which causes so many
afflictions and difficulties in lives, families, and
societies.
2. Ah, but He does lead us to those pools where our
souls can be refreshed and consoled.
a. Prayer. Knowing that God hears our prayers and
that He will answer in the best way is so
refreshing to one’s soul. Oh how prayer lightens
the burdens of our hearts! Pray and your soul will
flourish!
b. The private reading of God’s Word. How blessed
we are to have the Word of God that we can read
and study. Refer to Daily Bible-Reading
Schedule). As one reads and studies the Bible, one
may not understand all that they read, but if that
one will read enough of it, he/she will find that
their cares and fears will be lifted and their heart
will be encouraged by their Saviour, their Good
Shepherd. Read and study your Bible and your
soul will flourish!
Conclusion:
c. The public hearing of God’s Word. If you will
attend a church where God’s Gospel is faithfully
preached and His Word is truthfully and
consistently taught, your soul will flourish!
Having been in a worship service where God is
honoured, Christ is exalted, and the Bible is
expounded, doesn’t your soul feel refreshed?
Christian, are you listening to the Shepherd of your soul? Are
you daily following Him to the place of refreshment? Are you
yielding to His leadership? If you will follow your Shepherd, He
will lead you into His presence for prayer, into the pages of His
Word for instruction, edification, and whatever else your soul
needs. He will also lead you into His classroom, His church, to be
instructed by the teaching, preaching, and exposition of His eternal
Counsel. Follow your Shepherd so that your soul and spirit will
gain daily refreshment. Follow Him into the places where you can
flourish as a Christian!
If you will frequent this watering-hole of God
every service and drink all that God supplies for
your soul in this place, you will find that He will
calm your soul and refresh your spirit. It will be to
you like taking a long drink from a deep, cool,
clear pool of calming water. The consistent study
of God’s Word in His House will give strength
and vitality to the Christian, enabling him/her to
flourish and do the work of God
Let me encourage you to attend all the services of
this church so that your soul can be fed and
watered from God’s Word; so that, as one of the
Good Shepherd’s sheep, you can flourish as you
should.
If you are not saved, the Lord Jesus Christ has a drink for you – a
drink from the springs of living water. Nothing refreshes the thirst
like water and nothing refreshes the soul like the water of life –
Christ’s salvation. Won’t you come to Jesus, this morning, allowing
Him to save your thirsty soul? If you will drink from the well of His
salvation, you will find that His water will cleanse your heart from
all sin and satisfy your thirst forever! Come now to Christ for the
salvation of your eternal soul.