Text: Psalm 23
Date: December 31, 2020
Event: New Year’s Eve
Psalm 23 (EHV)
The Lord is my shepherd.
I lack nothing.
2He causes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside quiet waters.
3He restores my soul.
He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
4Even 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.
5You set a table for me in the presence of my foes.
You drench my head with oil.
My cup is overflowing.
6Surely goodness and mercy will pursue me all the days of my life,
and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.
Our Shepherd Is with Us
If there was ever a year that we would want to escort out of our lives with the Word of God and prayer, it would probably be 2020. For a while it seemed like every month from January on presented some new big threat or tragedy or hardship to deal with. Fires close by or across the world, saber rattling among nations, and perhaps most notably the pandemic whose rippling effects are still felt here tonight so that we can’t be together for this year-closing service.
But the reality is that we will not see the end of our problems when the calendar flips to January 2021, will we? The pandemic doesn’t go away. Our personal emotional hardships and heartaches won’t magically end. Whatever is heavy on our heart tonight is probably going to be heavy on our heart tomorrow.
So that’s why, tonight, we chose to specially focus on the comfort and care of our loving Savior, our Good Shepherd. Because despite how miserable this year has been for so many people in so many different ways, we did not take a step through this year without our Shepherd by our side. And for as concerning as this coming year might be, we also will not spend one moment in 2021 without our Shepherd right with us.
We’ll spend tonight going through the classic and familiar words that the Holy Spirit inspired King David to write in Psalm 23. David knew about sheep and shepherding. He grew up tending the flocks in the fields. In fact, he almost missed out on his anointing as the next king of Israel because he was tending to the sheep while everyone else had gathered for the celebration.
And David knew something about being a king, being the most successful and faithful king in Israel’s history—though certainly not without his flaws. But he knew well that the leadership that a king or other ruler must present for his people is very similar to the care of the sheep. The nation needed a strong leader willing and able to do what needed to be done, to make difficult decisions, to sacrifice self for the good of the whole. This was King David in a nutshell.
But David also has the clear vision to recognize that he was not the be-all, end-all of leadership, governing, or even shepherding. He didn’t execute on his responsibilities perfectly and in fact his sin got him into danger more than once. He recognized that without God, he was nothing. Without God’s forgiveness, he would be lost forever. Without God at his side every moment of every day, he would have had no success either in the field or on the throne. He saw very clearly that God was the perfect King, the perfect Shepherd.
But the truths that David expounds on in Psalm 23 are not just for him nor just for shepherds around 1000 BC nor just for kings and other leaders. The things that David points to God doing as his Shepherd apply to you and me just as much as they did to King David. As we journey into a new year, let us see the promises of our God as he shepherds us into the future just as he has shepherded us in the past.
The Lord is my shepherd. I lack nothing. He causes me to lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside quiet waters. Sheep are not great at finding food or water. The shepherd needs to be diligent about leading the flock not only to where they can eat and drink but also where they can eat and drink safely. And so the shepherd leads the sheep to the ideal spots where they can have their needs met while doing so without threat from predators or other dangers.
God does the same for us. Left on our own, we would flail about all over the place looking for our ways to meet our needs. If we’ve ever felt lost or separated from our God, if we’ve ever tried to figure out everything on our own, we know how discouraging and upsetting that is. Perhaps this year saw the loss of a job or a reduced capacity to acquire what you needed for you and your family. Perhaps there was not a financial crunch but maybe it was an availability question as there were runs on the stores for important products and food staples. Perhaps it was some paralysis of what you needed to do to ensure your safety and the safety of those around you amid the pandemic while the rules and guidelines seemed to be constantly changing.
But our Good Shepherd promises to provide daily bread—he’s going to give us what we need. And you’ve probably seen that in action. Maybe as you look back, despite the concerns or worries of this past year, you realize that you always had what you needed. Perhaps you didn’t, and yet God provided in a way that you were not expecting. As a bit of an aside, if you find yourself in circumstances where you are lacking what you need right now, please contact me. Your brothers and sisters in Christ in your congregation may be a way that God leads you to green pastures and quiet waters.
God’s guidance doesn’t end at providing for our physical needs, though. David continues: He restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 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. Our Shepherd is not only concerned about us physically, but all the more spiritually. He restores our soul. The broken heart, the screaming conscience, he comes to heal. We heard Jesus say clearly what his chief work would be as our Good Shepherd—to lay down his life only to take it up again. The forgiveness of sins that Jesus has won for us by his death and proved by his resurrection is the ultimate in soul restoration.
Because of Jesus’ forgiveness, we are led by our shepherd in paths of righteousness, walking in the way that shows and proves the right relationship with God that he has given to us. Sins are forgiven so we need not walk the path of sin and death any more. We don’t have to walk those dark and dreary streets that lead to eternal death, because sin is not our master. Our Shepherd leads us and we belong to him. We know his voice and because of him we can walk about, live lives, that thank and glorify him.
And this is true no matter how rough the terrain is that we are walking on. David doesn’t leave room for avoiding the “valley of the shadow of death.” It’s not if; it’s even though. This kind a trouble will come, may be our surroundings right here and right now. But what remains true? We need not fear because even in the darkest places we might find ourselves, our Shepherd is with us. He is there to comfort with his rod and his staff.
A shepherd’s staff has several uses. He might use that staff to fight off an enemy to protect the sheep. Or he might use the hook at the end of it to drag the sheep by the neck to get the animal out of danger. That likely is against the sheep’s will. It’s not pleasant for a sheep to have the staff hooked around the neck and be dragged, but the shepherd knows that temporary discomfort likely will mean the difference between life and death.
God’s staff comforts in the same way. He might fend off our enemies that threaten us, or he may drag us away from the sin that threatens in a way that is not so pleasant and not so comfortable. Our Shepherd is not interested in us living the way we want to live; he wants us to live in the way that is best for us, and best for us eternally. So even though some sin might seem fun or harmless or whatever, our Shepherd is going to drag us away from that lest it drag us to hell and separate us from him forever.
But, that’s not to say that God has a desire for us to be miserable forever in this life. Just the opposite, in fact. You set a table for me in the presence of my foes. You drench my head with oil. My cup is overflowing. Notice the table is prepared, but enemies are still there. God’s blessings persist even in difficult times. The peace that comes from knowing sins forgiven means that our blessings go beyond what any unbeliever might have. Our enemies might seek to drag us for our faith or our life or our priorities or because we do not live and think and speak the way they do, but God prepares a beautiful table for us in front of them. We have an over abundance—overflowing spiritual blessings—because of our Shepherd who loves us.
It may not always feel like the Good Shepherd is doing all of these things for us or that they’ll turn out the way he promises they will, but we can have them confidence that God will be faithful. God will keep every promise to us.
As we look back on 2020, we might see some silver linings around dark clouds. For all the trouble and bad we might have experienced, we might also see some good that God is working from it all. If nothing else, as a congregation, we know that our proclamation of the gospel is going out to more people and is more available than it’s ever been. And, when we are able to gather together again with our fellow Christians, we will likely value and cherish that together time more than we ever have in the past. Knowing what we’ve missed will help us to better appreciate what we have when it is restored.
But no matter what 2021 looks like, whether it’s better or worse by our measure than any years coming before it, we have the assurance of God’s promises to us as our Shepherd: Surely goodness and mercy will pursue me all the days of my life. God’s goodness and mercy will track us down no matter where we are or what difficulties we experience. His love and care will pounce on us like a lion of forgiveness and encouragement. We will never be separated from his mercy and his kindness. They, like him, are our ever-present companions through this walk of life.
The end result of all of God’s shepherding is clear—I will live in the house of the Lord forever. We will be in heaven, eternal perfect life with our God forever because of our Shepherd’s work. He laid down his life for us and took it up again to provide the payment needed to satisfy the debt of our sins. He shepherds us through our lives, our walk of faith, to keep us close to him, clinging to him for the assurance of forgiveness. The life that is coming will be free from all sin and sorrow and hardship. No matter what the past may have done or what the future may yet do, we go forward confident of our Savior’s love with the absolute assurance that when it’s all over, we will be with him forever. Thanks be to our Shepherd forever and ever! Happy New Year! Amen.
