The Lord is my Shepherd

Psalm 23:1

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.

This verse and the subsequent psalm is a brief one by length, but what comfort it has brought! What anxiety it has eased! What peace it has bequeathed on its readers! What sublime encouragement it has offered to many a weary man and woman. For the Lord is my shepherd! It is practical, personal, and powerful! It is for me! I am His, and He is mine! I know not whom others may choose for a shepherd. I know not who is the bishop of their souls, but as for me, the Lord is my shepherd.

For see! This psalm delineates every thing that the Lord is for us. If He is not our shepherd, we have none of these things. Indeed, apart from Him we have no shepherd at all. I shall not want! I have no lack in Him! No paucity of goodness; no spareness of provision. For it is all in Him. He is all in all! Let us see a few things that He does for us. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. What provision He gives for my soul every day! He leadeth me beside the still waters. What peace He provides! The waters are still. The stream is quiet and placid. The brook is calm and serene. This we have as we feed in His pastures. He restoreth my soul! No sin is too great, no disappointment too strong, that I cannot be restored to fellowship with the blessed Shepherd once more. Let Him restore you today! He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Do you need direction and guidance? Do you need to discern right and wrong? Let Him lead you in the right path, the path of righteousness! Only follow the Shepherd.

Onward it goes to even deeper things. For we are told that He walks with us through the valley of the shadow of death. The shadow of death is darker than all other shadows, longer than the shadows of any other dark night. It is a foreboding experience. But He walks with us through it. He has made sure we would not experience such terrors alone. We can therefore fear no evil. For Thou art with me! We are comforted by His presence! His rod and staff comfort us. The comforting presence of God strengthens our mind, fills our being, and calms our hearts because we know He is near. His rod and staff will fend off the enemy, and guide us to eternal peace.

Furthermore, He prepares a table before us. And this is done in the presence of our enemies. The world, the flesh and the devil look on as God spreads a great feast for us. All things are provided in Him and much more besides. He sups with us and we with Him. We have come to His banqueting table, and His banner over us is love. He anointeth our heads with oil. What a beautiful picture this is of the anointing the Lord lavishes upon us by His Holy Spirit! This anointing is the unction from the Holy One! And He teaches us of all things! And moreover, our cup runneth over! Oh what blessings! Oh what a surplus! Oh what overabundance of joy and provision! Oh what excess of His goodness is upon us! Our cup is overflowing. All this we have in our Shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ, because He truly is the “chief Shepherd,” and “the good Shepherd;” and He truly is the “Shepherd and Bishop of our souls.”

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life! There is not a day that His goodness is not bestowed on me, there is not an hour when I am not loaded with His benefits, and there is not a moment that mercy does not find me. It follows me all day and all night. And I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever! As if what we have here is not enough! We shall dwell in His presence for eternity! We shall abide in His house forever! No evil shall intrude! No anxiety shall enter! No sadness shall dampen the joy of the Lord! No gloominess shall fall on the tearless and cloudless day of our eternal home! We shall dwell with Him forever. The Lord is your Shepherd! Own Him, trust Him, run to Him, be led by Him, find joy and peace in Him, and find His guidance and presence to be your all. I shall not want, for the Lord Jesus is my Shepherd!

“Heavenly Father, thank you that you have given us a perfect Shepherd in our Savior. Let us find Him to be the provision of all our wants every day. May He be our daily guide, our daily peace, and our daily shelter. May His presence be the complete fulfillment of all our desires. In Jesus’ precious name we pray, Amen.”