March 10, 2025 • 22 mins
As we lie down in green pastures or walk through the shadowy valley, we're assured that whatever our path, whatever our stumbling, the Shepherd will lovingly guide, carry, and protect us. We can depend on His goodness and mercy all the days of our lives. Readers will find comfort, guidance, and reassurance with A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23.
Mark Rogers reads from Phillip Keller's book, "A shepherd looks at Psalm 23". His book can be found on Amazon or Christian Books and other places where Christian books are sold.
Submit questions and comments to www.ThoughtsofChrist.com
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Ecamm Live Recording on (00:00):
Welcome to another session of a"shepherd
(00:03):
looks at Psalm 23".
We're looking down through thebook, this particular book
written by Philip Keller who hasmuch experience as a shepherd,
and he is expounding Psalm 23,literally phrase by phrase.
And so I'm looking forward toreading today's chapter.
(00:24):
The reason why I'm so engrossedwith this book at this time is
that many believe that theshepherd has.
A lot of responsibility and hedoes.
And yet at the same time we seein this book that the Shepherd
has his responsibility and thesheep have their capabilities or
their lack of.
(00:44):
And so with that, I'd like toget into the third chapter.
We see here chapter three, ifyou're following along in the
book, he makes me lie down ingreen pastures.
The strange thing about sheep isthat because of their very
makeup, it is almost impossiblefor them to be made to lie down
(01:09):
unless four requirements aremet.
Owing to their timidity, theyrefuse to lie down unless they
are free of all fear.
Because of the social behaviorwithin a flock, sheep will not
lie down unless they are freefrom friction with others of
their kind.
(01:30):
If tormented by flies orparasites, sheep will not lie
down.
Only when free of these pestscan they relax.
Lastly, sheep will not lie downas long as they feel in need of
finding food.
They must be free from hunger.
It is significant that to be atrest, there must be a definite
sense of freedom from fear,tension, aggravations, and
(01:54):
hunger.
The unique aspect of the pictureis that it is only the sheik man
himself who can provide releasefrom these anxieties.
It all depends upon thediligence of the owner, whether
or not his flock is free fromthese disturbing influences.
When we examine each of thesefour factors that affect sheep
so severely, we understand whythe part of the shepherd plays
(02:18):
in their management is sotremendously important.
It is actually he who makes itpossible for them to lie down,
to rest, to relax, to be contentand quiet and flourishing.
A flock that is restless,discontented, always agitated
and disturb never does well.
(02:39):
At the same is true people.
It is not generally known thatsheep are so timid and easily
panicked that even a strayjackrabbit suddenly bounding
from behind a bush can stampedean entire flock.
When one startled sheep runs infright, a dozen others will bolt
with its and it blind fear andnot waiting to see what
(03:00):
frightened them.
One day a friend came to call onus from the city.
She had a tiny ese pop along.
As she opened the car door, thepup jumped out on the grass.
Just one glimpse of theunexpected little dog was enough
in terror.
More than 200 of my sheep thatwere resting nearby leaped up
and rushed off across thepasture.
(03:24):
As long as there is even theslightest suspicion of danger
from dogs, coyotes, cougars,bears, or other enemies, the
sheep stand ready to flee fortheir lives.
They have little or no means ofself-defense.
They are helpless, timid, feeblecreatures whose only recourse is
to run.
When I invited friends to visitus after the Pekingese episode,
(03:45):
I always made it clear the dogswere to be left at home.
I also had to drive off or shootother stray dogs that came to
molest or disturb the sheep.
Two dogs had been known to killas many 292 sheep in a single
night of unbridled slaughter.
Ewes, heavy with lamb, whenchased by dogs or other
predators will slip their unbornlambs and lose them in
(04:08):
abortions.
A shepherd's loss from suchfrays can be appalling.
One morning at dawn, I foundnine of my choice ewes all soon
to lamb lying dead in the fieldwhere a cougar had harried the
flock during the night.
It was a terrible shock to ayoung man like myself, just new
to the business and unfamiliarwith such attacks.
(04:30):
From then on, I slept with my.30odd rifle and flashlight by my
bed at the least.
Sound of the clock beingdisturbed, the flock being
disturbed.
I would leap from my bed.
Calling my faithful collie dashout the night rifle in hand,
ready to protect my sheep.
In the course of time, I came torealize that nothing so quieted
and reassured the sheep as tosee me in the field, the
(04:53):
presence of their master andowner and protector put them at
ease as nothing could do.
And this applied day and night.
There was one summer when sheeprusting was a common occurrence
in our district.
Night after night, the dog and Iwere out under the stars keeping
watched into the flock by night,ready to defend them from raids
of any wrestlers.
The news of my diligence spreadalong the grapevine of our back
(05:14):
country roads, and the wrestlersquickly decide to leave us alone
and try their tactics elsewhere.
He makes me lie down.
In the Christian's life, thereis no substitute for the keen
awareness that our shepherd isnearby.
There is nothing like Christ'spresence to dispel the fear, the
panic, the terror of theunknown.
We live a most uncertain life.
(05:35):
Any hour can bring a disaster,danger and distress from unknown
quarters.
Life is full of hazards.
No one can tell what a day willproduce in new trouble.
We live either in a sense ofanxiety, fear, and foreboding,
or in a sense of quiet rest.
Which is it?
Generally it is the unknown, theunexpected that produces the
(05:55):
greatest panic.
It is in the grip of fear thatmost of us are unable to cope
with the cruel circumstances andharsh realities and complexities
of life.
We feel they are foes thatendanger our tranquility.
Often our first impulse issimply to get up and run from
them.
Then in the midst of ourmisfortunes, there suddenly
(06:18):
comes the awareness that he, TheChrist, the Good Shepherd is
there.
It makes all the difference.
His presence in the picturethrows a different light on the
whole scene.
Suddenly there are not half soblack nor nearly so terrifying.
The outlook changes and there ishope.
I find myself delivered fromfear, rest returns and I can
(06:39):
relax.
This has come to me again andagain as I grow older.
It is the knowledge that myMaster, my Friend, my Owner, has
things under control even whenthey may appear ous.
This gives me great consolation,repose, and rest.
I find comfort in saying, now Ilay me down in peace and sleep
(07:03):
for thou God keep us, me.
It is the special office work ofGod's gracious spirit to convey
the sense of the Christ to ourfearful hearts.
He comes quietly to reassure usthat Christ Himself is aware of
our dilemma and deeply involvedin it with us, and it is in fact
(07:23):
that this assurance that we restand relax.
For God did not give us a spiritof timidity, but a spirit of
power and of love and ofself-discipline.
Second Timothy one, seven.
The idea of a sound mind is thatof a mind at ease, at peace, not
perturbed or harassed orobsessed with fear and
foreboding for the future.
(07:44):
Psalm four, eight.
I will lie down and sleep inpeace for you alone oh Lord,
make me dwell in safety.
The second source of fear, whichthe sheep man delivers his sheep
is that of tension, rivalry, andcruel competition within the
flock itself.
In every animal society there isestablished an order of
dominance or status within thegroup.
It is a pen full of chickens.
(08:04):
It is referred to as the peckingorder with cattles called the
horning order.
Among sheep we speak of it asthe budding order.
Generally an arrogant, cunning,dominating old.ewe will be boss
of any bunch of sheep.
She maintains her position ofprestige by budding and driving
other ewes or lambs away fromthe best grazing or favorite
bedding grounds.
Succeeding her in precise orderthe other sheep will establish
(08:27):
and maintain their exactposition in the flock by using
the same tactics of budding andthrusting at those below and
around them.
A vivid and accurate wordpicture of this process is given
to us in Ezekiel 34, verses 15and 16, and verses 20 through
22.
This is a startling example.
In fact, the scientific accuracyof the scriptures in describing
(08:47):
a natural phenomenon.
Because of this rivalry, tensionand competition for status and
self-assertion, there isfriction in the flock.
The sheep cannot lie down andrest in contentment.
Always they must stand up anddefend their rights and contest
the challenge of the intruder.
Hundreds and hundreds of times Ihave watched an austere old.
You walk up to a younger onethat might have been feeding
(09:08):
contentedly and resting quietlyin some sheltered spot.
She would arch her neck, tilther head, dilate her eyes, and
approach the other with a stiffleg gait.
All this was a saying inunmistakable terms, move over
out of my way, give ground, orelse.
And if the other ewe did notimmediately leaped her feet in
(09:29):
self-defense, she would bebutted unmercifully.
Or if she didn't rise to acceptthe challenge, one or two strong
thrust would soon end, send hercurring for safety.
This continual conflict andjealousy within the flock can be
a most detrimental thing.
The sheep become edgy, tense,discontented, and restless.
(09:52):
They lose weight and becomeirritable.
But one point that alwaysinterested me very much was that
whenever I came into view and mypresence attracted their
attention, the sheep quicklyforgot their foolish rivalries
and stopped their fighting.
The shepherd's presence made allthe difference in their
behavior.
This to me has always been agraphic picture of the struggle
for status in human society.
(10:13):
There is the eternal competitionto keep up with the Joneses or
as it is now, to keep up withthe Joneses kids.
In any business firm, anyoffice, any family, any
community, any church, any humanorganization or group, be it
large or small the struggle forself-assertion and self
recognition goes on.
Most of us fight to be topsheep.
(10:34):
We butt and quarrel and competeto get ahead and in the process
people are hurt.
It is here that much jealousyarises.
This is where petty peeves growinto horrible hate.
It is where ill will andcontempt come into being.
The place where heated rivalryand deep discontent is born, it
is here that discontentgradually grows into a covetous
(10:55):
way of life where one has to beforever,"standing up" for
himself for his rights"standingup" just to get ahead of the
crowd.
In contrast to this, the pictureis the psalm shows us God's
people lying down in quietcontentment.
One of the outstanding marks ofChristian should be a sense
serene sense of gentlecontentment.
(11:18):
Godliness with contentment isgreat gain.
First Timothy six, six.
Paul, put it this way, I havelearned to be content whatever
the circumstances.
Philippians four 11.
And certainly this applies to mystatus in society.
The endless unrest generated inthe individual who is always
trying to"get ahead of thecrowd," who's attempting always
(11:38):
to be top man or woman on thetotem pole is pretty formidable
to observe.
In his own unique way, JesusChrist, the great shepherd in
his earthly life pointed outthat the last would be first and
the first last.
In a sense, I am sure He meantfirst in the area of his own
intimate affection.
For any shepherd has greatcompassion for the poor, weak
(12:00):
sheep that get butted about bythe more domineering ones.
More than once.
I have strongly trounced abelligerent you for abusing a
weaker one.
Or when the butted lambs nottheir own, I find it necessary
to discipline them severely, andcertainly they were not first my
esteem for their aggressiveness.
Another point that impressed meto was that the less aggressive
(12:23):
sheep were often far morecontented, quiet, and restful.
So there were definiteadvantages in being bottom
sheep.
But more important was the factthat it was the shepherd's
present that put an end to allrivalry and our, and in our
human relationships when webecome acutely aware of being in
the presence of Christ.
(12:43):
Our foolish, selfish snobberyand rivalry will end.
It is the humble heart walkingquietly and contently in the
close and intimate companionshipof Christ that is at rest that
can relax.
Simply glad to lie down and letthe world go by.
(13:03):
When my eyes are on my Master,they are not on those around me.
This is the place of peace.
And it is good and proper toremind ourselves that in the end
of it, it is he who will decideand judge what my status really
be.
After all, it is His estimationof me that is of consequence.
Any human measurement at best isbound to be a pretty
(13:25):
unpredictable, unreliable, andfar from final.
To be thus close to Him,conscious of His abiding
presence made real in my mind.
Emotions and will by theindwelling gracious spirit is to
be set free from fear of myfellow man and whatever he may
think of me.
I would rather have theaffection of the good Shepherd
(13:46):
than occupy a place ofprominence in society,
especially if I had attained itby fighting, quarreling and
bitter rivalry with my fellowhuman beings.
Matthew five, seven.
Blessed or happy to be enviedare the merciful for they'll be
shown mercy.
As is in the case with freedomfrom fear of predators or
friction within the flock.
(14:07):
The freedom of fear from thetorment of parasites and insects
is essential to the contentmentof sheep.
This aspect of their behaviorwill be dealt with in greater
detail later in the Psalm.
It is nonetheless important tomention it here.
Sheep, especially in the summer,can be driven to absolute
distraction by nasal flies, botflies, warble flies, and ticks.
(14:30):
When tormented by these pests,it is literally impossible for
them to lie down and rest.
Instead, they're up and on theirfeet, stamping their legs,
shaking their heads a rush offinto the bush for relief from
the pests.
Only the diligent care of theowner who keeps a constant
lookout for these insects willprevent them from annoying the
flock.
(14:51):
A good shepherd will applyvarious types of insect rep
plants to his sheep.
He will see they're dipped toclear their fleeces of ticks, or
he will see that there areshelter belts of trees and bush,
wherever they can find refugeand release from these
tormenters.
This all entails considerableextra care.
It takes time and labor andexpensive chemicals to do the
(15:12):
job thoroughly.
It means too that the sheet manmust be amongst the charges
daily, keeping a close watch ontheir behavior.
As soon as there is the leastevidence, they are being
disturbed, he must take steps toprovide them with relief.
Always uppermost in his mind isthe aim of keeping his flock
quiet, contented, and at peace.
Similarly in the Christian life,there are bound to be many small
(15:35):
irritations.
There are the annoyances ofpetty frustrations and ever
reoccurring disagreeableexperiences in modern technology
refer to these upsettingcircumstances or people as being
bugged.
Is there an anecdote for them?
Can one come to the place ofquiet contentment despite them?
The answer is, for one, inChrist's care is definitely yes.
(15:59):
This is the one of the mainfunctions, the gracious Holy
Spirit.
In scripture He is oftensymbolized by oil, by that which
brings healing and comfort andrelief from the harsh and
abrasive aspects of life.
The gracious Holy Spirit makesreal in me the very presence of
the Christ.
He brings quietness, serenity,strength, and calmness in the
face of frustrations andfutility.
(16:22):
When I turn to him and exposethe problems to him, allowing
him to see that I have adilemma, a difficulty, a
disagreeable experience beyondmy control, He comes to assist.
Often a helpful reproach issimply to say aloud.
Oh master this is beyond me! Ican't cope with it.
It's bugging me.
I can't rest.
Please take over.
(16:43):
Then he takes over in his ownwondrous way.
He applies the healing,soothing, effective antidote of
His own person and presence tomy particular problem.
There immediately comes into myconsciousness, the awareness of
His dealing with the difficultyin a way I had not anticipated.
And because of the assurancethat He has become active on my
(17:05):
behalf, there steals over me asense of quiet contentment.
I am then able to lie down andrest and peace all because of
what He does.
Finally, to produce theconditions necessary for a sheep
to lie down, there must befreedom from the fear of hunger.
This, of course, is clearlyimplied in the statement- He
makes me lie down in greenpastures.
(17:27):
It is not generally recognizedthat many of the great sheep
countries of the world are dry,semi arid areas.
Most breeds of sheep flourishbest in this sort of terrain.
They're susceptible to fewerhazards of health or parasites
where the climate is dry.
But in these same regions asneither natural nor common to
find green pastures.
For example, Palestine, whereDavid wrote this psalm and kept
(17:50):
his father's flocks, especiallynear Bethlehem, is a dry brown
sunburned wasteland.
Green pastures do not justhappen by chance.
Green pastures were the productof tremendous labor and time and
skill in land use.
Green pastures were the resultof a clearing rough, rocky land
or tearing out brush and rootsand stumps of keeping deep
(18:13):
plowing and careful soilpreparation.
Of seeding and planting specialgrains and legumes.
Of irrigating with water andhusbanding with care the crops
of fors that would feed theflocks.
All of this representedtremendous toil and skill and
time for the careful shepherd.
If his sheep were to enjoy greenpastures amid the brown, barren
(18:34):
hills, it meant he had atremendous job to do.
But green pastures are essentialto success with sheep.
When lambs are maturing in theewes need green succulent feed
for a heavy milk flow there isno substitute for good
pastorage.
No sight so satisfies the sheepowner as to see his flock and
(18:54):
quietly led to repletion on richgreen forage, able to lie down
to rest ruminate and gain.
In my own ranching operations,one of the keys to the entire
enterprise, lay and developingrich, lush pastures for my flock
on at least two ranches wherewere old, worn out, improvised,
(19:17):
impoverished fields there wereeither bare or infested with
inferior forage plants.
By skillful management andscientific land use these were
soon converted into flourishingfields, knee deep in rich green
grass, and legumes on such onesuch forage.
It was common to have lambsreach 100 pounds and weight
(19:37):
within 100 days from birth.
The secret to this was the flockcould fill up quickly, then lie
down quietly to rest andruminate.
A hungry illed sheep is ever onits feet on the move, searching
for another scanty mouthful offorage to try and satisfy its
gnawing hunger.
Such sheep are not contented.
(19:58):
They do not thrive.
They are of no use to themselvesnor to the owners.
They languish and lack vigor orvitality.
In the scriptures, the pictureportrayed of this promised land
to which God tried so hard tolead Israel from Egypt was that
of a"land filling with milk andhoney." Exodus three eight.
Not only is this figurativelanguage, but also essentially
(20:18):
scientific terminology inagricultural terms, we speak of
a quote, milk flow and quote ahoney flow.
By this we mean the peak seasonof spring and summer.
When pastures are at their mostproductive stages.
The livestock that feed on theforage and the bees that visit
the blossoms are said to beproducing a corresponding flow
(20:40):
of milk and honey.
So a land flowing with milk andhoney is a land of rich, green,
luxurious pastures.
And when God spoke of such aland for Israel, he also foresaw
such an abundant life of joy andvictory and contentment for his
people, for the child of God,the Old Testament account of
(21:00):
Israel, moving from Egypt intothe Promised Land is a picture
of us moving from sin into thelife of overcoming victory.
We are promised such a life.
It has been provided for us andis made possible by the
unrelenting effort of Christ onour behalf.
How He works to clear the lifeof rocks of stony unbelief, how
(21:21):
He tries to tear out the rootsof bitterness.
He attempts to break up the hardproud human heart that is set
like sun dried clay.
He then sows the seed of His ownprecious word.
Which if given half a chance togrow, will produce rich crops of
contentment and peace.
He waters this with the dues andrains of His own presence by the
(21:42):
Holy Spirit.
He tends and cares andcultivates the life longing to
see it become rich and green andproductive.
It is all indicative of theunrelenting energy and industry
of an owner who wishes to seehis sheep satisfied and well
fed.
It all denotes my shepherd'sdesire to see my best interest
served.
His concern for my care isbeyond my comprehension really.
(22:05):
At best.
All I can do is to enjoy andrevel in what he has brought
into effect.
This life of quiet overcoming ofhappy repose of rest in His
presence of confidence in Hismanagement is something a few
Christians ever fully enjoy.
Because of our own perverseness,we often prefer to feed on the
barren ground of the worldaround us.
(22:25):
I used to marvel how some of mysheep actually chose inferior
forage at times.
But the Good Shepherd hassupplied green pastures for
those who care to move in untothem and their find peace and
plenty.
And this concludes the chapteron quiet feeding pastures.
Welcome to another session of a"shepherd
(00:03):
looks at Psalm 23".
We're looking down through thebook, this particular book
written by Philip Keller who hasmuch experience as a shepherd,
and he is expounding Psalm 23,literally phrase by phrase.
And so I'm looking forward toreading today's chapter.
(00:24):
The reason why I'm so engrossedwith this book at this time is
that many believe that theshepherd has.
A lot of responsibility and hedoes.
And yet at the same time we seein this book that the Shepherd
has his responsibility and thesheep have their capabilities or
their lack of.
(00:44):
And so with that, I'd like toget into the third chapter.
We see here chapter three, ifyou're following along in the
book, he makes me lie down ingreen pastures.
The strange thing about sheep isthat because of their very
makeup, it is almost impossiblefor them to be made to lie down
(01:09):
unless four requirements aremet.
Owing to their timidity, theyrefuse to lie down unless they
are free of all fear.
Because of the social behaviorwithin a flock, sheep will not
lie down unless they are freefrom friction with others of
their kind.
(01:30):
If tormented by flies orparasites, sheep will not lie
down.
Only when free of these pestscan they relax.
Lastly, sheep will not lie downas long as they feel in need of
finding food.
They must be free from hunger.
It is significant that to be atrest, there must be a definite
sense of freedom from fear,tension, aggravations, and
(01:54):
hunger.
The unique aspect of the pictureis that it is only the sheik man
himself who can provide releasefrom these anxieties.
It all depends upon thediligence of the owner, whether
or not his flock is free fromthese disturbing influences.
When we examine each of thesefour factors that affect sheep
so severely, we understand whythe part of the shepherd plays
(02:18):
in their management is sotremendously important.
It is actually he who makes itpossible for them to lie down,
to rest, to relax, to be contentand quiet and flourishing.
A flock that is restless,discontented, always agitated
and disturb never does well.
(02:39):
At the same is true people.
It is not generally known thatsheep are so timid and easily
panicked that even a strayjackrabbit suddenly bounding
from behind a bush can stampedean entire flock.
When one startled sheep runs infright, a dozen others will bolt
with its and it blind fear andnot waiting to see what
(03:00):
frightened them.
One day a friend came to call onus from the city.
She had a tiny ese pop along.
As she opened the car door, thepup jumped out on the grass.
Just one glimpse of theunexpected little dog was enough
in terror.
More than 200 of my sheep thatwere resting nearby leaped up
and rushed off across thepasture.
(03:24):
As long as there is even theslightest suspicion of danger
from dogs, coyotes, cougars,bears, or other enemies, the
sheep stand ready to flee fortheir lives.
They have little or no means ofself-defense.
They are helpless, timid, feeblecreatures whose only recourse is
to run.
When I invited friends to visitus after the Pekingese episode,
(03:45):
I always made it clear the dogswere to be left at home.
I also had to drive off or shootother stray dogs that came to
molest or disturb the sheep.
Two dogs had been known to killas many 292 sheep in a single
night of unbridled slaughter.
Ewes, heavy with lamb, whenchased by dogs or other
predators will slip their unbornlambs and lose them in
(04:08):
abortions.
A shepherd's loss from suchfrays can be appalling.
One morning at dawn, I foundnine of my choice ewes all soon
to lamb lying dead in the fieldwhere a cougar had harried the
flock during the night.
It was a terrible shock to ayoung man like myself, just new
to the business and unfamiliarwith such attacks.
(04:30):
From then on, I slept with my.30odd rifle and flashlight by my
bed at the least.
Sound of the clock beingdisturbed, the flock being
disturbed.
I would leap from my bed.
Calling my faithful collie dashout the night rifle in hand,
ready to protect my sheep.
In the course of time, I came torealize that nothing so quieted
and reassured the sheep as tosee me in the field, the
(04:53):
presence of their master andowner and protector put them at
ease as nothing could do.
And this applied day and night.
There was one summer when sheeprusting was a common occurrence
in our district.
Night after night, the dog and Iwere out under the stars keeping
watched into the flock by night,ready to defend them from raids
of any wrestlers.
The news of my diligence spreadalong the grapevine of our back
(05:14):
country roads, and the wrestlersquickly decide to leave us alone
and try their tactics elsewhere.
He makes me lie down.
In the Christian's life, thereis no substitute for the keen
awareness that our shepherd isnearby.
There is nothing like Christ'spresence to dispel the fear, the
panic, the terror of theunknown.
We live a most uncertain life.
(05:35):
Any hour can bring a disaster,danger and distress from unknown
quarters.
Life is full of hazards.
No one can tell what a day willproduce in new trouble.
We live either in a sense ofanxiety, fear, and foreboding,
or in a sense of quiet rest.
Which is it?
Generally it is the unknown, theunexpected that produces the
(05:55):
greatest panic.
It is in the grip of fear thatmost of us are unable to cope
with the cruel circumstances andharsh realities and complexities
of life.
We feel they are foes thatendanger our tranquility.
Often our first impulse issimply to get up and run from
them.
Then in the midst of ourmisfortunes, there suddenly
(06:18):
comes the awareness that he, TheChrist, the Good Shepherd is
there.
It makes all the difference.
His presence in the picturethrows a different light on the
whole scene.
Suddenly there are not half soblack nor nearly so terrifying.
The outlook changes and there ishope.
I find myself delivered fromfear, rest returns and I can
(06:39):
relax.
This has come to me again andagain as I grow older.
It is the knowledge that myMaster, my Friend, my Owner, has
things under control even whenthey may appear ous.
This gives me great consolation,repose, and rest.
I find comfort in saying, now Ilay me down in peace and sleep
(07:03):
for thou God keep us, me.
It is the special office work ofGod's gracious spirit to convey
the sense of the Christ to ourfearful hearts.
He comes quietly to reassure usthat Christ Himself is aware of
our dilemma and deeply involvedin it with us, and it is in fact
(07:23):
that this assurance that we restand relax.
For God did not give us a spiritof timidity, but a spirit of
power and of love and ofself-discipline.
Second Timothy one, seven.
The idea of a sound mind is thatof a mind at ease, at peace, not
perturbed or harassed orobsessed with fear and
foreboding for the future.
(07:44):
Psalm four, eight.
I will lie down and sleep inpeace for you alone oh Lord,
make me dwell in safety.
The second source of fear, whichthe sheep man delivers his sheep
is that of tension, rivalry, andcruel competition within the
flock itself.
In every animal society there isestablished an order of
dominance or status within thegroup.
It is a pen full of chickens.
(08:04):
It is referred to as the peckingorder with cattles called the
horning order.
Among sheep we speak of it asthe budding order.
Generally an arrogant, cunning,dominating old.ewe will be boss
of any bunch of sheep.
She maintains her position ofprestige by budding and driving
other ewes or lambs away fromthe best grazing or favorite
bedding grounds.
Succeeding her in precise orderthe other sheep will establish
(08:27):
and maintain their exactposition in the flock by using
the same tactics of budding andthrusting at those below and
around them.
A vivid and accurate wordpicture of this process is given
to us in Ezekiel 34, verses 15and 16, and verses 20 through
22.
This is a startling example.
In fact, the scientific accuracyof the scriptures in describing
(08:47):
a natural phenomenon.
Because of this rivalry, tensionand competition for status and
self-assertion, there isfriction in the flock.
The sheep cannot lie down andrest in contentment.
Always they must stand up anddefend their rights and contest
the challenge of the intruder.
Hundreds and hundreds of times Ihave watched an austere old.
You walk up to a younger onethat might have been feeding
(09:08):
contentedly and resting quietlyin some sheltered spot.
She would arch her neck, tilther head, dilate her eyes, and
approach the other with a stiffleg gait.
All this was a saying inunmistakable terms, move over
out of my way, give ground, orelse.
And if the other ewe did notimmediately leaped her feet in
(09:29):
self-defense, she would bebutted unmercifully.
Or if she didn't rise to acceptthe challenge, one or two strong
thrust would soon end, send hercurring for safety.
This continual conflict andjealousy within the flock can be
a most detrimental thing.
The sheep become edgy, tense,discontented, and restless.
(09:52):
They lose weight and becomeirritable.
But one point that alwaysinterested me very much was that
whenever I came into view and mypresence attracted their
attention, the sheep quicklyforgot their foolish rivalries
and stopped their fighting.
The shepherd's presence made allthe difference in their
behavior.
This to me has always been agraphic picture of the struggle
for status in human society.
(10:13):
There is the eternal competitionto keep up with the Joneses or
as it is now, to keep up withthe Joneses kids.
In any business firm, anyoffice, any family, any
community, any church, any humanorganization or group, be it
large or small the struggle forself-assertion and self
recognition goes on.
Most of us fight to be topsheep.
(10:34):
We butt and quarrel and competeto get ahead and in the process
people are hurt.
It is here that much jealousyarises.
This is where petty peeves growinto horrible hate.
It is where ill will andcontempt come into being.
The place where heated rivalryand deep discontent is born, it
is here that discontentgradually grows into a covetous
(10:55):
way of life where one has to beforever,"standing up" for
himself for his rights"standingup" just to get ahead of the
crowd.
In contrast to this, the pictureis the psalm shows us God's
people lying down in quietcontentment.
One of the outstanding marks ofChristian should be a sense
serene sense of gentlecontentment.
(11:18):
Godliness with contentment isgreat gain.
First Timothy six, six.
Paul, put it this way, I havelearned to be content whatever
the circumstances.
Philippians four 11.
And certainly this applies to mystatus in society.
The endless unrest generated inthe individual who is always
trying to"get ahead of thecrowd," who's attempting always
(11:38):
to be top man or woman on thetotem pole is pretty formidable
to observe.
In his own unique way, JesusChrist, the great shepherd in
his earthly life pointed outthat the last would be first and
the first last.
In a sense, I am sure He meantfirst in the area of his own
intimate affection.
For any shepherd has greatcompassion for the poor, weak
(12:00):
sheep that get butted about bythe more domineering ones.
More than once.
I have strongly trounced abelligerent you for abusing a
weaker one.
Or when the butted lambs nottheir own, I find it necessary
to discipline them severely, andcertainly they were not first my
esteem for their aggressiveness.
Another point that impressed meto was that the less aggressive
(12:23):
sheep were often far morecontented, quiet, and restful.
So there were definiteadvantages in being bottom
sheep.
But more important was the factthat it was the shepherd's
present that put an end to allrivalry and our, and in our
human relationships when webecome acutely aware of being in
the presence of Christ.
(12:43):
Our foolish, selfish snobberyand rivalry will end.
It is the humble heart walkingquietly and contently in the
close and intimate companionshipof Christ that is at rest that
can relax.
Simply glad to lie down and letthe world go by.
(13:03):
When my eyes are on my Master,they are not on those around me.
This is the place of peace.
And it is good and proper toremind ourselves that in the end
of it, it is he who will decideand judge what my status really
be.
After all, it is His estimationof me that is of consequence.
Any human measurement at best isbound to be a pretty
(13:25):
unpredictable, unreliable, andfar from final.
To be thus close to Him,conscious of His abiding
presence made real in my mind.
Emotions and will by theindwelling gracious spirit is to
be set free from fear of myfellow man and whatever he may
think of me.
I would rather have theaffection of the good Shepherd
(13:46):
than occupy a place ofprominence in society,
especially if I had attained itby fighting, quarreling and
bitter rivalry with my fellowhuman beings.
Matthew five, seven.
Blessed or happy to be enviedare the merciful for they'll be
shown mercy.
As is in the case with freedomfrom fear of predators or
friction within the flock.
(14:07):
The freedom of fear from thetorment of parasites and insects
is essential to the contentmentof sheep.
This aspect of their behaviorwill be dealt with in greater
detail later in the Psalm.
It is nonetheless important tomention it here.
Sheep, especially in the summer,can be driven to absolute
distraction by nasal flies, botflies, warble flies, and ticks.
(14:30):
When tormented by these pests,it is literally impossible for
them to lie down and rest.
Instead, they're up and on theirfeet, stamping their legs,
shaking their heads a rush offinto the bush for relief from
the pests.
Only the diligent care of theowner who keeps a constant
lookout for these insects willprevent them from annoying the
flock.
(14:51):
A good shepherd will applyvarious types of insect rep
plants to his sheep.
He will see they're dipped toclear their fleeces of ticks, or
he will see that there areshelter belts of trees and bush,
wherever they can find refugeand release from these
tormenters.
This all entails considerableextra care.
It takes time and labor andexpensive chemicals to do the
(15:12):
job thoroughly.
It means too that the sheet manmust be amongst the charges
daily, keeping a close watch ontheir behavior.
As soon as there is the leastevidence, they are being
disturbed, he must take steps toprovide them with relief.
Always uppermost in his mind isthe aim of keeping his flock
quiet, contented, and at peace.
Similarly in the Christian life,there are bound to be many small
(15:35):
irritations.
There are the annoyances ofpetty frustrations and ever
reoccurring disagreeableexperiences in modern technology
refer to these upsettingcircumstances or people as being
bugged.
Is there an anecdote for them?
Can one come to the place ofquiet contentment despite them?
The answer is, for one, inChrist's care is definitely yes.
(15:59):
This is the one of the mainfunctions, the gracious Holy
Spirit.
In scripture He is oftensymbolized by oil, by that which
brings healing and comfort andrelief from the harsh and
abrasive aspects of life.
The gracious Holy Spirit makesreal in me the very presence of
the Christ.
He brings quietness, serenity,strength, and calmness in the
face of frustrations andfutility.
(16:22):
When I turn to him and exposethe problems to him, allowing
him to see that I have adilemma, a difficulty, a
disagreeable experience beyondmy control, He comes to assist.
Often a helpful reproach issimply to say aloud.
Oh master this is beyond me! Ican't cope with it.
It's bugging me.
I can't rest.
Please take over.
(16:43):
Then he takes over in his ownwondrous way.
He applies the healing,soothing, effective antidote of
His own person and presence tomy particular problem.
There immediately comes into myconsciousness, the awareness of
His dealing with the difficultyin a way I had not anticipated.
And because of the assurancethat He has become active on my
(17:05):
behalf, there steals over me asense of quiet contentment.
I am then able to lie down andrest and peace all because of
what He does.
Finally, to produce theconditions necessary for a sheep
to lie down, there must befreedom from the fear of hunger.
This, of course, is clearlyimplied in the statement- He
makes me lie down in greenpastures.
(17:27):
It is not generally recognizedthat many of the great sheep
countries of the world are dry,semi arid areas.
Most breeds of sheep flourishbest in this sort of terrain.
They're susceptible to fewerhazards of health or parasites
where the climate is dry.
But in these same regions asneither natural nor common to
find green pastures.
For example, Palestine, whereDavid wrote this psalm and kept
(17:50):
his father's flocks, especiallynear Bethlehem, is a dry brown
sunburned wasteland.
Green pastures do not justhappen by chance.
Green pastures were the productof tremendous labor and time and
skill in land use.
Green pastures were the resultof a clearing rough, rocky land
or tearing out brush and rootsand stumps of keeping deep
(18:13):
plowing and careful soilpreparation.
Of seeding and planting specialgrains and legumes.
Of irrigating with water andhusbanding with care the crops
of fors that would feed theflocks.
All of this representedtremendous toil and skill and
time for the careful shepherd.
If his sheep were to enjoy greenpastures amid the brown, barren
(18:34):
hills, it meant he had atremendous job to do.
But green pastures are essentialto success with sheep.
When lambs are maturing in theewes need green succulent feed
for a heavy milk flow there isno substitute for good
pastorage.
No sight so satisfies the sheepowner as to see his flock and
(18:54):
quietly led to repletion on richgreen forage, able to lie down
to rest ruminate and gain.
In my own ranching operations,one of the keys to the entire
enterprise, lay and developingrich, lush pastures for my flock
on at least two ranches wherewere old, worn out, improvised,
(19:17):
impoverished fields there wereeither bare or infested with
inferior forage plants.
By skillful management andscientific land use these were
soon converted into flourishingfields, knee deep in rich green
grass, and legumes on such onesuch forage.
It was common to have lambsreach 100 pounds and weight
(19:37):
within 100 days from birth.
The secret to this was the flockcould fill up quickly, then lie
down quietly to rest andruminate.
A hungry illed sheep is ever onits feet on the move, searching
for another scanty mouthful offorage to try and satisfy its
gnawing hunger.
Such sheep are not contented.
(19:58):
They do not thrive.
They are of no use to themselvesnor to the owners.
They languish and lack vigor orvitality.
In the scriptures, the pictureportrayed of this promised land
to which God tried so hard tolead Israel from Egypt was that
of a"land filling with milk andhoney." Exodus three eight.
Not only is this figurativelanguage, but also essentially
(20:18):
scientific terminology inagricultural terms, we speak of
a quote, milk flow and quote ahoney flow.
By this we mean the peak seasonof spring and summer.
When pastures are at their mostproductive stages.
The livestock that feed on theforage and the bees that visit
the blossoms are said to beproducing a corresponding flow
(20:40):
of milk and honey.
So a land flowing with milk andhoney is a land of rich, green,
luxurious pastures.
And when God spoke of such aland for Israel, he also foresaw
such an abundant life of joy andvictory and contentment for his
people, for the child of God,the Old Testament account of
(21:00):
Israel, moving from Egypt intothe Promised Land is a picture
of us moving from sin into thelife of overcoming victory.
We are promised such a life.
It has been provided for us andis made possible by the
unrelenting effort of Christ onour behalf.
How He works to clear the lifeof rocks of stony unbelief, how
(21:21):
He tries to tear out the rootsof bitterness.
He attempts to break up the hardproud human heart that is set
like sun dried clay.
He then sows the seed of His ownprecious word.
Which if given half a chance togrow, will produce rich crops of
contentment and peace.
He waters this with the dues andrains of His own presence by the
(21:42):
Holy Spirit.
He tends and cares andcultivates the life longing to
see it become rich and green andproductive.
It is all indicative of theunrelenting energy and industry
of an owner who wishes to seehis sheep satisfied and well
fed.
It all denotes my shepherd'sdesire to see my best interest
served.
His concern for my care isbeyond my comprehension really.
(22:05):
At best.
All I can do is to enjoy andrevel in what he has brought
into effect.
This life of quiet overcoming ofhappy repose of rest in His
presence of confidence in Hismanagement is something a few
Christians ever fully enjoy.
Because of our own perverseness,we often prefer to feed on the
barren ground of the worldaround us.
(22:25):
I used to marvel how some of mysheep actually chose inferior
forage at times.
But the Good Shepherd hassupplied green pastures for
those who care to move in untothem and their find peace and
plenty.
And this concludes the chapteron quiet feeding pastures.
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