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Psalm 23 a passage of God's Word that is so incredibly familiar and comforting to us that even now some of you reading this have already begun hearing in your minds those familiar first words "The Lord is my Shepherd..."
Psalm 23 represents some of the most inspiring and life changing words we will ever read. The power of these words remains timeless and unwaveringly constant in our culture. Psalm 23 has the ability to comfort, to challenge, to strengthen and to bring about a complete life-changing perspective.
Psalm 23 requires extraordinarily little from us but to begin to understand these Words of the Lord God we must start by abandoning our self-made identities and by adopting the identity of sheep.
For us to call the Lord "our Shepherd" we must by necessity adopt the identity of that most wondrous humble creature of the fields, a sheep. Are we ready to give up whatever self-image we have of ourselves and adopt this humble new existence?
Perhaps at first glance you have no trouble at all imagining yourself as a sheep, but the challenge may come crashing in on us when God asks us to act like His Sheep.
Imagine just for a moment that a shepherd is guiding his sheep through the fields and forests and is seeking the greenest grass and the most still and beautiful waters, but as they walk along a sheep in the herd starts shouting that they are too smart and too tough and too sure of themselves to keep going the way the shepherd wants to go. We would laugh at the sheep being ridiculous. Of course the shepherd knows better than the sheep and can guide and protect the sheep better than they could ever do for themselves.
Like David hearing a story from Samuel we are angry when we see others walking away from the Lord's guidance and wisdom and yet we remain shocked to learn we are the very type of sheep that think we know best. We are the ones that sometimes will turn from the path and walk away from our Shepherd -- Our Shepherd who knows all, who loves us perfectly and who will always guide us on paths of righteousness.
It is only when we walk behind The Shepherd faithfully and consistently that the promises of Psalm 23 become our reality. The promises are glorious. We are promised green pastures, still waters, restored souls, no fear even in the face of death, righteous paths, comfort, provision even in the face of the Enemy, a cup that runs over it is so full, goodness and mercy to follow us all of our days and finally, the greatest promise, to dwell in the House of the Lord forever. All these promises are true in Jesus Christ. There is no lie in Psalm 23, there is simply a life changing challenge to become the Sheep who follows only The One True Shepherd!
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Finding Faith is written by area pastors. This week's column comes from Matt Kinley, pastor of the First Church of Christ in Lock Haven.