Psalm 23: The Year of The Sheep

Sermon last Sunday was eye-opening. This is indeed the sheep year, and there's nothing more fitting than to ponder upon the Sheep.

The Bible says that we are all like Sheep and Jesus, the Good Shepherd.

¹ The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing.
²     He makes me lie down in green pastures,
he leads me beside quiet waters,
³     he refreshes my soul.
He guides me along the right paths
    for his name’s sake.
⁴ Even though I walk
    through the darkest valley,^[a]
I will fear no evil,
    for you are with me;
your rod and your staff,
    they comfort me.

⁵ You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
⁶ Surely your goodness and love will follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord
    forever.

I've always really liked this psalm because it's so reassuring and so comforting. But the way pastor interpreted this psalm was one that I've never considered before.

1) Green pastures, quiet waters

We would naturally think that sheep like the green pastures and quiet waters. At the same time, the fact may be that these places are possibly their most hated places. Green pastures are flat pieces of open land which will render them helpless and most vulnerable should predators appear. Sheep are lost and doomed without their shepherds. Without the shepherd protecting them, they are dead meat. So where is their favourite place then? Needless to say - the sheep pen aka HOME. This is why all of us feel the most comfortable at home. The moment we step out of our sheep pen, we are exposed to all sorts of danger. Like the disasters in 2014, danger is lurking everywhere once we step outside. But that's life. It's not possible for us to be locked up in our houses, and not to mention super unhealthy. So we have to take risks and step out of our comfort zones. But if we have knowledge that we are protected by our Shepherd, it can bring down our anxiety level by manyfolds, which is why we can "lie down in green pastures" and enjoy the quiet waters fear.

2) Rod and staff

I think sheep are the very epitome of bimbos and himbos. They have a brain but they are not wired to be smart. They are, in fact, known to be stupid. Which is why they are so reliant on their shepherds. A valley is made up of a up slope and a down slope. When sheep pass through a valley, they will follow their Shepherds up the slope and when they are about to take the down slope from the valley's peak, they start to panic because they think their Shepherds are missing! That really made me smile just imagining the scene. So the long staff and rod that Shepherds carry are the signs to the sheep that "Hey, I'm just right in front of you, don't worry. Even if you don't see me, you'll be able to see my rod and staff and that's the sign that I'm right there with you. DO NOT FEAR." So when we get through the ups and downs in life, I think we should take a page out of this scenario and see that our Shepherd is right in front of us, leading us in every step of the way.

3) Perpetrators

In this life, it's not possible to have everyone like us. We will have our fair share of hatred and possibly even so-called enemies. But because we have a Shepherd who loves us so much and is willing to give up His life just to protect us from harm, why do we have to fear these people? He will prepare a banquet in front of our perpetrators and we will be able to toast them and tell them "Nananipoopoo, you cannot catch me" because our cup of blessings is overflowing. "Do not fear those who kill the body but are unable to kill the soul; but rather fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell." (Matthew 10:28)

It was an eye-opening sermon. I thank God for this timely reminder to start off 2015. So I can truly say and experience this: "The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing."(v1)