Psalm 23: 1-3 NKJV
1 The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not [a]want. 2 He makes me to lie down in [b]green pastures; He leads me beside the [c]still waters. 3 He restores my soul;
One of the themes that comes out strongly in this Psalm is relationship. If the Lord is my Shepherd then that means I am the sheep. A shepherd has a very special relationship with his sheep. David, himself a shepherd wrote this Psalm which gives us a glimpse of the kind of relationship we ought to have with the Lord. In fact when we jump into the New Testament Jesus identifies himself as the good shepherd.
John 10:11-12 NKJV
11 “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep. 12 But a [b]hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees; and the wolf catches the sheep and scatters them.
One of the roles of a shepherd is to provide for his sheep. David says the Lord is my shepherd I shall not want. This basically means that I shall never lack. He goes on to describe what the Lord does to ensure that he does not lack. God makes him lie down in green pastures and he leads him besides still waters. The green pastures ensure that the sheep have enough to eat and when they have had their fill then they are led to still waters so that they can drink to their fill. Green pastures talk about the freshness of the feed and the still waters make it easy for the sheep to drink.
The shepherd always goes before sheep, he leads them, they follow him Jesus said my sheep know my voice and follow me. For you and I to be able to enjoy the provision of the good shepherd then we must have an ear to listen and follow where he leads us. This calls for us to trust him no matter what we see because where there is no trust then we cannot follow.
Jesus told us not to worry about provision but instead we need to seek first the kingdom of God. The way we seek is by listening to his words and walking in obedience. It is to follow after him and when we do all these things meaning provision will be added unto us.
Reflections.
Is the Lord your Shepherd? What does that mean to you?
Do you worry about provision? Why?
Do you know the voice of your Shepherd and are you following after him?
