He Restores My SoulPs. 23:3

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; My cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD Forever”

1. We are Like Sheep

“Know that the LORD, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.” Ps. 100:3

“But made His own people to go forth like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock.”

Ps. 78:52

1. We are Like Sheep

Four requirements for sheep to rest:1. No fear2. No friction3. No pests4. No hunger

Matt. 6:25-34 Don’t worry about food or water Don’t worry about clothing God knows you need these

“But seek first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness; and all these things shall be added unto you.” v. 33

1. We are Like Sheep

“Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness: for they shall be filled.” Matt. 5:6

“If any man thirst, let him come unto Me and drink.” Jn. 7:37

“His divine power has given to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us by glory and virtue” 2 Pet. 1:3

Sheep Must Have Water

1. We are Like Sheep

Wander around and get lost - can’t find their way

The shepherd must go and find them

Sheep Often Lose Their Way

1. We are Like Sheep

Isa. 53:6 “All we like sheep have gone astray…”

Paul wrote, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall” 1 Cor. 10:12

“He restores my soul”

1. We are Like Sheep

“Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; For I shall yet praise Him, The help of my countenance and my God.” Ps. 42:11

Ps. 42:6 “O my God, my soul is cast down within me”

2. Being Cast Down

2. Being Cast Down

2. Being Cast Down

1. Soft, comfortable, rounded place to bed down - Relax - Roll over on back = cast

2. Too much wool - Heavy, matted with mud and debris - Thrown off balance = cast - Must be sheared

3. Too Fat - Hard for them to move around - They need exercise & balanced diet

3. Reasons Sheep are “Cast”

1. Soft, comfortable, rounded place to bed down - Look for easy way - 1 Cor. 10:12 “take heed lest he fall”

2. Too much wool - Weighed down with debris of this life - Heb. 12:1 “let us lay aside every weight” - Eph. 4:22 “Put off”

3. Too Fat - Need to be actively using the Word - Acts 20:27 “the whole counsel of God” - 1 Tim.4:7 “exercise yourself toward godliness.”

3. Reasons Sheep are “Cast”

4. Shepherd Cares for Sheep“He restores my soul”

Shepherd finds a cast sheep- Turns it over and helps it get onto its feet- Regains it’s balance - rejoins the flock

Our Shepherd restores our soul- Concern for us - feeling of compassion- Jesus will pick up “cast” sheep- Tenderness, love and patience- Peter is an example

4. Shepherd Cares for Sheep“He restores my soul”

Do not know how to care for themselves

“All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way” Isa. 53:6

“There is a way which seems right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.” Prov. 14:12

4. Shepherd Cares for Sheep

Jesus is the Good Shepherd

“I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” Jn. 14:6

“I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly” Jn. 10:10

“If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.” Matt. 16:24

4. Shepherd Cares for Sheep

“He restores my soul”

In Christ =

SAVED

Baptized (Gal.3:27)

Confess (Rom.10:10)

Hear (Rom.10:17)

Believe (Jn.8:24)

Repent (Lk.13:3)