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Psalm 23

We dont normally hear sermons on the Psalms, even though they are our favorite texts of the Bible for most people. And the 23rd psalm is the most beloved of the Psalms and is, perhaps, the most loved chapter in the entire Bible. Many of us grew up memorizing psalm 23, and reciting it proudly in Sunday school. But what is so special about this psalm? What is the significance of psalm 23 among the popular Christians? This psalm is about God being the care taker, as the shepherd. When the psalmist says, The Lord is my shepherd. Intuitively, all of us know that shepherds are good, kind and gentle. Even in a technological society and having never met a shepherd face to face, we all know that shepherds are gentle and kind.Even the children know that, as was demonstrated in the childrens sermon. All the children had never met a shepherd, but as a group, they unanimously and spontaneously said that shepherds were good, kind and gentle. The children have been taught that by Bible stories. They have been taught in Bible pictures. They have seen the picture of Jesus, the good shepherd, caressing a lamb in his arms.But do you have an idea of a shepherd in real life? For the most kids here, perhaps, shepherd is an alien image. I wonder if they have seen any shepherd in their life? I am really glad to preach on this text, because for the first time, I gave time to think about the commitment and sacrifices that the shepherds makes in their lives, even though I saw them almost every day in my child hood. I grew up seeing the shepherds take the sheep to the fields early in the morning by 6.00am, as the sun rises and they come back in the afternoon as sunsets. A shepherd stays alone in fields all day long guarding, feeding and caring for sheep, with no one to talk to, with no social life.Yes, shepherd and sheep have a great relationship, a relationship between two different species, but extremely bonding and affectionate. The one and only job of a shepherd is to take care of the flock, to take them away from the main town, so they get the best natural food in the outskirts of a town, so they can relax, so they can be themselves, without being tied in a small barn.What a sacrifice from the part of shepherd? As parents, we all have experience of taking our children to park, or some play place, may be chuck-e-cheese, where children could be childrenbut how long would we entertain them there? An hour, two hours! By the end of the second hour we all know how it feelsPsalmist chooses an image to God, understanding his own relationship with Godit speaks about the total dependence of sheep on the Shepherd. The well being of sheep completely in hands of the shepherd. We dont see such dependency between a parent and child, because a child at some point becomes independent of parents. Parents let alone their children to take care of themselvesbut job of a shepherd is not such. Sheep continuously need their shepherd to care for them. It is a relationship that cannot be ruptured. Understanding this relationship with God, at first, the psalmist gives his witness about GodHe says, The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. When there is a shepherd around, a sheep will never lack anything. It is an affirmation of complete care. If God could be that to each and every one of us, who will want to say no to this offer. The psalmist goes on to explain as to what he means by calling God, The shepherd. The psalmist says, He makes me lie down in green pastures, and leads me beside still waters. He revives my soul, and guides me along right pathways for his Name's sake.In first three verses the psalmist speaks about God in third person, and 4,5,& 6 verses the psalmist turns to God, speaks in second personHe says, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me; You spread a table before me in the presence of those who trouble me.In the second half of the psalm, not only that the psalmist begins to enter into direct conversation with God, but also changes the mood. He begins the psalm by talking about Lying on green pastures, and in the second half he speaks about the shadow of death. This psalm being as much as the gospel of promise, it is also a very realistic one. One the one hand the psalmist says you make me lie down in green pastures and almost immediately he goes into saying, Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil. Both extreme situations. Yes, a lot of times we assume that if we are Christians or if we are into prayer, God, church and so on everything is going to be OK. We will be free from all misery, that we will be happy and prosperous all our life. We all know that it is a myth. The psalmist is once again reminding us that we will face life as it isbut the good news is that even in the shadow of death there is a comforting hand that is holding youand that makes all the difference.The valley of shadow of death, is not necessarily a death bed, but could be number of things. We may take our first steps into the valley because of illness, our own or that of one we lovea beloved partner or spouse, a child, a grandchild, or a parent. We may pass into the valley because of fear, insecurity, distrust and so on. The deep darkness may come upon us when our children make choices that baffle us. Even in the most blessed life, even when we spend the majority of our days in the sunlight looking down upon dazzling vistas, each of us walks into that valley sooner or later. We all know it is after all, realistic. In India, for New Years day, according to the Indian calendar, there is a tradition people eat something that is similar to Hummus, that we call it chutney. The ingredients are Sugar, that is sweet, Neem flower, that tastes bitter, tamarind, that tastes sour, pepper, that is spicy hot, salt for salt and a raw Mango for the taste of pungent, a combination of all 6 tastes that exist, symbolizing that, no matter what we are or who we are, we will face all facets of life, and that the life is combination of all of these elements. There was a disaster in in small town, people were gathered for fund raiser. Best artistes offered their talents. The community being a faith community asked him to recite psalm 23, their favorite psalm.

I know the psalm but this pastor here knows the shephered

It is to remind to be prepared for both good and bad. Experiences of high and low not only happens in the life of individuals but also in communities, in life of the church. Just as God is the shepherd, each one of us are given the responsibility to care for each other whether in times of laying in green pastures or in the times of shadow of death. It is the relationship that we maintain that matters ultimately than whether we have good times or bad times. And now may God give us the life of green pastures, and may God comfort us when we are in the valley of darkness. Amen.