Psalm 23:3

“He restoreth my soul.” 

This verse was written after David's sin with Bathsheba. David’s soul at this time was cast down because of all the troubles he was passing through (Psa. 42:11). His son Absalom had forced him to flee Jerusalem and was chasing him, seeking to kill him.

“Cast down” is an old English expression for a sheep that has turned over on its back and cannot get up. If he is left in this condition, he will either become a victim to wild beasts or the gases that build up within his body will cut off his circulation and eventually kill him. To restore a sheep that has been cast down, the shepherd has to massage him and gently talk to him so that he will want to regain his former walk and demeanor. 

We can liken this example to the a Christian who has fallen away. The shepherd goes out and finds his lost sheep. When he finds that lost sheep "cast down" he must be gentle and take care of that sheep. If the shepherd (Pastor/spiritual leadership) shows too much rebuke that will kill the Christian. The shepherd is to supply to the sheep what it needs because it is helpless. The casted down sheep does not need an abundance of rebuke, but correction with gentleness and instruction to keep them on the right path.

“He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.” 

One truth must not predominate the life of the shepherd and the sheep. Overgrazing a certain area can destroy the land and the sheep. Going in the same old ruts, the sheep always turn into the old paths and thus ruin the pasture land. The key is to continually lead the sheep into new pastures and then back again into the old pastures that have now become refreshed.

As teachers and leaders, we must continually lead our flocks into new truths in the Word of God, fresh manna, and regularly refresh their memories concerning the old truths. As it says in Matthew 13:52, we must be able to bring forth out of our treasure things new (fresh) and old. We must lead our flocks in the paths of righteousness, making straight paths for their feet. We must show them the direction in which way they should walk.

"For his name’s sake.” 

The state of the flock is a reflection of the shepherd who looks after them. Therefore, it is to the glory of God that we should walk in the paths of righteousness, performing the works that the Lord has ordained before the foundation of the world that we should walk in, for in so doing we bring honor and glory to His Name (Eph. 2:10).

Psalm 23:2

“He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.” 

One of the most difficult tasks that a shepherd has in caring for his sheep is to get them to lie down, because they are so restless.

Four things are essential before sheep will rest or lie down.
1.) They have to be free from fear because they are very timid.
2.) They have to be free from friction with other members of their own flock.
3.) They must be free from torment by flies or other parasites.
4.) They must be full. 

These four areas can be applied to our self, sheep's of Christ.
Fear is torment, but perfect love casts out fear (1 Jn. 4:18). We need the deep love of the Shepherd of our souls. In other words, to have an awareness that He loves us and watches over us will free us from fear. We need a personal assurance of Hebrews 13:5, that the Lord will never leave us or forsake us.

Next, we must be free from friction with other Christians. We should make every effort to live in peace with all men without compromising our standards. Understand that contention only comes by pride and an inflated ego (Prov. 13:10). Therefore, if we walk in humility and meekness, others will not cause us to lose sleep or our peace of mind. The key is to not be people conscious, but to be Christ centered. We must be kind to others and forgive them when they do us wrong (Eph. 4:32), not always insisting on having our own way.

We show true kindness when we have seen and experienced kindness ourselves. Anyone can be kind, but to be truly kind is when you have the history and experience of another showing kindness to your.

Sheep will only lie down when they have been satisfied with good food. Green pastures are only obtained by careful planting, deep plowing, and watering the ground well. A good shepherd (pastor or teacher) has to spend much time and energy to find good pastures in the Word of God to feed to his flock. He (Pastors & spiritual fathers) takes great care of the product that they feed their sheep. We have to study earnestly and set in order many proverbs for our flock to feed upon (Eccl. 12:9). Everyone who is used by God to teach must constantly be seeking the Lord for fresh truths from His Word and be constantly meditating in His Word.

One large reason for spiritual leanness in the flock is because the pastor (shepherd) is feeding the flock the same diet every week, teaching them only about salvation, water baptism, and the baptism of the Holy Spirit. That is the description of an uncaring shepherd. Looking at Christ as the example, He takes care of what His flock eats and encourages them to eat daily. Like Ezra of old, we should aspire to be students of the Word who are able to open up the Word of God so that people can understand it. We should have knowledge of every verse of the Bible, making them crystal clear for people as we teach (Neh. 8:7-8).

How important it is to deal with the simplicity of God’s word. We not only have the milk and feed on the strong meat of the word so that we are strong in the Lord. Know the things of the word of God and do not occupy yourself with the things that God does not want to show you. As a sheep of God cry out before you study, something like this, "Lord what do you want to show me? What do you want to teach me?" Listen to what He says to you and lay the other things aside.

“He leadeth me beside the still [or quiet] waters.” 

There are three sources of water for sheep: dew on the grass, deep wells, and springs or streams. It should be noted that 70 percent of a sheep is composed of water. Thus lack of water will cause dehydration, disease of tissue, and general deterioration of health. Therefore, a good supply of water is essential for healthy sheep.

1.) Dew is upon the grass prior to sunrise when it is still dark outside. The dew satisfies the thirst of the sheep, enabling them to lie down contentedly all day as the heat of the sun rises.

The Lord rose early every morning and spent time with His Father in prayer. He heard Him speak every day. David said in Psalm 63:1, “Early will I seek thee.” It is noteworthy in Church history that all those who have ever had a major impact upon their generation and the generations to follow rose early in the mornings to meet with the Lord in prayer.

2.) Often shepherds would obtain water from deep wells in dark cavities carved out in underground caves. This speaks of treasures of darkness that we obtain when we pass through the valley of trouble.

3.) The other source of water for sheep was from springs or streams. Achsah cried out to her father Caleb to give her the upper and nether springs (Judg. 1:15). This speaks of the double portion of God’s Spirit. These two springs represent the rivers of living waters that will flow out from the Lord’s people in the last day revival during the Feast of Tabernacles (Jn. 7:2, 38).

Psalm 23:1

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.” 

A sheep’s welfare is dependent almost exclusively on the shepherd’s character, although it is also important for a shepherd to have the ability to provide for his sheep. 

There is a new relationship between the sheep (Christians) and the Shepherd (Jesus Christ). Here David says, "The LORD is my Shepherd" this shows the sheep taking possession of the Shepherd. When we see how precious we are to the Shepherd, we do not look else where for affection or attention. You feel wonderful when you see how much your are valued--there is a humbleness and a drawing closer to each other.

The other side of this is that the shepherd owns his flock. He has paid a price for them. Likewise, God bought us with the price of the death of His own dear Son—the greatest price any shepherd could pay for his flock. This is what Paul said in First Corinthians 6:19-20: “Ye are not your own, for ye are bought with a price.” Therefore, Christ could say in John 10:11,15 that He is the Good Shepherd who lays down His life for His sheep. He knows each of His sheep by name (Jn. 10:14). The shepherd is so identified with his sheep that he even feels their frustrations (Isa. 63:9).

Moving on to, “I shall not want.” David says that because of the greatness and goodness of his Shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will not lack any good thing, spiritually or naturally. We see that one who is a sheep of the Good Shepherd has contentment. They look no were else because the Lord has given them everything: value, relationship, laid down His life for him, etc.

Sheep are utterly defenseless and they lack any sense of direction. As Isaiah 53:6 says, “All we like sheep have gone astray.” They need a good shepherd who will provide for them. Whom we choose as our shepherd (pastor or spiritual father) makes all the difference. The thought of “not wanting” is more than just not lacking natural or spiritual care. It speaks of a deep sense of contentment—a peace so deep and a serenity so profound that even the shadow of death cannot disturb us.

May this verse be our daily pray, that we may declare the Lord as our Shepherd and also find peace and contentment. 

The Secret to Life is Having Conviction!

I apologize for taking a while to post what the Lord has been putting on my heart. Sometimes there is a never ending flow of things the Lord speaks to me and then there are other times where there is just one thing that goes over and over in my heart and mind. I want to be attentive especially when those moments occur because that may be a key my Father is giving to me for something ahead.

My father spoke a message today at a church in Jamestown, NY. I will try my best to give you a summary of it because he preached it exactly the way I wish to write it. One of the things my Lord has laid upon my heart to mediate and re-mediate upon is this, "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God." (Rom. 12:2 [KJV]).

The worlds mentality is to go out and find yourself and who you are as quickly as possible. That is not a mind set God our Father desires us to have. The secret to life is not finding yourself or expressing yourself, but it is finding the convictions and holding true to them. If you do a study on the end times you will see that the big issue in the church will be on compromising. We must learn convictions now and hold true to them! That we may not be deceived and conform to this world and the image it holds to. Body, soul, and Spirit--those are the three areas we battle with in our Christian walk. (1) the body: that is submitting our self as a vessel of honor for God; the changing of ones conduct. (2) the soul: this is a major battle because it involves our heart, emotions, and desires. Be not compelled to follow your heart or led by your emotions. My grandfather use to say this to his children, "At the end of the day you kids do what you want to do!" It's not wrong to have desires, but may we not be led by them. (3) the spirit: This is very hard for all man-kind because this is  where the human pride lies. God resists the proud and we do not want to listen to the world which will tell you to find that pride for there is no harm in it. This area is also where one must learn to surrender his intelligence because there will be times where God will ask you to do something that is not practical. We see examples of this all throughout scripture: Moses parting the red sea, Abraham sacrificing his son, etc...

I say this all to encourage you to examine your life. Do you have convictions? Are you holding true to them? To know Him--that is our quest! Do not compromise and be conformed to this world. Be transformed by allowing God to renew your mind daily. Walk in the Holy Spirit and be not ruled by your body or soul!

God bless!