Yea, Though I Walk Through The Valley
It is at this point that we are half way through the Psalm. We have finished the “He” section which describes the way the Shepherd cares for His sheep.
He has done everything for us; we are not required to do anything but follow. He protects and provides for us as we stay close to Him. So we see that the theme for these first three verses implies relationship:
He is my Shepherd and Lord and I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters.
He restores my soul.
He leads me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
The second half of the Psalm is the “I” section. Because the Shepherd has done everything for me, I am now responsible to follow Him closely so He can provide for me and protect me.
What does this mean for me as His sheep?
I can walk through a valley of death
I will fear no evil.
I will have Him with me always.
I will be comforted by His rod and staff.
I will eat from a prepared table.
I will have my head anointed with oil.
I will have a cup that will overflow.
I will have goodness and mercy follow and overtake me the rest of my life.
I will live in His house for all eternity.
It is as though up to this point the sheep has been boasting to its unfortunate neighbor across the fence about the excellent care it received from its owner on the “home” ranch throughout the winter and spring. Have you ever worked for someone who was really a great person to work for, and then go home and tell your neighbor what a wonderful boss you have only to find out his boss is the worst person in the world to work for?
Now it turns to address the shepherd directly. The personal pronouns “I” and “Thou” enter the conversation. It becomes a most intimate discourse of deep affection. This is natural and normal.
Yea, Though I Walk Through The Valley Of The Shadow of Death
It is interesting to note that the intensive connective “yea” is used to begin the statement. This is the first connective utilized to relate clauses. The absence of expressed connectives at the beginning of preceding clauses make this stand out by contrast.
“Walk” describes incomplete action and may refer both to the present and future tense. This is true of some of the other verbs of verse 4.
A series of 3 prepositional phrase is used to describe “walk.”
The local adverbial phrase “through the valley,” indicating the direction or place of the walk.
The adjectival phrase, “of the shadow,” qualifies the term “valley.”
The adjectival phrase, “of death,” qualifies the term “shadow”
In the marginal reading of some translations, “the valley of the shadow of death” is rendered “the valley of deep darkness.”
During the time the flock is entirely alone with the shepherd during the long treks of the summer and fall, they are entirely alone with the shepherd. They are under his most personal attention day and night. That is why these last verses are couched in such intimate first person language.
It is well to remember that all of this is done against a dramatic background of wild mountains, rushing rivers, alpine meadows and high rangelands.
David, the psalmist, of course knew this type of terrain first hand. He knew from firsthand experience about the difficulties and dangers, as well as the delights of the treks into high country. He knew this wild but wonderful country like the palm of his hand. Never did he take his flock where he had not already been before. Always he had gone ahead to look over the country with care.
All the dangers of rampaging rivers in flood; avalanches; rock slides; poisonous plants; the ravages of predators that raid the flock or the awesome storms of sleet and hail and snow were familiar to him.
He had handled his sheep and managed them with care under all these adverse conditions.
Nothing took him by surprise. He was fully prepared to safeguard his flock and tend them with skill under every circumstance. All of this is brought out in the beautiful simplicity of the last verses. Here is grandeur, a quietness, and an assurance sets the soul at rest.
THOUGH I WALK THROUGH
Why is “through” used instead of another preposition, such as “in?”
There is the idea of coming out on the other end of what you are walking through. There is the idea in Luke 6 of Jesus walking through the crowd of angry people to come out and go on.
The word “in” means to indicate inclusion, within space, a place, or limits. The psalmist is not staying there but going to the other side.
We need to keep two things in mind:
ONE: HE IS LEADING.
Verse 3b says “He leads us in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”
If He is leading, that means that He is out front. I can see where He is going, so I follow Him.
Some of the paths to righteousness will be through valleys. He is the one who knows the paths even though we don’t know where He is going. He knows where He is going.
TWO: HE IS LEADING US THROUGH.
Note the word “through.” If we are going through, that means we must be coming out on the other side. I have heard it put this way: we don’t take up residence there in the valley. Some us do. We stay in the valley and never come out to the other side. Some of the paths we take on our journey to righteousness go through valleys. The idea is of “passing through.” When traveling to a specific destination, we “pass through” towns and cities, but we don’t stop there. We keep on going until we reach our destination. We are “passing through.” I don’t know if you have ever considered this, that we are “passing through” in this life. Heaven is our final destination. When we go “through” things it is not permanent. The Shepherd has also said that He would be with us as we go “through.” Consider these passages of Scripture:
Job 10:21-22
Before I go-- and I shall not return--
To the land of darkness and deep shadow;
The land of utter gloom as darkness itself,
Of deep shadow without order,
And which shines as the darkness." (NASB)
Psalm 84:6
Passing through the valley of Baca, they make it a spring,
The early rain also covers it with blessings. (NASB)
Psalm 107:14
He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death,
And broke their bands apart. (NASB)
Isaiah 43:2-3
"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;
And through the rivers, they will not overflow you.
When you walk through the fire, you will not be scorched,
Nor will the flame burn you.
"For I am the Lord your God,
The Holy One of Israel, your Savior;
I have given Egypt as your ransom,
Cush and Seba in your place. (NASB)
I want to give you an illustration that I hope will solidify what I am saying here.
On my way to the library I passed through a small shopping center. I almost ran over a mother duck and her chicks. There were about 7 or 8 of them. What really caught my eye and made me stop to observe them for a little while was the fact that wherever the mother duck went, the chicks were closely behind her. When she stopped, they all came around to the front of her and huddled together. It was as though they were waiting for what she was going to do next. When she moved, they all moved right behind her. I didn’t see a chick stop and ask his mother where she was going nor did I see any of them wandering off from her. This went on for several minutes. The chicks stuck to her like glue. That’s the way we need to stick to the Lord when He is leading us. In the wilderness, whenever the cloud of the pillar of fire moved, the Israelites moved. When it stopped, they stopped. The Lord was leading them. I got the thinking about this later and it was amazing. Those little duck chicks were following their mother in a very dangerous place for them. Being in a shopping center, they could have easily all be run over by cars. It didn’t seem to matter to them, and I doubt very seriously if they were aware of it, but their only concern was following their mother wherever she went. Can we say that?
REVELATION:
If the Shepherd is leading, where is He?
He is up front, leading.
If I am a sheep, where am I?
I am behind the Shepherd following where He is leading me.
If He is leading me, and I am following Him, He will lead me to the green pastures and still waters and in the paths of righteousness that go through the valley of the shadow of death, or the valley of deep darkness.
He has not left me. He is still there. Somehow we get the impression that the Shepherd has taken off somewhere when we start walking through the valley. That is not true.
We get into trouble when we leave the Shepherd and decide to go our own way. We look around and wonder where the Shepherd went. He is exactly where you left Him. He hasn’t moved; you are the one who has moved.
I have to go through the valley of the shadow of death, or the valley of deep darkness. I walk through, not stop or stay there. I am passing through.
The Shepherd is never threatened by the deep darkness because He has been there and knows how to get through.
No matter how dark a place is, the Shepherd will lead His people through so that they fear no evil, because He is there to protect them, and they are comforted by his weapons.
Darkness represents the unknown and ignorance about something. I used to be ignorant about computers. I didn’t even know how to turn one on. Have you ever been “in the dark” about something? You don’t know why the adverse things that are happening to you are going on. We have all used the expression; “I’m in the dark.”
Light represents understanding and revelation. We have all used the expression, “I’ve seen the light” when we get an understanding of something. We have also seen in cartoons and in the comics a person with a light bulb over his head indicating the light being turned on about something. Now that I have some understanding about computers I am not in the dark about them. There are still some things about computers I don’t know, but as l learn more and more how to use a computer, my understanding increases.
Let’s look at this passage of Scripture:
Psalm 30:5
"For His anger is but for a moment,
His favor is for a lifetime;
Weeping may last for the night,
But a shout of joy comes in the morning." (NASB)
It says that “weeping may last for the night. It’s dark at night right. When circumstances are pressing in on us, things seem like “there is no light at the end of the tunnel,” or it’s our “darkest hour,” we cry out. There is an experience I have read about that has happened to other Christians called “the dark night of the soul.” From what I have read about it, it’s a time when the Lord seems far away for a period of time. The people report that they really don’t know what is going on and are totally confused as to what is happening.
“But a shout of joy comes in the morning.” When it is morning, there is light. We come to the light at the end of the tunnel. The people who experience the “dark night of the soul” report that it’s like the morning light has broken in their lives and they experience fresh and vibrant fellowship with the Lord. There is joy.
We have to trust the Shepherd who is leading us through the unknown.
THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH
What is a “valley?”
A valley is a depression between mountains, a broad plain or plateau, a narrow ravine, or a low terrain.
It used figuratively of an obstacle that must be overcome. (Isaiah 40:4)
It is used figuratively of a grave danger, which one might experience.
It is often used to symbolize and refer to the difficulties of life
Why is “valley” used in this connection?
The path to the higher ground, the path to the higher walk in God, goes through the valley.
In the Christian life we often speak of wanting “to move onto higher ground with God.”
How we long to live above the lowlands of life. We want to get beyond the common crowd, to enter into a more intimate walk with God. We speak of mountaintop experiences and we envy those who have ascended the heights and entered into this more sublime sort of life.
Often we get an erroneous idea about how this takes place. It is as though we imagined we could be “air lifted” onto higher ground. On the rough trail of the Christian life this is not so.
As with ordinary sheep management, so with God’s people, one only gains higher ground by climbing up through the valleys. Every mountain has its valleys which are scarred by deep ravines, gulches, and draws.
Why does the shepherd leads this sheep through the valleys:
The first reason is that the best route to the top is always along the valleys.
Any sheep man familiar with the high country knows this.
It should be notices that the verse states, ”Yea, though I “walk through” the valley of the shadow of death.” It does not say I die there, stop there, go around it, or go under it, but rather “I walk through.”
It is customary to use this verse as a consolation to those who are passing through the dark valley of death. But even here, for the child of God, death is not an end but merely the door into a higher and more exalted life of intimate contact with the Good Shepherd Himself. Death is but the dark valley opening out into an eternity of delight with God. It is not something to fear, but an experience through which one passes on the path to a more perfect life. Unless the lord returns soon and we are caught up in the air to meet Him, we all will go through this valley.
The Good Shepherd knows this, for He passed through this valley Himself. It is one reason why He has told us, “Lo, I am with you always,” even in the valley of death. What a comfort and what a cheer to know this.
For those of us who remain on earth, there is still a life to live here and now. There are still valleys to walk through during our remaining days. These need not be “dead end” streets.
The disappointments; the frustrations; the discouragements; the dilemmas; the difficult days, though they may be shadowed valleys, need not be disasters. They can be the roads to the higher ground in our walk with God. After all, when we pause to think about it a moment, we must realize that even our modern mountain highways follow the valleys to reach the summit of the passes they traverse.
Similarly, the ways of God lead upward through the valleys of our lives. To come to this conviction in the Christian life is to have entered into an attitude of quiet acceptance of every adversity to have moved onto the higher ground with God. Knowing Him in this view and intimate manner makes life more bearable than before.
The second reason the sheep are taken to the mountain tops by the way of the valleys is that this is the way of gentlest grades, but also it is the well watered route.
Here one finds refreshing water all along the way. There are rivers, streams, springs and quiet pools in the deep defiles. The sheep are glad for the frequent watering places along the valley route where
As Christians we will sooner or later discover that it is in the valleys of our lives that we find refreshment from the Good Shepherd Himself. It is not until we have walked with Him through some very deep troubles that we discover He can leads us to find our refreshment in Him there in the midst of our difficulty. For the man or woman who walks with the Shepherd through these valleys such real and actual refreshment is available. We are thrilled beyond words when there comes restoration to our soul and spirits from His own gracious Spirit.
Only those who have been through such dark valleys can console, comfort or encourage others in similar situations. Often we pray or sing hymns requesting to be made an inspiration to someone else. We want instinctively to be a channel of blessing to other lives. The simple fact is that just as water can only flow in a ditch or channel or valley, son in the Christian’s life, the life of God can only flow in blessing through the valleys that have been carved out and cut into our own lives by excruciating experiences. It is only then that you can understand the words of Paul in 2 Corinthians 1:3-7:
“Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort; who comforts us in all our affliction so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God. For just as the sufferings of Christ are ours in abundance, so also our comfort is abundant through Christ. But if we are afflicted, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which is effective in the patient enduring of the same sufferings which we also suffer; and our hope for you is firmly grounded, knowing that as you are sharers of our sufferings, so also you are sharers of our comfort.”
If you do a word study of the word “comfort” it is translated in the Greek “encouragement.”
Re-read this passage and every where the word “comfort” appears, substitute it with “encourage/encouragement.”
It is only the person who has experienced the valleys in their own lives that can truly comfort and encourage another person who is traveling the same valley.
Most of us do not want valleys in our lives. We shrink from them with a sense of fear and foreboding. Yet in spite or our worst misgivings the Shepherd can bring great benefit and lasting benediction to others through these valleys.
Let us not try to avoid the dark things, the distressing days. They may well prove to be the way of greatest refreshment to ourselves and those around us.
A third reason why the rancher chooses to take his flock into the high country by way of the valleys is that this is generally where the richest feed and best forage is to be found along the route.
A shepherd wants to be sure there will not only be water but also the best grazing available for the ewes and their lambs. Generally the choices meadows are in these valleys along the stream banks. Naturally these grassy glades are often on the floor of steep wall canyons and gulches.
There may be towering cliffs above them on either side.
The valley floor itself may be in dark shadow with the sun seldom reaching the bottom except for a few hours. The shepherd knows from past experience that predators like coyotes, bears, wolves or cougars can take cover in these broken cliffs and from their vantage points prey on his flock.
The shepherd knows from past experience that predators like coyotes, bears, wolves or cougars can take cover in these broken cliffs and from their vantage points prey on his flock. He knows these valleys can be subject to sudden storms and flash floods that send walls of water rampaging down the slopes.
Our Shepherd knows all of this when He leads us through the valleys with Himself. He knows where we can find strength, sustenance, and gentle grazing despite every threat of disaster about us. It is a most reassuring and re-enforcing experience to the child of God to discover that there is even in the dark valley a source of strength and courage to be found in God. It is when we he or she can look back over life and see how the Shepherd’s hand has guided and sustained him or her in the darkest hours that renewed faith is engendered. Nothing so stimulates faith in our Heavenly Father than to look back and reflect on His faithfulness in every crisis and every chilling circumstance of life. Over and over He has proved His care and concern for our welfare.
All of this multiples our confidence in Him. It is the spiritual as well as emotional and mental exposure to the storms and adversities of life that puts stamina into our very being. Because he has led us through without fear before, He can do it again and again. In this knowledge fear fades and tranquility of heart and mind takes its place.
Let come what may. Can you say that this very minute in the valley you may be experiencing right now?
Storms may break about me, predators may attack, and the rivers of reverses may threaten to inundate me. But because YAHWEH, the Lord my Shepherd, is in the situation with me right now, I shall not fear.
I SHALL NOT FEAR FOR YOU ARE WITH ME.
Because He is in the situation with me, I shall not fear.
17 times in the Bible the Lord says, “I am with you.” He has said that He will never leave us nor forsake us. I think He has made it quite clear to us. We just need to remember it.
To live this is to have taken some very long treks toward the high country of holy, calm, healthy living with God. Only the Christian who learns to live this way is able to encourage and inspire the weaker ones around him.
Too many of us are shaken up, frightened and panicked by the storms of life. Jesus had said to his disciples to get into a boat and we are going to the other side. After He got into the boat, He went to the back and went to sleep. About half way across the lake, a storm came and the panic-stricken disciples cried for Jesus to save them. Two things we need to remember about this story. One, Jesus had said we are going to the other side. We are “passing through” the lake. Jesus knew the storm was coming and you noticed He still took a nap. Second, the disciples had God Himself there in the boat with them. I don’t think that boat would have sunk with Jesus in it. They didn’t heed what He had said. This is a picture of some our lives. We are panic stricken in the middle of a dark valley, and we have the Shepherd living on the inside of us.
We claim to have confidence in Christ but when the first dark shadows sweep over us and the path we tread looks gloomy we go into a deep slump of despair. Sometimes we just feel like lying down and die. Does this sound like you sometimes? This is not as it should be.
The person with a powerful confidence in the Shepherd; the one who has prove by past experience that God is with him in adversity, the one who walks through life’s dark valley without fear with his head held high, is the one who in turn is a tower of strength and a source of inspiration to others.
There are going to be some valleys in life for all of us. No one is exempt. You can be assured that they are coming. You just don’t know when and where. The Good Shepherd Himself has assured us that:
“In this world we shall have tribulation; but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.”
(John 16:33)
The basic question is not whether we have many or few valleys. It is not whether those valleys are dark or merely dim with shadows.
The question is do I react to the circumstances or respond to them? There is a difference. When are panicking, you are reacting. When you respond, you are not.
How do I go through them?
How do I cope with the calamities that come my way?
With Christ I face them calmly.
With His gracious Spirit to guide me I face them fearlessly.
I know beyond a shadow of a doubt, that He is with me.
I know of a surety that only through them can I possibly travel on to higher ground with God.
In this way not only shall I be blessed but in turn I will become a benediction to others around me who may live in fear.
“Thy Rod and Thy Staff They Comfort Me”
Here is another good reason to not fear when I go through the valley of the shadow of death.
His rod and His staff comfort me.
His Word and His Spirit comfort me.
THE SHEPHERD’S ROD
When the shepherd is in the field with his flock in the high country, it is customary for him to carry a minimum of equipment.
This was especially true in olden times where the sheepman did not have the benefit of mechanized equipment to transport camp supplies across rough country.
During the hours that he is actually in the field the sheepman caries only a rifle slung over his shoulder and a long slender staff in his hand.
In the Middle East the shepherd carries only a rod and staff.
The rod is an extension of the owner’s own right arm
It stood as a symbol of his strength, his power; his authority in any serious situation.
The rod was what he relied on to safeguard both himself and his flock in danger. It was the instrument he used to discipline and correct any wayward sheep that insisted on wandering away.
There is an interesting sidelight on the word “rod,” which has crept into the colloquial language of the West. Here the slang term “rod” has been applied to handguns, such as pistols and revolvers that were carried by cowboys and other western rangemen.
The connotation is exactly the same as that used in this Psalm.
The sheep asserts that the owner’s rod, his weapon of power, authority and defense, is a continuous comfort to him. For with it the manager or shepherd is able to carry out effective control of his flick in every situation.
The rod speaks of the spoken Word, the expressed intent, the extended activity of God’s mind and will in dealing with men.
It implies the authority of divinity
It carries with it the convicting power and irrefutable impact of “Thus saith the Lord.”
Just as for the sheep of David’s day, there was comfort and consolation is seeing the rod in the shepherd’s skillful hands, so in our day there is great assurance in our own hearts as we contemplate the power, veracity, and potent authority vested in God’s Word. For in it, the Scriptures are His rod. They are the extension of His mind and will and intentions to mortal man.
Living as we do in an era when numerous confused voices and strange philosophies are presented to people, it is reassuring to the child of God to turn to the Word of God and know it to be His Shepherd’s hand of authority. What a comfort to have this authoritative, clear-cut, powerful instrument under which to conduct ourselves. By it we are kept from confusion amid chaos.
This in itself brings into our lives a great sense of quiet serenity, which is precisely what the psalmist meant when he said, “thy rod comforts me.”
There is a second dimension in which the rod is used by the shepherd for the welfare of the sheep-namely that of discipline.
If anything, the rod is used for this purpose perhaps more than any other.
It is the Word of God that comes swiftly to our hearts that comes with surprising suddenness to correct and reprove us when we go astray.
It is the Spirit of the living God, using the living Word that convicts our conscience of right conduct.
In this way we are kept under control by Christ, who wants us to walk in the ways of righteousness.
Another interesting use of the rod in the shepherd’s hand was to examine and count sheep.
In the terminology of the Old Testament this was referred to as passing “under the rod.” (Ezekiel 20:37)
This meant not only coming under the owner’s control and authority, but also to be subject to his most careful, intimate and firsthand examination. A sheep that passed “under the rod” was one that had been counted and looked over with great care to make sure all was well with it.
In caring for his sheep, the good shepherd, the careful manager, will from time to time make a careful examination of each individual sheep.
As each animal comes out of the corral and through the gate it is stopped by the shepherd’s outstretched rod.
He opens the fleece with the rod; he runs his skillful hands over the body; he feels for any sign of trouble; he examines the sheep with care to see that all is well. This is a most searching process entailing every intimate detail. It is, too, a comfort to the sheep for only in this way can its hidden problems be laid bare before the shepherd.
Psalm 139:23-24 reads, “Search me, O God, and know my heart; try me, and know my thoughts; and see it there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”
It we allow it, if we will submit to it, God by His Word will search us. There will be no “pulling the wool over His eyes.” He will get below the surface, behind the front of our old self-life and expose things that need to be made right.
This is a process from which we need not shrink. It is not something to avoid.
It is done in concern and compassion for our welfare. The Great Shepherd of our souls has our own best interests at heart when He so searches us. What a comfort this should be to the child of God, who can trust in God’s care
Wool in Scripture speaks of the self-life, self-will, and self-assertion, self-pride. God has to get below this and do a deep work in our wills to right the wrongs, which are often bothering us beneath the surface. So often we put on a fine front and brave, bold exterior when really deep down below there needs to be some remedy applied.
Finally the shepherd’s rod is an instrument of protection both for himself and his sheep when they are in danger.
It is used both as a defense and a deterrent against anything that would attack. The skilled shepherd uses his rod to drive off predators. Often it is used to beat the brush discouraging snakes and other creatures from disturbing the flock.
It was the rod of God’s Word that Christ, our Good Shepherd, used in His own encounter with that serpent, Satan, during His desert temptation. It is the same Word of God that we can count on again and again to counter the assaults and attacks of Satan.
There is no substitute for the Scriptures in coping with the complexities of our social order. We live in an evermore involved and difficult milieu. We are part of a world of men and women whose code of conduct is contrary to all that Christ has advocated. To live with such people is to be ever exposed to enormous temptations of all sorts. Some people are very subtle, very smooth, very sophisticated. Others are capable of outright, violent, vituperative attacks against the children of God.
In every situation and under every circumstance there is comfort in the knowledge that God’s Word can meet and master the difficulty if well rely on it.
THE SHEPHERD’S STAFF
In a sense the staff, more than any other item of his personal equipment, identifies the shepherd as a shepherd. No one in any other profession carries a shepherd’s staff.
It is uniquely an instrument used for the care and management of sheep, and only sheep. It is used for their benefit.
The staff is essentially a symbol of the concern, the compassion that a shepherd has for his charges. No other single word can better describe its function on behalf of the flock than that it is for their comfort.
Whereas the rod conveys the concept of “authority”, the power, of discipline, of defense against danger, the word “staff” speaks of all that is longsuffering and kind.
The shepherd’s staff is normally a long, slender stick, often with a crook or hood on one end. The owner selects it with care; it is shaped, smoothed, and cut to best suit his own personal use.
Just as the rod of God is emblematic of the Word of God, so the staff of God is symbolic of the Spirit of God.
In Christ’s dealings with us as individuals, there is the essence of the sweetness, the comfort and consolation, the gentle correction brought about by the work of His gracious Spirit.
There are three areas of sheep management in which the staff plays a most significant role.
The first of these lies in drawing sheep together into an intimate relationship.
The shepherd will use his staff to gently lift a newborn lamb and bring it to its mother if they become separated. He does this because he does not wish to have the ewe reject her offspring if it bears the odor of his hands upon it.
Secondly, in precisely the same way, the staff is used by the shepherd to reach out and catch individual sheep, young or old, and draw them closer to him for intimate examination. The staff is very useful this way for the shy and timid sheep that normally tend to keep at a distance from the shepherd.
Similarly, in the Christian life we find the gracious Holy Spirit, “The Comforter,” drawing folks together into a warm, personal fellowship with one another. It is He who draws us to Christ.
Thirdly, the staff is also used for guiding sheep.
The shepherd uses his staff to guide his sheep gently into a new path or through some gate or along dangerous, difficult routes. He does not use it actually to beat the sheep. Rather, the tip of the long slender stick is laid gently against the animal’s side and the pressure applied guides the sheep in the way the owner wants to go. Thus the sheep is reassured of its proper path.
Sometimes a shepherd will actually hold his staff against the side of some sheep that is a special pet or favorite, simply so the they “are in touch.” They will walk along this way almost as though it were “hand-in-hand.” The sheep obviously enjoys this special attention from the shepherd and revels in the close, personal, intimate contact between them.
In our walk with God we are told explicitly by Christ Himself that it would be His Spirit who would be sent to guide us and to lead us into all truth. (John 16:13)
This same gracious Spirit takes the truth of God, the Word of God, and makes it plain to our hearts and minds and spiritual understanding. It is He who gently, tenderly, but persistently says to us, “This is the way, walk in it.” As we comply and cooperate with His gentle promptings, a sense of safety, comfort and well-being envelopes us.
It is He, too, who comes quietly but emphatically to make the life of Christ, my Shepherd, real and personal and intimate to me. Through Him I am “in touch” with Christ. There steals over me the keen awareness that I am His and He is mine. The gracious Spirit continually brings home to me the acute consciousness that I am God’s child and He is my Father.
In all of this there is enormous comfort and a sublime sense of “oneness,” of “belonging,” of “being in His care,” and hence the object of His special affection.
The Christian life is not just one of subscribing to certain doctrines or believing certain facts.
Essential as all of this confidence in the Scriptures may be, there is, as well, the actual reality of experiencing and knowing firsthand the feel of His touch, the sense of His Spirit upon my spirit.
There is for the true child of God that intimate, subtle, yet magnificent experience of sensing the Comforter at his side. This is not imagination, it s the genuine, bona-fide reality of everyday life.
There is a calm, quiet repose in the knowledge that He is there to direct even in the most minute details of daily living.
He can be relied on to assist us in every decision, and in this there lies tremendous comfort for the Christian.
“What would You do in this case?”
“You are here now. You know all the complexities; tell me precisely what it the best procedure at this point?”
He will actually convey the mind of Christ in the matter. The right decisions are made with confidence.
It is when I do not do this that I end up in difficulty. It is then that I find myself in a jam of some sort.
Here again the gracious Spirit comes to my rescue just as the shepherd rescues his sheep out of the situations into which their own stupidity leads them. Being stubborn creatures, sheep often get into the most ridiculous and preposterous dilemmas. Many of our jams and impasses are of our own making. In stubborn, self-willed, self-assertion we keep pushing ourselves into a situation where we cannot extricate ourselves.
Then in tenderness, compassion and care our Shepherd comes to us. He draws near and in tenderness lifts us by His Spirit out of the difficulty a dilemma.
What patience God has with us!
What longsuffering and compassion!
What forgiveness!
Thy staff comforts me! Your Spirit, O Christ, Is my consolation!
Where are you right now? In the valley? Somewhere in the dark? Or are you coming to the light at the end of the tunnel?
This part of the teaching is a last minute inspiration from the Holy Spirit. I was really to publish this on the blog when I read the following which is taken from a devotional I read every morning.
The name of the devotional is “Breakfast With God” published by Honor Books Inc in Tulsa Oklahoma.
Heroic spiritual moments are nearly always grounded in advance preparation. Moses grew up in Pharaoh’s court, unknowingly being prepared for the day he would demand that Pharaoh let his people leave Egypt. Moses also spent 40 years in the wilderness.
Daniel was a man of prayer years before the king issued a decree banning prayer. The violation landed Daniel in a lion’s den, where his prayers of protection were answered.
David was part of Saul’s royal court and married to Saul’s daughter. This was part of his preparation for assuming the throne one day. The years, approximately 17, he spent in the wilderness prepared him spiritually to trust God, and God alone, to preserve him, protect him, and help him rule an empire.
Esther prepared herself for a year before she won the “contest” to be queen. She prepared herself again before boldly coming to the king to expose the enemy of her people.
You may not see clearly what God’s purpose is for your life, but you can trust in the fact He is preparing your life. He will not waste a moment of your life. So make every relationship and experience count today, knowing He is grooming you for greatness.
As I was reading this, what came to my mind was the fact that He will lead us into the valleys of the shadow of death, death to self. This is part of the preparation process. Every Christian will be lead through these valleys. You will not be the same person when you exit the valley. Something will have died. God is the one who determines which valley and how long. Go through it knowing that the Good Shepherd is what He said He will do in Philippians 1:6:
“For I am confident of this very thing, that He who began a good work in you will perfect it until the day of Christ Jesus. “ (NASB)
