Advent Day 12 A Shepherd’s Heart: Digging Deeper

Digging Deeper Days
Finding the original intent of Scripture and making good application to our everyday lives as we become equipped to correctly handle the Word of Truth!
The Questions
1) Who is the shepherd?
2) Who is the recipient of the shepherd’s care?
3) What does the shepherd provide?
Psalm 23:1
“The LORD is my shepherd. I have what I need.”
Original Intent
1) Who is the shepherd?
The psalmist begins by acknowledging that it is the Lord who continually provides all he needs. “The LORD … is my shepherd.” The image of a shepherd suggests the writer is considering himself to be a sheep under the care of the Lord, the genuinely good shepherd. The psalmist expands the metaphor in the following verses of the chapter and describes how the Lord is like a shepherd to him. Each verse is packed with images about the shepherd’s character and care. Bible translation notes offer us insight into the Hebrew language used in the verse. “The imperfect verbal form is best understood as generalizing; the psalmist highlights his typical or ongoing experience as a result of having the Lord as his shepherd (habitual present use).” (netbible.org) The Lord provided constant care to His servant, David. In verse 6, David says to his Lord and shepherd, “Only goodness and faithful love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord as long as I live.” (Psalm 23:6) This shepherd of David is the same God who passed in front of Moses displaying His glory, “The LORD came down in a cloud, stood with him there, and proclaimed His name, ‘the LORD.’ The LORD passed in front of him and proclaimed: The LORD—the LORD is a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and abounding in faithful love and truth, maintaining faithful love to a thousand generations, forgiving iniquity, rebellion, and sin.” (Exodus 34:6-7) This is the One to whom the people of Israel sang when the ark of God was returned. David himself was leaping and dancing before the Lord in celebration of Who He is, “Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; His love endures forever.” (1 Chronicles 16:7-18 34-36)
2) Who is the recipient of the shepherd’s care?
Psalm 23 is a “psalm of David.” This same David was the people’s unlikely choice for king of God’s people. (1 Samuel 16:10-13) Theologian, Charles Spurgeon, said of the psalmist and songwriter, “I like to recall the fact that this psalm was written by David, probably when he was a king. He had been a shepherd, and he was not ashamed of his former occupation. When he had to wear a crown, he remembered the time when he had handled the shepherd’s crook, and as a lad, with his sling and stone, had kept watch over his father’s sheep in the wilderness.” (www.spurgeongems.org) Being a shepherd was a familiar role for David. He had cared for his father’s sheep as a youth. As a shepherd, he knew the constant watchfulness it took to be a faithful and protective shield for the sheep in his care. (1 Samuel 17:12-15, 34-35) As David’s shepherd, the Lord provided him with peace, even when he was pursued by enemies. (Psalm 23:4-5) As Rebekah stated yesterday, “When the going got tough and trial upon trial came up, David repeatedly relied upon the One whom He referred to as ‘The Lord, my Shepherd’. King David understood that his position, a God-given one, was a position of being under God’s protection even as he lived in anticipation of the ultimate Shepherd, King Jesus.” Shepherding was considered a noble occupation for the Israelites before the social shift began with Egyptian prejudice toward them. (Genesis 46:33-34) Still, most shepherds never became kings, and most kings had never been shepherds. God gave David a unique perspective as the shepherd-king.
3) What does the shepherd provide?
Sheep are vulnerable animals for several reasons. Most of us understand they are susceptible to predators because they are defenseless creatures. They have many natural predators in the wild, but those who care for them tell us sheep are their own worst enemy. They have a natural tendency to wander off and get lost. When they stray, they put themselves in danger of being lost, attacked, and even becoming disoriented to the point of tragically killing themselves by drowning or falling off cliffs. The shepherd’s job is an offensive and defensive one. He guides the sheep to places that will provide for their needs, while being constantly on guard to protect them from prowling enemies. (Psalm 23:2-4) As a king with enemies, David faced many days of fear and worry. Several of his psalms reflect his human emotional turmoil and suffering. It was a natural response for him to have dread and anxiety when his life was in danger. Yet, time and again, David took his fears to his God, the Good Shepherd. He resolved in his heart to trust the God he had come to personally know and trust, the One Who was faithful and generous in love. (Psalm 13)
Everyday Application
1) Who is the shepherd?
As our Shepherd, the Lord provides us all with His personal care, direction, protection and presence. When David declared the Lord as His shepherd, he was acknowledging the connection he had with God. As we read through the Old Testament books, we find that the relationship God had with His people dynamically shifted when Jesus came to earth as a man to bring us nearer to Him. Yet, even the patriarch Jacob had a comprehension of the shepherding heart of God. When he blessed his grandsons, he spoke of the “God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day.” (Genesis 48:13-16) The prophet Isaiah also referred to the coming Messiah as a shepherd. (Isaiah 40:9-11) As our gracious and gentle shepherd, God revealed His good news at night to a group of men in a field caring for their flock. How beautiful it is that the angel announcing the birth of the Christ appeared to shepherds! Years ago, I sang a chorus with these words: “Gentle Shepherd, come and lead us, for we need You to help us find our way. Gentle Shepherd, come and feed us for we need your strength from day to day. There’s no other we can turn to who can help us face another day. Gentle Shepherd, come and lead us, for we need to you to help us find our way.” Friend, during the season of Advent (when we prepare for the celebration of Christ’s coming), we can worship our Good Shepherd with joy and thanksgiving. The One who chased after David also pursues us with His goodness and mercy, which He will continue to do all the days of our lives. (Psalm 23:6)
2) Who is the recipient of the shepherd’s care?
Like others in the ancestry of the Christ child, David was an unlikely pick to be king of Israel. When Samuel anointed him, David had yet to defeat Goliath and establish war strategies. But, sister, who doesn’t love a good underdog story? As usual, God chose to lead His people in unexpected ways by calling on a young shepherd boy. As a shepherd himself, David was able to savor the sweetness of having a personal shepherd. He understood the implications of the imagery in the verses in Psalm 23. He said of God, “the Lord is MY shepherd.” Although the prophet Nathan shared a vision with David about his future (2 Samuel 7), I am doubtful that David fully comprehended his part in the fulfillment of the Messiah’s coming. His name would be forever inscribed in the greatest story of all time. “Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family line of David, to be registered along with Mary, who was engaged to him and was pregnant. While they were there, the time came for her to give birth. Then she gave birth to her firstborn son …” (Luke 2:4-7, emphasis mine) To all who call on the name of Jesus, we too become recipients of the Good Shepherd’s goodness and mercy. Oh come, friend. Let us adore Him. “Now may the God of peace, who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus—the great Shepherd of the sheep—through the blood of the everlasting covenant, equip you with everything good to do his will, working in us what is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever.” (Hebrews 13:20-21, emphasis mine)
3) What does the shepherd provide?
David was acutely aware of his own need for a shepherd as evidenced in his gut-honest psalms. Only God could fully supply everything he needed. Jesus said we are all in the same condition of need, both spiritually and emotionally. What comfort during this Advent season to know that it is precisely our need that leads us to find the source of our lasting joy. (Matthew 5:3-5) Charles Spurgeon said that to know the Lord as our shepherd, we must first understand our own wandering nature, “for he cannot know that God is his Shepherd unless he feels in himself that he has the nature of a sheep.” (Spurgeon.org) I recognize how I am prone to wander away. Thank You, Father, for sending Jesus to us. Sweet sister, He is our only hope!
“In the process, in the waiting, You’re making melodies over me. / And Your presence is the promise, for I am a pilgrim on a journey / You will lift my head above the mighty waves; / You are able to keep me from stumbling. / And in my weakness, / You are the strength that comes from within. / Good Shepherd of my soul, take my hand and lead me on. / You make my footsteps and my path secure, so walking on water is just the beginning. / Cause my faith to arise, stand at attention, for You are / calling me to greater things. / Oh how I love You, how I love You! / You have not forsaken me. / Oh how I love You, how I love You! / With You is where I want to be.”
(Shepherd by Amanda Falk)
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1) Take this passage (or any other passage).
2) Read it, and the verses around it,
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3) Write down your questions
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4) Ask specific culture related questions and be ready to dig around for your answers. Google them, use www.studylight.org, or look them up in a study Bible and read the footnotes (click on the little letters next to a word and it will show you
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Why Dig Deeper?
Finding the original meaning is a huge deal when we study Scripture and can make all the difference in our understanding as we apply God’s truths to our everyday lives.
In our modern-day relationships, we want people to understand our original intention as we communicate; how much more so between God and humanity?!
Here’s a little bit more on why we take Digging Deeper so seriously.
Study Tools
We love getting help while we study and www.studylight.org is one of many excellent resources, providing the original Hebrew (Old Testament) or Greek (New Testament) with an English translation.
Want to know more about a specific word in a verse? Click on “Strong’s Interlinear Bible” then click the word you’d like to study. Discover “origin”, “definition” and hear the original pronunciation – That Is Awesome!
Want more background? Click “Study Tools”, then pick a few commentaries to read their scholarly approach, keeping in mind that just because a commentary says it, doesn’t mean it’s true. (just like the internet :-))
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