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Morning Devotional...

WALKING IN THE OLD PATHS Jeremiah 6:16 By the late Jack Scott 7.  The Shepherd Psalm-- Part (i)

What do you think is the most loved portion of Holy Scripture? It may well be that great Gospel verse "For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." (John 3:16). Thousands of children over the centuries have learned it at their mother's knee. I know I did and so did my children. What a wonderful statement it is. Many people down through the ages, since the Lord Jesus spoke these words, have received the peace and joy of eternal life through realizing their truth.

Perhaps one day I shall write an article on this grand old theme. But not today. Instead I want us to focus our attention on another great passage of scripture, almost as well loved, and dear to many since David, the shepherd king, was inspired by the Holy Spirit to write its lovely words. The portion of the scripture to which I refer is, as you will probably have guessed from my title, the twenty-third Psalm:

"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth 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 thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever."

A jewel is best appreciated in all its sparkling beauty when it is viewed against the setting chosen for it by a skilled artisan. This brilliant gem is no different in this respect although more precious than all the world's lovely stones. What then is the setting chosen for this rare and beautiful rock of divine comfort? Well on the one side we have a prophetic picture of the Shepherd on the cross. See for example, Psalm 22:16-18. This is indeed an example of crucifixion written long before the awful death of crucifixion was invented by wicked minds. On the other side in Psalm 24, we are given a view of our Lord Jesus Christ Our Great Shepherd in His present glory and coming kingdom.

An old Irish preacher, James Irvine of Newcastle, Co. Down, used to explain it this way... "In Psalm 22, we see the Shepherd on the cross dying for His sheep. In Psalm 23, we have the[ Shepherd with His crook in his hand defending His sheep while in Psalm 24 we have the Shepherd with the crown on His head ruling His kingdom."

There is one who died for His people and now lives to reign eternally on the throne of the universe and I can call Him "My Shepherd". Is there anything more lovely, more comforting, more reassuring than this? If we bear this in mind as we study the depths and delights of the "beloved Psalm", its intrinsic value will be appreciated more and more.

Let us first look at the Person of the Shepherd.
Who is He, what is His character and what are His attributes? This world and the universe of which it forms a part had a beginning somewhere in the ancient past. This Shepherd of whom the Psalm speaks, entered this world of beginnings, yet He had no beginning. John's gospel, chapter 1 tells us that in the beginning was the Word. That is, when everything that had a beginning, began, He already existed. He goes on to inform us that the Word was God and was with God and then, Oh glorious truth, we learn that "the Word became flesh and dwelt among us." (John 1:14).

Mary was given the inestimable privilege of becoming the virgin mother of the humanity of our Lord, but in His eternal being as deity, He had no mother, no birth, no beginning. He always was and is the second person of the Godhead. He is also "My Shepherd." He is and always has been absolute in holiness, unlimited in knowledge, power and glory. Yet if we are of His flock, we can say with full confidence, "The Lord is My Shepherd."

When our Lord walked upon the green hills of Israel in the days of His flesh, He said, "I am the good Shepherd: the good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep." (John 10:14). This is why it is so appropriate that the Shepherd Psalm is placed directly after a Psalm which prophesied the awful events of Mount Calvary.

You see, my dear friends, we cannot claim the wonderful blessings of the Shepherd Psalm unless, we have trusted Him in His life-giving death and are thereby counted among His sheep. The words of the Lord Jesus Christ as recorded in John's Gospel, 10:26-30 are very important.

"But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand. I and My Father are one."

Have you believed in Him as your personal Saviour and Lord? He does not call on us to place our faith in anyone other than Himself. He does not tell us to hope in the apostles or any other persons, no matter how holy, blessed and exalted they may be. It is He who has loved us unto death. It is He who has borne our sins and carried our sorrows. It is only He who saves us from sin and to such as trust the good Shepherd, He gives eternal life, and they shall never perish.

Even if there were no other blessing to be found in Christ, this by itself would be wonderful news for sinners. Yet there are a multitude of blessings in store for all who come to Him for salvation from the penalty and the power of sin.

Many years ago, Thomas Kelly wrote a fine hymn which very nicely expresses the wonderful work that the Lord Jesus Christ accomplished in His role as "The Good Shepherd."




Can you honestly say, "The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want" for time and for eternity?

God willing we will continue our study in Psalm 23 next week as we examine some of the blessings we can experience in Him on life's path.

---

Jack Scott loved his Lord! He passed away on January 10, 2001 after a lengthy illness.
He is missed greatly by his family.

Man....I didn't even get a groan for the Sadducee joke yesterday     Guess, I'll have to try harder, next time

Pat, looks like you gave me some more reading...thanks

Awesome reading. Some of what's written about I never knew, like the Psalms before and after the 23rd. I'll have to take a closer look.

I can say "The Lord is My Shepherd", I would not be able to make it through a day without Him.  I would probable be in an I love me jacket in a rubber room. But thanks to God I am not and I can keep going.

Wonderful words of encouragement, Thanks!

Blessings,
<><Jeannine

Quote from: ohenry on August 11, 2006, 12:05:49 AMMan....I didn't even get a groan for the Sadducee joke yesterday

GROAN:  From a grown man.

haha Ed...thanks....I think.


Pat, beautiful words from Jack and so very true.  He is not just our Lord when things are not going well.  He is our lord every moment of every day and the more we remember that, the closer we can be with Him. 

Jeannine...maybe they need to get a "I love Jesus" jacket, where the arms are outstretched to Heaven rather than around ourselves

I didn't get back in here after posting in the wee hours.  Sorry about that.  I did a load of laundry and spruced up the house a bit for Kitty to come over.  She brought their GPS.  It was a later version than mine was brand new so I didn't update it....just put in maps from my map software...only 64mb.  But now they can drive all over Indiana, around St. Louis, around Bay City, TX and Myrtle Beach with detailed maps.  Kitty was amazed that it showed all the streets and two restaurants in Lapel now!  And she didn't know the screen had a light on it.  She discovered lots of things.

Well, today I am baking cookies and making Baked Beans...not together!!!  Tomorrow is our FROGGS reunion back in the woods.  FROGGS stands for Friends and Relatives Of Grandma and Grandpa Stevenson...my parents.  Last year was the first annual so that makes this year the second annual...   It is raining today but suppose to be sunny and clear tomorrow.  Nothing back in the woods but a sitting area around the fire pit but it is so peaceful and quiet.  If you click on my name you can see my house where the arrow is and the woods at the bottom of the map. 

And at noon tomorrow is the 60 Chix luncheon...girls from my 1960 high school class...at Subway in Lapel.  Shouldn't take very long for that.

Today is my g-nephew, Aaron's, birthday.  His parents were told by a doctor that he wouldn't live past four years of age.  He is 29 today.  And a joy for everyone to be around.  He never meets a stranger. 

"When we have nothing left but God, we'll find that God is enough."

Good Morning,

Be back later

Goodmorning:   
Pat: Thanks for the Devotional I hope that I remember to save Jack's messages for later reading. Presently my printer is running low on ink and the local stores are sold out.

I was out yesterday and had lunch with a fellow bus driver that will be away from the job for a yr. as she has a new baby on the way. When I was almost home I could count 3 drops of rain and yes I think that is all we got. 

I just come in from getting some vegies from my tiny garden but I will be going out later with a book just to enjoy the wonderful day.

Ruth

Quote from: Ed on August 11, 2006, 09:23:17 AM

Quote from: ohenry on August 11, 2006, 12:05:49 AMMan....I didn't even get a groan for the Sadducee joke yesterday

GROAN:  From a grown man.

Groan.

I  am off to work now. Later I am taking my next door neighbor and er elderly mother to the county fair in Ferndale. Yes I am taking my camera/ Ferndale is a Victorian  town.

To Carl...


GROAN...

I just got this email from my friend Mike.  He's in Syria but is in touch with the Baptist Minister as follows:


Friends;

Please pray for Pastor Najib Khouy and the Marjayoun Baptist Church which is located in 'Burj alMuluk' a neigbouring village! The Israeli Army has moved into Marjayoun and there is presently a fierce battle going on with the Hezbollah who are in the city of Khiam across the plain. I talked to the Pastor today and he said that they have faced the worst battles since the war has started. Many people are leaving the area. However, Rev. Khoury with around 25 other people is staying in the basement of the church.  He said, "We don't plan on leaving. We are staying right where we are until God makes it clear that he wants us to leave". 



Please pray for their protection. We have been able to send some money to help them during this critical time. More help is needed though. Do not forget our fellow brothers and sisters during the most dangerous time of this war.



Yours in Christ



Michael

QuoteJeannine...maybe they need to get a "I love Jesus" jacket, where the arms are outstretched to Heaven rather than around ourselves

Cool, sign me up for one of them. It is all about Jesus anyways.
Have a great day.

Blessings,
<><Jeannine

I'm just running through right now.  For all of you that we're praying for Steve, the guy from dpc that was missing, he has been found.  His car broke down in the desert and when he went to the gas station, they recognized him.  He is healthy, but they took him to the hospital as a precautionary measure.

God is good!!!

Praise The Lord. God is so good all the time.

Wonderful news!  I have been wondering how the search was going but lost the link to the discussion on DPC.  I was just coming here to ask about him.  God is SOOOOO GOOD!!   

QuotePat wrote: Please pray for Pastor Najib Khouy and the Marjayoun Baptist Church

Prayers have been offered up..... My thoughts are with them.

Hi folks, computers down at work today, been a busy Friday. Just now getting in here.  We are getting my daughter settled into her dorm room for fall classes. She is a freshman and is planning on going into Youth Ministry. I am proud of her. Please pray for her educational growth as well as her spiritual growth.  She is truly one chosen by God, to do His work.

My wife and I will have the empty nest for the first time in 30 years...... WOW ! 

Awwwww....    Rob, I know how you feel.  When my youngest got married and left our home, we sure had the empty nest syndrome and then when Jack died and went home to Glory, I was indeed very lonely.

I will be praying for your daughter.

I like your new picture Pat. It's been a long time since you changed your photo.

I haven't done much since I came home from work, all I did was take the dogs for their walk and go to the store. Tomorrow is house cleaning day for my house.

One of my neighbors wants to start walking with me, we will start tomorrow she will take Happy and I will take Bebe. I will start her off with a short walk.  I don't think she can keep up with me just yet as she has some  knee issues. This is the neighbor that gives me the veggies from her garden.

Later gators

Quote from: Marilyn on August 11, 2006, 10:21:36 AM"When we have nothing left but God, we'll find that God is enough."

Thanks for the great quote.  It is so-oo true.

Thanks Marilyn.

I was just looking through some photos taken at the Christian Transportation Conference here in Guelph and this is one that Gord Brown took of me so thought it might be nice for a change.

More reading for you to do, Carl!

I thought I'd put in part 2 of Jack's "Shepherd's Psalm" for the Friday and Saturday.

Here's a link for you all