The Fear of The Lord Leads to Life

 

One thing our culture has lacked recently is the fear of God. A healthy and reverent perception of God coupled with a desire to trust Him and an action toward pleasing Him in the way one lives his or her life is tantamount to escaping the clutches of fear.
The Proverb says that the fear of the Lord leads to life. This does not mean that when one fears the Lord that there will be no affliction in his life or that there will be no evil in the world. It means that God will preserve, protect, and establish a person while he walks through the valley of the shadow of death (Psalm 23) . Take this promise and find comfort in the Lord.
“But the Lord is faithful. He will establish you and guard you against the evil one.” – 2 Thessalonians 3:3 Again, it is not an end to evil, but the preservation of one’s soul through the circumstances that God provides relief.

God gives peace that the world cannot give. (John 16:33) But we must trust in Him that He atoned for our sin on the cross and that rose from the dead. (Romans 10:9-13)

How does one rest satisfied? By trusting in the Lord who controls all things. He is sovereign and there is no virus or riot, or injustice that can overcome the hand of God. He parted the Red Sea and He raised the dead on multiple occasions throughout human history.
Take this promise in Daniel, “all the inhabitants of the earth are accounted as nothing, and he does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, “What have you done?” – Daniel 4:35

Take courage today and hold on to the promises of God. He will never leave nor forsake those who fear Him and trust Him. And God will avenge one day all who have done wrong. Fear not neither be dismayed.

Our prayer should be for God to grant faith and repentance to the people of America and the world. And that Jesus would return soon and glorify His people.

Praise God! Come Lord Jesus!

Psalm 23:3 He Restores For His Name’s Sake

He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake-Psalm 23:3

“The consolations of the Holy Spirit are the still waters by which the saints are led; the streams which flow from the Fountain of living waters. Those only are led by the still waters of comfort, who walk in the paths of righteousness…in these paths we cannot walk, unless God lead us into them, and lead us on in them.” (1)

When God gives rest He is also giving  the soul something more: the restoration of the soul. This seems to be the quickening Spirit of God exerting His divine power into the actual life of a man’s soul. His soul, or spirit, is his inner existence, his true and real man. It is the seat of his emotion, intellect, and will. His true and real man was dead in sins and the iniquity of transgressions. But when the Shepherd came along and restored his soul, he came to life! If the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed (John 8:32) . The prayer of every man’s heart should be, “Shepherd, restore my soul!” 

When the sheep would come back to the sheep pen after grazing in the green pastures, the shepherd would be there to count them in and to inspect their bodies for any signs of harm. They may have been pricked by thorns or thistles. They may have been bitten by insects or venomous creatures. They may have a laceration or gash in their flesh and the shepherd will discover this and mend its wounds. The shepherd restores them back to health. 

To have one’s soul restored is difficult to precisely compare to anything in our natural world. Because God does the supernatural to restore it! He waters the soul with His word. He quickens the soul with His Spirit. He invigorates the soul with passion and strength. He gives the soul vision for the future and a determined resolve to continue on despite difficult or troublesome circumstances. 

Why does He lead in paths of righteousness? For His name’s sake. It is simple to gloss over this idea of His name’s sake. But the cosmos was spoken into existence for His name’s sake. Man fell into sin and death, that the Shepherd would be given over to death and rise again, for His name’s sake. Genesis to Revelation are for His name’s sake. There is no life apart from God. Life itself exists for His name’s sake. His name’s sake is the primary reason that God wills and acts in the ways that He does. He does so that all may praise and honor His name. Listen to this passage from Isaiah 48:11, “For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.” God will not give his glory to another, meaning not to competing rivals. God will share His glory with His own who are washed in His blood and purified by His soul restoring Spirit. But He will not yield His glory unto idols, adversaries, or wayward sinners who refuse to come to Him for forgiveness and the righteousness of Jesus Christ.

Let us not forget that His name is holy. His ways are just. His love is true. And His mercy endures forever. It is this very God, this very shepherd, who leads me in paths of righteousness. 

What are paths of righteousness? It is the way that is right. It is the way of truth. He guards us from the path of ruin and places us in a position to travel in the right direction, His direction. “This God-his way is perfect; the word of the LORD proves true; he is a shield for all those who take refuge in him. “- Psalm 18:30 As Albert Barnes says, “He conducts me in the straight path that leads to Himself.” The path does not lead to an earthly happiness that is apart from God. The path is found in God and He at this path’s end. To find God is to find true happiness and joy made complete in Him. “And these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.”-John 17:13

Before we are set on the path of righteousness we must know our position before God in Christ. 

Some world views teach that men must be righteous in their actions in order to become righteous before God. The biblical worldview is that there is none righteous (Romans 3:10, 23) and that we must be declared righteous in order to do righteousness. “The just shall live by faith”-Romans 1:17. Hence, the glorious truth of the Christian faith alone is that we become righteous not by our own deeds, but by the deeds of someone else, Jesus Christ. And the way in which we become righteous because of Jesus is by grace through faith. Grace is God’s unmerited favor toward chosen sinners. Faith is the instrument that God uses to unite the repentant and believing sinner to Christ and to His benefits. The best place to find this truth is in Genesis 15:6, “And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness.” Here God makes a threefold promise to Abraham: a land, a nation of people, and a Seed. Notice, Abraham does not obey God to be counted as righteous. Rather, Abraham believes God to be counted as righteous. The Apostle Paul expands upon this passage in Romans 4:9 when he says, “Is this blessing then only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness.” Paul begins with Abraham and proves that believers who shall come after Abraham are counted righteous in the same way that Abraham was. “For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith.” – Romans 4:13 “ But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord, (Romans 4:23-24) “. This righteousness of God comes to believers by way of “imputation”. It is a crediting term often used in courts of law and in the world of financing. It basically means to charge something to someone’s account. Here is how the redemption of God’s people is played out in God’s courtroom: Jesus is declared a sinner, though righteous. We are declared righteous, though sinners. In essence, He is declared guilty and condemned to die. We are declared righteous, forgiven, and are set free from sin and death, to live forever declared righteous because of Jesus. This is the teaching of justification by faith. He leads me in paths of righteousness. This is our starting point in God. Once declared righteous in Jesus, we are now free to love and do righteousness not to become righteous, but because we are righteous. “For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith, as it is written, “The righteous shall live by faith.” Romans 1:17 (ESV)

There is a positional righteousness that we just spoke of. There is also a progressive righteousness. Once we are positioned in Christ Jesus because of Jesus, we must now be made like Christ Jesus for Jesus. God may do this in a believer in one day or in 70 seventy years. His goal is that we may be righteous as He is righteous. That we may be full and content in him.  Doing what is right regardless of the consequences is also an example of being led in paths of righteousness. Doing the will of God, sharing the Gospel with those that have never heard, living a godly life in Christ, making disciples of the nations, loving your family, ministering to the needy and afflicted, are each examples of walking the path and being led by the Spirit in paths of righteousness. The more we walk with Him, abiding in Him, the more we become like Him realizing that He has been living through us. “It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me”-Galatians 2:20

The voice of wisdom speaks in Proverbs 8:20, “I walk in the way of righteousness, in the paths of justice, granting an inheritance to those who love me, and filling their treasuries.” The Lord leads us in paths of righteousness and because He does so we walk in the way of righteousness. This is what is termed “wisdom”. Someone is walking in the Lord his shepherd, being led by the Lord his shepherd, and being made like the Lord his shepherd when the Lord his shepherd makes him to lie down in green pastures, leads him beside still waters, and restores his soul. The glorious reason behind this is for His name’s sake as His love is great toward His people!

(1) Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary, Psalm 23:1-6 ©️2004-2020 Bible Hub

Tim Carroll ©️2020 Wisdom Walk

Psalm 23:2 He Makes and He Leads

He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters-Psalm 23:2

Out of His tender and all knowing love, the first thing the shepherd does is make the sheep to lie down. But not just anywhere-he makes the sheep to lie down in green pastures. Green pastures as opposed to brown and wilted areas or valleys of dark shadows and dangerous creatures. Charles Spurgeon regarded these green pastures as “the scriptures of truth-always fresh, always rich, and never exhausted.” While there is certainly a truth connection there, David is reflecting on his days as a young shepherd boy when he would tend his sheep and have ease of life before the storms would come later. Goliath, Saul, Bathsheba, and David’s days of war had come and gone. David is now remembering the gentle and quiet moments of his youth. Yet, through it all God provided for David. Alexander MacLaren describes David writing this Psalm perhaps in his older years of life when he says,

 “Is it not very beautiful to see the old king looking back with such vivd and loving remembrance to his childhood’s occupation, and bringing up again to memory in his palace the green valleys, the gentle streams, the dark glens where he had led his flocks in the old days; very beautiful to see him traversing all the stormy years of warfare and rebellion, of crime and sorrow, which lay between, and finding in all guardian presence and gracious guidance? The faith that looks back and says, “It is all very good”, is not less than that which looks forward and says, Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.’ “ (1)

Albert Barnes breaks down the Hebrew word for “pastures” to mean “dwellings” or “habitations”. The Psalmist here is made to lie down in green pastures. For a time and season this is his dwelling. He is satisfied with God and also with all that God has lavished upon him. Food and clothing and every need under the sun. This is not a picture of sheep laying in a grassy field starving, malnurished, and trembling with fear because the shepherd has abandoned them and wolves may be near. The sheep that are described by David are content and filled with all good. This is a place of rest. Green pastures. Quiet streams. He leads me beside still waters. It may be that these quiet waters are describing a perfect peace which surpasses understanding. These are God’s quiet places found in the nature He created or in the Word that eases our restless souls. His word is described as water. To be washed in the water of the word is to be immersed in the peace of God because filled with the God of peace, who has made peace with us through the blood of the great shepherd of the sheep Jesus. And these still waters also mean the waters of refreshment. David is led besides still waters. Whether David is moving or the waters are moving by him as he lie comfortably down in his green pastures-the rest that God gives him is being enjoyed. More importantly, God Himself is being enjoyed by David. And David is being enjoyed by God. “The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.”  – Zephaniah 3:17 To David, the sound of still waters is soothing. And the taste of still waters are even more refreshing. To guzzle a gallon of water after working in the hot sun for a few hours is among the most refreshing things that we can experience. It is God, the shepherd, who is leading his children besides still waters. The waters are both soothing and refreshing, while the shepherd is all satisfying. Jesus says in John 10:9,  “I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture.” And two verses later He says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” – John 10:11. Jesus establishes His peace with His people through His own shed blood and resurrection from the grave and He then leads them in a life of holiness for His namesake. 

(1) MacLaren’s Expositions, Psalm 23:1-23:6 commentary; ©️2004-2020 Bible Hub

Tim Carroll ©️2020

Las Vegas, NV

Psalm 23:1 He Is

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 

The Lord, Yahweh, is my shepherd. David acknowledges that the God of Israel, whose proper name is Yahweh, is his provider, protector, and peace. The Lord/shepherd idea is found in numerous places throughout the Old Testament. For instance, Isaiah speaks of this shepherd when he says, “He will tend his flock like a shepherd; he will gather the lambs in his arms; he will carry them in his bosom, and gently lead those that are with young. “- Isaiah 40:11 Here we see the tender and loving care of the shepherd tending, gathering, carrying, and gently leading his own sheep, His people, called by His name.

The Lord, Yahweh, was the one  “who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant,”- Hebrews 13:20 Here Jesus is referred to as the great shepherd of the sheep. The redemptive weaving of Yahweh’s master plan has displayed the same shepherd of the Old Testament more clearly identified in the New Testament as Jesus, the good shepherd who lays down His life for the sheep (John 10:11) . Not only did Jesus lay down His life for the sheep, but He took it up again on the third day. The shepherd has power to both lay His life down and to take His life up again (John 10:17,18) . All authority belongs to the shepherd! He is the King of kings and shepherd who provides for the sheep’s every need. 

David says, I shall not want. The NIV renders it “The Lord is my shepherd, I lack nothing”. In all of creation David has exactly what he needs. Nothing more or nothing less. He has Yahweh and the glories of heaven at his fingertips. David’s sufficiency is entirely in his shepherd. Remember, David himself was a young shepherd who knew what was involved in tending sheep. Years later, as he looks back on his life, he understands that in the same way that he had shepherded his sheep, God had shephered David. 

Tim Carroll©️2020

Las Vegas, NV

Psalm 23: Passed From Death To Life (Now)

The LORD is my shepherd; 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 paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.  – Psalm 23

Psalm 23 is often cited at funerals. Perhaps it is somewhat of a tradition. But upon further examination of the text of the twenty third Psalm, this Psalm is a Psalm regarding this side of the grave and not the other side of the grave. The fact that the Lord is now David’s shepherd and is now David’s provider and protector is for a present day reality when David wrote this by inspiration of the Holy Spirit. When David walks through the valley of the shadow of death, David is not entering into death as a funeral ceremony addresses. David walks through this life with death ever looming over his shoulder. The shadow of death is ever present in the life of a believer but should not be feared because God has come in the flesh and has conquered death. God is the one who has in the present moment carried believers from death over into life (John 5:24) . Death (spiritual death) for the believer is past tense, because believers have died with Christ and have passed from death to life. God prepares a table before our enemies now and not after we go to the grave. God anoints our heads with oil now. Everything in this Psalm pertains to this life and even more importantly, the life we have in God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Goodness and mercy shall follow us all the days of our life. We shall dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of our life. The house of the Lord is His very presence and being in relationship with Him. Eternal life is to know Jesus (John 17:3) . All of the days of our life will extend beyond this temporal earthly life, but this is not the focal point of this Psalm. Psalm 23 is a psalm to be sung by the believer in this lifetime and on this side of the grave! The presence of our Good Shepherd who shepherds us even now with His goodness and mercy shall preserve us until completion and His second coming, which culminates in forever more!

Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life. – John 5:24

The Shepherd and The Sheriff

One thing I have been praying for recently is for the love of Christ to overwhelm my heart for my fellow man. I fall short in this area and need grace.  Have you had moments where compassion is not the first thing that comes to mind when dealing with other human beings? This is my current struggle and it is real. Years ago, I loved people with an ever increasing love. And now, I struggle with this. At times I am not sure why? Whenever I notice myself thinking of someone else as lost, hopeless, and not worth my time, I should remind myself that I too-apart from Christ am lost, hopeless, and not worth His time. I pray to think of others as with the heart of a shepherd, rather than as with the heart of a sheriff. I’m sure I can throw stones with the best of them. I can hurl an insult with speed and brutality through a bullet proof vest. I know where the chinks in the armor are. But the shepherd’s staff? Is it in my arsenal? Do I know how to wield this staff with care? The staff is for the leading, guiding, and directing of the sheep, and not for beating them as if they were a wolf being driven off from attacking the flock.  Could you picture a shepherd in the country side beating his sheep with his staff? Then why would I beat my wife with my fierce comments? Why would I beat my children with the brunt of a verbal stick? Why would I beat a man I don’t even know because he stands on a street corner holding a cardboard sign and seeking a handout? Oh, love of Christ consume me! Fill my cup not with wrath, but with love. When I examine my heart in light of the word of scripture I realize that in my worst moments am a scathing selfish barbarian. I am nothing like Christ when I am not loving like Christ. Lord may this shepherd lead well and love well. May this shepherd search for the sutures that soothe the wounded soul rather than chinks in the armor of others. Oh, love of Christ consume me! Remind me of my position in Christ and may my life be lived from that position as You live through me.

The LORD is my shepherd; 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 paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.  – Psalm 23