A U G U S T R A D IO M ESSAGE
PSALM 23
by Dr. John Hunter
P erhaps the most universally known Psalm is the familiar 23rd. The danger is, however, that it becomes too commonplace for us. We take the precious truths for granted. What a wonderful example this Psalm gives to us of His match less and marvelous keeping power. The experiences the Holy Spirit caused David to write were certainly true in his life as the keeper of the sheep. In a much greater sense, how ever, he was referring to the Lord Jesus Christ, our great Shepherd, and not merely to his own experi ences. For an interesting experiment in seeing just how personal this Psalm really is, try counting the number of times personal pronouns are found: me, my, mine, etc. They are literally scattered throughout and oc cur 17 times. “He”, “His” and “They” are found 13 times. Think how different it would sound if the Psalm had been written, “The Lord is our shepherd, we shall not want.” This is true, of course, but it doesn’t “reach home” as movingly as the way the Spirit caused it to be writ ten. Another interesting point to keep in mind is that the Psalm is in the present tense. Can you imagine say ing, “The Lord was my shepherd, I did not want” ? It certainly couldn’t send your blood tingling with ex pectancy and hope. It may be that you have been walking with the Lord for years and yet you have never come into such a vital and intimate relationship with the Good Shepherd. Has He thrilled your soul with His continual pres ence? I like to read this Psalm in a special way with what I think of as a chorus. After each phrase you can add a special phrase, “‘All the days
of my life.” This covers every neces sity we may ever meet. For instance, “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want . . . all the days of my life. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures . . . all the days of my life,” and so forth. Read the entire Psalm with that little chorus. Try it all THE SAME HOUSE Jesus had brothers and sisters; the house was crowded and small With not enough room for them nearly, but they didn't mind at all. For He was their elder brother. He must have been dear, so dear To all of the younger children who grew up together there. I wonder If He remembered the home where He used to live, Where things were so lovely and dif ferent; if so, I think He would give The least little sign for remem brance; but I'm sure that they never knew Him to be discouraged and never impatient or rude. I wish I'd been in that family in that precious and simple way, Just to be living with Jesus in the same house day after day. But some day I shall be living, Oh, it makes me catch my breath, In the same house with Jesus, my Saviour, and this is what men call death. — Martha Snell Nicholson To be absen t from the body is to be present with the Lord. the way through for yourself. I wonder if someone reading this now has just heard bad news, or per haps is in real trouble. Maybe you have had a bereavement and are facing tragedy and failure. Remem ber you are not alone. Here is your Good Shepherd for all the days of
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