The Good Shepherd and the loveliness of Psalm 23

Apart from being a part of my daily devotional, Psalm 23 is the first psalm that I ever learned. With pastoral elements, the psalm is short, sweet and simple.

The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
3 He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
4 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.
5 Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
6 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.

The first four verses finds the humble psalmist (David) comparing himself to a satisfied lamb/sheep belonging to a shepherd. This isn’t strange considering that the greatest sovereign of Israel used to be a shepherd (1 Samuel 16:11- And Samuel said unto Jesse, Are here all thy children? And he said, There remaineth yet the youngest, and, behold, he keepeth the sheep. And Samuel said unto Jesse, Send and fetch him: for we will not sit down till he come hither.) who had once told Saul of how he saved his father’s flock from a bear and lion (I Samuel 17:34-35 And David said unto Saul, Thy servant kept his father's sheep, and there came a lion, and a bear, and took a lamb out of the flock. And I went out after him, and smote him, and delivered it out of his mouth: and when he arose against me, I caught him by his beard, and smote him, and slew him.)

The shepherd of David the sheep isn’t anyone average- it is the Lord who has humbled himself as a shepherd. Unlike other sheep for whom the grass is always greener on the other side, D is very content and firm in his faith. He is conscious that sheep cannot live in gilded palaces but is certain that the caring Lord will provide him with the daily bread (and the physical, material and spiritual comforts). The good Lord/Shepherd takes him to the green pastures where the sheep can rest contented. There are still waters nearby where David will not be drowned or swept away by a current. The Lord is careful not to take the sheep to perilous places in Israel which has cliffs, mountains, deserts and gorges. If they end up walking in ominous dark valleys reeking of evil, David doesn’t panic since the good shepherd is with him. The Lord keeps a vigilant eye on the silly sheep- With His rod and staff, He makes sure that they don’t go astray (from the paths of righteousness) or are ensnared by predators and thieves.

But in verses 5 and 6, the sheep transforms into David the King. The Lord has honoured his devotion and has lifted high his faithful follower. How many people can boast of eating a feast prepared by the Lord himself? Furthermore, you can spy David’s enemies in a distance enviously spying on his fortune. The Lord chooses him by anointing his head with oil (upon the orders of God, prophet Samuel anoints the young shepherd David with oil, signifying that he will be the new King of Israel). His wine cup is a cornucopia. David vows that he will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.

The reference to the Lord as the good shepherd occurs afterwards in Psalm 80:1- Give ear, O Shepherd of Israel, thou that leadest Joseph like a flock; thou that dwellest between the cherubims, shine forth. Isaiah prophesies in Isaiah 40:11- He shall feed his flock like a shepherd: he shall gather the lambs with his arm, and carry them in his bosom, and shall gently lead those that are with young.

The above is a beautiful picture particularly if we can picture that young man of 33 years gathering the lambs with His arms and carrying them in His bosom and leading the ewes, the older lambs, and the rams.

Ezekiel does the same in 34:23- ‘And I will set up one shepherd over them, and he shall feed them, even my servant David; he shall feed them, and he shall be their shepherd.’ And later in 37:24, ‘And David my servant shall be king over them; and they all shall have one shepherd: they shall also walk in my judgments, and observe my statutes, and do them.’

Interestingly, Jesus (who is born into the lineage of David as prophesised by Ezekiel above) makes a parallel allegory later- in John 10: 1- 16
Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that entereth not by the door into the sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.
2 But he that entereth in by the door is the shepherd of the sheep.
3 To him the porter openeth; and the sheep hear his voice: and he calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out.
4 And when he putteth forth his own sheep, he goeth before them, and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice.
5 And a stranger will they not follow, but will flee from him: for they know not the voice of strangers.
6 This parable spake Jesus unto them: but they understood not what things they were which he spake unto them.
7 Then said Jesus unto them again, Verily, verily, I say unto you, I am the door of the sheep.
8 All that ever came before me are thieves and robbers: but the sheep did not hear them.
9 I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
10 The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. (which He did and which He continues to do)
12 But he that is an hireling, and not the shepherd, whose own the sheep are not, seeth the wolf coming, and leaveth the sheep, and fleeth: and the wolf catcheth them, and scattereth the sheep.
13 The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep.
14 I am the good shepherd, and know my sheep, and am known of mine.
15 As the Father knoweth me, even so know I the Father: and I lay down my life for the sheep.
16 And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd.

And later in John 10: 27, 28: ‘My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand’.

And the apostles write this later:-

Hebrews 13:20: Now the God of peace, that brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant,
1 Peter 2:25: For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.
1 Peter 5:4: And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away.

The prodigal cat

I might have been written in my other blog about my favourite cat being Kimi (named after Kimi Raikonnen). When she was abandoned by her mother, I took care of her. I taught the tortoise-shell beauty how to catch cockroaches and geckos (yes, I can picture someone sniggering), grab flying creatures, climb trees and the customary cat aerobics. Presently, Kimi is 3 years old and behaves as if she is far older than me (maybe she is… in the cat world). But 2 days ago, she vanished along with her 6-month old kittens Angel and Longbottom. The kittens returned later but Kimi didn’t and we were very apprehensive. My mother was convinced that Kimi had been caught by a dog and my dad humorously tried to lift up the spirits by quipping that Kimi might have gone on a honeymoon to Shimla (where two local newly-weds had gone to). I laughed but Kimi was still missing. And at night, I prayed- ‘Lord, please bring Kimi home. You can do a miracle’.

Hey presto, in the morning, my mother woke up to find a very apologetic Kimi lounging on the couch. Hearing her excited cries, we gathered around Kimi, showering her with love and food (milk and fishes). The other cats (including her kittens) were watching this nonchalantly and seemed irritable when we denied their requests for milk and fish.

This reminded me of the prodigal son (Luke 15:11-32). Being the younger son of a prosperous landowner, PS was discontented with his life. He looked towards the dazzling lights of Paris/London/Knightsbridge and felt his future beckoning him. After persuading his father, he got hold of his share of money and left his home. In Paris/London, he descended into a life of debauchery and dissolution with his new found parasitic friends. In due course, his money ran out and his friends left him. Finding no employment or any solution, he ended up as a labourer at a pig farm. He spent his days standing along with pigs in the muck. Being famished, he would gobble down the food given to the pigs. In this situation, he might have thought of his previous affluent life at his father’s house- where he lacked nothing. Where were his friends when he needed them? Was his Oxbridge degree of any use now? Did anyone treat him with any respect? More importantly, why was he taking care of pigs, an animal not permitted to be eaten by Jews? (which raises a question- why was someone keeping pigs?). There was a time when he was flawlessly dressed in Armani but now he is wearing tattered clothes. He is now covered in reeking mud, but there was a time when he wore YSL and Davidoff and 2 glamorous supermodels on both arms. He used to be a socialite hosting banquets and turning up for gallery openings but now he was sharing the meals of pigs.

After swallowing his pride, he decides to return to his father, hoping that the father would give him the most menial job in his estate which would be far better than his deplorable state. I reckon that this must have been so humbling. Thus, the PS returns to his father who seeing him from afar, runs out to embrace him despite him being filthy. He commands his servants to clean him up and to attire him in the most expensive robes. Undoubtedly, the son would have been amazed. Why wasn’t his dad being harsh? Why wasn’t he caning him or telling him to get lost? Why wasn’t he asking him about the money? No, a father’s love is far greater…. He forgot his hurt and only longed for his lost son to return. In the meantime, his other son (the diligent heir) returns to find the servants preparing a great feast. He is very infuriated- why are they giving such a great reception to the dissolute who squandered away his fortune? Is he even worthy of being called as his brother? Then why is he being given the fish and milk? The father knows better- That which was lost is found, that which was dead is alive.

Hope

Some lovely verses on hope written by Paul in Romans chapter 8:

1. Verses 24-25

For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, then do we with patience wait for it.

2. Verses 31-32 further strengthens our belief:

What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?

3. Beautiful verses in 38-39.

For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The girl and the tree

Recently, I have felt that my prayers are not spirit-filled and was very much resembling a one way conversation with me mumbling something just because I had to! I was fairly annoyed, where was the Lord? What happened to my fervour? That’s when I suddenly got this picture:

Picture a little girl in the garden. She is trying to climb a tall tree, a hard mission especially she hasn’t climbed a tree. Moreover, she could fall down and injure herself! Petulantly, she cries out to her dad and insists that he should help her in climbing the tree. The good father supports her and eventually, she reaches the uppermost branches. Perched upon a branch, she is content and sits there enjoying nature, forgetting all about the man who helped her to reach the heights of success. When night falls, the girl realises that she has to climb down- but how can she? Like a cat, she is stranded up on a tree. She wails in despair and screams for her dad, knowing that he won’t hear her. With her cell phone, she calls her friends, some of whom might arrive but tell her that they can’t help. Unexpectedly, her dad arrives and he helps her to climb down.

This is exactly what happens in our life. We are the child and the dad is Jesus. He is there when we are in trouble and we pray to Him to bail us out. And then we forget about Him. But we could do something- when He helps us to climb up, we can request Him to accompany us to the highest branch and we can both sit there and enjoy the view.

Complacency

There used to be a time when I (being a Ph.D in languor and procrastination) used to just sit back and wait for the Lord to do miracles. He has and He will (in future) but that doesn’t mean that we can be slothful, doing nothing. After all, Noah didn’t sit under a tree and wait for God to build the ark! Nor did Abram wait for Canaan to come to him… he and his family moved to Canaan. And the intellectual Paul didn’t keep mum when questioned by Festus and Agrippa- we should do our part, and then wait for the Lord to perfect it.

In I Corinthians 15:32, we come across something not oft mentioned- that Paul has fought against beasts in Ephesus… not just 1 beast but beasts! And he survived! I wonder how it will be like if one of us finds ourselves thrown into an arena, surrounded by ravenous creatures which are cheered on by a callous crowd. I know what most might do- considering that it might be their last day, they would eat, drink and be merry knowing that they won’t live tomorrow (…in fact, what I did on my farewell party). But what did Paul do? Did he just kneel on the ground and allowed the beasts to devour him? He knew that even if he dies corporeally, he would live eternally. But he did his part and fought against the beasts, knowing that he still had to serve his purpose. Perhaps one is reminded of how Daniel was thrown into the den of lions by Darius? (though Daniel didn’t have to fight against the lions).

A message to the intellectuals

Paul writes the following verse to the Romans (Romans 1:18-23)

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness; Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.

A very apt message indeed.

Nature comprises of living and non-living things/components which have complex structure and function that cannot be simply explained by what we learn in Biochemistry and Biology. The fact is that everything in nature is the handiwork of God. Man tries to explain them by evolutionary theories just because he cannot comprehend the presence of a Creator. And whenever I read the biochemical and zoological basis of evolution, I only find massive blunders and holes (even when I detach myself from faith and read it as a biologist). I am not saying that evolution and modification doesn’t exist… it does. But the big bang and evolution of man, the formation of earth and the like are just plain hypotheses. In any event, can man who has propounded such widely accepted evolution theories create a cell all by himself? Can he create genetic materials from amino acids? Perhaps oligopeptides but nothing more. But man, instead of glorifying God, started to worship the creations and more fatally, his own intellect.

Guardian angels

Do we have guardian angels? In Acts 12:15, the Christians tell Rhoda that the being knocking on the door might be Peter’s ‘angel’ (Peter had been imprisoned by Herod). For many years, I believed that we don’t have any such guardian angels and that this was possibly a tale concocted to inspire young children. However, in Matthew 18:10 Jesus Himself says- ‘for I say unto you, That in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father which is in heaven’. Since the above statement is by Jesus Himself, we needn’t doubt its veracity. We have guardian angels and they hold the responsibility of guarding us as seen in Psalm 91.

Psalm 91 is both powerful and beautiful. Verses 11 and 12 say- ‘For he shall give his angels charge over you to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash they foot against a stone’. But let us rewind to the very first verse: It conveys how an individual who walks with the Lord (‘dwelleth in the secret place of the most High’) is assured of God’s protection. There isn’t any mention (in this verse) of God sending angels but the important part is how such a person abides under the shadow of the Almighty. Shadow? Does this mean that the Creator of this Universe is standing right next to us? Shouldn’t He be in heaven? After all, we are sinners and how could the God Almighty stand next to us, miserable worms, who do things which are contrary to His commandments? No, the fact is that the Lord loves us so much that He is indeed right next to us in such a manner that we are covered by his shadow/shade. This is further emphasized in Psalm 121 where the Lord is said to be our ‘keeper’ i.e protector (the one responsible for our safety and well being). Perhaps this word reminds us of Cain’s question to God- Am I my brother’s keeper? But Psalm 121:5b continues to say ‘the Lord is thy shade upon thy right hand’. Doesn’t that make us happy? To know that the Lord (God the Father himself) loves us so much that He ensures that we are safe by standing right next to us! The greatest love indeed!

Introductory post

This blog will be totally dedicated to writing down little inspirational thoughts or lengthy essays based on my daily Bible readings. So this might be boring for some and thought provoking for others, but in any case, I do hope that you'll participate and let me know what you are thoughts are on the same.