Scripture reading: Revelation 7:9-17.

Sermon text: Psalm 23.

Psalm 23 probably wouldn’t appear on many lists of favorite Easter passages. Most people think of this psalm primarily as either a children’s text that’s easily memorized or as a Scripture passage read at funerals.

However, this passage speaks to people of all ages and has spoken to people of all times, especially to believers celebrating the Easter season. This passage speaks to adults as well as children, to the living as well as to the grieving. David’s words remind us of the joy of living in faith and of the comfort we experience as we approach the end of this life. David’s words then beautifully remind us of the eternal life all believers in Christ will enjoy at the return of Our Lord to this earth.

David opened this psalm with the statement, “The LORD is my shepherd.” In his youth, David tended the flocks of his father Jesse. This responsibility helped David develop the qualities he would need later as a general and as king: Patience, decisiveness, boldness, and gentleness. David also learned the value of a good shepherd. The shepherd provided for the sheep by guiding them to “green pastures” and to “still waters.” The shepherd also provided rest for the sheep by leading them to peaceful areas and then watching over the flock while the sheep rested and slept.

By the time he wrote this psalm, David had lived long enough to understand God’s provisions in his own life. David could look back over the years and see how God had provided for him in every occasion, and he could honestly say, “I shall not want.” God had brought David to places of plenty and peace where he could rest; God had led David to “still waters” so he could find the peace he needed for spiritual renewal.

David also had experienced both the dry seasons and the joyful seasons in his spiritual life. In the dry times, David wrote, “He restores my soul.” The Hebrew word translated as “restores” also means “return” or “refresh.” David had witnessed the emptiness of the “dark night of the soul” described by the sixteenth century mystic St. John of the Cross. St. John described the “dark night” as a weaning of the believer from the high emotions most people experience at their conversion. The dark night prepares us for a more mature spiritual life as God reveals Himself to us through Scripture, prayer, and worship.

God also leads us into “the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.” The greatest witness of the Church comes through our lifestyles. David understood that his subjects watched his life to see if his lifestyle reflected his faith in God. Christians know and believe that God cares for His people and should live in the confidence of that care. The God who leads us beside green pastures and still waters will provide for us in all occasions. Therefore, we should live by God’s standards as revealed in Scripture and in the Church. Our lifestyles reveal our true belief in God.

I’ve often commented on a shift in verse 4 of this psalm. To this point, David has spoken of God in the third person (“He,” “His”). However, David realized that God becomes even more dear to believers at the time of our deaths. When David began meditating on the “valley of the shadow of death,” he shifted to speaking directly to God, not about Him.

“Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me.” As much as we love people in our lives, we cannot walk with them into death. Each of us will face death alone; no one in our lives can go into death with us, even if they die in the same time frame.

Instead, God Himself goes with us through death. Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died on the cross in Jerusalem in A.D. 33. Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus claimed Jesus’ body and buried it in Joseph’s tomb (John 19). Scripture records that Jesus rose from the dead on Sunday of the next week, an event that literally changed humanity’s outlook on death. St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians, “For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead” (1 Corinthians 15). Shepherds used their “rod and staff” to protect their sheep and fight off predators. The “rod and staff” of God, in the time of our deaths, represent Jesus’ protection of all who confess Him as Lord, believing in His resurrection (Romans 10). Instead of fearing death, we know that Jesus will “prepare a table” for His believers (Revelation 19), a table at which the enemies of Jesus’ believers can never persecute the Church.

Since he had nothing to fear in death, David could confidently sing, “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.” God’s “goodness and mercy” had lifted David from the pasture and placed him in the palace; God also graciously forgave David of his sins and restored his standing before Him. Although the ancient Hebrews lacked our understanding of life after death, they knew that those who lived in faith of God’s word and promises would live in eternity. David closed this psalm with the confident proclamation: “I shall dwell in the house of the LORD forever.”

This psalm continues to speak to us today.

Here in our area, we’ve experienced a great deal of economic distress over the past couple of years. Many people have lost their jobs as businesses have closed or laid off workers to avoid closing. Believers have found themselves losing the security they thought they had assured themselves. In many cases, this time of trial has brought many believers to the “dark night of the soul” as they wondered whether God could provide for them. These believers have learned anew that those who confess Jesus as Lord have no reason to fear want. God can take His people to green pastures and still waters in the worst of circumstances.

David’s descriptions of how God restores our souls speak to us as well. Believers who misunderstand the role of emotions in the spiritual life often panic when the emotions fade following conversion. I’ve seen many people even begin to doubt their salvation when their emotions change. C.S. Lewis described this as the “law of undulation” in The Screwtape Letters. David assures us that our relationship with God remains secure in spite of our emotions, a lesson Scripture confirms (John 10:27-29). God will always restore our souls through Scripture, prayer, worship, and fellowship with the Church.

Finally, in this Easter season, we can take comfort that God walks with us through death and leads us to an eternal life where sin and death will never again threaten believers. We find in the Revelation that Jesus will create a new heaven and a new earth, neither of which will ever enter the new creation (Revelation 21). We will “dwell in the house of the LORD forever” and never again experience temptation, disease, sickness, pain or death.

In the course of my ministry, I’ve stood by the bed of faithful believers who faced death with no fear, confidently waiting for their Lord to walk them through their last battle. I’ve also listened to faithful believers who, at the end, were almost ashamed to admit their fear of death. I’ve reminded those who experienced the primeval fear of death that God is not affected by their fear; He remains our faithful Father, the One whose Son atoned for our sins with His death and who conquered death with His resurrection. Our victory over death does not rely on our emotions but on Jesus’ victory in the resurrection.

Can you call God your Shepherd? Can you face the trials of life with God as your provider? Can you confidently walk through the valley of the shadow of death, knowing you have confessed Jesus as Lord and believed in His resurrection? Everyone who confesses Jesus as Lord and believes in His resurrection finds Him a faithful Lord who cares for His people and brings us to His eternal dwelling place. Confess Jesus as Lord; come to know the God who created you as the God who will never forsake you, either in this life or in the transition into the life to come.