The 23rd Psalms
The Lord is My Shepherd.
By Dr. Frank J. Cuozzo
Lesson 13:
Psalm 23:1-6,
"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."
All people are headed somewhere for eternity. Our bodies will not last forever. The Bible calls this earthly body a tabernacle or tent. When we understand that it is not a permanent dwelling, we also realize that God has a permanent dwelling place for us! We do not think of a temporary meeting place as a facility that will last forever. As our bodies are examined, we must realize that they too, will not last forever. The real person is on the inside, not on the outside. We are in a tabernacle; we are in a tent. We are in a temporary dwelling. The Bible says that, if we are God’s children, some day we are going to lay down our robes of flesh and soar beyond the stars to be with the Lord Jesus.
The last part of Psalm 23 and verse six says, "I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever." These words, "forever," are powerful. Here everything comes to an end. We mark our lives by days and weeks and months and years. Year adds to year until all the years bring our lives to an end. As Christians, we have with that ending a new beginning that has no ending. The Bible says, "I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever."
The book of Jude consists of one small chapter and forms the vestibule or hallway for the Revelation of Jesus Christ. In the closing part of verse thirteen it says, "To whom is reserved the blackness of darkness forever." This verse should stir our hearts. What the Bible is saying is that one group is going to dwell "in the house of the LORD forever" and the other in the blackness of darkness forever." To which place are you headed? This is a question that we must answer!
Let’s look at three areas:
#1) Entering The Family Of God
How do you get into God’s family? I have two children. They are both grown and live on their own. They both were born into my family and took Cuozzo as their name. Some children are adopted into families. As Gentiles, we have been adopted into God’s family.
Our names have been written down. We are joint heirs with Jesus Christ. We enter God’s family the same way we enter our earthly family- by birth! This is not a physical birth, but a supernatural, spiritual birth.
In the King James Bible the name of God is in all capital letters, LORD. This title is from the name Jehovah (the covenant God of His people). The Psalmist is declaring that the covenant God of Israel, the God who makes a covenant with His people, is his Shepherd! When I leave this world, I am going to dwell forever in the house of the covenant God of His people because I have entered into God’s family! We do not have to worry about being in God’s house forever if we have entered into God’s family. The matter of dwelling in God’s house forever is settled when we enter God’s family!
I hope that you have trusted Him as your Savior. I hope you know that you have entered into God’s family. You may be attending a church. You may even be a member of a church. You may be a very religious person. But there is only one way to get into God’s family. The Lord Jesus Himself said in John 3:7, "Marvel not that I said unto thee, You must be born again." The Psalmist could say, "The Lord is my shepherd" because he had entered into God’s family the only way anyone gets in- by asking God to forgive his sin and by faith trusting Christ as Savior.
#2) Enjoying God’s Presence:
Many people who say they have entered into God’s family do not seem to be enjoying God’s presence. As a matter of fact, they run after everything else in the world except the Lord. They spend time doing everything except communing with Christ. I am talking about God’s children actually knowing their heavenly Father, talking to Him on a daily basis, and reading the Book that He has written for us-enjoying God’s presence.
You can illustrate God’s presence and knowing the Lord by thinking about the sun. The sun covers the earth. We see the light of the sun, and we feel the heat of the sun. The effects of the sun are all over the earth; they are everywhere. There are rays from the sun that we do not see and we do not feel, but they are present with us. The sun affects all the earth with rays of light, rays of heat, and rays that we do not see or feel. The sun also has a location; it has a place. God is also everywhere. At all times, God is everywhere, not just in our planet but throughout the universe. It is God’s universe. But there is also a place where God Himself is located. The Bible says when we leave here; we are going to go into the presence of God to be where He is!
- Entering the Family of God.
- Enjoying God’s Presence
#3) Eternity in God’s House:
Let’s look at an interesting word that is often overlooked in one of the most familiar chapters in the Bible, John fourteen. Note this one word that you may have overlooked. The Bible says in verses one through three,
"Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also."
Notice the word "there" in verse three. The Lord Jesus said, "that where I am, there you may be also." Do you know where I want to be? I want to be "there." I am going to be there in the presence of God! I am going to spend an eternity with Christ because He is my Shepherd! I have entered into His family. I can enjoy His presence.
Think about this. If we live long enough, we are all going to get old. We will all either go into "the blackness of darkness forever," separated from God into eternal hell, or into "the house of the LORD forever," because we’ve trusted the Lord Jesus as Savior. It is not right to say that I am one of God’s children, that I am going to God’s heaven, and then to live as if I am going to the blackness of darkness forever!" It does not make sense to say that you are going to go to heaven to be with the Lord Jesus forever and care nothing about being with Him here and now!
One of these days, it will be a blessed comfort to know we are home with the Lord! How do I know that I am going to my Father’s house? Because I am my Father’s child. Since I became a child of my heavenly Father, He has put something in my heart to let me know I am going to His heavenly home. "I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever." Let’s live like it until that day!