Latest / Madison Church of Christ Bible Studies / Psalm 23 | Tony Hoover | Week 01

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Psalm 23 | Tony Hoover | Week 01 · Madison Church of Christ Bible Studies

• 0:00
  Speaker A: Hey, thanks so much for listening to this message. My name is Jason and I'm one of the ministers here at the Madison Church of Christ. It's our hope and prayer that the teaching you hear today will bless your life and draw you closer to God. If you're ever in the Madison area, we'd love for you to stop by and study the Bible with us on Sundays at 5pm or Wednesdays at 7pm if you have questions about the Bible or want to know more about the Madison Church, you can find us online@madisonchurch.org be sure to subscribe to this podcast as well as our Sermons podcast. Madison Church of Christ Sermons. Thanks again for stopping by. I hope this study is a blessing to you.
• 0:38
  Speaker B: Let me take this opportunity to welcome each of you to our class tonight. Glad to have you with us. Thank you so much for being here. I especially want to welcome those of you who might be visiting with us online tonight. Thank you for your being in our class and we hope that the things that are presented tonight will be helpful in our walk and our pilgrimage along life's way. It was about 15 years ago that I taught this class in a classroom upstairs and, and I was very thankful when they asked me to teach it again that I had the notes from it. So this is, this is a recycled class, if you will, and we hope that it's an improved class as well. So let me ask you, without further ado, to be turning in your bibles to Psalm 23. As you know, as the screen says, we're going to be having a class on Psalm 23. I remember when I first came up with this material some 15 years ago, somebody said, There are only six verses in this chapter 23rd Psalm. You're going to teach 13 lessons on that. And I said, yeah, I probably could teach another 13 on this particular psalm. It's very deep and very rich, as we'll discover as we get into it. You know, Psalm 23 is one of the most familiar and most beloved psalms and passages in the Bible. I suppose that if we did a survey of some thousand Christians, we would find that probably the majority of those Christians would say this is their favorite song. It has been with us a long, long time. And in just six short verses, David gives us a beautiful picture of who God is and what it actually means to be under his care. David begins with the words, the Lord is my shepherd. And he describes God not as a distant ruler, but as a loving shepherd who is ever present, who knows his sheep, who provides for them. He leads them and protects them and stays with them through every circumstance of their life. The psalm takes us through some experiences of life. There are green pastures and quiet waters, but there are also dark valleys and enemies. Yet David's confidence does not depend upon favorable circumstances. His confidence obviously rests in God's presence, whether in the valley or somewhere else. Psalm 23 therefore teaches us a simple but profound truth. When the Lord is our shepherd, we're never without his provision, his guidance and his protection, and his presence. As we study this psalm together, we'll search for the answers to two questions. And I want to ask you to be thinking about these two questions. What does it really mean for the Lord to be my shepherd? And we'll explore that. And secondly, am I willing? Am I allowing him to shepherd and to lead and guide my own life as one of his sheep? Those are probing questions and questions we need to ponder and think about. I might mention to you that we've used several resource books in preparation of this material. The first book I want to mention is Philip Keller's book A Shepherd looks at Psalm 23. And the second is the Lord Is My shepherd by Adrian Rogers. These two gentlemen are very well known in particular with respect to this psalm. And then there was another source that I used many years ago. I ran into it at a rummage sale. It was a very small book and I stumbled across it by accident. It's a meditation book by a man called William Evans. I don't know that anybody's ever heard of William Evans. He's not a well known author. But this book was really deep as it expressed the value of Psalm 23. On that book is a picture of an old shepherd tending his sheep. And this book was copyrighted back in 1921, so you can imagine how old it is. And I mention it specifically because we'll be spending a lot of time in that book. I have an excerpt from that book I want to read to you in just a little bit. And the fourth research book that we'll be using is written by one of the most famous authors this land has ever heard of. You might know it as the Bible. And I mention it as a resource book because we not only will be spending time in our study in Psalm 23, but we'll be taking journeys all through the Bible in this study together. You know, if you visited the land of Israel, one of the things you might observe is that it's hilly country. It's not only hilly, but it's very dry and on the hills as you, as you Travel through Israel. You'll see pathways going up and around the hills, all kind of different directions. And so that's what we're going to experience in our study of Psalms 23. We'll be taking various pathways and side trips along the journey to get deeply into the word as we study this topic together. And, you know, I'm getting a little older, and so I don't want to do these kinds of things alone. So I brought two guest speakers with me, and so I'll introduce those. The first guest is our friend the sheep. And the sheep wants to speak to us. The sheep wants to tell us about his relationship with that shepherd. And so we want to read the 23rd Psalm together as the sheep speaks about the shepherd. I've asked Ronnie Misseldine in our audience here to lead us in the reading of that psalm. So, Ronnie, if you would please read.
• 6:52
  Speaker C: 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 restores 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 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 shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
• 7:41
  Speaker B: Thank you, Ronnie. So we just heard the sheep speaking about the care and concern provided by his shepherd. And in our study, we'll discover that everything that a sheep could possibly need is provided by that shepherd. This psalm, as well as the rest of life as we had on our first slide, is not about us. This whole study is about God. It's about our shepherd, Jesus Christ. Again, life is not about us. Life is about our shepherd Jesus. And, you know, we like sheep. Who is under the care of a shepherd. We're under the care of the good shepherd, and he provides everything in life that we need, just as that shepherd in the Old Testament that Ronnie was reading about provided for his sheep. I call your attention to second Peter 1, verse 3, where Peter there says that God has granted to us everything that pertains to life and godliness through the true knowledge of him who called us by his own glory. And we want to emphasize that text. He provides everything that pertains to life and godliness. So there's nothing excluded from the gifts and care and protection and presence of God. It will be one of the objectives of our class to modify somewhat how we say the first phrase, Psalm 23. And that will be a little strange for us, I guess. But when our study of Psalm 23 is concluded, we hope that each one of us in this class will say, instead of, the Lord is my shepherd, we'll change that a little bit and say, the Lord is my shepherd, calling us to a greater attention and direct relationship with the God. With God, which is what he wants. The Lord is my shepherd. And it's going to be a more personal relationship when we get through with our study. At least that's what we hope for. Well, our second guest has just arrived, so we'll allow him to come into the room. And he is the shepherd. So we have the sheep speaking about the shepherd, and now we want to allow the good shepherd to speak about his relationship with his sheep. That's from John chapter 10. If you will be turning there in your device or your Bible, and we'll be reading the first 15 verses of John chapter 10. And Ronnie has agreed to read that for us as well. And so, Ronnie, whenever you're ready, you can lead us in the reading of that text.
• 10:25
  Speaker C: Most assuredly I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same as a thief and a robber. But he who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him. The doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice. And he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him. For they do not know the voice of the strangers. Jesus used this illustration, but they did not understand the things which he spoke to them. Then Jesus said to them again, most assuredly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. All whoever came before me are thieves and robbers. But the sheep did not hear them. I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture. The thief does not come except to steal and kill and destroy. I have come that they may have life and that they may have it more abundantly. I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives his life for the sheep. But a hireling, he who is not the shepherd, one who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees. And the Wolf catches the sheep and scatters them. The hireling flees because he is a hireling and does not care about the sheep. I am the good shepherd and I know my sheep and am known by my own as the Father knows me. Even so, I know the Father and I lay down my life for the sheep.
• 12:24
  Speaker B: Thank you, Ronnie. I'd like to suggest to you that as you consider this study and perhaps during the week, think about it some on occasion that you keep these two texts in mind and refer to them often as we continue our study together. John chapter 10 and Psalm 23. They will help all of us to gain that closer relationship to God that we're trying to seek. I want to mention two things from John chapter 10 that are a bit foreign to us. I don't know about you, but I'm a city boy. I say that unfortunately, I'm a city boy. I think there's a lot of good to be gained by growing up in the country. But I've only been around sheep one time in my life. How many of you have raised sheep or been around sheep much? Okay, well, just a few scattered sheep out there in the same situation I am. But I had a neighbor one time who had a couple of sheep and I would occasionally wonder what he was doing with a couple of sheep. And later on I discovered it was nothing. He just wanted some sheep. So he built this very expensive fenced in area with electric fence and kept some sheep for as long as we lived in that neighborhood. Fortunately, it was a rural neighborhood, it wasn't downtown anywhere. But we don't know a lot about sheep in our culture. And so one of the things that we'll be doing in this class is learning a lot about sheep and finding out why it is God calls us sheep. And so that's one of the things we want to discover. But there are a couple of things in the reading that Ronnie did from John 10 that we want to look at. One of these is a sheepfold. This is a picture of a typical sheepfold. And all it is is some kind of enclosure. It can be made of stone, like this one, or of branches or brush, anything piled up to enclose the sheep, keep them together. And you'll notice there's only one opening to the sheepfold. There's just one door. That's because the shepherd, or the porter, if you will, the porter. Sometimes they have a porter who's the gatekeeper of the sheepfold. You want to control the going out and coming in of the sheep, so you don't want to just leave that opening there. So that's where the porter or the shepherd sits and make sure the sheep are enclosed, particularly during the night for safekeeping. But they're kept together, and so the shepherd could watch over them during the night and protect them from danger. The entrance, of course, would be guarded to prevent predators or thieves from entering, and the sheep could be counted and watched. And Jesus Talked about the 90 and 9 who were safely in the fold and the one who was gone, and how the shepherd, the good shepherd, would go out and find that one lost sheep and bring it home. And so this was a method that the shepherd used to try and make sure the sheep were kept together. The fold provided a place to lie down. And for the sheep, it was a place of safety, not only because of the shepherd's presence, because also of the presence of the other sheep. And they could quietly lie down and rest in the night. In this method, any lost or strange sheep would be identified. One of the first things a shepherd would do when they came into the fold would be to count and find out who it was that was missing. The flock would remain together under the shepherd's care, and the fold provided a place to lie down and shelter from wind and other weather elements as well. Jesus in John chapter 10 said he not only was the shepherd, he said he was the door. And that's important because that was a place for the shepherd to lie down and its walls offered shelter from wind, as we said earlier. But one of the things that Jesus was talking about when he said, I am the door was the fact that he was at the sheepfold as a good shepherd and he stayed there. And he was saying, somebody, the predators, the enemies, will get to my sheep over my dead body. He was at that door and he was guarding those sheep. He said in John 10, if you will, I lay down my life for my sheep. And so that's the care and concern our shepherd gives us. I want to ask you a question to what might a sheepfold be compared in our world today? Why don't we say it's the church. Why don't we think about that? It's a place of safety. It's a place guarded by the shepherd. It's a place where that our shepherd knows the various ins and outs of our lives, everything that's going on with us. He knows when we hurt him, he knows when we will, and he knows us better than we know ourselves. That's what our good shepherd does. Then there's the. The other thing. In John chapter 10 and this is a painting from a famous painting. It's called the Hireling. Well, you know, we know what it is to hire somebody, but Jesus calls this person in John 10 a hireling. A hireling is a person serving as a shepherd over sheep that are not his own. Consequently, that shepherd doesn't love and protect and be with the sheep like the real shepherd would. And so a hireling, when he sees you, might can see in this picture a wolf. When the enemy comes to destroy the sheep, be it a lion, a bear, or in this case, a wolf, what does a hireling do? Jesus said he runs. He runs away from the danger because his love for the sheep is weakened because they're not his own. Mike houts it wasn't 15 years ago that we went over to Israel. And while we were over there, when we first got to Israel, we were in Joppa and we went south to Beersheba. And one of the things that I caught myself doing along that route was looking for shepherds in the field. There were a lot of shepherds in the field. These were a lot of nomadic people. You can see their dark tents, their dark clothing, and their sheep in the fields all down through there. But I saw a sight that I believe I felt like when I saw it was a hireling, it stuck in my mind. It has ever since when I learned about the care and concern and love a shepherd really has for his sheep. And as I looked out the window of our bus traveling down south in land just like this, there was a man tending the sheep out there, and he had a sheep down on the ground, and he was violently beating that sheep. For some reason, I guess the sheep wasn't behaving. But I said, that's surely not a good shepherd. That's surely a hireling. Somebody has hired him to watch after the sheep. Because a shepherd spends like 24,7 with his sheep. And if he's a true shepherd, he grows to love those sheep and tend to them properly. While we're talking about hirelings and false shepherds, I wonder if in our culture today we have people following false shepherds or following hirelings, if you will. And I think about those who teach doctrinal error in our culture. I think about hirelings to whom people today look for what only the real shepherd can give. Sometimes we need to guard ourselves against taking on a false shepherd. There are things in our culture we have chosen to believe that shepherd them from the world and from harm. I just want to mention a few of these and want you to be Thinking about avoiding any false shepherds in your life? I think about somebody that looks up too strongly to a mentor, perhaps, perhaps the influence of parent, parent or parents, a boss. Sometimes there are folks out there that are shepherded by their 401k or their investments, if you will, a rich uncle that they hope leaves them something. But the lesson there, regardless of this, is clear. We as sheep have the opportunity to decide who we're going to have shepherd us. God gives us that privilege. And so let's choose the good shepherd. Let's be careful who we allow to lead and to shepherd us. As a Christian, that shepherd surely must be the Lord. Well, on this next session, there are four preliminaries that I want to give you. Don't you like the way they all start with the letter P? Isn't that good? But there are four preliminaries that I want to cover with you in this class that relate to this psalm. Point number one is the prominence of this psalm, and we've already talked about that. If we did the survey of a thousand people, we'd find that many, many, many of them would choose this psalm over any other as their favorite. So it's very prominent. But I want to read you an excerpt from this book, this little book I talked about, written by William Evans. Mr. Evans has a quote in this book that. It's not a quote, it's something he wrote that I quoted. He says, if this psalm had a tongue, what marvels it would reveal. Stories would be gathered from the uttermost parts of sea and land, from lonely chambers, from suffering sickbeds, from the banks of the valleys, of the shadow of death, from witnessing his sunlight, from valley and mountains, beneath stars, and in high places of the field, what hosts of armies, of aliens it is put to flight. It has been compared to the nightingale, which is small among the birds and of homely plumage, but with what thrilling melody it pours out its beautiful notes of hope and faith, from dungeons, from broken hearts, from prison cells, from sick rooms in pain and grief and life it has brought comfort, healing, cheer, support, and sustaining faith. Now, in all of my studies, I don't believe I've ever run across a more descriptive phrasing of what Psalm 23 is about and the relevance and significance of it. It's been said that Psalm 23 is the most perfect picture that we could write to describe that state of mind for which we all long and we all want, and in which not attaining that state of mind makes life discouraging to our fellow man. So it's very discouraging when we understand the relationship that God wants with us. And we are not able to participate in that relationship in a proper fashion because of our own stubbornness. And sheep are known to be stubborn. Many people struggle in this life because they are unable to grasp what this psalm teaches. And so we want to study about what this psalm does teach and what Mr. Evans was talking about. It's about fulfilling our innate longings in life. What is the essence of life about its relationship with our shepherd? And I raise a question for you and I for what do we long what do we truly want out of this life? Now, that's a question that doesn't need a flippant answer or a quick answer. That's a very deep question. And so each of us as Christians need to examine our own lives and ask ourselves, what? What is it that I really, really want out of this life? You know what. What people want in this life might vary by age and situations in life, but we need to be rooted and grounded in the concept that relationship with our shepherd is what people used to say is where the rubber meets the road. That is the essence of the Christian pilgrimage, is it not? Paul talks about this matter in Philippians chapter 4 because he understood what the real essence of life was about. He says, not that I speak in respect of want, for I have learned in whatsoever state I am to be content. And what he's talking about is contentment. Paul had learned to be content, whether in beatings or poverty or people running him out of town. He said he was content. Paul said, in essence, I have everything I need in spite of circumstances in my life. And then we go to John 10, verse 10, the scripture that Ronnie read a few minutes ago, where Jesus said, the thief, thief comes in to steal and to kill. And he said, I have come that they may have life and have it more abundantly. So I want to talk about the abundant life for just a minute. And I believe that's what Paul was talking about in Philippians. The abundant life. Abundant living is attained when you and I realize that we have all we need. And so our wants diminish. And going back to Paul again, that was in Philippians 4, 6, where Paul said this. He said, be anxious for nothing. And he said, but in everything, with prayer and thanksgiving, make your request known to God. And then what happens? And the peace of God that passes all understanding will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Paul says there, don't worry yourselves, but be prayerful to God, and the anxiety will Go away. That's part of the abundant living. Not only contentment, but peace in our hearts because of our relationship again with that shepherd. And so as his sheep today, we do have that that is given to us. And so we need to put ourselves in a position to grasp that and live by that. And that's what we're talking about in Psalm 23. We've been talking about our having all we need. But you and I are human, and we need to talk a minute about, well, what about our wants? I mean, we live in an affluent society and we're bombarded with advertisements about, you need this, you should have this, you should go there. You need to live in this neighborhood, this car, you deserve this car because of all your hard work. And so we're bombarded with things that generate wants. That's a fact of life. I want to put it this way. Through a right relationship with God, through our shepherd, Jesus Christ, we already have everything we need. So as we come to that realization of we already have everything we need, everything we could want pales in significance to that fact. I already have everything I need. And so those things that are peripheral in life, the trip, the boat, whatever you fill in the blank, those desires in our lives begin to diminish when we can feel the pull of the shepherd through his love and presence in our lives. And so we, too, like a good sheep, enjoy contentment and abundant living. Point number two, up there is position. The position of this psalm, and you know, the position of Psalm 23 is right after Psalm 22 and before Psalm 24, they put it in just the right place. Psalm 22, 23, and then 24. Why is that significant? It's significant because of what's in those other two psalms. And to help explain what's in those other two psalms, I want to take you down the trail around the hillside. I talked about over to Acts chapter 2. As you recall, on that occasion, the church began in Acts chapter 2, and Peter preached the first Gospel sermon. And in verse 36 of that expository by Peter, he said, in effect, God has made that same Jesus whom you have crucified, to be both Lord and Christ. Lord and Christ. And that's when they were pricked in their heart and said, what should we do? But I want to emphasize what Peter had told them. God had made Jesus Lord in Christ. Now, if we turn over to Psalm 22, we'll find some words there about the Christ the Savior, the one who gives us the benefit as our shepherd. I want to read from that just a little bit from 22 beginning in verse 11 of Psalm 22. And this is a suffering Savior speaking here. Be not far from me, for trouble is near, for there is more to help, none to help. Many bulls have compassed me, and strong bulls of Bashan have beset me round. They gaped upon me with their mouths as a ravening and as a roaring lion. I'm poured out like water, and all my bones are out of joint. My heart is like wax. It is melted in the midst of my bowels. That language in the 22nd Psalm and verses continuing is about a suffering Savior. The Savior that Peter was talking about is Christ. Christ means Savior, Christ means the Anointed One. Jesus in Psalm 22 is shown here as our Savior. Now, if we go back over to chapter 24, we'll find some verses in this chapter that refer to Jesus being the Lord. Remember, Peter said he is Lord and Christ. So we've talked about Christ in Psalm 22 and in Psalm 24. We want to see what is said there about His Lordship. I'll begin in verse 7. Lift up your heads, O ye gates, and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors. And the King of glory shall come in. Who is this king of glory? The Lord, strong and mighty, the Lord, mighty in battle. Lift up your heads, O ye gates. Even lift them up, you everlasting doors, and the King of glory shall come in. Who is this king of glory? The Lord of hosts. He is the King of glory. So we go from. We go from Psalm 22 to Psalm 24, and in the middle of that is Psalm 23. Psalm 23 takes us to the shepherd who is both Lord and Christ. There are Savior statements in Psalm 23, and there are Lord statements in chapter 23. For example, I shall not want. That's a Savior. His provision for me. He restores my soul. That's a Savior my cup runs over. I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Those are Savior words and promises. And then in Psalm 23 we have some lordship statements. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. So our shepherd Jesus is both Lord and Christ. And Psalm, Psalm from 22, Psalm 22 to Psalm 24. The shepherd leads us from Mount Calvary in 22 to Mount Zion in Psalm 24, from the cross in Psalm 22 to the crown in Psalm 24. So the connector between 22 and 24 is 23 Christ Savior in 22, Lord Jesus our shepherd in 24. So I just wanted to point that out There's. There's a strong connection because of the position of this particular psalm. Point three is the posture. I did not say pasture. And what I mean by that is, I don't know what you've been thinking about as we've had our class tonight, but if you've been thinking about some thoughts that we've shared, you realize that there's a posture to which this psalm leads us. You and I, when we think about our own shepherd, what he's done for us in our lives, what he sacrificed for us, what his significance is in our lives, as far as being our example, when all of that starts unfolding and when we begin to understand who he is and how much he loves us and all that he does for us, that realization makes us drop to our knees. That's the proper posture, if you will. When we think about everything that's been done for us by our good shepherd, it brings us to our knees. Or should we then become prayerful, we become thankful. And so, in talking to him like he wants us to, and remember how David was talking to him, you anoint my head with oil. I will dwell in your house forever. You're with me. Your rod and your staff, they comfort me. David is talking to God about his life in this psalm. Because David was a man after God's own heart. He understood, perhaps better than most of us, the significance of his relationship with God and realized what a difference that had made and was making in his own life. It was everything to David. The relationship to God was everything to David. When he had sinned with Bathsheba, and Nathan called his attention to it, and Nathan said, you are the man. David said, I have sinned against God. I can feel the hurt in that statement because the relationship had been broken by what David did, and he knew it. And so he treasured his relationship with God. And that's what we need to do with our shepherd. But David got it. David understood it. He was a man after God's own heart. And we're as we're brought to our knees by the shepherd's love and care for us. The words from Psalm 95 come back to mind. And we realize on our knees what Jesus has done for us. And we sing about it, don't we? Oh, come, let us worship and bow down. Let us kneel before the Lord, our God, our Maker. For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hand. That's from Psalm 95. And indeed we are. Last point, number four is the personalization of this psalm. You know, this is a good sized class, but this study is not about this class. It's not about this building. It's not about a lot of peripheral things. This class is about you and your shepherd. It's about me and my shepherd. It's a very personal study, a very personal relationship that we hope to attain with our shepherd, Jesus Christ. As we conclude our class, I want to ask you to turn over to Psalm139, and we'll conclude our class with the reading of that as well as a prayer. This Psalm 139 is about being under the influence of God. It's about him knowing us, him loving us, him being with us and being surrounded by God. And it's a psalm about nearness. Remember that first slide we looked at in our study? Life is not about us, it's about God. Life is about God, everything he's done. So let's read from Psalm 139, verses 1 through 10. The Psalmist says, oh, Lord, you have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up, you understand my thoughts from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, and are intimately acquainted with all my ways, even before there's a word on my tongue. Behold, O Lord, you know it all. You've enclosed me behind and before, and laid you'd hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me. It's too high. I cannot attain to it. Where can I go from your spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? If I ascend to heaven, you're there. If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, you're there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even there your hand will lead me, and your right hand will hold me. Psalmist says, God knows us intimately. He's everywhere, and he's ever present with us, his sheep. And so Psalm 23 is a Psalm about a shepherd named David writing a psalm about an intimate relationship with God. It's a relationship that David understood from youth as he tended sheep out in the pastures. Because as we will learn as we continue our study together, caring for sheep was and is a great training ground for leading a nation of obstinate people. So, very quickly, let me close class with this question. I want you to be thinking about this, if you will, in terms of what we've studied thus far and in terms of this particular psalm. I ask you this question. Define what God's role is. What's God's role as it relates to us? Well, you know the answer to that. He's our leader, our Savior, our provider, our Lord, our protector. That's what our shepherd, Jesus does. He does all these things. He leads me beside still waters and restores my soul. He helps me in many, many ways, perhaps ways I don't even understand. But he is my shepherd, and he is a good shepherd. So conversely, the question for us is, what is our role as defined in this psalm, in this relationship with our shepherd? God's doing all the work to provide and protect us so that we don't lack for anything? What is our role as defined by Psalm 23? What do you see in there that the sheep does? The answer to that question is, just be a sheep. Just be a sheep. Just follow. Just follow that good shepherd, Jesus Christ. Life is not about me. Life is about Jesus, our good shepherd. Remember, Lord Jesus is the shepherd of our souls, as one Peter says, first Peter 2:25. For you were as sheep going astray, but you're now returned unto the shepherd and bishop of your souls. The shepherd and bishop of our souls, our shepherd, Jesus Christ. We'll close now, and I want to thank you for your kind attention. Thank you for being in our class. We're dismissed.