Sermon - The Rev. Leah D. Schade
Reformation Lutheran Church, Media, PA
Sermons on the Psalms - Psalm 23
Sept. 23, 2007
“The
Lord is my shepherd . . .” I only have to say those first five words, and,
almost everyone to whom I give pastoral care can join with me in reciting this
most precious psalm.
This is, of course, the most famous of all the psalms. We hear it most
often at funerals. But Psalm 23 has such poignant imagery, it could be
used in many more varied contexts. Today I want to explore that imagery,
and then talk about why this Psalm is so significant for our lives today.
Let’s start with this first verse, where God is referred to as a
shepherd. Now, we’re not an agrarian nation anymore. And most of us
don’t know any sheep herders personally. But back when this psalm was
written, herding sheep was a common profession. Sheep, as you may know,
are not the brightest animals on the farm. They have to be led where you
want them to go. It is up to the shepherd to find suitable pasture for
the sheep to graze. And the shepherd must find water for them. Not
just any water - but still water, so that they won’t be swept away by
currents that are too fast for them. When we think of this image of water, as
Christians, we can’t help but think of the baptismal waters when we hear these
words. In the still waters of our mother’s wombs we were created. In the
still waters of the font we were baptized Children of God. And this water
sustains us all our lives.
On a spiritual level, this psalm so beautifully expresses our need for
God. I don’t know about you, but my personality is Type A and driven to
hard work. So I actually have to be led to places that replenish my
spirit. And I often have to do that in green meadows and by still
waters. Only by reconnecting with nature can my soul be restored.
God knows that, and often leads me down those paths.
And speaking of paths, this line about being led down right paths for his
namesake echoes a theme we heard two weeks ago in Psalm 1. Remember the
grandfather talking to his grandson about staying on the right path and being
like the tree planted by the water? Psalm 23 makes reference to this same
kind of imagery.
But like the grandfather warned his grandson, there will be difficult times in
life. And this psalm does not shy away from that fact. “Yea, though
I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.
For you are with me, your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” What is
this - rod and staff? Well, this is again having to do with the
shepherd. A shepherd always carries a long stick to beat away any
predators that may attack the sheep. And the staff is the crook, a long
hook used to reach out and pull the sheep back that are wandering close to
danger. The psalmist is saying that just the sight of the rod and the
staff are a comfort to him. It says to him, “God’s got my back!
God’s looking out for me.”
Then the imagery of the psalm changes from a shepherd to that of a host of a
welcoming household. He’s saying that God has laid out a banquet before
him, even with enemies lurking around. He knows that God will keep danger
at bay while he feasts at the table.
That’s often the way I think of communion. Here we come to the table to partake
of the bread and the wine. A whole world of worry awaits us outside these
walls. But in here, at least for an hour or so, we’re safe. We’re invited
to the banquet of Jesus Christ to feed on the spiritual food of
forgiveness.
And then the psalmist says that God has anointed his head with oil. I
read this one time to a group of teenagers, and they said, “Ew, that’s gross. I
don’t want oil poured on my head.” Well, again, we have to understand the
cultural and historical context. In the desert of the Middle East, their
hair and skin would get very dry. So they would pour fragrant oil on
themselves to keep the moisture in and smell nice. It’s the same as
washing your hair with conditioner, or putting aftershave or fragrant lotion on
yourself after a bath or shower. Think of it as God putting baby lotion
on you - smoothing out the rough spots.
And then we come to the promise of abundance. My cup runs over.
Goodness and mercy will follow me all the days of my life. You’ve heard
of the phrase: “being pursued by the hounds of hell.” Well, this is
just the opposite. The psalmist is saying that he is being pursued by the
angels of goodness and mercy. God is so good to him, blessings just
overflow in his life.
Finally we come to our journey’s end, our heart’s desire, our soul’s rest - the
house of the Lord. There are different ways of translating this.
Traditionally, we say, “I shall dwell”. But it can also be read as
“returning” or “coming home.” In any case, it tells us that when all is
said and done, we will be with God. We came from God, we will return
again to God. And all will be well.
Those are comforting words. Especially in light of the psalm that comes
just prior to this one - Psalm 22. Last week, Dr. Bob Robinson from the
Lutheran Seminary talked to us about that psalm which Jesus quoted in his agony
on the cross. While it begins with lament and terror, it ends with
confidence, publicly declaring faith in God and praising God in a very emphatic
way.
What we have in the psalm that follows is a more intimate reflection on the
grace of God - “the restoration of soul, the protection from death, the gifts
of abundant and unending life, and the meal in God’s presence,” (Eaton, p.
123). It is the psalm of the sacraments - baptism and communion. It
is the psalm of life and death - the dark valley and the house of the
Lord. This psalm touches on every important aspect of our lives.
And it is the psalm that each of us should know by heart.
This is why we are having a special emphasis this year on having our Sunday
School students learn the 23rd Psalm and commit it to memory.
Just as we say the Lord’s Prayer from memory, so should this Psalm be right at
the forefront when we are going through both the joys and sorrows of life.
There’s not much that we ask of our young people in terms of
memorization. We do have our Confirmation students memorize the Ten
Commandments, the Lord’s Prayer and the Apostle’s Creed. Many of our
students can also recite the books of the bible. But it is not often that
we emphasize learning bible passages word for word. I believe Psalm 23
should be one of them. Let me tell you why.
Some of you may remember about three years ago when my daughter, Rachel, and
her daddy had a nasty fall down the stairs in our home. She slipped from
his arms and her head banged against the wall at the bottom of the steps.
As I held her in my arms sitting in the emergency room, I went numb when the
doctor told us that she had a fractured skull. We waited for the
ambulance to take us down to Children’s Hospital, and with all my seminary
training, all the scripture I had read over the years, all the experience I had
with pastoral care, only one phrase would come to my mind: “The Lord is
my shepherd.”
I just kept repeating it silently to myself. I needed something to cling
to - something to get me through that dark valley, if that was indeed where we
were headed - and at that point we just didn’t know what was ahead. I
prayed those words frequently in the days that followed, when they put the neck
brace on her, when she screamed as they did the CAT-scans and x-rays, and during
the two long nights we spent in her hospital room.
Thankfully, it turned out that her fracture was not life- or
brain-threatening. She was going to be okay. But me and Psalm 23
developed a very close relationship during those days. And I will always
be grateful to it for getting me through that very difficult time.
I had that Psalm because it was ingrained in my brain from the time I was a
young child. I learned it in Sunday school. I heard it at
funerals. And I repeated it so many times to parishioners in this church.
You know, when I have visited people with Alzheimers who have difficulty
remembering even their own children or what they had for lunch that day, there
are always two scripture passages that they can repeat - The Lord’s Prayer, and
the 23rd Psalm. Even when the rest of their memory has failed, even when
their minds are being whited out by that terrible disease, they still retain
those precious bible passages.
We need these words to give shape and meaning to our lives. To frame our
experiences within the larger picture of God’s loving will for us. Psalm
23, when we learn it by heart, can be the very presence of God shepherding us,
restoring us, protecting us, guiding us, and blessing us with abundance.
If you have children or grandchildren, I would like you to help them learn this
psalm, memorize this psalm - because it will be one of the greatest gifts you
can give them for their lives. Let’s start right now, saying it together:
The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.
He makes me to lie down in green pastures.
He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul.
He makes me to walk in right paths for his name sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil, for you are with me.
Your rod and your staff, they comfort.
You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.
You anoint my head with oil.
My cup runs over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
Amen.
Sources:
Eaton, John, The Psalms, 2005, Continuum, New York