Rev Kenneth I Macleod shares some thoughts on Psalm 23, The Shepherd's Psalm, in this Pastoral Reflection for October.
The Lord is my shepherd: I shall not want. He makes me lie down in green pastures. He leads me beside still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.”
I have preached frequently from this psalm and make no apology for doing so, as it is not only the best known of all the psalms but remains one of my favourites. It is short, simple, sweet and yet so deep with meaning, encouragement and assurance. There are many themes highlighted in the psalm but probably the three main truths that tie the psalm together beautifully are Provision, Direction and Communion.
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Pastoral Reflection for September from Rev Kenneth I Macleod
“What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honour. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands: you have put all things under his feet, all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the sea. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth.” Psalm 8:4-9
Last time we saw how David was blown away by the concept of God’s greatness as he considers the marvel, glory and wonder of the creation. However, in v4 we find David quite simply cannot get over that God is mindful of us. “What is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him?” David is more or less saying, “Lord, why are you so mindful? What have we done to be so raised and elevated in this majestic creation that You should take such an interest in, and care of us?”
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