Psalm 23: 5
Rejoicing In The Shepherd's Shepherding 

Now, as so often is the case in the Psalms the psalmist has worked himself up into a state of spiritual intuition so that he responds in faith to the forgoing metaphorical argument about the lovingkindness and graciousness of the Lord. You often see the same pattern in our own hymns where the first 3 verses celebrate the Lord's attributes and graciousness and the last one rallies the congregation to faith in, and worship, of the great God who has been presented.

Here in vv.5-6 is a virtual explosion of faith on the part of the psalmist: regarding his present welfare, regarding his future years upon the earth and, finally, regarding his eternal welfare in the heavenly kingdom.

I. NOTICE FIRST, HIS CONFIDENCE IN THE PRESENT BLESSING OF GOD.

1. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows. David leaves his rhetorical device of a shepherd and his sheep and bursts into a celebration of the goodness of God. To do this he uses another metaphor -- this time, of the ancient treatment of an honored guest. 

2. While we in modern times tend to picture blessing in terms of expensive vacations, palatial homes, driving a luxury car and that sort of thing, the ancients usually thought of it in terms of food and drink and honor shown to them by the great. We, in our generation, would say, "Never mind all that stuff; show me the money!"

True to this form, the psalmist summarizes his life in terms of these things. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows. 

3. This is a celebration of the lovingkindness and goodness of the Lord. "How good he has been to me!" he says. Now, David had lots of things he might have complained about. The O.T. historical books tell us about some of them. David had lots of things he could complain about but he chose to celebrate those things in which he rejoiced. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows. He was profoundly thankful for the hand of the Lord upon him. Perhaps that is the large explanation of his being portrayed as "a man after God's own heart" (in spite of his sometimes shocking behavior.)

4. One of the personality traits frequently condemned in the N.T. is the trait of habitual dissatisfaction. Some translations call it implacability- never being satisfied. Surprisingly, this was in a culture where there was so much more to be dissatisfied about than in our own. We see on every hand those who, by common grace, have experienced abundant blessing, unparalleled in human history, but are dissatisfied. "Give me more," they say. "I deserve more than this!" "It is my right as a human being to have more than this!''

The Christian, on the other hand schools himself, even in the face of many "valley of the shadow of death" experiences to be profoundly thankful for God's blessing on his life--even in small things, Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows. 

Search out the blessings of God in your life. In your hours of reflection, count the many ways God has prepared a table before you in the presence of your enemies, and in which your cup is not half full or almost empty as so many persons in our society think, but full and running over.

O let us be thankful! I urge you and myself to be thankful. Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; thou anointest my head with oil, my cup overflows. 

II. AND THEN THE PRESENT AND PAST LIFE EXPERIENCE LEADS THE PSALMIST TO EXPRESS FAITH IN THE FUTURE BLESSING OF GOD.

1. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life...

2.. When I was a little boy and learned this psalm I unthinkingly thought that there were 3 things that would follow me all the days of my life, Surely, Goodness and Mercy as if they were three specters that tagged along behind me. And the way that many adults read the psalm they are interpreting the psalm in this way: "surely-goodness-and-mercy shall follow me all the days of my life."

3. But there is mighty faith here: "SURELY -- SURELY -- goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life." "SURELY, the mercy of God will be extended to me all the days of my life."

4. Even though you are a veteran of many "valleys of the shadow of death" and of the correction and chastening of the staff of the Shepherd, his goodness and mercy will be with you for all the days of your life.

Now, you can only believe this if you wholeheartedly desire God's will for your life and that even in the "valleys of the shadow of death" you may experience his goodness and mercy. Being a Christian does not change the ups and downs of our lives as far as the effect of the outside world on them is concerned but it surely enables us to understand them in terms of his goodness and mercy.

Have you come to the point of obedience where you desire God's will in your life even if it is a limitation on your superficial happiness and freedom? -- where you can honestly say - even if with a slight hesitation - "He leadeth me beside the still waters; he leadeth me in paths of righteousness?"

This is not an easy lesson to learn. There is a fear of terror in the future: Uncertainty; reversal of what goodness and mercy we have experienced; difficult times; injured relationships; things connected with our frailty: sickness; disease; mental difficulties. But the Christian is the sheep of the Good Shepherd and the Shepherd will lead him in paths of his own choosing -- paths of righteousness.

III. AND THEN THERE IS THE FUTURE TENSE OF GOODNESS AND MERCY.

1. All the doubts and inadequacies of life will be resolved in the life to come. "I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever."

2. Indeed, many Christians have had to struggle with the interpretation of their life in terms of v.5 and the first part of v.6: martyrs, heroic vocational church and missionary workers, those persecuted for righteousness sake, those who suffer, those who go through the deep waters of trouble. But they persevere in the belief in the truth of v.5 and v.6, knowing that any degree to which life was not truly blessed will be abundantly recompensed to them in eternity to come.

3. And in their way of seeing the things in their lives that are indeed blessed is to see them as tokens of the future blessedness when in the perfect, absolute sense he will "prepare a table before me and anoint my head with oil and my cup will overflow." And they see the life which is to come as a continuity: "and I shall dwell in the house of he Lord forever," implying that I am already dwelling in his house in some lesser sense.

4. Dwelling in the house of the Lord is the unspeakable blessing of Christian faith. Every blessing here is a harbinger of what is to come. And it is forever. Not just a long time; not even just for the length of time that has passed from God's creative word "in the beginning" until now. Not even for just a million times that amount of years; but forever.

I urge you and myself to not be conformed to our culture which thinks that it never has enough. Be taught of God to rejoice in the good things he has brought into your life. Search out reasons to thank him and say, "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies." And let this blessing lead you to say with David of old: "SURELY, goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever and ever and ever."