New Hope For Life Ministries > Messages > Walking through the Valley of the Shadow of Death
Walking through the Valley of the Shadow of Death
newhope
June 16, 2019
- Psalm 23
- Recap from last week:
- The Lord is our Shepherd.
- He leads and guides us into the abundant life
- We need to choose to submit to Him and be good sheep
- If we follow the Lord as a good shepherd, He leads us along the paths of righteousness.
- These are paths of justice and prosperity
- The path from Egypt to the promised land was a path of righteousness.
- The paths of righteousness sometimes go through dark valleys
- The reference in the psalm is not one of wandering off in sin.
- The shepherd would not be leading and guiding if that were the case.
- Israel experienced dark valleys on their trip out of Egypt
- Dry places
- No food source
- Enemy nations blocking their path
- Sometimes the Shepherd knowingly brings the sheep through these dark and scary places.
- He knows at times these valleys are the best way to get the sheep to the higher ground – the place with the peace and the blessings.
- These dark valleys are the situations and circumstances that cause us to grow.
- The valleys provide a lot of cover for predators – especially wolves.
- The sheep in this situation have no choice but to trust the Shepherd for guidance and protection.
- God knows that humans will only grow and developed when pushed.
- He brings us through these dark valleys in order to teach us to depend more on Him.
- These are also tests for our faith. When our faith is tested patience is further developed in our lives.
- James 1:2-3 tells us that we will be perfect and complete, lacking nothing
- Romans 5:3-4 tells us that the patience causes us to develop character, which in turn develops hope.
- Sometimes its necessary to take us out of a green pasture for a bit
- David after being in his green pasture for some time started to get a little bit complacent and allowed sin in.
- Bathsheba
- Absalom and Amnon
- Contrast this to points in his life where David was being led through dark valleys
- Generally this took the form of opposition
- Goliath
- Saul
- Exile from the palace
- The fullness of God’s character in David was on display during these times.
- The Lord always has another green pasture at the other end of the valley for us. We just need to follow His lead
- Romans 8:28 – God is working all things out for our good
- The good shepherd doesn’t desert us
- John 10:11-14
- Hebrews 13:5-6
- Story about Author Kenneth Wilson
- Choice about having the light on but not his dad’s presence or his dad sitting with him in the dark.
- He chose the presence in the darkness
- We’re better off having God’s presence with us while going through a dark place than to be in the light by ourselves
- The shepherd’s tools
- The shepherd’s rod
- Described as a 2 foot long club
- Used to protect sheep from predators
- The Lord offers us His protection in these dark valleys – if we stay in his presence the enemy won’t harm us
- The shepherd’s staff
- A long walking stick with a crook at the top
- A gentle tap can be sufficient to guide a straying sheep back the way they are supposed to go.
- The crook can be used to grab hold of and pick up a sheep that has stumbled and fallen.
- David saw these as comfort
- Knowing God will protect you
- Knowing God will lead you in the right direction to get through the valley.
- Knowing God will pick you up if you stumble
