Remember, we see this as David's confession in Psalm 23.
What David had been doing was prophesying his future. Did
you know you can prophesy your future?
All of us can. As you speak over some time, you are
prophesying your future and establishing some things in your own Spirit daily. We are painting images on the
canvases of our hearts.
You ask, how do you
do that?
You take the tongue, which is the brush, dip it in the Word of God, which is the oil, and paint an image
of what your future will be on your heart. You are all continually painting
something onto your Spirit. Whether you think negatively or positively, you
choose.
Proverbs 23:7. 7 For as he thinks
in his heart, so is he.
So, we are continually spinning a cocoon,
continuously painting
pictures on the canvas of our hearts.
What
you genuinely paint
on your heart and meditate
on it,
you will have it.
David was an expert artist;
he learned to meditate on things and took
Psalm 23 and sang it. Meditated it.
Let us look at it in-depth
and let the Spirit of the living
God open your mind to receive.
The theme of God as a shepherd
was common in ancient Israel and
Mesopotamia.
·
For example, King Hamarubi, in his famous legal Code, was written, and you can find references in GODS WORD: Ezekiel
34:11-16, Matthew
25.31-40, 41-46
·
·
Publisher Encyclopedia
Britannica
 |
Jesus was well aware of both the Psalms and the Prophets, having
heard them recited as a child on his mother's
knees and as a young person at the feet of the rabbis. He,
too, repeated the 23rd Psalm, perhaps the best-loved, most comforting verse of the
entire Bible, even to this day.
Echoing the words of the Scriptures, we remember that he famously proclaimed, "I am the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. I am the Good Shepherd." (John 10.11)
Sometimes we think
that the image of the Shepherd does not resonate in the 21st century since, by and large,
we are not a people who live close to the Land as did
our forebears.
We are looking at David as a shepherd
boy who became
King, and thru his lineage
came THE MESSIAH.
So, let us hear a word
of Truth from Ezekiel and Jesus on this topic of faithfulness, especially for those in leadership. First, be apprised that Shepherd's image and role were
universally applied to political leaders in the ancient world.
Even
the famous Code of Hammurabi, written by the King of the Babylonians almost
four thousand years ago, Hammurabi referred
to the ruler and subject as Shepherd & Sheep.
Hammurabi's Code
is the most complete
extant collection
of Babylonian laws, and it consists of Hammurabi's legal decisions that were collected toward the end of his reign. These 282 case laws include economic provisions (prices, tariffs, trade, and
commerce) as well
as family law (marriage and divorce), criminal
law (assault and theft), and civil law (slavery and debt).
Then 1200 years after the rule of Hammurabi, the prophet Ezekiel echoed what was commonly accepted
in antiquity, that the primary purview, the immediate exercise of Shepherd's
power, was for the protection of the people, the proverbial flock, especially
those weak and wandering members, the hungry and helpless ones, those caught in
the brambles or diminished by disease.
So, in Hammurabi's time,
as in Ezekiel's day, during the lifetime of Jesus himself, the King who
ruled as a faithful shepherd was the
ideal person to be "in charge" of people – politically, socially,
ethically, and morally.
The prophet's severe
condemnation of ancient Israel's unfaithful, corrupt, and selfish
"shepherds" was total disregard for the human race.
That essentially
describes the situation in Washington, DC. These evildoers are hellbent on
destroying the beautiful Land that God has given us. We have failed as a nation
in our duty to love and care for the Land and its people. Defending the murder
of innocent infants as a moral virtue.
Our society and
country will follow in the footsteps of our degraded culture until we learn to
live for God and exploit for his glory.
The prophet Ezekiel
was quite harsh on these tyrants for their callousness, injustice, and pride. You
haven't helped the weak, cared for the sick, bandaged the injured, brought back
the lost, or searched for the dead.
Instead of ruling
gently, you've reigned aggressively and ruthlessly, he lectured. He might have
even warned that "a dreadful fate awaits you. The eventual downfall of
false shepherds who lack compassion is inevitable.
That's naturally what
happened all through Israel's ancient past.
Compared to the
heartless shepherds of verses 1-10, the Good Shepherd in verses 11-16 provides a striking contrast. One day, the Good
Shepherd would leave on a mission to restore Faith in Israel.
In a solemn,
uncompromising "search and rescue" operation, looking for the most
defenseless members of society (the widow, the orphan, the destitute).
Ezekiel praises the
people's Faith that the Good Shepherd, this Shepherd with a Soul, would rescue
humanity.
Jesus acknowledged his
position as Faith leader, the savior of lost souls, the deliverer of captive
spirits, and the Shepherd of his people.
For those who shared
his concern for society's outcasts, he called on them to give their time,
energy, and resources to those who were without shelter, healthcare, or food.
Jesus marked the start of a new creation, a race of
people who would be defined by their selfless love for one another.
To clarify, what did
he say? I am the Good Shepherd, and my sheep
hear my voice and come running when I call. And I am the Good Shepherd. That's
where he got his now-iconic quote. (John 10.27)
Jesus, I believe, was
looking for disciples who would one day become shepherds in their own right,
leaders who would put the needs of others in their charge ahead of their own.
Leaders with a heart and soul, with eyes to see and
ears to hear. With this in mind, shepherding
has suddenly become significant in our so-very-modern world.
These are trying times,
probably more reminiscent of Ezekiel's and the prophets' eras than we'd prefer
to admit.
CHAPTER THREE
MODERN-DAY BREAKDOWN
Our media are rife with
stories about corrupt politicians who enrich themselves at the expense of the
poor, who have been indicted for illegal conduct, who have rigged the system in
their favor, and who have chosen to ignore the screams of the afflicted and
infected.
