The next thing that Psalm 23:5 says of (and to) the shepherd is “You anoint my head with oil”, likely drawing from the practice of putting oil on the sheep to protect them from flies and other insects that could get into their eyes, ears, and nose. Aside from the sheep it was a custom […]
“You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies…” verse 4. Picture a large table, perhaps at a family reunion, you find the place with your name and take your seat. The food is on the table in abundance, it is passed around family style and you dine on the bounty with […]
Continuing in verse 4 of Psalm 23 we come to the third of four powerful statements in this verse, “For you are with me”. I see this as another key to the entire Psalm, (similar to “The Lord is my shepherd”) the assurance of His presence! God knew His redeemed people would go through dark, […]
Verse 4 of Psalm 23 opens up saying, “Yea though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death…” The picture here is of a dangerous path through a deep ravine with high steep mountains on either side, and no seeming way of escape, so you must move forward in spite of the […]
“He restores my soul” verse 3; when a sheep would fall sick, break a leg, or face some other calamity, the shepherd would be there to treat, dress the wound, and nurture that sheep back to health. God our “good shepherd” is the greatest restorer ever! From the moment our relationship with Him was broken […]
Last week we saw Jesus as the life, the restorer of the life of God to mankind because there had been a spiritual death in which we became separated from God and we needed restoration. Today we hear Jesus words “I am the resurrection and the life”, spoken in the face of the death of […]
In introducing Jesus John 1:4 says “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.” This shows us that in the original creation of Genesis 1 and 2 life came from God through Jesus. The life of the new creation in 2 Corinthians 5:17 also comes from God through Him; as the […]
Jesus Himself speaking in John 10:1, using a metaphor from the agriculture of His day, said, “Most assuredly I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold (the kingdom of God) by the door, but climbs up some other way, the same is a thief and a robber.” A sheepfold was an enclosure […]
No less than seven times in John’s gospel did Jesus identify Himself as “I am”, I see these powerful statements linking Him with God the Father who in Exodus 3:14 indentified Himself to Moses as “I AM WHO I AM”. As “God manifest in the flesh” 1 Timothy 3:16, Jesus is everything God the Father […]
“Arise, shine; For your light has come! And the glory of the Lord is risen upon you.” In Isaiah 60:1-3 God issues a statement that should bring a message of immediate hope and comfort to the people of Israel, as well as giving prophetic insight into the future, as these verses will be fulfilled in […]