Sunday Virtual Talk 3-22-2020 Jewel from King David, 23rd Psalm
Welcome to the script for the virtual service of Unity Christ Center, Farmington, MO, 63640 on March 22, 2020. I’m Rev. Jan Mahannah, Unity Minister.
Intro: The 23rd Psalm is a record of
an individual’s, David’s experience with the presence of God. Most of us
learned the Psalm in Sunday School, and it is probably the most quoted psalm of
adults. Because David became King of the united tribes of Israel, I like to refer to the 23rd Psalm as “A Jewel From King David”, and like a “jewel” it has many facets applicable to
us today.
You’ll remember that David was born into a family of
shepherds. The 23rd Psalm is both the assurance of the comforting and
protective presence of God, like a good Shepherd, and also a psalm of
prosperity with the assurance that the provision of all our needs will be
satisfied. David, like Jesus more than 600 years later, used common examples
from his daily life to describe the comforting, protective, all-providing presence
of God.
Scripture: 23rd
Psalm “The Lord is my shepherd…I
shall not want. He makes me lie down in
green pastures. He leads me beside the
still waters. He restores my soul. He leads me in paths of righteousness for His
namesake. Even though I walk through the
valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. Thy rod and thy staff
comfort me. Thou preparest a table
before me, in the presence of my enemies.
Thou anointest my head with oil.
My cup runneth over. Surely goodness
and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I shall dwell in the
house of the Lord forever. Amen”
#1- The first facet of this jewel from Scripture: “The Lord
is MY shepherd”… The good shepherd was one that everyone
in that pastoral environment could relate to.
Sheep were the riches of a shepherd’s family; without livestock a
shepherd was out of a job and out of a livelihood, so the livestock was well loved and preciously guarded and cared for.
God as a good shepherd
to us is devoted to the care of us as his precious loved ones. The Divine cares for all humanity. We may not always feel cared for, but the
universe has been devised in a way that we can be cared for by something
greater than ourselves; a caring, loving God with the activity of the Holy
Spirit as God’s emissary inspiring us, working through us, and active in all
the complexities of our lives, enabling us to walk in Grace even in challenging
times.
At one point, Jesus said “It
is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom”. What is that kingdom? It is a kingdom
consciousness where all needs are met but
in order to enjoy it, we must be
consciously be willing to receive it.
When we are willing to
open our minds and hearts to a
kingdom consciousness, Spirit can pour itself through us, satisfying every
heart’s desire or apparent need, with the inspiration, innovation and creative
energy to meet our momentary challenges.
#2 “I shall NOT want…When we focus on “wants”, we focus on
the apparent lack of some thing. There
is a difference between our “wants” and our heart’s desires.
Thomas Merton, a 20th century monk and mystic
said: “A truly rich person has no needs.”
He was not talking about having a lot of money. He was talking about being in a state of
oneness with God’s abundance in which there is fulfillment and
contentment. This was David’s
perspective and assurance – “With God as MY shepherd I shall NOT want because
there is no unfulfilled need – ther IS resolution and fulfillment for each
perceived lack.
#3 “He makes me lie down in green pastures.” During
the heat of the day, the shepherd would MAKE the sheep lay down in verdant
pastures. It would be moist there and
they would be nourished in their rest.
Is there anyone there experiencing “the heat of life”? The
normal human reaction in the “heat of life” – when you are too, too busy and
the complexities of living, working, loving, being, seem overwhelming – the
normal reaction is to take even more action, to work faster. In the psalm, during the heat of the day or during the heat of life, the sheep were MADE to
relax. Although God does not MAKE us do
anything, for we have freewill, we are reminded to take time to relax and refocus. It is wise when we do – when we step back
from activity, even for a few moments, close our eyes and refocus on the
positive, on the good, away from our fears.
#4 “He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul.” Sheep
instinctively fear turbulent waters even as we fear turbulent times, emotional
turmoil, fatigue and fear . When wet, the sheep’s wool would weigh them down
and they could easily drown. So the shepherd would take rocks to form a quiet
backwater from the stream so they could safely drink, be hydrated and restored.
There is a message in this for us. When the Lord is our shepherd, there is an inner state of assurance and inner
peace. And the way to experience that is in the still waters; as in the stillness. Then we walk forth in
grace capable of meeting any challenge.
Meister Eckhart, the German mystic said: “There
is nothing so like God as stillness.” That’s
the key to experiencing God’s Presence.
When we are able to quiet our busy minds, a portal, an opening in
consciousness is made so Spirit can pour into our lives. When we do this “He restores my soul”…
The very essence of us is refreshed and restored.
#5 “He leads me in paths of righteousness for
His namesake.” We first establish a relationship with God, the good
Shepherd. Then divine guidance will be shown to us. As we are receptive to it,
we will be guided in right ways. We will be blessed, but not only us. Whenever
there is someone who experiences the quiet presence of God, that person is
blessed in untold and mysterious ways…but the blessings continue out into the
world, touching all those who are nearby.
When you seek and follow Divine guidance to the best of your
ability – which is a variable depending on how open and receptive you are to
God’s love for you – your experience blesses yourself and others for His namesake. His namesake?God is Good and God’s Will for us is
good outworking, so for his namesake means
for the good of all that is Holy.
#6 “Even though I walk through
the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil.” Our spiritual
path does not eliminate all challenges or problems, but it gives us strength
and assurance that allows us to move
through our fears, even the fear of death.
King David did not stop in the valley of the shadow of death, but walked
through it. As one teacher of mine said:
He did not wallow in the valley of the shadow of death but moved through
it”. The message for us to remember is that a challenge does not come to stay, but to pass. Also, it may be the
shadow of a possibility but not a
reality. We move through a challenge by returning our focus to Divine
inspiration instead of the problem and thus gain strength, knowledge and
confidence. As a result, we live through it, overcoming our fear.
#7 “Your rod and your staff they comfort
me.” In those ancient days a rod was an ion-tipped club used to fend
off wild animals from the sheep. A rod represents the power to act. The staff was a stick with a hook on the
top. It was used to prod the sheep and guide them in the right direction or to
snatch them away from danger. The staff represents the guidance that comes when
we give our attention to Spirit instead of to the problem. The end result of this is comfort. They comfort me so the fear, the
anxiety, the dread dissipates.
The reason this happens is because we become aware of the
presence of God. There is a requirement from us.
There must be a desire for an
awareness of God with us. If we are
willing to make the time to do this, we are comforted and right direction
follows.
#8 “Ýou prepare a table before me in the
presence of my enemies”. Here everything shifts for God is no longer
the shepherd but the host. In the Middle
East in ancient days, if anyone were invited to dinner, they were safe – even
if they were with their enemies. For the
duration of the meal, they were safe from harm.
God as host for us provides the
very best for all of us, but we cannot harm one another while seated at God’s
sumptuous feast. God’s good will is for us, but also for all. To enjoy it,
we must set aside our contentions, and the good we desire for ourselves is the
good we desire for others.
#9 “You anoint my head with oil”. Remember
that at that time, David’s people cooked with oil, burned oil in their lamps
for light, and anointed their kings with oil that they might be illumined. The Messiah actually means the anointed one. When God anoints us with oil, our perception
is changed from limitation to unlimited good for all. We begin to see or sense the living presence of God or Good in all individuals
and in all situations. We would say in
Unity that We behold the Christ in each
other”, the divine presence in each of us, as our thinking is illumined.
#10 Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord forever.
An awareness of God’s presence brings this kind of life blessed by God’s grace
and goodness. Sounds pretty good doesn’t it?
In this beloved 23rd Psalm David moves us from
being the images of sheep – beloved, precious livestock – to being the sons and
daughters of God with God as host. living
in the house of the Lord forever right here and now. The
kingdom is a kingdom consciousness and
it is up to us to be willing to awaken to it.
This is the jewel that King David blessed us with so many centuries ago
and yet is still relevant today.
Closing: Like
David, may you and all your loved ones be willing to be blessed by an awareness of the comfort, providing, safe-keeping presence of God this week. Blessings, Rev. Jan
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