Our dear brother Hubert Smith this morning, who was supposed to be here to speak today, said his daughter Margaret, who had been ill for nine years with a cancer, had been in the hospital this past week getting some new treatments which they were hoping would help. At the beginning of the week she was much encouraged, but evidently last night suddenly she went home to be with the Lord. I'm sure we wish to pray and remember our dear brother Hubert and the family in their sorrow that one of his children has been taken away to be with the Lord. And providentially, my own engagement for the day was cancelled last night due to our dear friend, Hurricane Francis. But anyway, it's a joy to know that I was able to be here. and bring the word of God for our comfort and encouragement and for our salvation if we need the Lord Jesus as our Savior. I feel led by the Holy Spirit to go to one of the greatest Psalms you can ever find in the Bible. The twenty-third Psalm, which has oftentimes been called and rightly so, the Shepherd Psalm. I don't know how many of you know when you turn to those psalms in that particular location of the book, the twenty-second, the twenty-third, and the twenty-fourth. Each one of them are a shepherd's psalm. Psalm twenty-two, you may remember that it begins with those words, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? And I'm sure you connect them with the blessed Lord Jesus, when he was upon the cross, and cried in the agony of his own soul, bearing your sins and bearing mine in his own body on the tree, forsaken by man, but forsaken by God, and cried in the agony of his soul, those blessed words, My God, my God, Why has thou forsaken me? Psalm twenty-two has often been called, and rightly, the psalm of the cross. It brings before us the good shepherd in death. For you remember the Lord Jesus said in John chapter ten, I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep. Psalm twenty-three, which we shall meditate upon, He's the great shepherd in resurrection, caring for all the sheep that belong to him, and caring for them until he brings them ultimately into the home of his father above, the place of many mansions. Psalm twenty-four can be rightly called the Psalm of the Crown, the good shepherd in glory, For it depicts the glorious time when our Lord Jesus will reign from shore to shore as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. But let us meditate upon this blessed Psalm, often called the Shepherd Psalm twenty-three. You may know it well, I trust you do. But more than anything, I hope you know the Shepherd. I remember an incident that took place in the city of London. There was a great actor who was asked if you would recite the twenty-third psalm, which he was able to do. But because of his allocutionist being so great as an orator, they wanted to hear him recite it. And they did. And then at the end of it, he made a request. There was an old Christian man, a real-aged brother in the audience. He said, I'd like to hear my friend recite the twenty-third psalm. And the old brother got up and he recited the twenty-third psalm, which he loved so much. And when he was finished, the noted actress made the statement, I knew the psalm, but he knows the shepherd. There can be a great difference. Let's read the words and follow them through, beginning to say, The Lord is my shepherd. I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in the green pastures. He leadeth me beside the still waters. He restores my soul. He leadeth me in paths of righteousness for his namesake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me. Thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me. Thou shalt preparest a table before me in the presence of mine 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. May God bless the reading of this wonderful portion of His Blessed and Holy Word, the twenty-first Psalm. Oh, we cannot begin to measure the amount of comfort and encouragement that many millions have received from this precious portion of the Word of God. Psalm twenty-three. I would like you to meditate with me on this precious Psalm in a threefold way. For it reveals to us three great truths. It reveals to us the secret of a happy life. Second, it reveals to us what every one of us should know, the secret of a happy death. And it also reveals to us the secret of a happy eternity. Let me repeat it. A happy life. A happy death. and a happy eternity. Could you have anything better than that? Could you have anything more than that? The secret of a happy life, the secret of a happy death, the secret of a happy eternity. Oh, the joy of knowing the blessedness of the word of God revealing such truth. But I must begin very carefully and importantly, with the beginning of the psalm, or the opening words of the psalm are the most important to you and to me as individuals. The Lord, Jehovah, is my shepherd. Know very carefully, it does not say the Lord is a shepherd, which is true. Neither does it say the Lord is the shepherd, which is true also. But it says, the Lord is my shepherd. The importance of that little word, my, in the statement, you could quote the words and put them on your finger ends. I recall very vividly after World War I, many stories came back from that war. after it was over, telling of the blessing of God, even in the midst of those days of war and death. And there was a chaplain in the British Army who was very concerned about the boys that were in his regiment, to whom he was responsible as their chaplain. He found that many of them knew not the Lord, and he was concerned regarding their souls for eternity. They fought the battle of those days from trench to trench, across what they called in between no man's land. And on occasions when they were about to go and be in the trenches to fight, the chaplain would get his men of the regiment together, and he would give them the gospel of God's grace and the salvation message of Christ. But he also reminded them of this psalm, this shepherd psalm, and the importance of those words, the Lord is my shepherd. And on one occasion as he ministered them, he said, Boy, take the five fingers of your hand. And if you can't remember these words, mark your fingers, the Lord is my shepherd. Five fingers, five words, the Lord is my shepherd. And he says, emphasize that index finger. The most important of it, the Lord is my shepherd. After the battle of Bullockought was the name of the battle and it followed on that occasion. The chaplain went over the battlefield to find any that he could help. And there were many, of course. But to his great surprise, he found one of his old soldiers lying in death. absolutely dead. But when they looked down at his body they found his right hand crossing that index finger in death. Making a confession that in death the Lord is my shepherd. I know my beloved one at company wants to know that the man had found the Savior and confessed him if he did in such a blessed way. But that's the most important word. of those five, my shepherd, my Savior. As he exhorted them every time they went to the front lines, be sure you can say, the Lord is my Savior. But in that Psalm, how precious it is to realize the secret of the happy life and the secret of the happy death and the secret of the happy eternity. Meditate upon the words. The Lord is my shepherd. And what does the following words declare? I shall not want. When I have Christ as my Savior, he is my satisfaction. One well wrote the words in poetry, Satisfied with thee, Lord Jesus, I am blessed. Peace that passes understanding on thy breath. No more doubting, no more trembling. Oh, what rest? Oh, what rest? Satisfaction. My beloved, you'll never have greater satisfaction. And many of you may remember the joy that was yours when you put your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And when I trusted the Lord Jesus as my Savior, oh, the blessed satisfaction. When I found him, for my soul as well as for the rest of my life, and the joy of knowing, I shall not one. Blessed Lord Jesus, you know, we used to think and hope, so I'm satisfied indeed, and only through him can we ever be. Indeed, Lord Jesus, there's satisfaction and lasting joy found only, Lord Jesus, in me. But it's not only satisfaction. You know it isn't in the next verse that you follow it through. He made it me to lie down where? in green pastures. There's not only satisfaction. There is thank God and blessed be his name for it. There is not only satisfaction but contentment. He leads me in the green pastures. I'm sure we're all familiar with the language. David was a shepherd. David was a man that took care of the sheep in his young life. And He led them where there were green patches to feed upon, where they could lie down in contentment. He led them also, as you follow the reading of it, he led them beside the still waters where there was peace. One of the strange facts, I don't know how much you understand about sheep, I don't know much myself, but I have learned this. A sheep will not drink from running water. I was on a farm one time visiting a brother up in Pennsylvania. And as he was feeding the sheep and watering the sheep, I noticed, and he told me very plainly, those sheep won't drink running water. I have to put the water out there. They can drink still water. And so it was with the shepherd of old. He led them by the still waters. If the waters were running, he cut them off where he could to make a still, placid pool of water. for them to drink. There was not only content, but there was peace indeed, as well as we thank God for the fact that they could enjoy that peaceful tranquility. How well it is, all the peace my Savior gives. Peace I never knew before, since I learned to trust him more. And what a joy it is to... He gives us, let me quote his own words, John chapter fourteen, verse twenty seven, Peace, I leave with you, my peace, give I unto you, let not your heart be troubled. And what a joy it is to know we have such a Savior. When is my Savior, I have contentment, and thank God I have peace. And then, in verse three, I have restoration. He restores my soul and leaves me in the paths of righteousness. For his name's thing. I don't know whether you know it, but I have read many times this fact. There's no animal more silly than a sheep. You say, what do you mean? Trone to wander. You remember the hymn we sometimes sing in our hymn book. Trone to wander, Lord, I feel it. were prone to leave the God I love. It is my heart who take and seal it for thyself in heaven above. But that is one of the tendencies of even Christians to wander away and the need of restoration. I can remember my useful days as a Christian. They were up and down in their experiences. They were not always on the mountain top, but they're sometimes in the valley. as far as the experience was concerned. I know many times as a young Christian I could recognize a tendency to go after the things of the world. One little hymn used to remind me of it. Though I forgave and wander astray, still he does love me wherever I stray. Back to it, dear loving arms, do I flee when I remember that Jesus loves me? The shepherd restores the sheep. Sometimes they get lost. Sometimes they wander away. Sometimes they get caught in a ticket and cannot extract themselves from. And the shepherd has to relieve them and deliver them. But may I encourage you, my fellow believer, the joy of restoration. He restores my soul and leads me where I should be going in the paths of righteousness. for his name, say. Hallelujah, what a Savior as we think of him. But go down to verse five. Oh, mid verse four for the present time, if you please. Let me look with you at verse five and note the provision he makes. Thou prepare us the table before me in the presence of mine enemies. All the provision. Thou prepare us the table before me in the presence of mine enemies. Let me bring before your heart the words of the dear Apostle Paul as you may read them. I encourage you to read them in First Corinthians chapter ten. And you'll find within that chapter the beloved Apostle Paul was concerned about the fellowship the believers in the church at Corinth should be enjoying. And within that chapter he mentions two tables. One, the table of the Lord. Second, the table of demons. You can read it for yourself. As a Christian, to what table do you belong? The table of the Lord. And let me give you the thought. The moment that you're saved, you're brought to the table of the Lord. Let me remind you of the blessed Lord Jesus in the terrible he told in Luke chapter fourteen. The terrible of the great supper. There was a certain man that made a great supper and invited many. He was all prepared. And the Lord Jesus was preaching the gospel. He was depicting the blessed truth that God has prepared a tame all. For those who would accept his invitation. And Paul emphasizes in that chapter of Corinthians two tables, the table of the Lord and a table of deeds. And what he says in that one verse. You cannot put your feet under the table of the Lord and the table of demons at the same time. Well, one sure thing. The world has got a big table spread too. The devil's got a big table loaded for you to go after it and want to go after it. But the table of the Lord The precious word of God. The provision of the word of God to feed upon. Thou prepare us a table before me in the presence of mine enemies. And please let me remind you who your enemies are. The world, the flesh, and even the devil. But oh, the joy of knowing I have a table. The table of the Lord. And in that tenth chapter of Corinthians, Paul was concerned about the believers enjoying the Lord's table. Now look, he was not referring to the Lord's Supper. He does that in chapter eleven. But in chapter ten, he refers to the Lord's table. And may I remind your heart as well of mine own, when you and I receive the Lord Jesus as our Saviour, We're immediately introduced to the table. And the food. Don't forget it's spiritual. It's not literal and physical. That's spiritual. I think of the words of dear Peter when he wrote in First Peter chapter two, telling the newborn babes, As newborn babes desired a sincere milk of the word, that he may grow thereby. And of the closing words he ever wrote in Second Peter, chapter three, verse eighteen. But grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. May I ask you the question? I'll often do your feet on the word of God. This is the table of the Lord. There's food from Genesis all the way through Revelation. Let me remind you of the words of the Lord Jesus from John chapter six. Whosoever eateth my bread. whosoever eateth my flesh and drinketh my blood has eternal life in what does it mean feeding upon Christ feeding upon Christ through his word and the joy of knowing he feeds my soul my beloved let me say you feed your body three times a day possibly at least and maybe more times sometimes but How often do you feed your soul? Thou prepare us a table before me in the presence of mine enemies, and in the presence of all enemies. The Lord has a table for his own to enjoy. Well, let's go further in that same verse. For he goes on to say, Thou anointest my head with oil, and my cup runneth over. Not only the provision for my food, for my soul, but for the blessings. He wants me to enjoy the... We supposedly sang that old doxology. Praise God from whom what? All blessings for all. I think of the words at first chapter of Ephesians, chapter one and verse three. When Paul by the Holy Spirit wrote, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who hath blessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ. And may I be reminded with my fellow believers, where are your blessings? Where are my blessings? In Christ, and where is He? In heavenly places. And that God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ hath already blessed us with all, now know, spiritual blessings. The anointing of the Holy Spirit is implied. As you add that the psalmist says, thou anointest my head with oil, and my cup, it overflows. My beloved, let me say very frankly, and I confess it, I have never yet found all the blessings that God has given me in Christ. They're not on the earth, in heavenly places above. The enjoyment of what I have in a risen Christ, in a glorified Christ, a living Christ. Oh, my beloved, let me please remind you as well of my known heart. Whereas sometimes we sing, I serve a risen Savior, is in the world today. I know that He is living no matter what men may say. And the joy of knowing my Savior lives. And if I remember His promise and what He has done, at Pentecost He sent the Holy Spirit in power and blessing upon and in this world. And thank God the Holy Spirit is still here. and upon the earth the blessings of the Holy Spirit can be enjoyed, that we have in Christ that risen man in the glory above. Thou anointest my head with awe, and my cup, run us over. Believe me, I make the statement again, as I did before. Customarily the sheep would not drink from running water, as in the case of my friend the farmer, with whom I was at that time that I mentioned. He had to pour water in the vessel for them to drink. They wouldn't take it from the tap, not from any flowing water. The shepherd sometimes had to give the sheep a cup of water. And when he did, it always ran over. My cup ran over. I think of a dear old lady, a dear old saint of God, and she was praising the Lord one day for his blessings to her. And as she was praising the Lord, she said, Lord, my cup, run us over. And she added, and my saucer too. My beloved, let me ask you the question. Did his blessings ever overflow your soul and overflow your heart? Bless with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ Jesus. And may I say again, You have never been able to count those. Well, you used to think that old limb, you may remember it. Count your blessings, name them one by one. I remember his children. Sometimes we paraphrase and say, count your blessings, ton by ton. Look. I think of the words of David in Psalm chapter hundred and three. Let me quote then. Bless the Lord, O my soul. All that is within me, blessed Holy Name. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and what? Forget not all his benefits. My beloved, I will say this. We need to bless the Lord more. So I think of a dear old saint living way back sixty years ago in the city of Charleston when I knew him. That dear old soul every time you met her, She said, bless the Lord. And she was always blessing the Lord day by day. Hour by hour. I remember one time going into her presence. And to her, to my surprise, I heard her say this to me. She said, Brother John, I had to apologize to the devil this morning. I looked at her strangely. I said, what do you mean? Well, she said, I found I was blaming him for what I did myself. Be careful. You might do the same. And I might. As he said, I had to apologize. I found out I was to blame for what was bothering me. He wasn't to blame at all. And son, you have that. You know you have three enemies, the world and the flesh, yourself and the devil also. And so you can recognize all the joy of knowing. He blessed us with all spiritual blessings. Enjoy them. And may your cup run over. As the psalmist said, my cup runeth over. Now in verse six, the opening words of verse six, Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. Protection. Power alone all the days of my life. My beloved, can I say confessedly, the joy of being able to confess, surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. A good friend of mine, I recall many years ago, he said, Brother John, you know what goodness and mercy are? They're God's two watchdogs. Usually a shepherd had a watchdog, maybe two of them. And my friend called these two Watch dogs, goodness and mercy. And my beloved, I will confess. I've got to confess. I must confess. I would be lying if I refused to do it. I have to confess all the days of my life since Christ became my Savior. God's goodness and His mercy has followed me. I will follow me to the rest till the end. Oh, the provision of a happy life, when the Lord is my shepherd. May I say very frankly, the sheep that follow the shepherd never trouble their own selves about where they were going, what they would eat, and their care and their provision. All they needed and all they knew was the shepherd. And remember the Lord Jesus in John ten says, My sheep hear my voice and they follow me. And I give unto them eternal life and they shall never perish. What protection in his eternal hands? The secret of the hacker life. Sometimes, may I say this, I'm not only saved, I'm safe. You see, what do you mean? A lot of difference. There's a lot of people believe that they're saved and they don't believe they're saved. What do you mean? They mean they think that they can lose their salvation. You can't. I give unto my sheep eternal life. How long does that last? Through eternity. They shall never perish. And my Father who gave them to me is greater than all. Neither shall any pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one. Let me close this particular part of the psalm by reminding you again. When I can say the Lord is my shepherd, I found the secret of a happy life. Yes. I may have my ups and downs, and I do. But I've got a shepherd. Who cares for me? But then I want you to meditate with me. Not only the secret of a happy life, but in verse four, the secret of a happy death. As the psalmist writes, yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil. For thou art with me, Thy run and I staff, they comfort me. The figure of the happy day? May I say frankly, you and I are traveling through a world where the shadow of death is over us, constantly. Well, one of the writings of the proverb writer, Solomon, who wrote the promise, made the statement, Boast not thyself or tomorrow, for thou knowest not what a day may bring forth. And none of us know what a morrow will bring. The valley of the shadow of death we are really going through. But the time comes as it came, has been to many others, as it came to our young sister and the Lord, our brother Hubert's daughter. She went through the valley. of death. And here's the verse that tells you how you can go through it. Ye go I walk through the valley of the shadow of death. I will fear no evil. For thou art with me. Thy rod and thy staff. The shepherd's rod and the staff that guide the sheep all the way. Comfort me. What does he mean? Think with me and meditate upon the words carefully. Note in the introduction of the verse, the psalmist says, When I go through that valley, I'll walk. I'll not run. I'll not be afraid. I'll not panic. I'll have compulsion. I'll have compulsion. Well, did the writer to the book of Corinthians in First Corinthians chapter fifteen, the Apostle Paul say, of a coming day when the saints shall be raised from the dead? Oh, death! Where is thy sting? Oh, grave! Where is thy victory? My beloved, for a believer to die? Well, I think of the words of the beloved Apostle Paul. as he quotes them in First Philippians chapter one, verse twenty-three. Well, let me quote verse twenty-one. For me to live is Christ, to die is gain. In other words, I don't know whether you'll believe it, but I'm going to believe it as hard as I can. The happiest thing for a Christian is to be taken into the presence of the Lord forever. What? Sure is. And on that occasion, when he may come, when he does come, I can have composure. Not only can I have composure, I can have confidence. I will walk through. I will walk through. When you know where you're going, you've got light enough to know you're going through. I recall an incident that I read, very sad, where a dear young boy, fourteen years of age, lay dying. Unfortunately, he had been raised in a family of atheists, and all of his loved ones were around the bed as he lay dying. Suddenly the young boy cried out. It's dark. It's dark. I can't see. One of his uncles at the bedside there said, Hold on, lad. Hold on, lad. Trying to hold him up by a few words of encouragement. But the young lad answered back, What am I hold on to? He had nothing to hold on to. My beloved, let me ask you the question. When that moment comes for you, will you have composure? Will you have confidence? He said, no, you're going to be with... Oh, I think it's a... Do you remember the words of the Apostle Paul in First Corinthians chapter five? I think verse ten. I would rather... I would rather... have my life ended to be with the Lord at home to be with the Lord. And there was the beloved Apostle Paul there. And if you want me to tell you what my rather is, I'd rather be with the Lord in heaven. Well, my beloved, I'll tell you very frankly, much as I may and do love God's dear people, I know this, the portion of the believer when he or she dies, is better and they can indeed say I'll not only add composure but I've confidence I know where I'm going I know where I'm going the Lord's waiting for me and then not only that will I have confidence but I'll have courage I'll fear no what I'll fear no evil I'll tell you very frankly I read a letter from a missionary friend of mine yesterday in the country of Colombia, South America, amongst in the midst of much guerrilla warfare that goes on down there, of one of the Christians who was serving the government in security forces as they came to take charge of a man whom they had to arrest. The man shot this young Christian in the face, completely dead. But oh the joy at the funeral that the young man had the testimony that Christ was his Savior, even in the midst of such warfare that was going on down there. My beloved, what joy it is to have composure and to have not only composure but confidence and also the joy of knowing there's nothing to fear nothing to fear I'll fear no look once you see the devil won't bother you after you leave here you're saying goodbye to him forever neither will the world bother you neither will your troubles bother you and maybe your finances they'll never bother you when going out of here Oh, what contentment when you... Well, remember what the Apostle Paul wrote in Galatia in the epistle of Timothy, First Timothy. God that is with contentment is great gain. For it is written, we brought nothing into this life and we can carry nothing out. It all beloved, our preciousness. Let me say this. When a Christian goes out of this world, they're going out of nothing to everything. And they're leaving behind everything and here and going to everything. I think of a dear old hymn. I used to enjoy hearing it. By a radio singer way back sixty years ago by the name of Edwin McHugh. He had a song he often sung. We'll say good night here and good morning up there. Where Christ is the light. Where cometh no night, we'll sing good night down here, but good morning up there. All the confidence I need, fear no evil. And the comfort of knowing, the courage that I will have. But not only that, I not only have composure, I not only have confidence, and I not only have courage, but best of all, I have a companion. And the companion is who? My shepherd. Thou art with me. Thou art with me. My beloved, you know as well as I do. When that moment of departure comes for you and for me, precious as it may be that we have loved ones around us, they cannot go with us. we cannot go with them but there's one of whom we can say thou art with me my shepherd the secret of the happy death i've got in oh thank god for the knowledge that shepherd is with me even in the hour of death and then follows comfort to thy rod, the rod that corrected me in my path, thy staff that guided me safely through my life. Our instruments of comfort to me. Oh, my beloved, let me say this. You and I may fail the shepherd, but he will never fail you, nor me, when we have him. And the joy of knowing I have the secret not only of a happy life, the secret of a happy death. Oh, I think of the words of the Lord Jesus, to the dying thief upon the cross next to him. What words of comfort they must have been and were. When he confessed the Lord and said, Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom, and what did the Savior answer? Today, verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou beware, with me in paradise. And there that blessed, dying thief witnessed the death of the Savior, dying for his sins. And when he himself died, he found the Savior waiting for him as he got to the other shore. Today shalt thou be with me in paradise. And may I say this, look, can I try to illustrate it? I've been trying to think it through. Have you had loved ones who have left you, taken away to be with the Lord? How many years have they been away? How many years have they been with Christ? Let me tell you something. They've been the happiest years of their existence. I tell you very frankly, there's more happy people in heaven maybe than there are on earth. Then join what? Heavenly blessings with the Lord. We want to be glad when we can meet them again and be with them. Now that brings us to the closing of our chapters. The end part of the last verse. After saying, Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life. This time it's right. And I will dwell in the house of