Mansfield mirror. (Mansfield, Wright County, Mo.) 1908-1957, 1915-11-25

8%#ES&xG understanding or
Ey~ A the psalm and its
preciousness to
our souls. To know it's deepest mean
ing one must have received the Lord
Jesus Christ as his Savior and con-
fessed him as his Lord. Then in a
real does he become his shep-
herd and with confidence such a soul
can say, 81 shall not want" Note the
future tense here. The child of God
does not want for any good thing, and
shall not want forevermore.
1. II the Lord is my shepherd then
he is causing me to lie down in green
pastures, which means that | am daily
feeding on his Holy Word. The Scrip
lures are the green pastures in which
the sheep have their soul hunger sat
isfied, so that they are able to rest in
sweet content. We can easily deter
mine how far the Lord can be called
our shepherd by the time and thought
we give to the Bible, the strength W.
receive from 1t, and the love we have
for it.
2. If the Lord is my shepherd then I
am enjoying the communion of the
Holy Spirit because he is leading me
beside the still waters. The still wa
ters are a symbol of the Holy Spirit
who dwells within the true believer in
Christ, to guide him in his %perplexi-
ties, TO comfort him. in his trials. to
soothe him in his sorrows, and to
enlighten the eyes of his heart in the
knowledge of God and his precious
promises.
8. If the Lord is my shepherd then
I am experiencing continually the re-
newing Of my spiritual strength, for
he restoreth my soul. The sheep ONE
times wanders away from the flock
and gets torn amid the brambles, or
by the attacks of wild beasts. Or pos
sibly he falls among the rocks and
breaks a limb. The shepherd binds
up his wounds and knits his broken
bones, and in a spiritual sense our
shepherd does the same for us. 1t is
this precious truth that is set before
us in those words of John where he
pdy (, IL VIC SolllSoo oul clIo Hc 10
faithful and just to forgive us our
sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness." The thirty-second
psalm shows us how God did this for
David, restored his soul when he was
a backslider, and the latter may have
been thinking about it when he penned
these words.
4. If the Lord is my shepherd then
I am surrendering my will to him day
by day, and for that matter moment
by moment. for otherwise he cannot
be leading me in the paths of right
eousness. Observe that the believer
on Christ has already been led into
those paths, but now he is being led
in them as he yields himself to God
for that purpose. Sometimes they are
paths of joy, sometimes of suffering,
sometimes of testing, but they are all
the paths of righteousness neverthe.
less, If WI have really come to God in
Christ.
s.. If the Lord is my shepherd then
] am not failing to trust his promises,
for II I fail there l am unable to ties.
tify, as in the fourth verse of the
Psalm. g" will fear no evil" The
moment we lose our trust in God the
fear Of evil takes possession Of us,
but he whose confidence is reposed in
him can press to his heart the prom
Use in the first chapter Of Proverbs:
"Whoso h%earkeneth unto me shall
dwell safely, and shall be quiet from
fear of evil"
6. II the Lord is my shepherd then
am continually enjoying security and
peace, for such is the meaning Of the
words. Thou preparest a table before
me in the presence of mine enemies"
In the Orient the enemies of the sheep
are the wild beasts just referred to.
hidden away in the darkness, ready
to spring upon their prey when unpro-
tected by the shepherds presence. But
when he is there they feed In safety
on the green pastures and their me-.
mics are powerless.
Z. II the Lord is my shepherd then
am experiencing Joy and gladness,
and rendering service of the same kind
to others that are about me, for such
is the significance Of the words, Thou
a%nointest my head with oil, my cup
runneth over" The true Christian is
filled to overlooking, and those that
are round about him yet the benefit Of
the overflow in refreshing showers
of blessing.
8. II the Lord is my shepherd then
am the possessor of eternal hope GOV.
ering both this life and that which is
TO come. "for surely goodness and
mercy shall follow me all the days Of
my life, and I will dwell in the house
the Lord forever"
May this blessing come to all Of you,
and II will come II you will receive
The instruction set before you at the
beginning of this message. and believe
on the Lord Jesus Christ and be
saved, for he hath said, Him that
unto me | will In no wise cast