Sunday, May 12, 2013

Psalm 23:2


Copyright Ó 2013 J. Neely
Psalm 23:2

2 He maketh me to lie down [rabats] in green [deshe'] pastures: [na'ah] he leadeth [nahal] me beside the still [manuwchah] waters. [mayim] KJV-Interlinear

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. NASB


He, God. He is the one who causes, not makes as in forcing one to do something that he doesn't want to do, but causes the mature believer to lie down in green pastures. These are pastures of the choicest foods. The best of the best. God flys first class, never coach. The meals prepared are those fit only for the Kings table. Solomon had a never ending dining schedule. His guests came and went at their leisure, but the tables were never empty. The foods and finest of wines were virtually never ending.

We see in life many examples of how one can live and of how one should be able to live. We see examples of the very rich and the very poor. The former is of course the preferred life to have. The 300 foot long yachts, the castles, the vacation spots that only the extremely wealthy can obtain, the freedoms to come and to go, to shop with no upper limits, to pursue ones fancies or hobbies at will. The appearance of freedom from worry, freedom from trouble in the life, freedom from the humdrum daily repetition that traps us all at times. This is the life preferred.

The flip side of the coin is the reality of this world. The extremely poor. This is where all of mankind finds himself. All have burdens. All have sinned. All have to face the piper at death sooner or later. No matter what one gains during life, it is lost at death. Life in the jungle is always there to remind of ones helplessness. It is always there to remind of ones uselessness in life.

So God in His sense of humor, gives us a tease of seeing what the 'good' life could be. And He further gives us Bible doctrine, the pastures of the best grasses, the best foods for the soul, and, in addition to that, the blessings that go along with it (Bible doctrine in the soul).

In heaven there are many mansions. In heaven there are blessings that exceed ones imagination. Many of us can imagine a great deal, but our imaginations are unable to perceive what God has prepared for us. On earth we have blessings that exceed our imaginations as well, but these are the imaginations of one who lacks Bible doctrine. Spiritual growth is necessary in order to recognize ones blessings, to have the capacity for them, and therefore, to appreciate them.

Bible doctrine is the perfect food which the soul needs. The soul is constantly eating, consuming whatever is available. Whether it digests the opinions of the world and is deceived by them, or whether it digests Bible doctrine and therefore gains insight and discernment to understand life, the soul is never idle. Even in sleep, the soul is active if only in dreams, further digesting ones knowledge or playing fantasy games.

He guides us beside still waters, the still waters of comfort that remain still despite the raging of the worlds problems around us. Life in this world is full of turmoil of one sort or another. But the peace of God surpasses all things, is superior to all things. The adversities and disasters that might befall us, whether great or small, are really nothing, when we advance to spiritual maturity.

In spiritual maturity, in that sphere of fellowship wherein God the Holy Spirit controls the communication activities of the soul, wherein Bible doctrine provides the foundation and framework of the basic structure of the soul, wherein the daily application of Bible doctrine to ones life adds strength, spiritual muscle to ones faith. The result? Peace, poise, a relaxed mental attitude, stability in ones life and more, are the blessings that attend ones spiritual growth.

As we have seen before, salvation is infinitely beyond no salvation. Likewise, spiritual maturity is infinitely beyond spiritual immaturity. Just as an infant is no comparison to the wise and wealthy adult. The infant has many limitations and is helpless. The infant must be cared for by others and others direct all of the infants affairs. While the wise and wealthy adult commands great freedoms, discernment's, and choices.

So God shepherds us all, seeing beyond our ability to see. Gods provision sees that we lack nothing. God provides us with all we could ever want for nourishment and for decision making. God guides our lives in times of trouble and provides the eye of the storm where there is great quiet, peace, and prosperity despite the storms raging.