“And I Will Dwell in the House
of the Lord Forever”
In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy
Spirit. Amen. “The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in
green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my
soul. He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name’s sake.
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 preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies; Thou anointest
my head with oil; my cup runneth over.” We conclude our sermon series, “A Lenten Look at Psalm 23”: “Surely
goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in
the house of the Lord forever.” Always following behind a flock of sheep are the wolves and other
attackers, just waiting for an opportunity, for one of the flock to wander or
fall behind. But, the Good Shepherd’s flock is so blessed, his sheep are
followed not by vicious predators, but by two wonderful companions: goodness and
mercy. In fact, the Hebrew text actually says that we are pursued through
life, not by predators, but pursued by God’s goodness and mercy. Imagine
God’s goodness and mercy like faithful sheepdogs, following behind you and
tending you all the days of your life. He shows his goodness to you by
abundantly providing so many blessings; he shows his mercy to you by completely
forgiving all your sins. In his book “A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23,” Phillip Keller writes: “Of course it is very simple to speak this way when
things are going well. If my health is excellent, my income is flourishing, my
family is well, and my friends are fond of me, it is not hard to say, ‘Surely
goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life.’ But, what
about when things crumble into ruins? Can I then honestly declare, ‘Surely
goodness and mercy shall follow me ALL the days of my life’? “In looking back over my own life, there were
events which at the time seemed like utter calamities. But, all in the end
turned out for my benefit and my well-being. With my limited understanding
as a finite human being, I could not always comprehend the Good Shepherd’s
management of my life, executed in his infinite wisdom. “With my natural tendencies to fear, worry, and ask
‘why,’ it was not always simple to assume that he really did know what he was
doing with me. There were times I was tempted to panic, to bolt from his flock
and leave his care. Somehow, I had the strange, stupid notion I could survive
better on my own. “But, despite this perverse behavior, I am so glad
that my Good Shepherd did not give up on me! I am so grateful that he did follow
me in goodness and mercy. The only possible motivation was his own love, his
care and concern for me as one of his sheep. And despite my doubts, despite my
misgivings about his management of my affairs, he has picked me up and born me
back again in great tenderness. “As I see all of this in retrospect, I realize that
for the one who is truly in Christ’s care, no difficulty can arise, no dilemma
emerge, no seeming disaster descend on their life, without eventual good coming
out of the chaos. Seeing the goodness and mercy of my Master in my life
has become the great foundation of my faith and confidence in him. “I love him because he first loved me. His goodness
and mercy and compassion to me are new every day. And my assurance is lodged in
these aspects of his character. My trust is in his love for me as his own. My
serenity has as its basis an implicit, unshakable reliance on his ability to do
the right thing, the best thing, in any and all situations. “This to me is the supreme portrait of my Good Shepherd. Continually there flows out to me his goodness and mercy, even though I do not deserve them.” “Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and
I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” We dwell in the house of
the Lord whenever we are together here, in church. We dwell in the house
of the Lord whenever we are in our own homes, because they are Christian homes.
And finally, we will dwell in the house of the Lord forever in heaven, as Jesus
promised the thief on the cross, “Today you will be with me in Paradise.” At the Last Supper, Jesus gave to his disciples and us a precious
promise: “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in
me. In my Father’s house are many rooms . . . I am going there to
prepare a place for you. . . I will come again and take you to be with me,
so that you also may be where I am.” Return to Top | Return to Sermons | Home | Email Church Office
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