From Valley to Mountain

“1 The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, 3 he restores my soul. He guides me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake. 4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6 Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever.” (Psalm 23 NIV).

We are continuing our study in Psalm 23. Our focus this morning is on verse 4b – Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

The picture David is painting for us in this verse involves it seems the movement of the flock from their winter pasture to their summer pasture. In that journey, they had to go through dangerous territory. David describes it as “the valley of the shadow of death.” Some commentators believe that this is a description of an actual chasm that David may have had to lead his sheep through–a chasm where wild animals could hide in ambush, a chasm where the sudden rise of waters could become a deadly torrent, a chasm that was deep and dark.

Phillip Keller says, “In the Christian life we often speak of wanting ‘to move to higher ground with God.’ How we long to live above the lowlands of life. We want to get beyond the common crowd, to enter a more intimate walk with God. We speak of mountaintop experiences and we envy those who have ascended the heights and entered into this more sublime sort of life.

“Often we get an erroneous ides about how this takes place. It is as though we imagined we could be ‘air lifted’ onto higher ground. On the rough trail of the Christian life this is not so. As with ordinary sheep management, so with God’s people, one only gains higher ground by climbing up through the valleys.

“Every mountain has its valleys. Its sides are scarred by deep ravines and gulches and draws. And the best route to the top is always along these valleys.” (Keller: “A Shepherd Looks At Psalm 23" Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapid MI 1970 pp. 83-84).

Now, it is through these dangerous valleys that the shepherd’s rod and staff come into play. The rod was an instrument of protection, correction, and inspection while the staff was an instrument of intimacy, guidance and rescue. Tomorrow we will look closer at these two important tools of the shepherd’s trade.

Here’s what I know, The Good Shepherd is in that valley He has put you in. Did you catch that? We often try to protect God from the hard things of life. How silly. He who is all-knowing and all-powerful doesn’t need the protection of we who are limited and weak! We need His help, He doesn’t need ours! Burn that thought into you heart. If you are in a valley right now, you can be sure that it is a valley that the Good Shepherd has chosen for the purpose of getting you safely to higher ground. Don’t panic, follow. Even the sheep know that those valleys of deep shadows (through which none of them would go willingly because of their skittish natures) is a safe passage as long as the Shepherd is with them. So is your valley.