"He leads me in paths of righteousness"
Scripture
Ps. 23:3 He
restores my soul; He leads me in the
paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.
Pray
Animals of habit
√ Sheep are notorious creatures of habit
If left to themselves they follow the same paths, practice the same habits, and eat from the same places until…
…they ruin the land and water from overuse.
√ Sheep need a shepherd to lead them
A smart shepherd keeps his flock moving so that they do not eat from the same land.
Fresh grass
Don't ruin the field
Allow time for growth
√ The shepherd's name is on the line
The condition of the pastureland from which the sheep feed will directly impact the health of the sheep.
Poor pasture land = unhealthy sheep
The reputation of a shepherd is based upon his care of the sheep, which is directly related where he leads and feeds them.
In short, a shepherds entire name and reputation depends on how effectively and efficiently he keeps his sheep moving onto wholesome, new, fresh grass.
People of habit
√ We're just like sheep
It's no coincidence that God chooses to call us "sheep"! We are so much like sheep in our behavior and habits that frankly…
…it's embarrassing!
√ We're stubborn and self-willed
Isa. 53:6 All we like sheep have gone astray; We have turned, every one, to his own way; And the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.
We prefer to follow our own ways, our own will, our own agenda.
Even when it leads to destruction!
Ex. The drug addict or alcoholic - repeatedly chooses to do what he/she knows intellectually will destroy his/her life!
Ap. Reminds us that the bad choices we make in life are rooted in our own pride and high self-esteem. That is, it is our willful choice to go our own way that kills us.
We insist that we know what's best for us even when the destructive results are plainly evident.
√ Habitual
Just as sheep will blindly, habitually, studiedly follow one another along the same paths until they become ruined wasteland…
…so we humans hang onto the same habits that we have seen ruin so many others lives.
"We have turned, every one, to his own way"
…simply means doing what "I" want to do regardless of what God says I should be doing.
Pro. 14:12 There is a way that seems right to a man, But its end is the way of death.
God's solution
√ Follow Me!
John 14:6 Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.
And…
John 10:27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.
And…
John 12:26 “If anyone serves Me, let him follow Me; and where I am, there My servant will be also. If anyone serves Me, him My Father will honor.
The solution to all of our problems can be found in simply following Jesus!
He leads us…
Along a good path
Where we find food good for our soul
To the Father
So, God's solution to our worn out, ruined lives, is to simply follow Jesus - He will lead us along paths of righteousness.
Man's problem
√ But…
There's a problem! We don't want to follow!
We say we do, but all too often we actually don't follow Jesus where He leads us.
How do I know that's true?
The path of
righteousness is the path of obedience!
And what I see in so many lives today is that Christians don't actually do what the Bible says they should do.
Ex. Christian marriages
The most frustrating counseling a pastor does is in regards to the marriage relationship. The bottom line for the majority of problems is not that there are no clear Biblical solutions…
…rather, it is the unwillingness of one or the other partner to actually do what the Bible says needs to be done to fix the relationship.
Listen, I don't want to use any current examples because I don't want to embarrass anyone, or have anyone think that I've got them in mind.
Let's make the point from scripture.
Mat 19:8 He said to them, “Moses, because of the hardness of your hearts, permitted you to divorce your wives, but from the beginning it was not so.
The same is true today in many areas of Christian experience.
Ap. You do your part - don't worry about what the other person is doing or not doing.
How do we really follow the Lord?
√ A choice of our will
There are many willful, wayward, indifferent, self-interested Christians that don't actually follow the Lord in "paths of righteousness".
The reason…
…there's a cost involved in following Him.
The cost is our will, our way.
Mark 8:34 When He had called the people to Himself, with His disciples also, He said to them, “Whoever desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.
This is the pivotal point in every believer's life. Will they go on with Jesus, or will they go back to their old ways.
If you want to follow Jesus then you must chose to say "no" to yourself, and "yes" to Him.
Practical ways in which we do that.
1) Instead of loving myself most I must be willing to love Jesus first and others second.
This morning's devotional - when you walk into a room, which is your perspective…
"Here I am!" or, "Ah, there you are!"
The one cries out for attention and says…
"look at me - I need attention"
..while the other says…
"Tell me about yourself"
One says
"I'm important"
..while the other says…
"You are important"
One says….
"The world revolves around me"
..while the other says…
"I'm here to serve you"
2) Instead of being one of the crowd I must be willing to be different.
Like sheep we want to "belong". But, following Jesus means going in a different way than the world.
If we try and "fit in" with the world we won't have any positive influence to rescue them from the path of destruction.
3) Instead of insisting on my rights I must be willing to forego them in favor of others.
The very foundation of "denying self". It's not easy, or natural, but it is a worth while pursuit.
Why? Because of the freedom you will experience.
Ex. The person who has no sense of self-importance cannot be offended or deflated by others!
Ap. If you're like me and too worried about what everyone else thinks of you…try denying yourself and find the freedom!
4) Instead of wanting to be first I must be willing to be last, least.
Don't try and force yourself into positions of authority or leadership. Rather, look for ways to serve others.
5) Instead of finding fault with life and always asking "why?" I must be willing to accept every circumstance of life in an attitude of gratitude.
God doesn't always tell us "why" He allows difficult circumstances to come into our lives. In fact most of the time He doesn't tell us!
We're called to learn to trust Him and simply follow.
When we chose to believe that everything in our life has a God-given purpose, then we can experience the peace and joy that comes from knowing that God will work it all out.
6) Instead of asserting my will, I must learn to cooperate with His wishes and comply with His will.
My will - that is the key issue to really following Jesus.
The extent to which I lay down my will and do His will is the extent to which I'll experience the abundant life He has promised.
7) Instead of choosing my own way I must be willing to chose to follow in His way - to do what He asks me to do.
In a word, "obedience".
John 14:15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments.
One cannot honestly say that they love Jesus, and yet willfully chose to disobey His commandments.
To do that demonstrates that you love yourself more than you love Jesus!
Close
√ No one can follow Jesus of their own power
That is why He has graciously given us His Spirit to live within us, to empower us, to change us, to make us like Jesus.
Phil. 2:13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure.