The Almighty Shepherd

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures: He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul: He leads 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 are with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: Thou anoints my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life; and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever" (Psalm 23). Among all the Psalms, the twenty-third is the "pet lamb" of the flock to many. In this Psalm we find many aspects of the believers life. I. There is decision v.1. "The Lord is my Shepherd." Sheep are helpless and stupid, they desperately need guidance and assistance. The Psalmist made a personal choice to whom he would follow. A sheep is an object of property. The Lord was David's personal Shepherd. II. There is assurance v.1. "I shall not want." The godless are never satisfied. "My God shall supply all your need." Not only I do not want, but I shall not want. David believed the Shepherd's promise. III. There is rest v.2. "He makes me to lie down in green pastures. Guidance to refreshment comes first. The rest of faith is a rest that is calm and refreshing. "He maketh me to lie down." That rest is found in the center of God's love. The green pastures are found in the center of God's will. His quiet mercies are a means to an end, and that is for me to do His work. "He leadeth me." IV. There is restoration v.3. "He restores my soul." If we stray from His paths of righteousness He is gracious and willing to restore us. God restores the spiritually fatigued. Only Christ can restore the backsliding soul. When the soul is weak, God is strong. When the soul is sorrowful, God revives it, when the soul is sinful, He sanctifies it. V. There is guidance v.3. "He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness." The right path is not always the easiest. In Pilgrims progress the pilgrims found it "easy going" down the path which led to the castle of Giant Despair. Why does He "lead us?" "For His Own Names sake." God's reputation in this world is contingent upon how His children walk. VI. There is courage v.4. "Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil." The shadow of death is a dreadful thing to the unbeliever. But there is no evil to fear when the Shepherd is near. We don't walk in the valley but through the valley. Only a shadow, because God has removed its substance, all that remains is the shadow. The shadow of a dog can't bite. VII. There is fellowship v.4. "Thou are with me." The heavenly pilgrim is always in good company. The Lord stands with us when all men forsake us. The presence of God is sufficient at all times. VIII. There is comfort v.4. "Thy rod and Thy staff they comfort me." The club and the crook of the shepherd were the instruments of defense and deliverance. What they were to the sheep, the Word of God is to us. The staff was used to beat off the enemies, and to nudge the sheep along. The Word is a club to give us victory over our enemies. "We wrestle not against flesh and blood." The Word is a crook to guide or lift those who fall into a pit. God both defends and directs the believer. The knowledge that the Shepard has these instruments comforts the flock. IX. There is provision v.5. "Thou prepares a table before me in the presence of mine enemies." The good man has enemies, he would not be like Christ if he didn't. God knows how to feed His flock. We have meat to eat that the world knows nothing about. It was a practice for the winner to feast in front of the striving prisoners of war. There will always be conflict, there will always be a spread table. X. There is anointing v.5. "Thou anoints my head." We need a fresh anointing for every-day duties. This is the anointing of authority and power. We are like Kings and Priests who were anointed. We are a kingdom of priests unto God, and we are anointed by the Holy Spirit. A priest without oil was not qualified for service. XI. There is satisfaction v.5. "My cup runneth over," and flows out to others. The God of grace satisfies. The Spirit filled believer is a satisfied saint (John 7:37-39). XII. There is a great prospect v.6. We will live with God forever, all the day of this life and the next. He is with us on the black days as well as the bright days, and in the mansion that He prepared beyond this life. We won't change our company or the house, we will just go live in the upper story. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

True Success

"If you fully obey the Lord your God and carefully follow all his commands I give you today, the Lord you God will set you high above all the nations on earth" (Deut. 28:1-2). Sometimes God allows us to fail before we succeed. How we respond to failure reveals who we are living for. For the believer death precedes success. We really need to die to our old self life and then be resurrected to a new Christ life. This happens as we fully surrender our lives to Him. Remember the "kernel of wheat falling into the ground and dying" before there was any fruit. The theme of obedience runs as a thread through out the Bible. In many cases, as with the above verse, obey and hear are used synonymously. Hearing the Lord implies obedience to what He instructs us to do. There has been an over emphasis on the theme of success in some circles. We have modern day "Pastors" who are little more than motivational speakers. Some are involved in huge TV ministries. Rather than preach repentance of sin and salvation through faith in the finished work of Christ, they preach the "Gospel of success." This kind of "Flesh success" is attractive to some but really leaves a bad taste in the mouth of discerning unbelievers. I do believe God is the God of success All true success is a gift from Him. All that He proposes will be carried out "Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven". There are Biblical principles when applied to business, they just plain work. The principle "He who is greatest of all will be servant of all" tells us that the business that best serves their customers succeeds. The "Golden rule" always comes up in any sales training I have taken. Even the world has adopted Biblical principles for success in business. However as believers our success is rooted in our relationship with Christ. When our abilities are separated from Him success is short-lived. I know a man who is a multimillionaire, I watched his life fall apart as he fell deeply into sin. He has gone from being a wise business man to a very reckless decision maker. His violent anger has alienated his best employees and his extreme instability has destroyed all credibility. His vast empire is crumbling because disobedience and sin exact a terrible price in a sinners life. True success is living for the Lord in an intimate, obedient, love relationship with Him. As we daily reaffirm our commitment to trust Him with all our hearts and follow His ways in all we do, our lives will come into alignment with His purposes. This will ensure that His purposes are being fulfilled through our lives. This is the meaning of true success. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.

Who Cares for the Elderly

"Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”- Isaiah 46:4. We live in a time of genuine economic instability. Every day I read of major companies being in financial trouble. With the present rate of inflation many who live on fixed incomes are feeling the pinch. I have a friend, who is a few years older than I am, he has stated he has two fears as he approaches his "Golden years." The first fear is dying from an extended, extremely painful, illness and the second is that he might out live his material resources. God answers these questions when He says "I am he who will sustain you." I frequently approach the Lord in prayer on the basis of son-ship. My prayer might go as follows "Father, you created me and saved me, you have promised to provide for my needs and take care of me. I have a really big need right now, and I am asking you to take care of me by providing for me according to your will." I believe the Lord delights in answering prayer. The answer (He always answers) makes sense, is practical and leaves no doubt that it came from Him in answer to prayer. Faith works itself out in praying rather than in scheming. The Lord has promised to "carry us." and "rescue us." I believe He does this through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is God, an active member of the Godhead who indwells every believer. I am aware that we as Christians tend to ignore Him and His working in our lives. He came to guide us, why would we ignore our Guide. I don't have any direct Scriptural command to pray to Him, but I am commanded to "grieve not the Holy Spirit." and I am to "quench not the Holy Spirit." These commands imply relationship, and the Holy Spirit is a relational member of the Godhead. As we read the Scriptures the Holy Spirit teaches us and illumines the Word in our minds and hearts. The truth is the Lord will indwell us by the Holy Spirit until we draw our last breath and go home to be with our Father in heaven. When I was young we would sing "every day with Jesus is sweeter than the day before."I do know this, every day brings me one day closer to home. Dr. Ken Copley is available for counseling, conferences, and local church meetings.