Psalm 23 New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want.

He makes me lie down in green pastures;

he leads me beside still waters;

he restores my soul.

He leads me in right paths

for his name’s sake.

Even though I walk through the darkest valley,

I fear no evil;

for you are with me;

your rod and your staff—

they comfort me.

You prepare a table before me

in the presence of my enemies;

you anoint my head with oil;

my cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me

all the days of my life,

and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD

my whole life long.

I hope this sermon doesn’t ruin Psalm 23 for you. If it does, just ignore what I say.

I was at a celebration a couple weeks ago for Esther Paw’s birthday. As is the Karen way, the celebration began with worship.

I was privileged to be invited to share a short message with the assembled. Pastor Carey read the 23rd Psalm and I began my words by saying, “this is a story about a sheep and his shepherd.”

As the words were coming out of my mouth, a light turnes on in my head, I found myself thinking, “I’m not sure that’s quite right.”

After all, the psalm itself is about a sheep and his shepherd. The Psalm is written in the first person singular and the content is clearly about a personal relationship between said sheep and said shepherd.

The Lord is my shepherd. I lack nothing. He lets me rest in grassy meadows; he leads me to restful waters; he keeps me alive. He guides me in proper paths for the sake of his good name. Even when I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no danger because you are with me. Your rod and your staff— they protect me. You set a table for me right in front of my enemies. You bathe my head in oil; my cup is so full it spills over! Yes, goodness and faithful love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the Lord’s house forever.

Honestly, as I read the Psalm I can hear a happy tune in the background, something akin to the Sesame Street theme as the one sheep and his shepherd spend their days together, skipping in the meadows, frolicking in the field, swimming in the creek, singing “It only takes a spark” around the campfire- two buds to the end, a sheep and his shepherd.

But, there is something about these verses that don’t make sense.

Unless there is a extraordinary circumstance, a sheep doesn’t have a one-on-one relationship with a shepherd.

A sheep has a community experience with a shepherd.

Shepherds don’t shepherd a single sheep, they shepherd a flock.

Sheep are flock animals. They stay together. Have you ever seen sheep when they pile up on each other, an entire flock squeezing together like clowns in a clown car?Seriously, they have no sense of personal space.

Sheep were among the first animals domesticated precisely because of their flock nature. They were easy to assemble, and keep assembled because they naturally flock together.

When judi and I lived in Rapid City we attended the Black Hills Stockshow and Rodeo every year.The rodeo had all the typical rodeo events - bull riding, calf roping, barrel racing and my favorite, by far, the sheep herding competition in which shepherding dogs, Australian shepherds and Border Collies lead a flock of sheep through a gated maze.

The sheep all huddle, because that is what they do, and the dogs have to motivate them to move through gate after gate.

The bark out commands, circle the flock nudging the sheep in a certain direction.

Once the pups get one sheep to move, all the sheep follow en mass.

They are like little kids playing soccer. The coach physically maneuvers each kid to the spot they are supposed to play.

But as soon as the ball is in play all the kids leave all their spots and flock together around the ball. And as the ball moves down the field the swarm of children move with it. Completely and totally entertaining.

It is the nature of small children playing soccer, and sheep to flock together.

The idea of a loner sheep, unless lost or injured, just isn’t a thing.

The idea that a shepherd would be shepherding a lone sheep is silly- there is no profit in a single sheep

So, perhaps Psalm 23 should be understood to be about one of the sheep in a flock of many sheep and the relationship that sheep shares with all the other sheep and their shepherd. It is not so much the story about a sheep and his shepherd but about a flock of sheep of which the sheep is a part and their shepherd.

Christians, it seems to me are called to be flock animals.

Unfortunately, Western Culture’s frontier sensibilities with its emphasis on rugged individualism has emphasized “me and Jesus” rather than “we and Jesus.”

we see it in the songs we sing, the way we interpret the Bible, the row after row of self-help books in your local Christian bookstore.

The reason this is unfortunate is that “me and Jesus” religion can feed the narcissism that resides in me and makes me think I am most important than other people, after all I have a personal relationship with Jesus.

Don’t hear me wrong, I think it is important to have a deeply personal relationship with Jesus.

But,

As followers of Jesus, it is so important that we recognize that we are called to be flock animals.

Not follow-along lemmings, but engaged, thinking followers of Christ who recognize that we are meant to be together.

Being flock animals in no way implies that we have to look alike, or think alike, or express ourselves alike, but it means we love each other, accept each other, stand together, and follow the shepherd who is shepherd of all of us.

Paul describes our communal flock life thusly in Romans 12:

Love should be shown without pretending.

Hate evil, and hold on to what is good.

Love each other like the members of your family.

Be the best at showing honor to each other.

Don’t hesitate to be enthusiastic—be on fire in the Spirit as you serve the Lord!

Be happy in your hope, stand your ground when you’re in trouble, and devote yourselves to prayer.

Contribute to the needs of God’s people, and welcome strangers into your home. Bless people who harass you—bless and don’t curse them.

Be happy with those who are happy, and cry with those who are crying.

Consider everyone as equal, and don’t think that you’re better than anyone else. Instead, associate with people who have no status.

Don’t think that you’re so smart.

Don’t pay back anyone for their evil actions with evil actions, but show respect for what everyone else believes is good.

If possible, to the best of your ability, live at peace with all people.

Do you hear it? Paul is not talking about individual people here. He is talking about how we behave together in the flock, the community.

While the psalmist is correct in his description of the Shepherd’s provision and protection, perhaps it is important to remember that each of us is but one sheep in a flock that is guided by the Great Shepherd.

The Lord is our shepherd.

We lack nothing.

The shepherd lets us rest in grassy meadows; he leads us to restful waters; he keeps us alive.

He guides us in proper paths for the sake of his good name.

Even when we walk through the darkest valley, we fear no danger because you are with us.

Your rod and your staff— they protect us.