Having been born to Christian Missionary parents in Kenya and subsequently raised in the rough, tough frontier world of his parents ranch estate, Mr. Keller grew to become a man who was keenly familiar with the life of a shepherdsman. As a young man he eventually became a sheep rancher for 8 years. Through that time he experienced first hand every phase of sheep management and subsequently gleaned many insights from the Lord on what David was seeking to communicate in the 23rd Psalm.
On page 7 of his book Mr. Keller says the following: "Sheep do not just take care of themselves as some might suppose. They require more than any other class of livestock, endless attention and meticulous care......It is no accident that God has chosen to call us sheep. The behavior of sheep and human beings is similar in many ways. Our mass mind (our mob instincts), our fears and timidity, our stubbornness and stupidity, our perverse habits are all parallels of profound importance."
What Phillip Keller is basically saying is that when Jesus chose to call us sheep, it wasn't just a random comment that he pulled out of the air. He had his reasons for saying it. The gospels are replete with passages that define our relationship with the Lord as a shepherd with his sheep. Most of John 10 is centered around this dynamic. Hebrews 13:20, 1 Peter 2:25, .....There are many verses that refer to this principle and define our relationship with the Lord as such. Now let's take a look at the first two verses of Psalm 23:
"The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want. He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me besides still waters, he restores my soul." Psalm 23:1,2
Consider the words, "He makes me lie down..." There is more to be understood here than meets the eye. In the third chapter of his book, PK writes the following:
"The strange thing about sheep is that because of their very make-up it is almost impossible for them to be made to lie down unless four requirements are met. One, owing to their timidity they refuse to lie down unless they are free of all fear. Two, Because of their social behavior within a flock sheep will not lie down unless they are free from friction with others of their kind. Three, if tormented by flies or parasites, sheep will not lie down. Only when free of these pests can they relax. Lastly, sheep will not lie down as long as they feel in need of finding food. They must be free from hunger."
Are you already sensing the spiritual parallels? Some of them are pretty obvious. The Lord wants us to learn to rest. He wants our souls to be at rest, to be at peace. I believe peace and joy are the ultimate markers of true righteousness in the believers life.
"For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit, ...." Romans 14:17.
Consider also the following verse:
"....Seek peace and pursue it." 1 Peter 3:11
The Lord wants us to be at peace. But it is something that must be pursued, something that must be sought out. In the previous two posts we have discussed some of the beginnings facets of prayer: Submission, self examination, confession of sin and hearing a Song. These are all vital and consistent components of our time with the Lord. And also, in conjunction with them, I think we need to understand that the Lord wants us to be free. Free of fear, fear of strife, free of demonic torment and free of worrying about food, clothing and shelter.
In prayer, as we self examine ourselves, we need to take a look and see where our thoughts are. Do we still wrestle with past regrets, present worries, worries about tomorrow and selfish ambition in regards to the future? Consider the following three verses:
"But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining towards what is ahead,..." Philippians 3:13
"I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. But I have stilled and quieted my soul;...." Psalm 131: 1,2
"Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ." 2 Corinthians 10:5
These three verses speak of past, present and future. Past stuff. Things you can't control anymore. Decisions that were made that can't be remade. Not to say we can't repent, confess, renounce and cast out the enemy. We can and do. We should. But the past is past. Let it go and ask the Lord to heal you in the areas where you need healing and move forward. Move forward.
Present tense worries. Are you worried about something? What? Be honest. What are you worried about? We all worry at times. It's natural. Sheep are worriers. They worry. Are you worried? The Lord wants to take those fears and worries from us and instill faith in us so that we can rest. The Lord wants us to rest so that he would be magnified in us, so that when we testify about him our words have weight. People will see our peace and be drawn to us, not solely because of the words we speak but because of what they see in us. Trust me, non-believers can at times be just as discerning as believers. Some things are just obvious to everyone, regardless of whether you have God's Spirit on the inside of you or not. Are you worried about something? Go before the Lord and, as the Psalmist says, find stillness of soul. Be still my soul. Be still.
In August of 1997 I was a groomsman in a wedding in Austin, TX. One of my best friends from college got married so I drove down and participated in the ceremony along with all of the functions that surrounded it, pre and post. At the wedding reception my friend's mother walked up to me and said "You look different. You seem different. You seem very content. You seem to have peace." I had known this woman for almost 6 years at the time and she had known me before I had come to the Lord. When she said that to me I had only been in Christ for 3 years. You see, she was starting to see a difference in me. She was seeing rest, peace, contentment, someone that was under the shepherding hand of Christ. She saw some of the beginning stages of fruit and so it gave me a liberty to testify with words what she could see in my actions. The peaceable fruits of righteousness. Hebrews 12. I wasn't perfect, but she could see change.
The future. What worries you? Be honest. We all struggle at times. What worries you? I have them. Money, opportunity, housing, the economy, work, ......The list never ends. Questions. Concerns. Worries. Ambitions. Let's do this. Let's do that. Vain ambition. Pride. Envy, Strife. It all stems from having a mind that is set on the unknown variables that surround our future. What about the future? What do we do about tomorrow? The questions sometimes seem to never end. Past, present, future. What about this and that?
So where do we get the title Merminao? Very simple. In Matthew 6 Jesus said the following:
"Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear..........Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? And why do you worry about clothes?.....So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or ......Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own."
The Greek word Jesus uses each time for 'worry' is Merimnao. It means "to give thought to" or "to give a share of your thoughts to something." It means to have a mind that is divided. The Lord doesn't want us to have a mind that is divided among worries. In Proverbs it says that a heart a peace gives life to the body but envy rots the bones (Proverbs 14:30). A peaceful heart generates a peaceful mind. But a house divided will not stand.
My wife and I knew a woman in Dallas some years back. One day my wife had a vision of this woman. In the vision Christine saw this lady eaten up with bitterness on the inside, specifically towards her dad who had previously tried to kill her mother. This lady had allowed bitterness to settle into her heart and it brought infirmity to her body. This woman died of cancer last year, most likely way before her time. She allowed the evil one to snuff her life out prematurely because she couldn't forgive. Her house was divided. And it didn't stand.
The Lord wants us to be a rest, at peace, forgiving, loving, self-examining for any fleshly intrusions, examining everything that passes through our hearts and minds, holding onto that which is good and avoiding that which is evil.
"Test everything. Hold on to the good. Avoid every kind of evil." 1 Thess 5:21,22
Folks, we need to take out the trash every day. Take out the trash. Have you seen the news over the past two weeks relating to the strikes in France? Government workers have been protesting because the French government is considering legislation to raise the retirement age from 60 to 62. The garbage collection workers in Marseilles, France are on strike. There are over 9,000 tons, that's tons of garbage to be collected right now. It's just sitting in the streets. The entire city stinks right now.
Truth be told, this is how we get internally at times. Trash just sits around, untouched. We worry about the same thing for weeks, months, even years. Some of us don't know life apart from Merimnao. Our thoughts are divided among so many things (past, present, future) it's unbelievable. It's ok to think about the past. Sometimes the Lord directs our thoughts to past experiences and speaks to us in context of them. But it should always be in context of what the Lord is doing in us. It's ok to think about today, just not with a sense of exasperation and worry, responding with fleshly control. Look, there will be things that come up in our days that are unplanned. If we are walking in the shadow of the Almighty then we understand that these things are directed of him so we don't have to worry about it. It's ok to think about the future. We just need to peer forward through His eyes. We need to see prophetically as we look forward.
"Cast all of your anxiety (Merimnao) on him because he cares for you." 1 Peter 5:7
"Do not be anxious (Merimna) about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God." Philippians 4:6
Cast your Merimnao on the Shepherd. Don't be in a state of Merimnao. Rather, through prayer, with a thankful heart, trust that you can put it all before Him, the Shepherd and Overseer of our souls. He cares for us. He wants us to lie down and rest. Be at peace. In this world we will have Thlipsis. But take heart. Our shepherd has overcome that which is in front of us. It is HIS to will and to do. Be at peace. Rest. Lie down and rest.
"...He giveth his beloved sleep." Psalm 127:2
JEB
http://www.miraclesinmerida.blogspot.com/
jayblackshear@yahoo.com
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