The Good Shepherd cares for His Sheep

Funeral for Judy J. Olsen

Psalm 23:1 A psalm of David. 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.

For centuries, the 23^rd Psalm has been one of the most treasured passages in all of Holy Scripture. They are among the most comforting, often being quoted in times of trouble or distress. In this psalm we see the imagery of the Lord being our Shepherd and host in both the peaceful days and in the difficult days. The Good Shepherd is with us beside the green pastures and in the dark valley of the shadow of death. These comforting six verses were last I read to Judy on Saturday morning in her bed in hospice care at her home.

Verse 1 tells us: “The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.” This is the theme of the whole psalm. Because the Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want for anything – I will lack nothing! No uncertainty should frighten us. Old Testament shepherds did not have fancy fences like we have in our country and frequently the shepherd spent day and night with his sheep in the field. He would doctor the sheep, bind up their wounds, carry the little lambs in his arms. At nighttime he would bring them into a cave and lie down in front of the opening to protect them from wolves or other predators which might try to attack them. He was ready to lay down his life for his sheep.

The Lord has this type of love, even deeper still for us. We cannot really understand the 23^rd Psalm apart from John 10 where Jesus says of Himself: “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for his sheep.” Jesus came to heal our sicknesses, to bind up our wounds and to carry the little children in His loving arms. He came to protect us from the most vicious enemies such as sin, death and the devil. In His love He gave His life in order to protect us from them.

Judy was brought into Jesus’ flock through Holy Baptism on April 5, 1942 at St Matthew Lutheran Church in Waterbury Township, Minnesota. She was confirmed in her baptismal faith as a teenager at Epiphany Lutheran Church here in Racine. She and Gene were married at Epiphany 49 years ago. For decades Judy was fed as one of Jesus’ precious lambs through Word and Sacrament as she sat in the pew looking at the stained glass window above our altar that pictures Jesus as a the Good Shepherd with His sheep at His feet and His lambs in His arms.

Judy knew she needed her Savior Shepherd. That’s why I hardly remember her ever missing a worship service. Even though she was quiet, she was always there. On her death bed, Judy also admitted to her need for her Savior. She confessed her sin last Saturday morning saying very briefly, but very poignantly, “I haven’t always been a good person. I hope Jesus will let me into heaven.” I gave her the words of comfort and assurance she always needed throughout her life, but especially at that particular moment: “Judy, I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” I said, “That’s why Jesus laid down His life for you – to wash away your sin, forgive you and He has prepared a room for you in heaven. Now Jesus has His angels standing guard over you, watching you, protecting you and they are ready to take you to your new home very soon.”

In our hectic, hurried, harassed age in which headache medications have become the best-selling national product, we must occasionally be made to lie down and relax. Judy liked to relax. She liked to get away from everything by just going onto her back patio, sitting there and enjoying the results of her hard work – the trees, flowers and gardening.

Now God has given Judy a permanent, idyllic outdoor setting of green pastures and quiet waters. Verses 2 and 3 read: “He makes me lie down in green pastures, he leads me beside quiet waters, he restores my soul.” Judy never liked traveling very much, but her Good Shepherd allowed her to make one last trip from this world of tears and sadness to new home of joy and wonder beyond description. She gets to lie down and relax for an eternity in a home that was prepared for her as a result of the handiwork Jesus accomplished when He laid down His life on the cross and then had His lifeless body laid in the dark tomb and then when He powerfully brought that body back to life again on Easter morning.

King David writes in verse 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.” Death came very quickly for Judy as she was diagnosed with brain cancer only a few months ago. But she didn’t appear to be afraid. Even in the face of death, she had a calm and confidence in her Savior Shepherd. She knew that even though she would become weak, might have pain and would probably die, she would not face these problems alone.

There is a beautiful Bible promise in Isaiah: “When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and when you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned; the flames will not set you ablaze” (Isaiah 43:2). When I think of that verse, all sorts of biblical images come to mind. When I think of the deep waters, I am immediately reminded of Noah and his family, floating safely above the waters in the ark. I am reminded of Jonah, thrown overboard and swallowed by a huge fish, and yet kept safe within the will of the Lord. When I think of the fire that does not burn, I think of Moses, coming upon the bush that was burning and yet was not burned. I think of the three Hebrew men walking through the fiery furnace and coming out unharmed – why? Because as the story tell us, there was a fourth man walking with them through the fire. There was One who walked with Moses; there was One who walked with Jonah; and there was One who walked with Noah.

And there was One who walked with Judy. And there is One who will walk with each of us. One who has already walked through this dark valley of death Himself. He knows the way because He walked through it with His own death on the cross. He is the One who knows every inch of this valley.

When danger comes close, other shepherds and leaders may leave us and say, “I’ll see you on the other side.” Not Jesus. He walks with us every step of the way. Jesus took Judy’s hand and walked her through this dark, terrifying valley of death until she entered the glorious city of God, the new Jerusalem in heaven, where her room was already waiting for her. If Jesus did this for Judy, He will certainly do the same for you, His precious lambs and sheep.

Judy would go early every morning for breakfast at a local restaurant. She liked to be by herself. But now all that has changed. Verse 5 reads: “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies. You anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.” Now Judy has a permanent feast prepared for her in the palace of Her King. She is surrounded by her fellow saints from every nation, tribe, people and language.

This wonderful psalm concludes with a familiar and comforting thought: “Surely goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever.” The psalmist is not referring to a place as much as he is to a Person. Notice that the 23^rd Psalm begins and ends with “the Lord.” As believers, we long to be in the Lord’s house because then we can be in our Lord’s presence. The ultimate goal of our lives on this earth will be to receive a face-to-face relationship with our Lord for eternity. Instead of vague uncertainty about the afterlife, we have confidence. We Christians will enjoy a never-ending fellowship with God the moment we draw our last earthly breath. What assurance! That is exactly what Jesus Christ promises those who believe in Him – not merely “I hope so,” but “I know!” In our Good Shepherd we truly have everything we need.

There is a beautiful story about a minister who, while on his vacation in the mountains taught an illiterate boy the 23^rd Psalm and its rich meaning. When the minister returned a year later, he found that the lad had frozen to death the previous winter. In trying to comfort the bereaved mother, the minister told her how he had taught her son, “The Lord is my Shepherd” by having each finger represent a word. The word “The” was the first finger “Lord” was the second, and so on.

Suddenly the mother understood the strange circumstance of her boy’s death. With a gleam of joy she said, “When we found him we wondered why his right hand was frozen around the fourth finger of his left hand.” It was the finger for the word “my.” The boy knew and loved Jesus the Good Shepherd as his very own.

Is Jesus your Good Shepherd? Can you confidently say the Lord is “my” Shepherd? Judy did. That’s why she could rejoice with the psalmist and say, “I shall not be in want.” Amen.

Epiphany Lutheran Church, June 25, 2011