To: Hebraic-Foundations@yahoogroups.com
From: "Pastor Buddy Martin" <Bro.Buddy@ChristianChallenge.org>
Date sent: Thu, 17 Aug 2000 16:57:30 -0000
Subject: HF020 - The Shepherd's Song
Hi Hebraics,
Thought I would offer a study on the mystical (spiritual) side of our
faith walk. Perhaps this will jog a memory or two, or stir up your
thinking about how so personally involved the Holy Spirit is in our daily
walk.
Here's an example - You go to bed a little troubled. You wake up
still unsure about how to handle a situation. You are standing before the
mirror in the bathroom, and for some unknown reason you begin singing.
You now find yourself with an uplifted mind. What happened to bring about
this change? You didn't decide to start singing. The song just sort of
arrived!
Well, let's talk about it. This is Bible study HF020, entitled 'The
Shepherd's Song.' For a Scripture reading we will use Psalm 28:6-9:
"Blessed be the Lord, because He has heard the voice of my
supplication. The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in
Him, and I am helped; therefore my heart exults, and with my song I shall
thank Him. The Lord is their strength, and He is a saving defense to His
anointed. Save Your people and blessed Your inheritance; be their shepherd
also, and carry them forever."
In another place David speaks of this kind of song. He begins with, "How
blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered." He
continues with, "When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away."
Then again, "I acknowledged my sin to You, and my iniquity I did not hide."
It is from this we hear this wonderful thing about 'the' song that comes
from the Lord.
David continues with, "You are my hiding place; You preserve me from
trouble; You surround me with songs of deliverance." (Psalm 32) David's
song of deliverance came when his thoughts were directed to the Lord. But
he also speaks of points of correction that were needed.
Sometimes our minds are troubled because we have failed to correct a
situation. One definition of sin is simply to 'miss the mark.' It may be
that we missed the mark with a person, but have failed to acknowledge our
wrong actions. Isn't it amazing how we can so justify ourselves to
ourselves? And so we go to bed trouble in mind. And we wake up troubled.
What happened in front of mirror? If you are a man, you are possibly
shaving. If a lady, you are making your face even more lovely. The point
is that you are now facing yourself. This is where the musings of the
heart begins. Reflecting a bit, we began to see where we were wrong. "Boy, I
had no right to say that to my friend." Conviction is setting in.
The word conviction in the Greek carries the idea of a moral conquest of
the mind. It is a judicial word where the guilty person is forced to face
the facts, and is then left without a defense. When the pang of guilt is
felt, the work of conviction is being completed. This is the spiritual
side of the working of repentance.
So what of the song? The song is a cleansing release from the burden of
our misconduct. We now have a heart of repentance. The song is a song of our
deliverance. This is what David is describing in Psalm 32. But John also
speaks of this cleansing grace. He said, "If we confess our sins, He is
faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness." (1Jn1:9)
There are other aspects to the songs of redemption. The one I am
dealing with in this study is the song of the Shepherd. While you
will not find that exact expression used in the Scriptures, it is an
accurate description of Christ in the midst of His people. Both the
prophet and the apostle speak of the singing of the Shepherd.
In one place we hear of the joy of Christ over the redemption of
God's people through the cross. It says, "I will proclaim Your name
to My brethren, in the midst of the congregation I will sing Your
praise." (Heb2:12) Does this not mean that Jesus rejoices with us
when we gather in His name? I believe it does. Jesus said, "For where two
or three have gathered together in My name, I am there in their midst."
(Matt18:20)
Being in our 'midst' is confirmed in a wonderful portion where the prophet
says, "The Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior. He will
exult over you with joy, He will quiet in His love, He will rejoice over
you with shouts of joy." (Zeph3:17) 'Shouts of joy' is the word 'rinnah'
which can also be translated singing, song, joy, and praise, among other
things.
Now, if Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever, it must
also mean that His joy is ever present with us, because He Himself is ever
present with us. And that He sings songs in our lives. In this case, the
mirror song may not be the result of repentance at all, but rather, just
the Spirit of the Lord claiming victory over you, or giving us victory in
whatever situation we may be facing. Did not the prophet say, "Joy comes
in the morning"?
Have you ever been driving down the road and suddenly burst out in
song? Have you ever gotten to excited that you wanted to stop the car
and get out and kick the tires? Where does all that joyful singing come
from? I believe it comes with the package of redemption.
Jesus told the lady at the well, "If you knew the gift of God, and
who it is who says to you, 'Give Me a drink,' you would have asked
Him, and He would have given you living water." Then He went on to
explain; "Whoever drinks of the water that I will give him will never
thirst; but the water that I will give him will become in him a well of
water springing up to eternal life." (John 4)
The springing up well is the Spirit of Jesus who indwells every true
believer. Jesus told the disciples that He would come back to them and
that their joy could never be taken away from them. Why? Because the
Shepherd would be in their hearts. He would sing Shepherd songs over their
lives.
Is there anything to this? Does this provoke a memory where the Lord
Himself picked you up when you were beyond personal resources?
Lets take a little time to share some Shepherd Song testimonies.
Shalom in Christ,
Buddy
Lawrence E. (Buddy) Martin, HF Host
email: Bro.Buddy@ChristianChallenge.org
Web: http://www.ChristianChallenge.org