The Midde is Holy Ground: Week 1 (Pastor Kevin Mullins)

Week 1

Psalm 23 is one of the most beloved passages in the Bible, but it is more than just words of comfort—it is a declaration of trust in the goodness of God, even in the waiting, in the struggle, and in the unknown.

Throughout this four-week series, we will explore what it means to live in the middle—between God’s past faithfulness and the future fulfillment of His promises. We will see how:

• God’s presence sustains us.
• God’s goodness follows us, even when we don’t see it.
• God works in us while we wait.
• God’s goodness is not just for us—it overflows through us.
  
  

Transcript

`One of my favorite movies of all time is one called The Shawshank Redemption. If you haven’t seen it, you should. It tells the story of Andy Dufrene who is in prison wrongfully. And he stays in prison wrongfully for 19 years. We all know what it feels like to be stuck. That’s why Andy’s story resonates—because we’ve all had moments where life feels like a prison.

• Some of you are facing chronic pain, waiting for a prodigal, grieving, or struggling in your career or marriage. And in the waiting, you wonder—where is God’s goodness? 

Here's what we wonder..and even Christians wonder this, “How can I believe in God’s goodness when life around me seems so bad?” So as we enter into these weeks before Easter, this season of lent I want to do this short series--a few weeks--from Psalm 23, because that’s what this Psalm is all about. I want to call this series The Middle Is Holy Ground. Even the middle space…adn Lent is kind of this Middle space in between ordinary time and Easter…even that space is Holy. I want us  to get this idea that Christians believe over here that God is good--in who He is and in his character. And we believe over here (in eternity, in heaven) we’ll experience that goodness--God is going to wipe away all tears and we’ll know the fullness of joy. We believe that. But what about now, in the middle? Where’s the goodness of God now? It’s like we know God is good here--in his essence; and he’s good there--in the ultimate culmination of his plan. But it’s here, in the middle, that we struggle…

Have you been there? How many of you have had this question? Listen to Psalm 23 and then Lets pray and jump in…

Read Text: Psalm 23

Sermon Intro: Somebody say “The Middle is Holy Ground”. This is what Psalm 23 is ALL ABOUT. Scholars say that David most wrote Psalm 23 when he was on the run. David had to run from trouble a lot. So he was running either from his father in law Saul before he became King, or his son Absalom who staged a coup in the late years of his being King. David’s life had started out so well: he was the boy selected from out of the pasture and then anointed to be King who then went out and killed Goliath the giant! But now everything has unraveled. He’s been separated from his family, not by choice, and he is on the run. Oh yeah and his wife has left him for someone else. And now he's the victim of a vicious smear campaign--people lying about him in the worst possible ways. And this is after he sacrificed himself for his nation over and over again and again..and now that nation regards him as a traitor and a troublemaker.

Growing up I thought David wrote this Psalm when he was like an innocent little Shepherd boy, but, honestly, now it’s easy to see that this song is way too mature and reflective for someone early in their journey with God. No, the person who wrote this has faced worry, fear, disappointment, and frustration. So I want us to understand what David is saying in this PSalm, how we can experience that and point to some other people in the Bible who also learned these same things. And I hope for those of you who are followers of christ, I hope this is helpful. I want you to see that a lot of those emotions you experience in a time of waiting are normal. And for those of you who are not Christians, and by the way if that's you, we’re glad you’re here and we’ve been saving you a seat. I think you’ll find this series at least intriguing-this is, in fact the #1 objection people have for why they lost faith in God. What is it? If God is so good, why is the world so broken? If he’s so powerful, why are there so many perfectly reasonable prayers that go unanswered? And this question is all over the Bible too…and that's the context of Psalm 23.  There are three ideas I want you to get over the next few weeks…

Point 1 : First of all--1. The Shepherd’s presence is everything—our life, our joy, our security, and our satisfaction. 2. God is always good, but His goodness unfolds on a longer timeline than we usually expect. 3. God doesn’t waste our waiting—He’s using it to shape us for something greater.

Point 2 : Today lets focus on the first one- how the Shepherds Presence is everything. Our life, our joy, our safety, and our fulfillment. Ya’ll ready- read verse 1 with me:  Vs. [1] The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. Now Want” here doesn’t mean “desire.” This doesnt mean I wont have desires, this is way of saying being in need of being in want. David is saying, “The Lord is my Shepherd; therefore, therefore I don’t lack anything”-The Lord is my shepherd. I have no needs. Let me just ask: Can you say that right now? Can you say, “Right now, I don’t lack ANYTHING. There’s nothing I need in my life to change in order for me to feel safe, secure, and satisfied. Of course, there are always things in my life I’d love to see change, but I can still say right now, “I lack nothing right now. I am perfectly happy the way things are right now.” Can you say that?

And some of you are thinking right now…Is this guy living in the real world? “I have no needs right now”--who can say that? We live in a world of problems and needs. David had all kinds of pains and problems. In fact his life at this point was about as hard as life could get. Broken heart. Unfulfilled dreams. Unanswered prayers. And yet, he says, “I lack nothing.” Why? And This is the key to Psalm 23: Because the LORD is my Shepherd, and he’s close by. And all by itself, that means I have no wants. Some of you think, if you could just get the job, if you could just get married, if the kid would just come home, then I would have no needs. But That’s not where happiness or security lies. Keep reading. It gets even more intense. Lets read THE FIRST PART OF verse 2 together---

2 He makes me lie down in green pastures,

Ok help me out. What do sheep normally do in green pastures? They EAT. So so when a sheep lies down in a green pasture it can only mean one thing. What does it mean…he’s full. So full that he has no more desire to eat and lies down. David is so full that even in the presence of what others would call food, he doesn’t feel hungry. His soul is full. Well how did he get so full then? He’s been feasting on The presence of the Shepherd. God’s presence is for David a satisfaction that no amount of eating in a green pasture could ever supply.

This theme is all over Scripture:

• When God's people were wandering in the wilderness God fed them with something called manna, a small Ritz-cracker-like thing that magically appeared on the ground each morning. It was weird. In fact the name manna in Hebrew literally means “What even is it?” They didn’t really know what it was. And it came with weird rules. You were only allowed to gather enough for one day, because it went bad overnight--except on the Sabbath when you could gather enough for two days and on that day and that day only it would stay good for 48 hours. So you couldn’t keep any of it in the freezer for later: the Italians were trying to mix the leftovers into something they called Manna- cotti. Other people were trying to make manana bread later but you couldn't. 

But God met all the nutritional needs of his people through this strange bread. Manna was not supposed to replace food for them for all time; it was just supposed to keep them alive and fed in the wilderness. Manna represented God’s presence in a time of emptiness.

• What about when Jesus fed the 5000 with the 5 loaves and 2 fish, he even referenced the manna the children of Israel ate in the wilderness-- and he said  “My flesh is the bread that came down from heaven.” He's making a connection. He's saying that when we feast on him, we can be full, even in the wilderness, when our bellies feel empty.
  
  
  
• When Jesus himself wandered in the wilderness, after fasting for 40 days and nights, Satan appeared to him and tempted him to do what you remember. Satan said “yo youre hungry Jesus right”… Tienes hambre, si? Well turn the stones into bread.” How did Jesus respond? He quotes from the Bible about manna: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.”

(BTW, this is what you are trying to teach yourself when you fast. You are depriving your STOMACH OF something, and in its place focusing on God’s presence, so that you can learn that in any time YOU ARE DEPRIVED OF ANYTHING, God’s Spirit and his closeness are enough to satisfy you.

David continues. Read with me the last half of verse 2. C'mon together: …he leads me beside still waters,

Question, what do sheep normally do beside still waters? They drink. So if God is leading you beside the still waters and you’re not drinking it means these sheep are not thirsty. Why? Because the Spirit of God is a well of water inside of them. In fact one time Jesus said it this way, “He who drinks of this water,” Jesus was pointing to an actual well will be thirsty again. But the one who drinks of the water that I give him ( he was pointing to himself) will never thirst.” David, in the wilderness, i trouble, on the run, is drinking at the well of God’s Spirit and he’s not thirsty anymore. Verse 3 is short read it with me--

3 He restores my soul.

Checl It= The Shepherd gives me the ability to get up and keep going, even when I have a broken heart or a disappointed dream or an unmet desire for something.

Any shepherds here today? A long time ago I read this book called A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23. And this guy Philip Keller, who was an actual shepherd, explains some of the images in Psalm 23 for all of us non shepherds. “What do you do for a living? I'm a shepherd.” He says for instance that a big problem with sheep is that when they fall down they can become what shepherds call “cast.” Aka I've fallen and I can't get up. On their back, feet up in the air and unable to flip back over. And if they stay that way something will come along and eat them.

So the shepherd stands them back up, watch this and  First of all he has to first rub the legs of the sheep to restore circulation, why? Because if he doesn’t they’ll just fall down again. “That’s what God’s Spirit does with me,” David says. He restores my soul when life has made me fall, so that I can walk again. Now this is for free and Imma move quick here but do know when this shepherd writing this book says sheep are most likely to get cast? 

Keller says it happens in 3 main conditions:

First, when they are in soft, comfy spots, they roll around and end up on their back. (yall have to do this work on your own but thats good)

Secondly, when they have too much wool. 

And most of all, he says, #3, when they are too fat and they just step on a rock wrong and tumble over. We talk about a comfortable, fat life as the blessing of God. but you know what it's probably not most of the time. Because it's the quickest way to lose contact with your shepherd. And when God takes some of life’s fatness, some of your wool, away from you, it can be a blessing, because it forces you to lean back, in desperation, into the presence of the Shepherd. That’s where real goodness is.

How many of you would say that you have found that the closeness to God in a time of pain, or a time of great need, and that his presence then was greater than what you experienced in times of blessing and when things were easy. Can I get a testimony? Bill Gates says, “Success is a lousy teacher. You learn virtually nothing from success.” Good bill gates. Very good. 

Read verse 3 with me- 

Vs. 3…He leads me in paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.

We’ll come back to this in later weeks, but sheep are ferocious creatures of habit--they walk the same paths over and over until all the grass is gone, and, even worse, all the soil is contaminated with parasites that come from layers and layers of the sheep’s waste being piled on the soil.

And so the Shepherd leads them into new paths, paths that are not as familiar, paths where the sheep have to learn to follow the Shepherd again. The path of righteousness is the path of dependence on him.

4 Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,

I will fear no evil, (WHY?) for you are with me (hold on hold on why am I not afraid? One reason--you are with me); your rod and your staff, they comfort me.

Now something has happened in the language here…the pronouns have changed from he to you. Before David was saying “The Lord is my Shepherd” and “He restores my soul” and now he’s saying “YOU are with me!” In the middle of this Psalm, at its lowest point, David stops talking to us and lifts his eyes and says to God, “In the WORST places, I am not afraid because… because I can see the silver lining in this cloud? Because I know happy days are right around the corner?” No… because YOU are with me, my Shepherd. And because of your presence, I fear nothing and I need nothing. Read verse 5 with me--

5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies.

In the presence of enemies, we want to fight or flee. But David? He sits at the table with God. Going on.

You anoint my head with oil; my cup (...IS FULL? Is that what your translation says? No. It…) overflows.

Even in the midst of fear and worry I’ve got so much peace and joy that I have some to share with others. This is why Gospel Hospitality is possible. In fact this is why we’re calling it gospel hospitality. Why can we welcome others? Because Jesus has welcomed us I mean, this is unbelievable: in a time of fear and trial David has joy and peace and comfort enough to share with others. I've seen this in my mother my whole life. In times when she was suffering I would always be amazed at how she was still ministering to people around her. That’s because for someone walking closely with Jesus, their cup overflows, even in a time of pain and emptiness.throughout Scripture, oil represents the Spirit of God. David is talking about a fullness of soul that comes from fellowship with the Spirit.

6 Surely your goodness and mercy (goodness and mercy in Hebrew, that’s the word ‘hesed’: it means unconditional, steadfast, never-turning-away love) will follow me all the days of my life,

David says, “I can’t get away from goodness and mercy. It’s always right behind me. It’s always following me, haunting me (that’s literally what the word means in Hebrew when it says it follows my), creating beauty and blessing in the wake of my misery and mess. Why? Because my Shepherd follows me, that’s just what he does. That’s why you should always rejoice when somebody around you is being blessed. When somebody around you is being blessed, it means God is in the neighborhood.

Now We always talk about following Jesus, and we should--but according to Psalm 23, he also follows us, bringing beauty and blessing from our

tragedy and tears.…and I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever. and this is the main point of the whole Psalm: Whether Im in the green field or beside a still water or wandering in a desert or hiding in a cave from my enemies, I’m still with YOU, in your presence. The Lord is my Shepherd, so I have no needs, I am not in want. That’s the point of the Psalm. I have no needs because I am with you, and your presence and your presence alone is my joy, my security, and my fullness in any circumstance.

Point 3: Write this down…The Christian’s joy is found in one simple thing: the presence of the Shepherd. So If you think joy and peace is found in a change of circumstance, I can tell you on good authority and having lived some years now, you won’t find it there. Lonely, insecure single people become lonely, insecure married people. Rich people are more often than not bitter and unhappy. the great philosopher Jim Carrey said, “I wish everyone could get rich and famous so they’d see it is not the answer.” having no needs is not found in any green pasture on earth; it’s found in the presence of Jesus.

Listen to me, if you're unhappy or anxious, or afraid. Let me pastor you please. “If I could just change this or that, life would be better.” Some of you have given up on change, you’ve stopped praying, you’ve given up, and you’ve just grown bitter. I’m telling you that it is possible for you to live a life where you feel no lack, fear nothing and overflow with blessing. That life comes from learning to abide the presence of the Shepherd.

And your brain can't figure it out…Our minds do not run at this speed. David is talking about an experience he has had and that is beyond this world; he says you can have, too. Now my actual favorite philosopher is not Jim Carey but its actually a man named Dallas Willard who passed away recently. His greatest book is called “The Divine Conspiracy” but his final book is called Life Without Lack--and its based on lectures he gave to his friends on Psalm 23 right before he died. And what He does is compare Psalm 23 to the experience of Job. But in that book there is quote I want to end with today--- Dallas Willard is gong to say there are three types of faith in Job- a faith of transaction a faith of desperation and ultimately a faith of sufficiency but when he’s talking about this highest level of faith- the faith of sufficiency he has this to say:

“Often God allows us to reach the point of desperation so we can learn how to trust. It is a hard lesson, but an essential one. The “life without lack” is known by those who have learned how to trust God in the moment of their need. In the moment of their need. Not before the moment of need, not after the moment of need when the storm has passed, but in the moment of need. For it is in that moment, when everything else is gone, that you know the reality of God.” Is that where you are?

Where do you learn the faith of sufficiency? “At the cross, at the cross, where I first saw the light, and the burden of my heart rolled away, it was there by faith I received my sight and now I am happy all the day.” Not “happy” as in “I have no troubles,” but “happy” as in “filled to overflowing in the presence of my Shepherd.”

Looking at the cross, is not only the way we’re saved from sin, it’s the way we’re sustained in suffering. When we see a God willing to go to the cross on our behalf--willing to go to the depths of suffering to redeem us--that changes the light on our own sufferings. A God who would not forsake us then, at the cross, will not forsake us now, in our hour of trouble, and we know that someday he will keep his promise to turn it all for good and make everything sad come untrue. We’ll stand with him.

Cue: 

So… Why should I feel discouraged, Why should the shadows come, Why should my heart be lonely, And long for heaven and home, When Jesus is my portion, My constant Friend is he;

His eye is on the sparrow, And I know he watches me.

I sing because I’m happy, I sing because I’m free

For his eye is on the sparrow, And I know he watches me

Isaiah 40:27-28-  Why do you say, O Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord, and my right is disregarded by my God”? Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might he increases strength. Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; but those who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.

So, let me ask you again: What do you think you lack this morning? What do you fear? Do you fear your marriage going south? Your kids wandering? Still being single this time next year? Your health deteriorating? Loss of your job? The collapse of your finances? Nuclear war with fill in the blank country. No matter what it is, you can live without that fear. You do not have to be afraid of anything. Because God is with you, you have no lack, and so you can live without fear. Here’s my dilemma right now: I can’t teach you this. I couldn’t even teach myself. I can tell you things that you can hear with your ears but only the Holy Spirit can open the eyes of your heart.

Prayer Time: