The Great Shepherd
Abundance
- Psalm 23 paints an amazing picture of and it reveals His Character and Nature….
- Jesus is the Great Shepherd of the Sheep, it’s an incredible description and paints a picture for us that if we FOLLOW AFTER HIM. He is there for US.
- THE reason He qualifies as the great shepherd is He first became the PERFECT LAMB of God!
John 1:29 NKJV “The next day John saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!”
Psalm 23 speak’s of the Lords Care, Provision, Protection and Victory.
It’s what I call a New Testament Psalm:
Here’s Why:
– It’s been well said that David lived in the O.T. as a N.T. Believer.
– So Psalm 23 follows significantly, directly after Psalm 22 which is a prophetic Psalm about The Passion of Christ, His death burial and resurrection, it’s followed by Psalm 24 which is entitled “The King of Glory & His Kingdom”
- It Declares that Christ is the Way & The Gospel is God’s complete plan for man.
Psalm 23 David richly draws on the season of his life as a shepherd boy which God used to prepare him for his future destiny as King.
(This is a lesson in itself, pay attention to where you are, right now God is preparing us for future success)
In this season David learnt about God’s care in providing refreshment, guidance, protection, and abundance.
It gave him the grounds of confidence that he has God’s favor, which gave his life the momentum to overcome every obstacle in his journey towards greatness.
Throughout the Old Testament God promised to be Israel’s Shepherd and most of theses promises find there fulfillment in the New Testament through Christ our Lord.
- I AM GONNA SPECIFICALLY talk about walking in GODS ABUNDANCE!
Psalms 23:3 NKJV “He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name’s sake.”
- TO walk in HIS abundance today you have to SET your eyes on things of eternal value!
- OUR Shepherd is a great provider (Your problem is you think God cant afford you)
- GOD is not limited by this world’s economy, but to experience it, you have to step out of “worldly thinking”
Matthew 6:27-33 MSG ““Has anyone by fussing in front of the mirror ever gotten taller by so much as an inch? All this time and money wasted on fashion—do you think it makes that much difference? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it? The ten best-dressed men and women in the country look shabby alongside them. “If God gives such attention to the appearance of wildflowers—most of which are never even seen—don’t you think he’ll attend to you, take pride in you, do his best for you? What I’m trying to do here is to get you to relax, to not be so preoccupied with getting, so you can respond to God’s giving. People who don’t know God and the way he works fuss over these things, but you know both God and how he works. Steep your life in God-reality, God-initiative, God-provisions. Don’t worry about missing out. You’ll find all your everyday human concerns will be met.
- The devils battlefield is your mind, what you are thinking about is what sets the atmosphere for your Faith to work or fail!
– OWN YOUR THOUGHTS
– ORDER YOUR THINKING – AND START OBEYING HIS WORD
- The choices you make today, do not just affect you but your whole blood line!
Matthew 6:34 MSG “Give your entire attention to what God is doing right now, and don’t get worked up about what may or may not happen tomorrow. God will help you deal with whatever hard things come up when the time comes.”
- Don’t live in anxiety or fear, live in awe of JESUS the author and finisher of your Faith.
- You May get distracted or go astray, but the Shepherd will bring you back.
John 10:10 TPT “A thief has only one thing in mind—he wants to steal, slaughter, and destroy. But I have come to give you everything in abundance, more than you expect —life in its fullness until you overflow!”
CAN YOU HEAR THE SHEPHERDS VOICE CALLING YOU BACK, CALLING YOU NEARER!
- He will pick you up, redirect you and cause you to move steadily into His Purpose for your life and that’s where His Abundance will Manifest!
- That’s what I want us to captcha today, Salvation is free (we cannot warn it or deserve it)
- But we need to by GRACE through FAITH walk into HIS ABUNDANCE!
Hebrews 13:20-21 NLT “Now may the God of peace— who brought up from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, and ratified an eternal covenant with his blood— “may he equip you with all you need for doing his will. May he produce in you, through the power of Jesus Christ, every good thing that is pleasing to him. All glory to him forever and ever! Amen.”
- JESUS has gone ahead of us to PREPARE the WAY, then He initiates the process of RESTORING OUR SOULS (It is part of your spirit) but in particular it’s your MIND, WILL & EMOTIONS….
- It’s we’re the enemy battles the most and tries his utmost to establish a foothold in peoples lives…
John 10:10-11 NKJV “The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly. “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd gives His life for the sheep.”
John 10:10 TPT “A thief has only one thing in mind—he wants to steal, slaughter, and destroy. But I have come to give you everything in abundance, more than you expect —life in its fullness until you overflow!”
- Satan will attempt to get you into a place of defeat…
- Get you believing you don’t have enough, get you operating out of your own soul, because then His in CONTROL!
- You are either RESISTING HIM or ASSISTING HIM, you choose
II Timothy 2:23-26 NKJV “But avoid foolish and ignorant disputes, knowing that they generate strife. And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all, able to teach, patient, in humility correcting those who are in opposition, if God perhaps will grant them repentance, so that they may know the truth, and that they may come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, having been taken captive by him to do his will.”
- He has power (limited) but he has no authority, that’s why he needs yours..
III John 1:2-4 NKJV “Beloved, I pray that you may prosper in all things and be in health, just as your soul prospers. For I rejoiced greatly when brethren came and testified of the truth that is in you, just as you walk in the truth. I have no greater joy than to hear that my children walk in truth.”
NOW that’s the True Vision, every believer a leader, every leader a disciple maker, step into that and you step into HIS ABUNDANCE ….!
What mental movies are you playing in your head today? Are they thoughts of defeat and despair or thoughts of victory and favor? Faith is simply saying what God says about you and seeing what God sees in you and your situation.
It takes a thought to heal a thought. Unlike the world, which teaches you to empty your mind to achieve peace, God’s way is to fill your mind with fresh, powerful, and redeeming thoughts.
The apostle Paul tells us, “Fix your thoughts on what is true, and honorable, and right, and pure, and lovely, and
Hebrews 13:20-21 TPT “Now may the God who brought us peace by raising from the dead our Lord Jesus Christ so that he would be the Great Shepherd of his flock; and by the power of the blood of the eternal covenant may he work perfection into every part of you giving you all that you need to fulfill your destiny. And may he express through you all that is excellent and pleasing (BEAUTIFUL) to him through your life-union with Jesus the Anointed One who is to receive all glory forever! Amen!”
- NO WANT / SEE THE ABUNDANCE WITHIN YOU
- We are naturally conscious of lack, but Jesus isn’t.
- Even in the midst of lack, He was always conscious of abundance. (Remember the little boy’s five loaves and two fish)?
God has provided “Abundantly” for us In Christ
Psalm 36:8 NKJV / Abundant JOY
John 10:10 NKJV / Abundant LIFE
2 Corinthians 9:8 NKJV / Abundant GRACE
Ephesians 3:20 NKJV / Abundant POWER
Philippians 4:19 NKJV / Abundant SUPPLY
2 Peter 1:11 NKJV / Abundant ENTRANCE
